Gothic Elements In Dracula Essay

How Bram Stoker Uses Gothic Conventions to Create an Atmosphere of Suspense and Fear for the Reader

In literature there are many different genres, one of the older and more established genre is the horror genre. This genre has been known for beyond centuries. Since humanity has existed we have always had an urge to be scared. It has always been exciting to get a so called “adrenaline shock”. In today’s society there are a lot more options to get the adrenalin pumping such as skydiving or bungee-jumping etc. Before all this technology came in hand people told horror stories to each other. One of the most mentioned horror stories is probably Dracula. The original story is written by Bram Stoker and has been adapted for the screen as an American romantic horror film directed and produced by Francis Ford Coppola. On the following pages, I have analyzed the horror film “Dracula”.

Have you ever thought to yourself, what has influenced vampire literature today? Well, neither have I, but it wouldn’t hurt to touch on the subject. Dracula introduces the idea of lust and death within vampirism. Also, there are many connections that I make throughout this essay between Dracula and I am Legend, proving that Dracula was an influence on the book. The opposition of Dracula has had great influences on vampire literature.We see that these two pieces of literature are so much similar than one would think. Both authors even use similar words to describe the similar things, which I hadn’t even noticed until I made further inspection. .The book Dracula, written by

Bram Stokers, Dracula, from the late-Victorian era, is one of the best stories of vampire folklore. Dracula was tall, dark, handsome, and mysterious with immense sexual character. His snow white teeth which outlined his rosy red lips made us fantasize of him and ultimately become obsessed. The overwhelming fascination of Stoker’s novel has created individuals to overlook the true metaphoric mechanism behind the story. “Technologies of Monstrosity: Bram Stoker’s “Dracula””, Judith Halberstam points out the metaphor in which Dracula was created.

With castles, hidden streets, waterways, recurring rainy weather, interesting European architecture, and mystique, London is the perfect location for Bram Stoker's Dracula. London: The capital of Great Britain, and the center of attention in the nineteenth century, due to the many incidents that were going on at the time. The novel includes many daunting scenes, such as when Dracula heaves a sack withholding a deceased child before three female vampires. It is no surprise why he choose London to be the setting of his novel. London is "exotic" and unknown. Stoker is obviously inspired by London's castles, hidden streets, and church yards. Because of all of these points, London is the perfect gothic setting for Stoker's “Dracula.”

Are there still connections between Bram Stokers famous novel Dracula and modern day society? In Dracula, Stoker expands on many themes that indeed exist today. Not only does he touch on the most obvious theme, sex. He expands on gender division and good versus evil. Some say since times have changed the themes I introduced have changed as well, leaving connections between then and now irrelevant. However, I feel that although times have changed they still have roots from the time of the novel to now. In this essay I will expand on the themes of this novel while connecting them to modern day society, the critical texts I have chosen and will mention later on in the essay are a good representation of the commonalities between the chill, dark Victorian days in which the era that Dracula was written in and modern day.

   With castles, hidden streets, waterways, recurring rainy weather, interesting European architecture, and mystique, London is the perfect location for Bram Stoker's Dracula. London: The capital of Great Britain, and the center of attention in the nineteenth century, due to the many incidents that were going on at the time. The novel includes many daunting scenes, such as when Dracula heaves a sack withholding a deceased child before three female vampires. Stoker may have been influenced by London's numerous enticements; it is no surprise why he choose it to be the setting of his novel, London seems to be "exotic" and unknown. Stoker is obviously inspired by London's castles, hidden

“But I am not in heart to describe beauty, for when I had seen the view I had explored further, doors, doors, doors everywhere, and it’s all locked and bolted. In no place safe from the windows in the castle walls is there an available exit. The castle is a veritable prison, and I am a prisoner!” (36). Harker is realizing that he is no longer surrounded by a humble house but is now surrounded by a prison. Before Harker even arrives to the castle he is slightly alarmed on his trip over there by the surroundings. He got to endure the mysterious country that Transylvania had to offer. The trip even offers an encounter with a vicious pack of wolves. The whole trip he wrote notes of how creepy the place was. It’s just like when the music starts to play in a scary movie, you know something scary is about to happen. The unnerving surrounds foreshadow that something cruel or wicked is about to happen and this influences the gothic mood as

Bram Stoker 's Dracula, presents an interesting perspective on death and illness in the Victorian period. This can be viewed as a creativity on Stoker 's part, or as a form of religious or social commentary on his changing era. There are several flaws presented throughout the novel as the plot unfolds, which are: characters in the novel dismiss the old traditional belief of the supernatural, the constant power struggle between the sexes and the Victorian views on sexuality. The supernatural or metaphysical aspects presented in Dracula reflect the tragic flaws of the patriarchal society during the Victorian Era.

Bram Stoker’s Dracula remains one of the more recognizable novels of its genre despite being published in 1897. A classic horror story which has been retold and produced over and over again since its original publication, Dracula was especially disturbing when it originally was released because of how Stoker attacks Victorian era social mores and norms throughout the entire novel. Stoker subverts traditional 19th Century social mores and norms in Dracula through the portrayal of sexually aggressive and assertive females, Jonathan and Mina’s relationship, and the inverse of Maternity.

Bram Stoker’s Gothic novel, Dracula, intrigues us in a well plotted story and reveals to us the power in Dracula and how that very forbidden power takes control of both men and women.

Thesis: Stoker’s gothic classic Dracula was a parallel to his life due to abusive environments, toxic relationships, and literary works in the surrounding area.

The Gothic horror novel Dracula by Bram Stoker introduced a new literary taste in the Victorian era, one that tends to be one of the most-read literary genres to this age. The novel excavates several themes like role of women in the Victorian society, immigration, sexual conventions, colonization and post-colonialism. Dracula has been a subject to major literary criticism upon its release and its controversial portrayals tend to be a part of modern literary discussion as well. The novel received acclaim from literary critics on being one of the best pieces of gothic horror fiction of the century.

Bram Stoker's Dracula is one of the most renowned British novels of all time. It has left its marks on many aspects of literature and film. Many thematic elements are present throughout the story and have been interpreted in many ways. Stoker uses his characters to manifest the themes that he wishes to imply. Three themes that present themselves throughout the book are the theme of Christian Redemption, science and technology, and sexual expression.

In select gothic literature, anxieties of the times in which they were written tend to surface through important themes, characters and settings. Frankenstein written by Mary Shelley in 1818 and Dracula written by Bram Stoker in 1897 both share this characteristic by working through the anxieties of modernity, here meaning “the condition of being modern” , specifically between new world science and technology versus old world spirituality and faith. This manifests predominantly as the old traditional values of Europe contrasting with the rapid and modern changes within England which provides a point of contention between the two worlds. Therefore, within this essay I will argue that both Frankenstein and Dracula were written to negotiate