To what extent do you think that the Gothic novel represents recognisably modern anxieties?
Since the 1800's, vampires have often found their way into literature, legends, and popular culture. The vampire's first appearance in Gothic fiction came from John Polidori's publication, The Vampyre in 1819, and from then the fascination of the vampire and gothic literature as a whole grew and can be viewed as a commentary on the period of time in which it was written. The strong image of the vampire is a strong metaphor for communicating the zeitgeist of the time. By analysing Bram Stoker’s, Dracula (1897) and Sheridan Le Fanu’s, Carmilla (1872), as both novels are very important as they both helped mainstream vampire literature and created characters that have remained popular for over a century. An examination into these texts and the significance of the vampire on modern anxieties and anxieties of the time can be understood. In order to do this an analysis will be placed upon the main themes within both texts, such as degeneration, patriarchy, gender and class.
The use of vampires within Carmilla and Dracula can be seen as significant in representing colonialism and the worries of degeneration that were established towards the Fin de siècle of the nineteenth century. Both texts present the hierarchy of civilisations through binary opposites such as the West being presented as good and light, and the unknown and mysterious East being described as negative, mysterious and
Since the beginning of time vampires have been categorized into different "types” and are portrayed in different ways throughout several books. This paper will focus on three vampires from the following books: Dracula by Bram Stoker, and I am Legend by Richard Matheson. Dracula is considered to be the traditional vampire, where it all started, and the vampires in Matheson’s book, follow somewhat Stoker’s concept, but is more of a modern “type” of vampires. Certain vampire elements have been presented, but others have been completely removed or altered. In addition, elements along with appearances are used to infer if the vampire is a form of “the other”. There are two types of vampires; the traditional or modern vampire which can be distinguished based on the elements present in their storyline.
This essay will attempt to discuss the two gothic tales ‘Carmilla’ and ‘Dracula’ in relation to cultural contexts in which they exist as being presented to the reader through the gender behaviour and sexuality that is portrayed through the texts. Vampire stories always seem to involve some aspect of sexuality and power.
The first writer to introduce the vampire in literature was Lord Byron in the eighteenth century, but the most significant writer to develop the myth was Bram Stoker. He is the „father” of the vampire as he gave a complete description of the vampire in his most famous book” Dracula”. After the release of the book, the myth of the vampire became extremely popular amongst writers and as a consequence the books whose main
With several illicit subjects listed throughout Bram Stoker’s Dracula, the book becomes a playground for psychoanalysts. Whether it be to see a subjects as simple as the conscious take over a character, or a character’s surroundings corrupting its victims, Dracula intrigues in more ways than just its vampiristic features. The following is a psychoanalytic study with a focus on vampirism imitating sexual practice and drug usage today while shining a light on the complex psychology of characters, and how even the author can influence the course of its story.
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.
Unremarkable though it may seem, to affirm the obvious truism that Bram Stoker’s Dracula originates from a century that historians often describe as the most significant in terms of revolutionary ideology, whilst wishing to avoid the clichéd view held, it is undeniable that the more one delves into the depths of this novel the greater wealth of meaning demonstrates significant correlation with Marxist ideology. The 19th Century saw the emergence of revolutionary socialist Karl Marx, who himself used the vampire metaphor to describe the capitalist system as ‘dead labour which, vampire like, lives only by sucking living labour’. Through Stoker’s opulent use of narrative structure, use of setting and imagery, this novel presents a multiple
Stoker’s novel Dracula, presents the fear of female promiscuity, for which vampirism is a metaphor. Such fear can be related to the time in which Dracula was written, where strict Victorian gender norms and sexual mores stipulated
The story of Dracula is well documented and has stood the test of time since it’s Victorian age creation. More times than not, literature writings are a reflection of the era from which they are produced. In the case of Dracula, Vampire literature expresses the fears of a society. Which leads me to the topic I chose to review: sexuality. The Victorian Era was viewed as a period diluted in intense sexual repression and I believe that Dracula effectively exploited this as the fear of sexuality was commonplace in the society. In this paper I will examine Bram Stoker’s Dracula and highlight his use of sexuality. I will analysis the female sexuality that is prevalent throughout the book, the complexities are at work within the text, and the
“Vampire Religion” is an article written about Bram Stoker’s “Dracula.” The article is one that was found very useful in reading and understanding the story. Christopher Herbert, the author, argues of the importance that religion and events of the world played on the writing of “Dracula.” There are two parts to the article, one is “Religion/Superstition” and the second part is “The Vampire in the Church.” Both parts are vital to the article.
The vampire is still popular today with many hundreds of Dracula remakes and with the originally unpopular Carmilla beginning to rise. With modern adaptions of the vampire the gruesome gothic novels are perhaps forgotten with novels like ‘Twilight’ and television series like ‘The Vampire Diaries’. It’s important to note that ‘Dracula’ was not received as the popular novel it is now when it was released. The Manchester Guardian reviewed the book calling it an “attempt” and deemed that “It is [...] an artistic mistake to fill a whole volume with horrors.” It was only later that Dracula became the most notorious vampire in history. Although without Le Fanu’s Carmilla, would Dracula have existed at all? Carmilla fell short of its full potential
John Polidori’s vampire; considered the father of all vampires and modelled after Lord Byron, became a new type of Gothic villain. One that would inherently become its own species. Decades after The Vampyre, the superhuman gained its own subgenre of fiction. However, this new villain has characteristics that are comparable to its predecessors. Undoubtedly, altered tropes make this character stand alone in the crowd of classic villains.
On the basis of the evidence currently available, it seems fair to suggest that Polidori’ s The Vampyre is not just a story of a monstrous figure of the vampire from folklore tradition waiting to be destroyed by a wooden stake through the heart, it is rather that kind of nineteenth century vampire whose literary presence is highly loaded with metaphorical connotations. For instance, Lord Ruthven’s presence in the
The gothic vampire classic Dracula, written by Bram Stoker, is one of the most well known novels of the nineteenth century. The story focuses on a vampire named Dracula who travels to England in search of new blood, but who eventually is found out and driven away by a group of newly minted vampire hunters. A major social change that was going on during the late nineteenth century, around the time of that this novel was being written, was the changing roles of women in British society which constituted as the “New Woman” movement and the novel seems to explore and worry about this subject extensively. These women wanted to be freed both politically and sexually, but much of the general population at the time found it unsettling (Dixon,
In John Polidori’s short story “The Vampyre”, a strong emphasis is placed on the sanctity and frailty of women, specifically of those who are youthful and unsullied by vice. This is seen throughout the story, where the two women most prominently featured in it -- Ianthe and Miss Aubrey -- are repeatedly described as innocent and infantile. The tale of the inexorable, seductive vampire who preys on these women reflects the attitudes towards women of Polidori’s time. These attitudes toward gender roles were those of chivalry and benevolent, protective patriarchy, with docile, frail women placed on a pedestal of beauty and innocence that is worthy of utmost male guardianship.
As one of the most attractive and enduring figures in the Gothic literature, the vampires have moved from being a peripheral element with the genre to a place near the center and are capable of generating its own massive tradition now. In the recent literary history, they have already been adapted to play a role of a rebel against the moral, social, religious, and even sexual taboos. Put simply, the vampires are now a metaphor of human beings in the modern society and life.