Gender Roles In Bram Stoker's Dracula

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Bram Stoker’s Dracula was written during the Victorian era in which females and males had different roles in society. The females in society were supposed to encompass a passive role, displaying qualities that were subservient, submissive, and innocent. Males in the Victorian era were seen as the strong and hard-working head of the family and had the freedom to do what they pleased. The men and women in Dracula display some of these conventional characteristics, yet both genders depart from them in significant ways. There are two types of women portrayed in this novel; one is Lucy, who is considered to be the ideal Victorian woman. The second type is the vampire women, who represent the “New” or modern woman. The “New Woman” is physically, …show more content…

The men treat Mina as if she is inferior to them by eliminating her free will and neglecting her in conversations when trying to defeat Dracula, even though she made it possible to find him in the first place. The men tend to think that they know what is best for Mina without giving her the option to contemplate situations for herself. Van Helsing, encouraging the rest of the men to leave Mina out, states “we men are determined…but it is no part for a woman…And, besides, she is young woman and not so long married; there may be other things to think of some time, if not now” (207). Van Helsing justifies his actions because Mina is a woman and overlooks her contributions that have led them closer to Dracula. Howes suggests that the men treat Mina this way because they are anxious that her involvement will lead to demolishing their superior role in society (114). They push Mina to return to her passive role and are unwilling to accept feminine equality in their community. Shortly after, the men decide that they should no longer keep secrets from Mina. Yet, once she is involved and accomplishes things that the men are unable to do, the men determine once again that it is best that she remains in the dark. This clearly indicates that the men value their superior status in society over gender equality. Mina never disobeys the men for excluding her because she has always been submissive to male authority. Instead, she sees this as the men’s eagerness to protect her. This is ironic because, while the men leave Mina alone to find Dracula, it is easier for him to start the process of transitioning her into a vampire. Their hostile treatment to Mina is a result of maintaining their superiority and their inability to adapt to modern

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