Carmilla Reading ResponseCarmilla by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu is a story about two young women from different walks of life. One of the two young ladies, named Laura, plays the role of the narrator and the victim. She begins her story by describing her life and why she was so easily influenced by the antagonist Carmilla. Laura lives with her father, an English widower, retired from the Austrian service. Laura also mentions the other residents in her home, her housekeepers, who cared for her after her mother's death. “My rulers had as much control over me as one might imagine such wise people would have had in the case of a rather spoiled girl, whose only parent almost allowed her to have her own way in everything” (1). With this description of Laura, we learn that she can be easily influenced and exploited by someone who has seen the world. Similar to when a sheltered child gains some form of freedom from home and finds himself entangled with the “wrong crowd”. Ultimately the results are usually detrimental to the character. According to the story, Laura introduces another character, General Spielsdorf, who is a close friend of Laura's father. The general sends a letter apologizing for not being able to meet Laura and her father due to the mysterious death of his niece, Bertha Rheinfeldt. Bertha was supposed to be the companion of the lonely Laura for some time. “I have lost my dear daughter…she died in the peace of innocence and in the glorious hope of a blessed future” (8). The general gives a description of a beautiful monster, which he believed was the cause of Bertha's death, before abruptly ending the letter. In the letter, the general wrote: “The demon who betrayed our infatuated… middle of paper… Odman's axe, and set in motion. Seeing him, his features underwent a brutal change” (72). From her response we can only assume that Carmilla recognized the general. Carmilla was never seen again after that ordeal. The way he attacks his victims is similar to the way he gains their trust. It slowly lures them into a relationship they often deny, before slowly starting to suck their lives dry, literally. Carmilla is the seductress and assassin par excellence. Her otherworldly beauty and captivating personality would put anyone at ease, ensuring they would not suspect anything on her part that had to do with cruelty or terror. She also deceives people by pretending to be the victim herself. Carmilla has no respect for the lives she has destroyed or the relationships she forms with these young girls. His only concern is staying fit and feeling good.