Vampires, they have sharp teeth, black capes, perfect skin and black hair, one of the key inspirations to how we see the vampire today is Bram Stoker's book Dracula, written in 1897. Over time the idea of a vampire has evolved from the standard can't go out in the sun and can only drink human blood to sparkling in the sun and can live off of a animal's blood. Either the change occurred from the evolution of writing styles or just written in a way to make a book as popular as possible. This essay will explore the idea of a vampire before and after the book Dracula was made as well as the key inspirations for the book itself. Including comparisons of how we see vampires today versus how they were seen back when Dracula was originally written.
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.
Dracula
Author:
Bram Stoker (1847-1912), a fan and friend of the playwright Henry Irving, he wrote dramatic criticism and glowing reviews of Irving's work for the local papers and finally became business manager of Henry Irving's Lyceum Theatre. During these years he wrote his greatest novel, Dracula. Stoker wrote numerous novels, short stories, essays, and lectures, but Dracula is by far his most famous work and perhaps the most well known horror novel.
Summery:
Jonathan Harker, a young English solicitor, is sent to the Eastern European country of Transylvania to conclude a real estate transaction with Count Dracula. But he ends up finding out that the count is actually a vampire and flees.
Overview
Dracula has appealed to readers for almost a century, at least in part because it deals with one of the great human conflicts: the struggle between good and evil. Stoker acknowledges the complexity of this conflict by showing good characters attracted to evil. For example, Jonathan Harker, the lawyer who journeys to Transylvania, is almost attacked at Dracula's castle by three young female vampires. In fact, he seems to be actually welcoming the attack before it is interrupted by the count. In this scene, as well as others, Stoker suggests that evil, represented by the vampires, is an almost irresistible force which requires great spiritual strength to overcome.
Bram Stoker’s Dracula had no copyright license over reprints of Stoker’s original work. However, because Stoker’s widow had obtained copyright license over theatrical productions, at the time, that also included films. Therefore, while Nosferatu is a horror film based primarily off of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, directed by F.W. Murnau, it follows an almost identical plot with the exception of the characters’ names. Although eventually, Mrs. Stoker did win an infringement lawsuit against the makers of Nosferatu. The existing copy of the film has been deemed one of the most influential reproductions of Dracula ever created and has been studied by many, using various techniques. Using Jan Perkowski’s vampire analysis for vampire folklore, Murnau’s main character in Nosferatu, Count Orlock, can be analyzed in order to articulate the most important details of the purpose of the creation of the film and origin of the legend.
Dracula is a mythical creature designed to wreak havoc on the lives of mortals through the terror and intimidation of death by bite. Vampires are undead beings that kill humans for their blood to survive. Human blood is the vampire’s sustenance, and only way of staying alive. Throughout time, humans have come up with ways to repel vampires, such as lighting jack-o-lanterns on All Hallows Eve, placing garlic around the neck, a stake through the heart, sunlight, etc. Both beings have a survival instinct, whether it be hunger or safety, both are strong emotions. In the novel Dracula by Bram Stoker, the characters Lucy, John, and Van Helsing strive for survival, therefore killing Dracula.
Dracula functions as a way to invert sexual identity of the novel through the use of vivid imagery. Through this Bram Stoker not only breaks the walls of gender barriers, but also perverts the image of an archetype mother to create a fear from the New Woman. He exposes failed motherhood through; three female vampires who sexually consume their child, Lucy who feeds off her children, and Count Dracula who taints the image of a mother perpetually to signify the dangers that a “New Woman” can bring to the society.
In the novel Dracula, Stoker uses unbelievable strength, illusions and supernatural abilities to create his diabolical vampire. The first four chapters are told through the eyes of Jonathan Harker, a young english solicitor, who is at castle Dracula to finalize a legal transaction with the Count. Throughout Jonathan’s journals, Stoker introduces the powers of the vampire one-by-one.
Stoker’s first copy of Dracula (1897) was published in the year 1887, starting the trend of vampires. It underwent numero...
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’.