Dracula and the Mafia

1882 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Morality in literature

“If we fail in this our fight he must surely win; and then where end we? Life is nothings…but to fail here is not mere life or death. It is that we become as him; that we hence forward become foul things of the night like him–without heart or conscience, preying on the bodies and the souls of those we love best” (Stoker 253). With these words Van Helsing explains that it is a human impulse to destroy the other out of fear of becoming the other. Dracula’s otherness frightens Van Helsing because he represents the destruction of human moral. If he does not kill the other, he will ultimately become the other capable of infinite evils. If we are to remain as moral individuals we must beat “the other” which seeks to destroy us. In essence it is the notion “kill or be killed”. To save ourselves, we must kill the other.

Like Dracula, the Mafia represents the other in the 20th century. The Mafia is foreign, in other words, their origin is different from mainstream Americans. Their organization is ruthless as well as exclusive, and they live outside the law. We have the fear that they will control us, and due to that fear, we must destroy and control them. In a way, the Mafia is the ultimate vampire of modern day society because they invoke fear, repulsion and anxiety much like the reactions felt by Jonathan Harker, Van Helsing, Mina and the other vampire hunters in Stoker’s Dracula. Both vampires and the Mafia appeal to our most private selves through sexuality, they operate with the greatest power at night, and run their organizations in a parallel manner.

Dracula and the mafia are a threat to the people of the society they invade because of their ability to entice the opposite sex to be strongly attracted to them. We all know that the...

... middle of paper ...

...Cited

Catanzaro, Raimondo. “Enforcers, Entrepreneurs, and Survivors: How the Mafia has Adapted to Change.” The British Journal of Sociology 36.1: 34-57. JSTOR. Web. 15 Feb. 2011. .

Coe, Richard M. “It Takes Capital to Defeat Dracula: A New Rhetorical Essay.” College English 48.3 (1986): 231-242. JSTOR. Web. 16 Feb. 2011. .

Cressey, Donald R. “Methodological Problems in the Study of Organized Crime as a Social Problem.” Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 374: 101-112. JSTOR. Web. 15 Feb. 2011. .

Stevenson, John Allen. “A Vampire in the Mirror: The Sexuality of Dracula.” PMLA 103.2 (1988): 139-149. JSTOR. Web. 17 Feb. 2011. .

Stoker, Bram. Dracula. Ed. Maurice Hindle. N.p.: Penguin Classics, 1993. Print.

Show More
Related

  • Comparing Sexuality and Power in Dracula and Buffy the Vampire Slayer

    1644 Words  | 4 Pages

    ...sitive depiction of their sexual relationship. For Mina, however, renunciation of Dracula's evil must include the renunciation of her own physical needs and desires. The roles played by social mores and conceptions of gender and sexuality are, in the end, more than incidental. Indeed, the difference between Victorian England and 1990s America causes the subtle -- but significant -- valuation of the connections between good and evil and women and sexuality in two in many ways similar texts.

    Read More

  • Sexuality And The Vampire Analysis

    139 Words  | 1 Pages

    J. Gordon Melton, in the excerpt “Sexuality and the Vampire” published in his The Vampire Book: The Encyclopedia of the Undead (1998), explains that vampires have a sexual appearance that started from their origin in Dracula. Melton supports his statement by analyzing the monsters' transition to sexual beings through the stories of Dracula’s desires, multiple countries’ erotic tales revolving around vampire-like beings, the manifestation of sensual themes in literary, stage, and screen works, and their current evolution of the once terrified immortals to loved heroes. The purpose of this essay was to outline the seductiveness of the written immortal creatures in order to explain the fanged-mammals’ appeal beyond their terrifying monster abilities.

    Read More

  • The Dark Themes of "The Picture of Dorian Gray" and "Dracula"

    2592 Words  | 6 Pages

    In order to discuss the decline in masculinity (or manhood) and moral values, synonym of religious values in both books, it becomes necessary to define what Late-Victorian society considered them to be. In Dracula, masculinity is defined almost exclusively by contrasting it with femininity. The men in the book are praised when they show the opposite qualities that women are described as possessing. While women are shown as obedient and complacent, men are stern and in command of themselves and situations. Men are expected to protect women while women expect and cherish the protection of men. While men are expected to face the unpleasant facts of life, the darkness and the evil, with integrity and courage, women are to be sheltered from danger to avoid the breakdown of their fragile characters. When the group headed by Van Helsing starts their mission of vanishing the Count and all the dangers he brings for England, the men unanimously decide to hide all the unpleasant facts f...

    Read More

  • Foreshadowing, Mood, Mythical Parallels, and Narrative Elements in Dracula

    1445 Words  | 3 Pages

    Birge, Barbara.  "Bram Stoker's DRACULA:  The Quest for Female Potency in Transgressive Relationships."  Psychological Perspectives.  1994.  22-36.

    Read More

  • Dracula: A Simple Tale of Good vs. Evil

    1486 Words  | 3 Pages

    This fictional character was soon to be famous, and modified for years to come into movie characters or even into cereal commercials. But the original will never be forgotten: a story of a group of friends all with the same mission, to destroy Dracula. The Count has scared many people, from critics to mere children, but if one reads between the lines, Stoker’s true message can be revealed. His personal experiences and the time period in which he lived, influenced him to write Dracula in which he communicated the universal truth that good always prevails over evil. Religion was a big part of people’s lives back in Stoker’s time.

    Read More

  • Dracula and the Threat of Female Sexual Expression by Bram Stoker

    1398 Words  | 3 Pages

    The late nineteenth century Irish novelist, Bram Stoker is most famous for creating Dracula, one of the most popular and well-known vampire stories ever written. Dracula is a gothic, “horror novel about a vampire named Count Dracula who is looking to move from his native country of Transylvania to England” (Shmoop Editorial Team). Unbeknownst of Dracula’s plans, Jonathan Harker, a young English lawyer, traveled to Castle Dracula to help the count with his plans and talk to him about all his options. At first Jonathan was surprised by the Count’s knowledge, politeness, and overall hospitality. However, the longer Jonathan remained in the castle the more uneasy and suspicious he became as he began to realize just how strange and different Dracula was. As the story unfolded, Jonathan realized he is not just a guest, but a prisoner as well. The horror in the novel not only focuses on the “vampiric nature” (Soyokaze), but also on the fear and threat of female sexual expression and aggression in such a conservative Victorian society.

    Read More

  • Inverted Gender Roles: Dracula by Bram Stoker

    1455 Words  | 3 Pages

    McWhir, Anne. Pollution and Redemption in "Dracula" 3rd ed. Vol. 17. N.p.: Modern Language Studies, 1987. JSTOR. Web. 6 Jan. 2014. .

    Read More

  • Victorian Sexuality in Stoker’s Dracula, LeFanu’s Carmilla, and Polidori’s Vampyre

    1689 Words  | 4 Pages

    Bram Stoker’s Dracula illustrated fears about sexual women in contrast to the woman who respected and abided by society’s sexual norms. Joseph Sheridan LeFanu’s “Carmilla” represented not only the fear of feminine sexuality, but also the fear of sexuality between women. John William Polidori’s “The Vampyre” showed society’s fear of sexuality in terms of the seductive man who could “ruin” a young girl.These texts are representative of vampire stories in the Victorian Era, and will be the focus here.

    Read More

  • The Perversion and Triumph of Christian Ideas in Dracula

    1210 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...r of God will always prevail over that of the devil or any perversion of Christian ideals. Given the names that Dracula has, his appearance, and his action, one could properly argue that he represents the same evil that the devil presents in Christianity. Furthermore, one is able to note that the actions that Van Helsing and the others perform are able to weaken Dracula so that he eventually is powerless against them. The use of these Christian objects allows them to rid the world of Dracula and perhaps implies that in the struggle between the Christian God and the devil, or possibly even good and evil, that God, or good, will always succeed.

    Read More

  • Carmilla and Dracula

    1368 Words  | 3 Pages

    This essay will attempt to discuss the two gothic tales ‘Carmilla’ and ‘Dracula’ in relation to cultural contexts in which they exist as being presented to the reader through the gender behaviour and sexuality that is portrayed through the texts. Vampire stories always seem to involve some aspect of sexuality and power.

    Read More

  • Stoker's Portrayal of Women in "Dracula"

    1196 Words  | 3 Pages

    Similar to almost every piece of literature ever created, Dracula by Bram Stoker has been interpreted many different ways, being torn at from every angle possible. Just as one might find interest in interpreting novels differently, he or she might also find interest in the plot, prose, or theme, all of which ultimately lead to the novels overall tone. Throughout the novel, it becomes blatant that the novel contains an underlying theme of female incompetence and inferiority. Through a true feminist’s eyes, this analysis can clearly be understood by highlighting the actions of Mina and Lucy, the obvious inferior females in the book. Through Stoker’s complete and utter manipulation of Mina and Lucy, he practically forces the reader to analyze the co-existence of dominant males and inferior females in society and to simultaneously accept the fact that the actual text of Dracula is reinforcing the typical female stereotypes that have developed throughout the ages.

    Read More

  • Dracula

    894 Words  | 2 Pages

    While the character of Renfield is ostensively extraneous to the central plot of Dracula, he fulfils an important role in Stoker’s exploration of the central themes of the novel. This paper will examine how Renfield character is intertwined with the three central themes of invasion, blood and otherness. Firstly, through Renfield’s inner struggle we learn that he is ‘not his own master’ (Stoker, 211). The theme of invasion is revealed by the controlling and occupying powers of Count Dracula. Secondly, the recurring theme ‘the Blood is the Life’ (Stoker, 121), is portrayed throughout the novel and has been interpreted through Stoker’s character Renfield. Then finally, a look at the social construction of the ‘other’ in Dracula and how, through Renfield, who is ‘unlike the normal lunatic’ (Stoker, 52), the Count emerges as the ‘other’ of all ‘others’.

    Read More

  • Impurity In Dracula

    999 Words  | 2 Pages

    The novel Dracula by Bram Stoker has plentiful examples of key concepts we have examined in class including: Purity and impurity, magical thinking, strong emotions such as disgust and shame, , formalization, and myth. In this essay I will summarize events that take place within the novel when the protagonists deal with Dracula and then relate these events to the key concepts to demonstrate why the characters view him as dangerous, and therefore something to be avoided completely.

    Read More

  • Eli's Use Of Symbolism In Dracula

    1049 Words  | 3 Pages

    “Let the Right One In turns away from the representations of sexual threat and desire that have long typified – and currently dominate – vampire fiction.”3. The novel attempts to copy the significance of seduction of the ‘original’ vampire but in doing so alters the meaning of the vampire. Although the novel cuts sex from its story of love and a vampire, seduction is still represented in the novel; however, it represents a different meaning – namely the loss of innocence. In Dracula for example, women vampires are portrayed as overtly sexual beings who use their seduction as a means to advance their desire to kill. This is seen when Johathan Harker is being seduced by the Count’s three brides. “Jonathan takes on a stereotypically passive, feminine role, peering coyly through his lashes, waiting and hoping for ravishment. Of course, what he waits and hopes for isn’t necessarily what this strange and beautiful, blonde and sapphire-eyed monster intends.”3. Unlike in the case of the ‘original vampire’ idea of sexual seduction as a means of death “Let the Right One In excises sex from its tale of vampire seduction, the book has its own erotic investments, which circulate around the idealized notions of loss of childhood innocence”3 . When Oskar is kissed for the first time, he notes that he is able to have a different perspective of life and that he is able to view life through Eli’s eyes.

    Read More

  • Critical Rhetorical Analysis: “Why Vampires Never Die”

    723 Words  | 2 Pages

    The author’s op-ed piece was published in 2009, the very peak of the vampire contagion, where one could find these creatures wherever they looked. This pandemonium that arose from vampires is what drove del Toro and Hogan to pen “Why Vampires Never Die.” Furthermore, the purpose behind this essay is to give an abridged description of the past of vampires for the people who had become fanatics of the creatures. Also, this essay showed how vampires have persisted in pop culture. They suggest that vampires have been remade by diverse cultures at different times, and this change echoes that society's angst and concerns. The novelist’s imply that Stroker’s Dracula may mirror an exaggerated human on a prim...

    Read More

More about Dracula and the Mafia

Open Document