Letter To Hon. Arthur Holmwood: An Analysis

Van Helsing takes great care and delicacy in proving that the vampire threat is real to his companions, taking a group of men to see for themselves that Lucy had turned into evil undead. To prove to the men that vampires are real, Van Helsing forces the men to see Lucy, whose eyes are “unclean and full of hell-fire” causing Dr. Seward to feel “the remnant of [his] love [pass] into pure hate and loathing” (Stoker 181). Van Helsing is truly brilliant, because after seeing Lucy in her state of ‘un-death’, the men are all ready to listen to him and act against the vampire threat. Van Helsing himself even admits that “at the first [he] was the sceptic” but learned to accept and deal with vampires “through long years [of training himself] to keep an open mind” (Stoker 203). Van Helsing is explaining how he is not insane, but rather more experienced and open minded.

Where there is evil, there is good in the darkest shadow. Van helsing as the antagonist is the most threating adversary towards Count Dracula in the novel “Dracula” by Bram Stoker. In many novels, the protagonist is the main character who is usually a hero and the antagonist is the character who opposes them, however in this novel “Dracula,” the protagonist is a demon from the pits of hell while the antagonist is the hero who opposes the evil creature. Vanhelsing’s role as the antagonist is seen through specific events of conflict, characterization of both Dracula and Vanhelsing, and the theme of where there is evil, good arises to fight.

The book describes how Lucy Westerna is a nice young woman and her best friend is Mina Murray. She is the first one to fall under Dracula’s spell. She is a good character because even though she got transformed into a Vampire she still tried to do everything that she could to help the others stop Dracula while she was not under Draculas spell, she was really cooperative with Dr. Van Helsing when he tried to hypnotize her to find out where Dracula was and that was a very important part in helping to stop Dracula because it was able to show them were Dracula was and helps them find out what he is trying to do at the time and she was not truly evil at heart like Dracula is. Eventually Lucy’s body returns back to normal with the help of Dr. Van Helsing and the others when they defeated Dracula.

I believe that Jourdon Anderson responded in a fair way. He went through so much being a slave and all he wants in return is money to help his family. He doesn’t make a lot of money to help support him and his family and give them the life they deserve. I think it's only fair for his former slave owner to pay him for his work and hard doing. If he’s really a changed guy then he’ll respect Jourdon’s wishes. If my former slave owner asked me to come back to work for him, I wouldn’t. I would kindly respond to him asking for a fair amount of money, saying goodbye and wishing him a happy life. I wouldn’t want to be harsh in the letter, I’ll accept what happened to me and move on to living a good life without being a slave and told what to do. I’ll

The letters to Birmingham puts in my in the mind of the letters sent church in Corinth by Paul. Just as word reach Paul in that same manner so did it with Dr. King which in both instance they both stopped to take a moment and address the situation at hand. ( 1 Corinthians, KJV) In each letter the meaning behind them was to bring awareness and understanding to the people around them. Letters to Corinth was written because the people in the community had fallen in serious moral dilemma. ( https://www.biblegateway.com/ ) This is where I feel these two come together the letter are here to give a platform the writers in orer for them to bring salvation.

Context- Grover Cleveland responds to a request from Anderson to attend a Reform Club of New York meeting. He is unable to go but still expresses his feelings for the cause. He still wants to enforce the Gold Standard and does not want to fall back to the free coinage of silver.

These women have strong sexual powers, to which they use to their advantage in dangering men with their reasoning. Nearing the end of Dracula the three brides are brought back into focus. When even Van Helsing, the strong doctor and picturesque example of what a Victorian male was expected to be, hesitates because “She was so fair to look on, so radiantly beautiful, so exquisitely voluptuous, that the very instinct of man in me, which calls some of my sex to love and to protect one of hers, made my head whirl with new emotion.” This heightens the danger over the women’s control and influence over men as even the knowledgeable and powerful

To understand these letters one must understand that the time period they were written in was influenced by social class, exuberance, and character. Both authors talked about things that could affect their image is significantly when maintaining a respectable place in society.

Two characters that should be brought to the light are Count Dracula and Van Helsing. Count Dracula, or Dracula for short, is an old vampire as well as a Transylvania citizen. Since he is a vampire he is possessed with a dark entity. This curse comes with both powers and burdens. As a vampire he is able to shape-shift to any animal he wants, control the weather, and has the strength of about 20 men. Some of the burdens that comes with this is that he can’t enter a victim’s house without being invited in, can’t cross water without being held, and becomes weak when in presence of sunlight. “I bent over him, and tried to find any sign of life, but in vain” (pg. 52 – 53). “Between me and the moonlight flitted a great bat, coming and going great, whirling circles” (pg. 103). “The blood is the life” (pg. 156). Van Helsing is a Dutch professor who is described as a philosopher, a metaphysician, and one of the most advanced

John Seward and Arthur Holmwood. After Lucy’s death, Van Helsing goes to convince Dr. Seward the true fate of Lucy after her death. They go to the cemetery where they watch over Lucy’s tomb. When Van Helsing shows Dr. Seward Lucy’s empty casket, Dr. Seward did not understand nor believe the point that Van Helsing attempts to prove to him about Lucy now being a vampire. He tells Van Helsing: “’Perhaps a body-snatcher,’ I suggested. ‘Some of the undertaker’s people has stolen it.’ I felt that I was speaking folly and yet it was the only real cause that I could suggest” (212). With this repudiation, along with the perforated neck wounds of the children appearing after Lucy’s death, Dr. Seward still does not believe Van Helsing’s theories until they confront the vampire Lucy herself. Also, this applies to Lucy’s fiancé, Arthur Holmwood. Van Helsing wants Arthur and Quincey to know of the truth of Lucy, but when he attempts to explain, Arthur does not believe it. This causes issues for the vampire hunters as they finally confront the vampires. According to Glennis Byron in her article, “Bram Stoker’s Gothic and the Resources of Science” she claims, “In Dracula, for example, science is variously interpreted as the source of the vampire hunters’ ability to defeat the Count, and the source of their helplessness and confusion in the face of supernatural forces” (Byron). This shows that while the humans have

Lucy is the center of attention between the men in this group, “Why can’t they let a girl marry three men, or as many as want her” (Stoker 69), and because of this she is Dracula’s first target. She opens up more possibilities to Dracula.

After Lucy’s death, Van Helsing tried to convinced Quincey Morris, Seward and Arthur Holmwood that Lucy has turned into “Un-dead” by bringing them to her tomb. They eventually find a solution by plunging a stake into Lucy’s heart. They chop off her head and stuff her mouth with garlic. After Jonathan and Mina’s returning to England, they joined forces with the others. Mina helps Van Helsing by collecting various journals and dairies to retype them. Their efforts were useless went one of Seward’s patient has let Dracula into the asylum to prey upon Mina. These men divided forces among them tracks Dracula across land and sea. Van Helsing takes Mina with him and he killed three female vampires by using sacred objects. Quincey and Jonathan use knives to destroy Dracula went Dracula is about to reached his castle. In 1992, Francis Ford Coppola has released a Dracula movie based on Bram Stoker’s novel. I would prefer watching a Dracula movie rather than reading a book because Coppola evokes the origins of Dracula before he turn into a vampire, twisted the subplot where Mina is the reincarnation of Dracula’s greatest love and the movie ends with Dracula’s soul

Within the novel, Dr.Van Helsing’s strange character draws suspicious parallels to the older, eccentric Count Dracula.

With Helsing being sort of old he is trying to live in two worlds at once, the old and new. Coped in the western medicine but the unparalleled knowledge of Dracula and folk remedies. Van Hesling has no power, no great strength, and is nothing but a mere man. He may not have the strength of a vampire but he is very strategically advanced in everything that takes place in his life not just his medicine but everything. He leads his group very well when trying to take down Dracula.

Caught in a game of cat and mouse, the Bennet’s, Bingley’s and neighbors find their haven at Netherfield hostage to a mad man. Van Helsing, consumed with thoughts of revenge holds them prisoner to draw Dracula in. Knowing he needs to feed, his options limited, he destroys the cure and waits. But as often happens with well thought out plans, unforeseen events change the best laid plans to chaos.