{"id":998,"date":"2023-09-20T23:49:13","date_gmt":"2023-09-21T03:49:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/britishlit\/?p=998"},"modified":"2023-09-20T23:49:13","modified_gmt":"2023-09-21T03:49:13","slug":"complex-women-duality-of-mina-harker","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/britishlit\/2023\/09\/20\/complex-women-duality-of-mina-harker\/","title":{"rendered":"Complex Women: Duality of Mina Harker"},"content":{"rendered":"

During the fin de si\u00e8cle, the concept of the New Woman challenged traditional Victorian ideals of femininity. This movement celebrated women’s intellectual capabilities and independence, often in stark contrast to the prevailing notion that women were physically and intellectually inferior. In Bram Stoker’s Dracula<\/em>, we find a fascinating exploration of these ideas, particularly in the character of Mina Harker. The Longman Anthology of British Literature <\/em>introduces us to the prevailing Victorian notion of femininity, which placed women on a pedestal as nurturing and selfless beings that were primarily dedicated to serving others. This idealized woman was expected to be domestic, pure, and devoid of ambitions beyond her role as a wife and mother (Henderson & Sharpe 1061). Mina Harker, a central character in Dracula<\/em>, challenges these traditional ideals. In a passage from the novel, Professor Van Helsing remarks, “Mina! She has man\u2019s brain\u2014a brain that a man should have were he much gifted\u2014and a woman\u2019s heart. …We men are determined\u2014nay, are we not pledged?\u2014to destroy this monster; but it is no part for a woman” (Stoker 250). This quote highlights the tension between Mina’s intelligence and her perceived role as a woman. The notion of Mina having “a man’s brain” is significant. It suggests that she possesses intellectual capabilities traditionally reserved for men. This aligns with the New Woman’s assertion of their right to intellectual pursuits and ambitions that extended beyond the domestic sphere. Van Helsing’s comment encapsulates the societal conflict of the time. Despite recognizing Mina’s exceptional intelligence, he questions her involvement in the quest to destroy Dracula, implying that her gender should limit her role. This reflects the prevailing belief that women were unsuited for activities demanding strength, rationality, and determination. The juxtaposition of “a woman\u2019s heart” with “a man\u2019s brain” emphasizes Mina’s dual nature.<\/p>\n

It is also notable that Mina’s intelligence and independence are not portrayed as negative qualities. Instead, her intellect and resourcefulness are celebrated and valued by the other characters. This is in contrast to other literary works of the time, where intellectually capable women were sometimes portrayed as evil or dangerous. Mina’s character provides a positive example of a woman who is both intelligent and virtuous. In contrast to Mina, the character of Lucy can be seen as a more traditional representation of femininity. Lucy is described as beautiful, pure, and submissive, embodying the ideal Victorian woman. However, her portrayal changes drastically after she becomes a victim of Dracula’s vampiric blood-sucking. Her vampire form becomes sexually aggressive and behaves in a manner that is deemed inappropriate for a Victorian woman. The men of the novel feel that she must be spiritually saved at all costs because of her change in character. I was really interested in the idea presented in class about the men\u2019s feelings on Lucy’s transformation being interpreted as a punishment for her deviating from the conventional expectations of femininity. It suggests that while women are starting to evolve for the better, the society of the time was not ready to accept such drastic changes in gender roles and sexuality. While Lucy adheres to the traditional ideals of femininity, Mina represents the emergence of a new kind of woman who is independent, intelligent, and capable.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

During the fin de si\u00e8cle, the concept of the New Woman challenged traditional Victorian ideals of femininity. This movement celebrated women’s intellectual capabilities and independence, often in stark contrast to the prevailing notion that women were physically and intellectually inferior. In Bram Stoker’s Dracula, we find a fascinating exploration of these ideas, particularly in the … Continue reading Complex Women: Duality of Mina Harker<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4910,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[125361],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-998","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-2023-blog-post"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/britishlit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/998","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/britishlit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/britishlit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/britishlit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4910"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/britishlit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=998"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/britishlit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/998\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/britishlit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=998"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/britishlit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=998"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/britishlit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=998"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}