Category: 2021 Blog Post

Throughout the novel so far, I think there has been an emphasis on the power that the supernatural holds. I decided to close read a passage on page 113, “I am here to do Your bidding, Master. I am Your slave, and You will reward me, for I shall be faithful. I have worshipped You long and afar off. Now that You are near, I await Your commands, and You will not pass me by, will You, dear Master, in Your distribution of good things?) I noted the usage of capitalization on “you” throughout this passage as a connection to the way God is capitalized in religious writings. I thought that the word usage related to a religious-like figure, such as; “faithful”, “worshipped”, “commands”, “distribution of good things”, and “reward me” all show the supernatural power that Dracula holds. It shows the submission that Redfield has toward Dracula, and I think that it also shows the absolute adoration that Renfield, and these other “victims,” have toward him. I think that this passage relates to the fear of the supernatural and its control, but also maybe to the foreign. Dracula, a foreign character who also had a supernatural aspect to him, has control over people like people in the Victorian era hadn’t heard of before. I think all of this is Stoker playing off of the people in these times fear of the unknown, and he portrays Dracula as a regular man that has a different side to him that can be dangerous, and dominant.   

Bram Stoker’s Dracula draws upon Victorian fears, asking ‘what happens to vulnerable women’ when the “foreign” become immersed within society. In laying out this argument, the vulnerability of women is perhaps best captured by Stokers’ depiction of Lucy on the East Cliff; a scene in which Mina is determined to reach her sleepwalking friend (101).

Stoker’s utilization of a binary between the “white” and “black” elements within this scene helps to accentuate the stark contrast between the purity and goodness of Lucy and the evil and darkness of an unknown figure (whom unbeknownst to Mina is Dracula) (101). These light and dark elements intersect when the “long and black,” figure of Dracula is depicted “bending over the half-reclining white figure” of Lucy, a moment that may warrant an interpretation suggesting that Lucy’s purity has been corrupted and that some sort of defilement has occurred (101). At this moment, Mina calls out to Lucy and sees the “white face and red, gleaming eyes” of the figure that had been standing over her, introducing a secondary purpose of Stoker’s use of the black and white binary (101). Specifically, the contrast between the “black” and “white” used to paint the scene and Dracula’s “red” eyes makes this moment climactic. Stoker is not only able to justify the “shadowy” figure of Dracula while keeping his “beastly” features hidden from Mina, but he is also able to elicit a strong sense of fear in the minds of Victorian readers – a fear linked to the threat of things foreign (101).

In a time of Imperialism and superiority, the Victorians were afraid of foreign ideas becoming inseparable from their own practices. Dracula’s ideas of normalcy (i.e., sucking the blood out of vulnerable women like Lucy) are likely representative of Stoker’s take on a (hopefully) “foreign” Victorian custom that – through vampirism – has the potential to permeate within Victorian practices. Additionally, Stoker’s choice of Mina as the narrator was likely intentional. Mina moves from first being confused between seeing Dracula’s figure as a “man or beast” (equating beastliness to Dracula’s foreignness) to being primarily concerned with protecting Lucy’s “poor condition” from being witnessed (101). One may argue that Mina, in attempting to protect Lucy from Dracula, was both looking out for her safety, but as importantly her Victorian virtue and values. Perhaps Dracula finds he cannot be both a “stranger” and a “master” after all (27).

Dracula has proven in the first part of the book to have a way of transfixing his “victims”. Not only this, but Dracula also accomplishes this “controlling” through permeating their subconscious and the harm or pain that is caused by him is forgotten about by his victims, in particular Lucy. Dracula’s ability to transfix his victims and the repetition of “tiny pin-pricks” “cannot leave a scar” in this passage shows that he’s able to slip in and out of people minds without much knowledge or recognition from them. What is particularly interesting about this subconscious work of Dracula is that while it isn’t noticed or thought about by Lucy (or any other victim) it is certainly noticed and worried about by the “conscious” characters (like Mina), which further emphasizes the point that Dracula transfixes his victim. This is shown when Mina says, “I must have pinched up a piece of loose skin and have transfixed it, (103)”. This use of the word transfixed has a very different connotation in my mind than it seems to have here and coupled with the fact that Mina didn’t cause this injury (even though initially she’s convinced she did and apologizes profusely to Lucy) just goes to show that Dracula clearly has a way of subtly (or not so subtly in some cases) controlling his victims. Not only this, but the idea that it goes unnoticed or is “not even felt” by his victims is also intriguing. The fact that a supernatural figure, like Dracula is trying to stay unnoticed but is still somehow becoming discovered, is something I think will be pertinent throughout the rest of the novel. In the passage the size of Lucy’s neck wounds is mentioned multiple times, describing the wounds as, “pin-pricks, tiny, and drops” (103). This language is showing that Dracula’s “transfixiation” is so small it’s not easily recognized or is simply forgotten despite the fact that when Lucy regains consciousness, these wounds are still very apparent and as Mina describes “might have been serious” (103), despite being what she thought was a pinprick. Lucy’s wounds and condition are only noticed by Mina and Lucy’s doctors even when they are apparent. This is curious because you would think that a wound that isn’t healing would be at least painful enough to notice it, yet only the people to notice and be concerned are those who have not been controlled in any way by Dracula, furthering the point that his control over his victims alters their conscious behaviors.

Throughout Bram Stoker’s Dracula, we are given many detailed descriptions of characters, whether they are important to the story or not. I find Stoker’s descriptions both interesting and confusing. He himself being a foreigner, writes foreigners in a seemingly unfavorable light. One particularly thought-provoking moment is when Dracula shares with Harker his desires to master the English language. Harker recounts the conversation:

“Well, I know that, did I move and speak in your London, none there are who would not know me for a stranger. That is not enough for me. Here I am noble. I am a Boyar. The common people know me, and I am master. But a stranger in a strange land, he is no one. Men know him not, and to know not is to care not for… I have been so long master that I would be master still, or at least that none other should be master of me” (27). 

Words that are repeated more than once include: know, stranger, and master. Dracula cannot live without having power over others. He sees himself as more important and deserving of honor than other people; in fact, he feels entitled to it. He distinguishes himself from humans, conveying how void of humanity he really is. His sole use of masculine pronouns when describing the “common people” suggests that he is only concerned about the opinions of men. He finds manipulating women easier and need not worry about their reactions. 

I think Dracula’s attitude here somewhat reflects the mindset many immigrants (including Stoker) had during that time period. Not much dealing with needing absolute control over others, but to fit in with the general public would make their lives immensely more tolerable. They might have felt entitled to the same treatment native English people received, but unlike Dracula, had no means to change their situation. 

The passage gives the sense that Dracula believes English culture is superior to his own, and himself superior to all others. Perhaps this could help explain Stoker’s true thoughts on foreigners, but it is still very much unclear. Dracula is supposed to be viewed as undeniably pure evil, and his corrupting influence on others could reflect fears of foreign culture replacing English culture. Then again, Van Helsing is also a foreigner, but a force of good. The fact that some foreign cultures are seen as more acceptable than others adds an interesting layer to the novel. 

The passage I have chosen to close read is almost all of page 45. During one of his nights with the Count, Jonathan finds himself surrounded by three women as he is falling asleep. Immediately, Jonathan goes on to state how beautiful each of the women are. As he continues to describe their beauty and all of the things he wishes they would do to him, it becomes clear to the reader that Jonathan also has other thoughts about the approaching women. For every comment Jonathan makes about his lust for them, he counters it with a thought of how much fear they put in him. Eventually, Jonathan even slowly becomes aware of the monster like qualities that the women posses. However, he continues to desire them.

I believe this is due to the women having a supernatural power over Jonathan. I feel that Jonathan’s true thoughts during the encounter are those of fear and unease, but due to some supernatural ability those warning thoughts are blocked out by those of sexual arousal. This makes sense due to Jonathan’s initial thoughts being sexual but then immediately followed with warnings for himself. This could be Stoker making a reference to the idea that women have power over men through their beauty. This theme was present in Lady Audley’s secret at Lady Audley herself used her beauty to gain a position of power. Seeing as this is a common theme in other stories, I could easily see it present in this one. It could possibly refer to women being able to manipulate men into not noticing their terrifying true intentions. While for Victorians this could be something more realistic such as gaining power through a marriage, in Dracula their intentions are much more monstrous as they desire to kill Jonathan for his blood.

Bram Stoker uses the gothic tenant of power to question the Empire’s rule, and whether the power England holds is beneficial to the people. At the Captains funeral Mina describes a man and his dog that often watch the boats. Mina notices how “[t]hey are both quiet persons, and [she] never saw the man angry, nor heard the dog bark” (97). Establishing the man and the dog as being a quiet duo not only characterize them, but also shows the mood of the funeral: a quiet and dark place. However, “[d]uring the service the dog would not come to its master, who was on the seat with us, but kept a few yards off, barking and howling. Its master spoke to it gently, and then harshly, and then angrily. But it would neither come nor cease to make a noise” (97). This quick shift in the mans and dogs behavior creates an eerie mood within the reader. The man’s reaction to the dogs barking demonstrates his need for control. Him speaking to the dog first “gently” and then making his way up to “angrily” speaking to the dog shows how when things get out of the ordinary, he feels the need to yell to be in control. This want for power is also shown through the repetition of “master.” This shows that the man sees himself in a position of power; he is the dog’s master so, when the dog disobeys him he is unable to control himself. His uncontrollable nature rises to a peak when he kicks and drags the dog to the seat, the dog “did not try to get away, but crouched down, quivering and cowering…” (98). The dog is now too terrified of the man to leave or even disobey him. The man effectively locks the dog as a prisoner in order to maintain his power. This demonstrates the power tenant of the gothic, as there is such a want to maintain power that the man would rather make his dog a prisoner than lose any bit of power. This want to maintain power is similar to questions that were raging among England in the Victorian era. As the Empire was growing people began to question it, seeing the Empire not as the almighty they were brought up to believe it was. Stoker is using the man as a symbol for the Empire, and the dog as a symbol for the questioning people. This shows  that although the Empire might try to speak “gently” to the people, they will ultimately feel overpowered causing them to imprison and harm the people to maintain their master status.  

The passage I have selected is in the middle of p. 27 in Chapter 2. After marking up the text and asking some questions about what was being said, I noted the evidence in this passage. The first thing I see is that Dracula is obsessed with the binary between stranger and master and that he wishes to be a master and not a stranger. There is also a major contradiction in what he wants. By this, I mean he wants to be a Master and have that count recognition and respect at the same time, but he also doesn’t want to stand out in any way or make himself an outcast. Then, Dracula talks about how important language and accent is in relation to him feeling as a “stranger.” He asks for help to learn the English intonation in his new estate in London and be told every time he makes an error, “even of the smallest.”

Considering this evidence, the passage explains a deep insecurity and confusion within Dracula. He wants to be different and have unique respect, but he doesn’t wan’t to be an outcast. He wants to be a master, but his biggest fear is being a stranger (the two are not that much different.” He even says, “the common people know me, I am a monster,” only to say he feels like a stranger right after. This juxtaposition is present throughout the entire passage. He also sounds powerless and incapable in this passage as he is relying completely on his friend and he admits he cannot learn this by himself and that he is “no one as a stranger in a strange land.” Relating to what we talked about in class, Dracula feeling foreign and outcasted is due to England’s superior national mindset with social Darwinism and age of empire themes at play.

Bram Stoker’s “Dracula” effectively utilizes the gothic tenant of the uncanny to urge his readers to reflect on the value they place on their own domestic lives. Following Mina’s reunion with her now recovering fiancé, Jonathan, she enquires about his health to the nurse who has been looking after his treatment.  

The nurse’s immediate reaction is to her questioning is to assure Mina that Jonathan has remained faithful to her while she was abroad saying “you, as his wife to be, have no cause to be concerned. He has not forgotten you or what he owes to you. His fear was of great and terrible things, which no mortal can treat of” (114 Stoker). Her first comment is a direct reference to the domestic of Jonathan and Mina’s relationship status, emphasizing his loyalty through the allusion to the marriage laws of the time period with the statement “he has not forgotten you or what he owes to you” (114 Stoker). By doing this, the nurse asserts that not only has he remained faithful, but his illness will not impede their plans for marriage as he has previously pledged to carry out. This is then used as a backdrop for the following phrase of “his fear of great and terrible things, which no mortal can treat of” (114 Stoker). The escalating language of “great and terrible” being used to describe his experiences abroad, paired with a reference to the presence of the supernatural in this moment with the description that “no mortal” can help his malady. The use of the phrase “no mortal” implies the existence of other worldly forces at odds with Jonathan. The juxtaposition of the concern over Jonathan’s fidelity and his terrifying experiences with the supernatural is almost comical. The readers know that Jonathan has just been through a series of traumatic events and yet his partner is more focused on his loyalty to her than his wellbeing. This comparison draws attention to the real-life domestic’s concern with seemingly trivial subjects in light of such a situation. I believe that Stoker is using this moment to point out societal unrelenting focus on interpersonal relationships even in the chaos of constant change that typified the Victorian era.            

In Bram Stoker’s Dracula, many hints to sexuality can be found. While it may seem that this is limited to a heteronormative form of sexuality, the text is not free of homoeroticism. In the passage after the three ladies tried to seduce Jonathan, Dracula shouts: “How dare you touch him, any of you? How dare you cast eyes on him when I had forbidden it? Back, I tell you all! This man belongs to me! Beware how you meddle with him, or you’ll have to deal with me” (Stoker 46).

This passage proves that Dracula becomes territorial or even jealous when it comes to Jonathan. By forbidding the women to “touch” or even only to “cast eyes on him”, Dracula claims Jonathan for himself. That nobody is even allowed to look at him shows that the count is very sensitive about Jonathan’s contact to other people. The rhetorical questions and exclamation points emphasize that he is very serious and enraged about the women trying to be in close sexual context with Jonathan. It is also revealing that Dracula would forbid the women to have anything to do with Jonathan in the first place. Furthermore, Dracula demands for the women do go back and threatens that they would have to “deal with” him, in case that they would lay hands on him again.

This is followed by a claim from the women that Dracula was unable to love which he denies. That the word “love” is brought up multiple times is surprising because the passage about Jonathan and the women was mainly about desire and fear, as we discussed in class. The shift towards Dracula’s ability to love raises the question of why it is important in the situation and what Jonathan has to do with it. Additionally, Dracula is not specific about the gender of his previous love affairs. The simple conclusion would be: Dracula feels homoerotic love (or at least affection) towards Jonathan which leads to jealousy when Jonathan desires women.

The story of Dracula investigates the safety of the domestic, which is threatened by the unknown. This reflects the fears of the Victorian era, as imperialism raised worries about the dangers of the foreign. The character of Dracula is the centermost example of this binary, but it is explored as well in various other characters and scenes.

In Chapter 7, a newspaper excerpt provides the log of the Demeter, the mysterious ship that arrived in Whitby’s harbor after a horrendous storm. The log chronicles the ship’s journey, throughout which members of the crew disappeared one by one. At midnight on August 2^nd, the captain writes that yet another crew member was lost. He also describes how the ship was wreathed in a dense fog that had seemingly followed them for days. Though the first mate once caught a glimpse of their surroundings through the fog, the ship was nearly completely lost. At the end of the entry, the captain writes that God had abandoned them (Stoker 94).

The repeated mention of the “fog,” which is impossible to see through and seems to move with them, indicates an element of mystery and eeriness, as well as a possibility of something supernatural. This is very evocative of the Gothic. By contrast, there is a repeated reference to “God” or “The Lord,” which sets up a binary against the idea of something potentially unholy. There are multiple sources of unholiness around the ship: the paranormal fog and the evil force that is lurking on board, Dracula. Since the beginning of the novel, Dracula has been set up as a sort of anti-God, such as how the presence of the crucifix wards him off. This is reinforced at the end of this passage when the captain writes, “God seems to have deserted us” (Stoker 94). Dracula represents an evil so unholy that God Himself has abandoned ship, literally. Between the fog and the malevolent spirit on board, the setting has already been illustrated as unordinary, and yet there is the additional aspect of the sea. The sea is supposed to be the sailor’s safe haven, their familiar territory, but now it is a place of danger and extreme unfamiliarity. The fog itself creates a literal barrier between the doomed ship and the real world. This vignette parallels what happened to Jonathan Harker; the sailors’ journey began as a seemingly ordinary excursion into what should be familiar territory, but instead they were entrapped and cut off from the rest of reality, and preyed upon by a monster. Overall, this passage illustrates a recurring theme throughout the book: the contrast between the familiar and the unknown, the domestic and the foreign, the friend and the stranger.