The Role of Characters in Dracula and Carmilla

A querying of normative gender behaviour and sexuality pervades the 19th century gothic fiction text. What does this reveal about the cultural context within the tale exists?

In the novel, Dracula, by Bram Stoker, we are introduced to two specific ladies that are essential to the essence of this gothic, horror novel. These two women are Mina Harker and Lucy Westenra. The purpose for these two women was for Stoke to clearly depict the two types of women: the innocent and the contaminated. In the beginning, the women were both examples of the stereotypical flawless women of this time period. However, as the novel seems to progress, major differences are bound to arise. Although both women, Lucy and Mina, share the same innocent characteristics, it’s more ascertain that with naïve and inability of self control, Lucy creates a boundary that shows the difference between these two ladies and ultimately causes her

The normal Victorian representation of a woman would be that of a weak character, who would faint at the sight of blood; a character who would only discuss weather and art. In this novel, the stereotype of an ideal Victorian woman is broken as it is contrasted with the modern woman. The two best friends, Lucy and Mina, are each a representation of each. While Lucy is shown as all weak and someone who gives in easily, Mina stays on the “good side” even after she has been bitten by a vampire and her conversion has started. She is presented a hero, who plays an important role in bringing Dracula down through her intelligence and resourcefulness. Hence, by representing Mina as such a powerful character, Stroker breaks the stereotypical idea of a

The behaviors and characteristics of Mina Harker, along with the transformation she undergoes when coming into contact with the Count, play a crucial role in helping Stoker break down separate spheres. Her connection to the Count is what lifts her outside of her domestic sphere. The men depend on Mina to be able to hunt down the Count. Without her help, they would not be successful. In a sense, this helps Stoker give women a more dominant role in the novel. While separate spheres hold women to be domestic figures confined to housework and completely submissive, Stoker pushes this ideology away by making the men submissive instead. For example, Jonathan Harker writes in his journal about Mina saying, “She was so good and brave that we all felt that our hearts were strengthened to work and endure for her, and we began to discuss what we were to do” (Stoker 250). Through

This passage characterizes Mina’s obedience to her spouse Johnathan, and introduces her as the modest woman. Lucy Westenra represents the sexual woman. In her second letter to Mina, she tells of the three marriage proposals that have come to her in one day, and the results of each. She has turned down two men, and accepted the last, but feels badly about having to turn down two of her suitors. She proclaims, “Why can’t they let a girl marry three men, or as many as want her, and save all this trouble?” (61). From this passage, it can be assumed that Lucy desires sexual relationship with all three men, as that is the result of marriage. Here lies the main difference between the two women. In the end Mina benefits from her domesticity and life of service to men. Lucy, on the other hand, is deviate from social norms, and in turn suffers the consequences for her own sexual aptitude. Dracula’s deadly bite does not harm Mina due to her morals dictating that she continues to live as a human. Dracula soon disappears from the scene, and Mina enjoys her marriage and bears a child. However, Lucy is not as lucky. She is described as a sexual monster after her death. It is believed her sexuality that sealed her fate. It is clear that this is a statement about not only the roles of women in society, but also about the fears of society. The good Victorian woman, represses her sexual desires and will lead a respectable life.

Almost every sin imaginable is included in this text if one were to interpret Bram Stoker’s writing to be as such. The glaring Christianity, coded sexual innuendo, and the vampire stereotype still attracts many to this novel. Despite the Victorian era’s social expectations of a woman, gluttony and lust are the two most abundant and greatly detailed sins alive in this text and usually descriptively, if not symbolically intertwined. The female characters of this novel lavishly display their sexual and physical appetites throughout the novel thus tempting the male figures. Mina and Lucy are portrayed in opposition to both each other and societal norms, in the nineteenth century and these traits are still displayed today in the twenty-first century. Voraciousness and Lust as portrayed through vampirism in Dracula details the dichotomy of Bram Stoker and of all men; which wife would a man want to have, the smart maternal plump woman or the fanciful beautiful thin woman.

In Dracula, Stoker portrays the typical women: The new woman, the femme fatale and the damsel in distress, all common concepts in gothic literature. There are three predominant female roles within Dracula: Mina Murray, Lucy Westenra and the three vampire brides, all of which possess different attributes and play different roles within the novel. It is apparent that the feminine portrayal within this novel, especially the sexual nature, is an un-doubtable strong, reoccurring theme.

Bram Stoker’s “Dracula” is a story about a Vampire named Count Dracula and his journey to satisfy his lust for blood. The story is told through a series of individuals’ journal entries and a letters sent back and forth between characters. Bram Stoker shows the roll in which a certain gender plays in the Victorian era through the works of Dracula. This discussion not only consists of the roll a certain gender takes, but will be discussing how a certain gender fits into the culture of that time period as well as how males and females interact among each other. The Victorian era was extremely conservative when it came to the female, however there are signs of the changing into the New Woman inside of Dracula. Essentially the woman was to be assistance to a man and stay pure inside of their ways.

In the novel's world, Dracula has many mystical powers, some which has been shown only on several occasions and some which he uses for his daily life. Dracula also has a very unique personality, which could tempt women and make them vulnerable. This means, Dracula could dominate every human being individually, not as a group. His powers and personality has something in common. Count Dracula uses his powers and unique abilities as a tool to ridicule religions and God's decisions and as a great threat to the mainstream society.

Arguably, Dracula’s wives are guilty of another of Bertens’ proposed stereotypes, that of utter dependence on man. They rely on Count Dracula to bring them their food, and therefore without him they would presumably die. This seems to reflect the well-established idea of public and private “spheres” that pervaded so much of Victorian domestic life. In this system, the woman was effectively condemned to the role of homemaker, while the man became the breadwinner. The inability of Dracula’s wives to resist feeding on Jonathan when he falls asleep in the study could also reflect on the – once again, Victorian idea – that women were too hysterical and so inept at keeping control of themselves that they were unfit for a vast range of careers. However, while Stoker does indubitably include these stereotypes in his work, it does not necessarily mean that he agrees with them.

In everyday life, as in literature, there will always be an opposing force to evil. In the novel “Dracula,” by Bram Stoker, Professor Van Helsing acts as Dracula’s main antagonist. An antagonist is the character who acts against the main character, which increases the conflict of the story and intensifies the plot. Through the use of theme, characterization and specific events, the author shows readers how Dr. Van Helsing effectively fits the role of Dracula’s most threatening adversary.

In the late 19th century, when Dracula by Bram Stoker is written, women were only perceived as conservative housewives, only tending to their family’s needs and being solely dependent of their husbands to provide for them. This novel portrays that completely in accordance to Mina Harker, but Lucy Westenra is the complete opposite. Lucy parades around in just her demeanor as a promiscuous and sexual person. While Mina only cares about learning new things in order to assist her soon-to-be husband Jonathan Harker. Lucy and Mina both become victims of vampirism in the novel. Mina is fortunate but Lucy is not. Overall, the assumption of women as the weaker specimen is greatly immense in the late 19th century. There are also many underlying

Dracula is a novel that indulges its male reader’s imagination, predominantly on the topic of female sexuality. When Dracula was first published, Victorian women’s sexual behaviour was extremely restricted by social expectations. To be classed as respectable, a women was either a virgin or a wife. If she was not either, she was considered a whore. We begin to understand once Dracula arrives in Whitby, that the novel has an underlying battle between good and evil, which will hinge on female sexuality. Both Lucy Westenra and Wilhelmina “Mina” Murray embody two-dimensional virtues that have been associated with female. They are both virgins, whom are innocent from the evils of the world and that are devoted to their men. Dracula’s arrival threatens those virtues, threatening to turn Lucy and Mina into the opposites, noted for their voluptuousness, which could lead to an open sexual desire.

Lucy and Mina are very crucial in the short story since they are the only protagonist females and characters the author uses to portray the roles of women in the Victorian Era. Stoker juxtaposes the two women to illustrate and compare the groupings of ladies that existed during Victorian Era. The novel presents the intelligent,

Consider as well how the four men in the story risk their lives for that of Mina's. Bram Stoker reveals his attitude towards the nature of Victorian society by making the evil side in this novel very seductive. Even though the side of good is well aware of the harm the evil side can cause, the seductiveness of the evil side tempts our protagonists on many occasions. For example when Van Helsing has trouble bringing himself to stake the three women because of their physical beauty and when Jonathan Harker nearly allows himself to be bitten by one of the women because of how physically attracted he is to her. "I felt in my heart some wicked, burning desire that they would kiss me with those red lips."# Stoker comments on the nature of Victorian society by showing how unacceptable it was to give in to those primal desires. This relates to the struggle between good and evil between our heroes of Victorian society and the devilish vampires. Vampires are in control of those evil, primal desires in the story and good people like Jonathan Harker and Van Helsing must fight off these desires lest they lose their clean and pure Victorian existences.