According to How to Read Literature like a Professor, “the essentials of a vampire story: an older figure representing corrupt, outworn values; a young, preferably virginal female; a stripping away of her youth, energy, virtue, a continuance of the life force of the old male; the death or destruction of the young woman.” (Foster 19) These elements are present in Room, as Old Nick (Ma’s captor) serves as her vampire figure. When Ma is 19, Old Nick abducts her from a parking lot and locks her in a storage shed outfitted to live in. Ma is the youthful, energetic, virtuous character that the vampire feeds off of. Old Nick rapes the young girl, and impregnates her twice. Ma’s health also deteriorates during her seven years of imprisonment because of Old Nick. Obviously, she emerges from her time in Room a completely changed woman. Old Nick has killed her old self and she no longer represents youth, energy, or virtue. The author choses not to include Old Nick’s story to make him seem less human and therefore a stronger vampire figure. Luckily, he is not able to completely consume Ma, as she is able to escape, forcing him to rot away in jail.