Bram Stokers Storytelling in Dracula Final PDF

PALACKÝ UNIVERSITY OLOMOUC
FACULTY OF ARTS
Department of English and American Studies
Michal Šubrt
English Philology
Bram Stoker’s Storytelling in Dracula
Bachelor Thesis
Supervisor: PhDr. Matthew Sweney, Ph. D.

Olomouc 2017
Prohlašuji, že jsem tuto bakalářskou práci vypracoval samostatně pod odborným
dohledem vedoucího práce a uvedl jsem všechny použité podklady a literaturu.
V Olomouci dne…………… Podpis……………

Table of Contents
Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 5
1. Bram Stoker .............................................................................................................................. 6
1.1. Childhood ........................................................................................................................... 6
1.2. Education ........................................................................................................................... 7
1.3. Theatre ............................................................................................................................... 8
1.4. Whitman, Irving and other Men of Influence .................................................................... 9
2. Gothic Horror .......................................................................................................................... 14
2.1. Gothic Horror and its Features ......................................................................................... 14
2.2. The Setting, Atmosphere and Omens ............................................................................... 16
2.3. New Woman in Distress................................................................................................... 16
2.4. The Supernatural .............................................................................................................. 20
3. Narrative Techniques and Elements........................................................................................ 22
3.1. Epistolarity and Realism .................................................................................................. 22
3.2. Active Reading ................................................................................................................. 26
3.3. Narrative Language .......................................................................................................... 26
3.4. Different Sections of Dracula........................................................................................... 28
3.5. Timeline and Chronology ................................................................................................ 30
4. Recurrent Themes of Dracula ................................................................................................. 33
4.1. Masculinity vs. Femininity............................................................................................... 33
4.2. Sexuality and Eroticism ................................................................................................... 38
4.3. The Supernatural vs. Science ........................................................................................... 41
Conclusion .................................................................................................................................. 43
Resumé ........................................................................................................................................ 45
Bibliography................................................................................................................................ 47
Introduction
Dread, awe and the thrill of being afraid are the feelings we unconsciously crave for and
what is a better place to look for these feelings than our own imagination, stirred by the
words of a mastermind like Bram Stoker. Human fascination with things that violate
what we consider rational has never been uncommon. There is hardly any creature that
would be more terrifying and alluring at the same time than a vampire. And there is
hardly any vampire that would be more famous than Count Dracula. In my thesis, I will
first attempt to point out some of the key moments of Stoker’s life that had been
projected into his novel. The source for this shorter chapter will be mainly Bram
Stoker’s biography. I have chosen a biography by Barbara Belford for the fact that
Belford focuses on Dracula’s narrative significantly.
Then, in the later part of my thesis, I shall discuss the book’s narrative structure
and techniques. The combination of the genre and the narrative structure plays a major
role in the success of the novel. I will discuss the specific Gothic elements that Stoker
employs, the epistolary style of storytelling and why it makes the reader more interested
and the novel more believable. The author’s use of multiple narrators and the
segmentation of the work are another important feature that I will cover. The final part
of my work will be dedicated to the three most noticeable recurrent themes of the novel.
Dracula’s contribution to the vampire fiction and Gothic horror genre is unlikely
to be forgotten. I believe that is true mainly because of how every aspect of the book
from its genre to its themes fits together to create a believable story of Victorian men
and women battling a vampire. The aim of my thesis is to look at these elements and
features of Stoker’s storytelling in detail, to describe how they work together and what
is their intended effect on the reader.
5
1. Bram Stoker
1.1. Childhood
1
Little is known about Bram Stoker’s childhood, except that he was bedridden with an
unknown illness, unable to walk until he was seven years old. Stoker rarely mentioned
this period of his life.2 Stoker speaks only briefly about his illness in Reminiscence of
Henry Irving (1906), deleting any details of that time from his manuscript. Constantly
exposed to the fear of death and abandonment, numerous rescue fantasies are prominent
throughout his literary works and Dracula (1897) is no exception.3 Stoker’s invalid life
was a productive time for his future career as a writer. His interests in the gothic, the
preternatural and the theatre all started around this time. Being confined alone to his
room, he further sharpened his intelligence and his mind, resulting in his first short story
The Crystal Cup (1872). A story that describes the room he spent a large portion of his
childhood in with its view. In The Mystery of the Sea (1902), Stoker says that his
interest in secret correspondence started after being bedridden for a particularly long
time and reading Mercury: or the Secret and Swift Messenger by Bishop Wilkins from
the family library. A book about spies, secret agents and their communication.4 This
interest was later manifested in a form of a shorthand in Dracula.
Bram Stoker, christened Abraham after his father, was born the third of seven
children in November 1847 at The Crescent in Clontarf.5 As someone fascinated with
the study of physiognomy, he disliked his facial features. His small eyes, broad
forehead, oval face and a bump over his eyebrows made him, in his own eyes, ugly. The
feature he was particularly happy about was his unusually grey colour of eyes. A feature
often used in his works. Many of Stoker’s fictional characters share his grey eyes or
Irving’s aquiline nose, Count Dracula is no exception.6
The Stokers were a middle–class family, mostly shielded from poverty and
famine that plagued Ireland during the years 1845–9, but no one was completely blind
1
Stoker’s biography by Belford is the authoritative source for chapter 1 and all its subchapters. This
source was chosen for its notable focus on the novel’s narrative.
2
Barbara Belford, Bram Stoker: A Biography of the Author of Dracula, (London: Weinfeld and Nicolson,
1996), 13.
3
Belford, Bram Stoker: A Biography of the Author of Dracula, 14.
4
5
William Hughes, Bram Stoker – Dracula, (UK: Palgrave MacMillan, 2008), 10. accessed June 26, 2018,
https://books.google.cz/books?id=l-knBQAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover&hl=cs#v=onepage&q&f=false
6
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to the horrors that were taking place, such as corpses filling the streets or starving dogs
eating babies.7 Young Bram found these stories of corpses, ghosts and death fascinating,
but it was the stories of his mother Charlotte that interested him the most. She told him
about the epidemic of cholera of 1832 in her hometown Sligo, stories about hearing
banshee’s cry when her mother died or of someone drinking the blood of a cattle during
the famine. Stoker was so inspired by his mother’s stories that he wrote a story about a
plague destroying the country titled The Invisible Giant, published in 1881 in Under the
Sunset.8 Bram Stoker’s mother Charlotte was a woman quite ahead of her time. Where
his father was unsure, indecisive and underappreciated his mother was firm, decisive
and independent. While Bram took after his father, it was his mother who haunted his
writings.9
During his sickness Bram Stoker was being cared for by his uncle William, who
was a doctor. William Stoker, like most doctors of his time, practiced bleeding. It is not
unlikely that his uncle bled Bram or other members of his family. This experience might
have influenced Stoker while writing about blood and blood transfusions in Dracula.
Despite his close relatives being doctors or physicians, Stoker’s illness remains a
mystery. The only indication of the possible nature of his condition Stoker left in his
novel The Man where the character of Harold, who is believed to be Stoker’s alter ego,
suffers from a rheumatic fever.10 Whatever the name of the illness was, Bram Stoker
overcame it and grew into a large, powerful man.11
1.2. Education
Bram Stoker’s parents were both literate and intelligent and were able to provide all
their children with a life that was comfortable but scarcely indulgent. Despite of their
situation Charlotte’s ambition was to have all her sons attend a university together with
the sons of aristocrats; she decided they would go to the renowned Trinity College.12
Being born to a Protestant bourgeoisie family held a certain prestige; the Stokers
used their connections to their sons’ benefit. They supported them in their respective
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careers and introduced them to literary and intellectual circles.13 It was during his
school years that Bram Stoker turned from a sickly boy to an accomplished athlete.14
Stoker was a rugby player, an oarsman and he excelled at long–distance endurance
walking and weight lifting.15 He cherished the strength and bravery in men. The theme
of strong, brave men fighting evil, rescuing good women and making British empire a
safe place is especially standing out in his novel Dracula.16
The theme of brave men saving good women or brave women rescuing brave
men is not uncommon throughout his works. On this topic Stoker himself noted that
“the only real comfort a poor woman can have is to hold on to a man. I happen to be a
big one, and therefore of extra desirability in such cases of stress.”17 Similar thoughts
like these are echoed in Dracula when the brave men give their strong blood, their
energy, to save Lucy’s life because according to Professor Van Helsing, “a brave man’s
blood is the best thing on this earth when a woman is in trouble.”18
Stoker joined two of Trinity’s most prestigious student organizations which

attracted intellectuals The Phil and The Hist. In 1869 he became the president of the
Philosophical Society.19 The Historical Society he discovered his talents for persuasion
and public speaking.20 It was at the debating society where he learned to command the
stage and developed his ambition to become an actor.21
1.3. Theatre
After the college, Bram Stoker’s interest in the theatre persisted, although not as an
actor but as a drama critic. After seeing a performance by an English actor Henry
Irving, the mesmerized Stoker wondered where were all the favourable reviews of
Irving’s performance that captivated him so much. When no such reviews appeared, he
decided to visit his friend Dr. Henry Maunsell, who was an editor and joint–proprietor
of the evening newspaper Dublin Evening Mail, which was co–owned by the author of
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15
Hughes, Bram Stoker – Dracula, 10.
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18
Bram Stoker, Dracula (Project Gutenberg, 2014), online database, 152. accessed April 1, 2018,
www.gutenberg.org/files/45839/45839-h/45839-h
19
Hughes, Bram Stoker – Dracula, 10.
20
21
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Gothic tales, Sheridan Le Fanu.22 Drama critic was traditionally an unpaid position,
which Stoker accepted to seek redress for Irving. Stoker worked as a drama critic for the
next five years, directing public attention where he wanted.23 Stoker was a fast writer.
Most of his novels, except Dracula, were retyped first drafts.24 His criticism was always
well–rounded and well–informed, earning him the prestige of being the most educated
drama critic in Dublin.25
Lacking any goals or focus, Stoker read poetry and wrote. Year 1872 was a
popular time for short stories. It was in this year that Stoker wrote and sold his first
short story, The Crystal Cup. In his pre–Dracula works Stoker frequently recycled
overused plots and unoriginal ideas just to quickly throw together material to compose
novels and stories to earn some money. This points out the extreme commitment that
must have been put into the creation of Dracula, a novel which took him seven years to
write.26
Bram Stoker’s father Abraham had wanted his son to follow in his footsteps. A
position of senior clerk at Dublin Castle which Abraham held until retirement was soon
to be open again and Bram was the best candidate for the job. However, Bram had other
plans in mind. He wanted to give up the comfortable position with large income in
favour of going to London and writing plays.27 His father died on October 12, 1876, but
not before putting an end to his son’s plans.28
1.4. Whitman, Irving and other Men of Influence
Ever since his youth, Bram Stoker was an ardent follower and admirer. An instinctive
fan, Stoker was easily overwhelmed by men of influence. It was a sign of his own
immaturity that he did not manage to restrain the intensity of the feelings he felt toward
these men. Throughout his life he had a number of male friendships which could all be
described in a single word as “passionate.” Kipling calls these feelings “the austere love
that springs up between men.”29 Sometime around the year 1868 Stoker was introduced
to Walt Whitman’s poetry. His poems touched the unorthodox theme of love and
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friendship among men, theme frequently associated with homosexuality.30 The male
bonding and comradeship immensely appealed to Stoker, who became completely
drawn to Whitman and his views.31 Similar themes are prominent among the group of
vampire hunters in Dracula.
Whitman had a considerable influence on Dracula. His views were the ones that
made Stoker put so much emphasis on the comradeship among the male characters.
Aside from that, the Count himself resembles Whitman at times, with his height, white
hair and heavy moustache.32
Stoker was a frequent guest at the house of Sir William and Lady Jane Wilde,
the parents of Oscar Wilde with whom he shared enthusiasm for theatre. The Wildes’
residence was at One Merrion Square, close to Stoker’s flat and right next to a place
where Sheridan Le Fanu, Stoker’s employer, lived.33 Although Stoker was in contact
with both Oskar Wilde and his brother Willie, it was Lady Wilde and her husband who
interested him the most. Lady Wilde was a headstrong, temperamental woman who both
fascinated and terrified Stoker34 and Sir William Wilde became his surrogate father, so
to speak.35 Wilde household always managed to attract the most interesting people in all
of Dublin and that was mainly because of Lady Wilde and her genial and mischievous
personality.36 Sir William, Oscar’s father, captivated Bram Stoker with his tales about
Egypt, tombs and mummies which later became the foundation for Stoker’s seventh
novel, The Jewel of Seven Stars.37 Sir William was a surgeon and an expert on Irish
prehistory. The mysterious Gaelic past with its tales of vampires and ancient legends
seduced many Irish authors; Sir William and Bram Stoker were no exception.38
From all of Stoker’s relationships that helped shape his personality and his
masterwork novel, the one with Henry Irving was the most important by far. Four years
had passed since Stoker saw Irving’s performance for the first time and by that time
Irving became the talk of London. Henry Irving was an eccentric figure, with his dark
wavy hair, finely cut features and bizarre clothing. He defied all descriptions, being
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strangely alluring, graceful and awkward at the same time with an odd way of speaking
and walking.39 The same can be said about Count Dracula, who speaks English well but
with a strange pronunciation. His manners are also quite graceful on occasions, befitting
a man of noble birth, but then there are moments where he behaves in a peculiar way,
like the moments he tenderly makes Jonathan’s bed for him as if he were a maid or his
fits of almost beast–like rage. Irving had an unusual aura of eeriness about him,
invoking a sense of mystery and horror which most certainly attracted Stoker who wrote
that he deserved “not only the highest praise that can be accorded, but the loving
gratitude of all to whom his art is dear.”40 The eeriness of Dracula’s character is
apparent from the first moments he is introduced.
The actor returned to Dublin in 1876 to play Hamlet. At that time Stoker’s father
and William Wilde were dead and Stoker was in need of a new hero to worship. Irving
arrived at the most appropriate emotional moment. Being a drama critic, Stoker wrote a
review about Irving’s performance. The review was a positive one, but not entirely
without criticism. Stoker was not blind to Irving’s flaws. Stoker found Irving’s
willingness to appear before the curtain after every act and his addiction to applause to
be undignifying. The review was still pleasing enough, and Irving invited Stoker to dine
with him. Stoker reviewed Irving a couple more times and the two men dined together
again. This time Irving wanted to give Stoker a special gift – a recitation of Thomas
Hood’s poem The Dream of Eugene Aram.41 The recitation was passionate and
powerful; Stoker was overpowered by something he described as “a violent fit of
hysterics.”42 Stoker liked to think himself as a man who was strong in many ways,
however his reaction, a reaction similar to when he first read Whitman’s poetry, only
pointed out his continuous immaturity. Stoker believed his relationship with Irving was
a special one. He believed that their friendship was “as profound, as close, as lasting as
can be between two men.”43 In a way, Bram Stoker succumbed to Irving in a similar
fashion Renfield succumbs to Dracula.44
39
40
41
42
Brigitte Boudreau, “Libidinal Life: Bram Stoker, Homosocial Desire and the Stokerian Biographical
Project,” in Brno Studies in English, Vol. 37, No. 2 (2011), 46. ISSN 0524-6881
43
44
11
Soon, Irving left Dublin and Stoker was appointed as an Inspector of Petty
Sessions, a position that required constant travelling. Stoker had to give up his unpaid
position of a drama critic but aside from an increased salary the job had its other perks.
He had a chance to experience rural Ireland and witnessed firsthand how Irish farmers
suffered under the English system. This experience inspired him to write his first novel,
The Snake’s Pass (1890). Stoker also wrote records of his journeys and collected
diverse data into a book titled The Duties of Clerks of Petty Sessions in Ireland (1879).
He encouraged other and future clerks to record their experiences in a similar way.45 In
Dracula, he would have his characters do the same thing in order to explain the
unexplainable.46
Irving returned to Dublin for an extended period of time again in 1878, when he
asked Bram Stoker to renounce his civil service job and to become his manager.47 The
star–struck Stoker accepted, immediately resigned and forfeited all his pension rights in
November 1878, aggravating his mother Charlotte.48 At some point around this time
Stoker met his bride–to–be Florence Balcombe. His ideals behind marriage and
relationships were that the most masculine man looks for the most feminine woman.49 If
the large, strong Stoker saw himself as “the most masculine man” than the young, shy
Florence was “the most feminine woman.” Florence Balcombe was a beautiful woman,
but much like Dracula’s Lucy, she attracted too many men.50 One of these men was
Stoker’s acquaintance, Oscar Wilde. Both Stoker and Wilde were obsessed by the idea
of chaste womanhood. At that time, Oscar Wilde had little to offer as a bachelor. He had
spent the inheritance from his father on his expensive tastes and he had no ambitions
aside from poetry.51 The level–headed Florence naturally chose the safer option, the
debtless and working Bram Stoker. She decided to marry him in the similar way Lucy
decides for Arthur Holmwood in Dracula. Arthur was the most prosperous and socially
most desirable of her suitors.52 Stoker’s devotion to Irving persisted even after the death
of the actor. In 1906 Stoker wrote a biography titled Personal Reminiscence of Henry
45
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47
William Hughes, “Bram Stoker (Abraham Stoker) 1847 - 1912 A Bibliography,” in Victorian Fiction
Research guide 25, (Australia: Department of English, The University of Queensland, 1977), 5. ISSN
0158 3921
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49
50
51
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Irving, a work that reveals as much about Stoker as it does about Henry Irving. This
work also led critics to speculate about the author’s possible homosexual attraction to
Irving.53
53
Boudreau, “Libidinal Life: Bram Stoker, Homosocial Desire and the Stokerian Biographical Project,”
44.
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2. Gothic Horror
Bram Stoker’s Dracula is a very complex novel constructed from many different
aspects of the Gothic fiction, which in time transformed itself to a seemingly never –
ending number of adaptations ranging from films such as Dracula’s Daughter54 (1936)
to anime like Hellsing55 (1997). Adaptations aside, the original novel is a representative
of the Gothic horror genre.
2.1. Gothic Horror and its Features
The Gothic literature flourished during the years 1764 and 1820. The Gothic could be
considered as a deviation from neoclassical standards of reason and strict order, towards
imagination, emotion and romantic beliefs, often reflecting the author’s mind.56
However, the genre was heavily condemned by critics. The Enlightenment movement in
the 18th century preached of virtue, morality and rationality and those who strayed from
these values were considered to be childish and corrupt.57 Botting says that “works of
fiction were subjected to general condemnation as wildly fanciful pieces of folly that
served no useful or moral purpose.”58 The Gothic genre survived and was growing more
powerful. Thanks to the printing industry the novels were becoming more available and
the middle class became the primary reading public. Many writers of this fiction
emerged from the middle class and the popularity of Gothic fiction expanded even
further, which led to aristocracy losing its position of dominance over the literary
production. Being a writer was no longer uncommon and it started to be an activity used
to earn money and much like most professions, its success was based on public interest.
The public started to be less interested in neoclassical texts preaching decency and
integrity and the sensual, often violent and morally questionable Gothic fiction
thrived.59
54
Lambert Hillyer dir., Dracula’s Daughter, (Universal Pictures, 1936).
55
Chiaki J. Konaka, Hellsing, (Gonzo, Digimation, 2001).
56
Robert D. Hume, “Gothic versus Romantic: A Revaluation of the Gothic Novel,” in PMLA, Vol. 84,
No. 2 (Mar., 1969), 282. accessed May 4, 2018, http://www.jstor.org/stable/1261285
57
Sarah Blackhouse, “Narrative and Temporality in Dracula,” in MA TYPO/Graphic Studies Major
Project Report (2003), 2. accessed April 1, 2018, http://the-publishing
lab.com/uploads/bookshelf/pdfs/SarahBackhouse.pdf
58
Fred Botting, Gothic, (London, New York: Routledge, 1996), 16. PDF e-book.
59
Blackhouse, “Narrative and Temporality in Dracula,” 2.
14
Another concept that helped shape Gothic genre was the Sublime,60 which is
described by philosopher Edmund Burke as:
Whatever is fitted in any sort to excite the ideas of pain and
danger, that is to say, whatever is in any sort terrible, or is
conversant about terrible objects, or operates in a manner
analogous to terror, is a source of the sublime.61
With that being said, the sublime is the strongest emotion we are capable of feeling.
This emotion is often the emotion of absolute terror, which causes pain that overpowers
any emotions of pleasure, providing the body and the mind with a very unique
experience.
To put this idea to perspective with Dracula, it could be applied to Jonathan

Harker at the beginning of the novel, 62 when he witnesses Count Dracula “emerge
from the window and begin to crawl down the castle wall over that dreadful abyss, face
down with his cloak spreading out around him like great wings.“63 This scene of
inhuman behaviour makes Jonathan feel the absolute terror.
Horace Walpole’s The Castle of Otranto (1764) is generally considered as the

first and a prime example of Gothic horror.64 In his novel, Walpole implemented some
of the literary elements which later became a blueprint for Gothic fiction works to
come.65 Some of these elements include the setting, which sets the story in dark places
such as castle ruins, abandoned manors, dark caves or the wilderness. The atmosphere,
which is often gloomy, mysterious and filled with suspense. Omens that manifest in a
form of dreams and nightmares serve as a tool of foreshadowing. A damsel in distress is
another theme commonly connected with the Gothic. Villains in Gothic literature are
usually men, who target young women, often still virgins. Another common feature is
the supernatural or inexplicable events. These events cannot be explained in a logical
60
61
Edmund Burke, A Philosophical Inquiry Into The Origin Of Our Ideas Of The Sublime And Beautiful
With Several Other Additions, (New York: P.F. Collier & Son Company, 1909-14), 20. PDF e-book.
62
63
Stoker, Dracula, 35.
64
William Hughes, The Historical Dictionary of Gothic Literature (Lanhan, Torronto, Plymouth: The
Scarecrow Press, Inc., 2013), 11.
65
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way.66 Being a Gothic horror, it is unsurprising how many of these elements and themes
appear in Bram Stoker’s Dracula.
2.2. The Setting, Atmosphere and Omens
The story takes the reader to a crumbling castle in a Carpathian Mountains, lunatic
asylum, atmospheric harbour town of Whitby, a sole ship in the middle of the ocean and
couple other locations that clearly fit into the previously mentioned Gothic setting. The
foreshadowing is also present throughout the book. In the first chapter, Jonathan Harker
is staying at a hotel in Transylvania. He tries to ask the landlord and his wife questions
about Count Dracula but after mentioning the name they refused to speak to him. When
he sets out to leave for Castle Dracula an old lady stops him and begs him not to go
because at midnight “all the evil things in the world will have full sway.”67 Old lady on
her knees pleading him not to go, his ride through darkness with a mysterious driver
accompanied by the sound of a wild howling. These are the signs of something dreadful
about to unfold, that even the sloppiest of readers notice.
2.3. New Woman in Distress
When it comes to damsels in distress there are two women that fit the role. Lucy
Westenra, a beautiful virginal bride–to–be and Mina Murray, who embodies the virtues
of a Victorian woman68 but could also be recognized as something the critics call a New
Woman, due to her resourcefulness and courageous personality.69
The first of these two damsels to fall prey to Count Dracula was Lucy Westenra.
Because of her sleep–walking and unintentional promiscuity she becomes an easy target
for the Count.70 After Dracula arrives to Whitby aboard a ship, Lucy has another one of
66
Maggie Sokolik, Frankenstein, Dracula, and Gothic Literature: Companion Text for College Writing
(Wayzgoose Press, 2017), Elements of Gothic Horror, accessed February 12, 2018,
https://books.google.cz/books?id=2rcuDwAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover&hl=cs&source=gbs_ge_summ
ary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false
67
Stoker, Dracula, 5.
68
Natalie Bartlett and Bradley Bellows, “The Supernatural Ronin: Vampires in Japanese Anime,” in
Bram Stoker’s Dracula, Sucking Through Century 1897-1997, eds. Carol Margaret Davidson and Paul
Simpson-Housley (Toronto, Oxford: Dundurn Press, 1997), 308. PDF e-book.
69
Stephanie Moss, “The Psychiatrist’s Couch: Hypnosis, Hysteria, and Proto-Freudian Performance in
Dracula,” in Bram Stoker’s Dracula, Sucking Through Century 1897-1997, eds. Carol Margaret Davidson
and Paul Simpson-Housley (Toronto, Oxford: Dundurn Press, 1997), 136. PDF e-book.
70
Patrick McGrath, “Preface: Bram Stoker and His Vampire,” in Bram Stoker’s Dracula, Sucking
Through Century 1897-1997, eds. Carol Margaret Davidson and Paul Simpson-Housley (Toronto,
Oxford: Dundurn Press, 1997), 45. PDF e-book.
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her sleep–walking episodes and leaves her house. Mina, wearing only her nightgown,
goes outside to looks for her. She finds Lucy and a long and black figure bending over
her. After rushing to her side Mina discovers two small puncture wounds on Lucy’s
neck, a vampire’s bite. Mina travels to Budapest to help Jonathan recover and Lucy falls
ill.
Lucy’s fiancé Arthur Holmwood contacts his friend Dr. Seward, who becomes
the main narrator for the next series of chapters. Dr. Seward, puzzled by Lucy’s
condition, asks his mentor, Dr. Abraham Van Helsing, for help.71 After careful
examination Van Helsing decides that Lucy needs blood transfusions. At this moment in
the novel the other main characters make their appearance. Arthur Holmwood, Dr.
Seward, Dr. Van Helsing and the American cowboy Quincey Morris all give their blood
to save Lucy. Unfortunately, the men’s attempts to save her fail and Lucy dies.
However, that is not the last we see of Lucy. Lucy’s death brings up one of the greatest
fears of the sophisticated Victorian society, the fear of chaste, virginal women
becoming insatiable, vile creatures.72 After her death she becomes a vampire, preying
on young children. Professor Van Helsing assumes this is tied to Lucy’s mysterious
condition and contacts Mina Harker, who provides him with her husband’s diary. Van
Helsing pieces the clues together and correctly identifies Lucy’s condition as a case of
vampirism. His knowledge of history and folklore behind vampires provides useful as
he comes up with a way how to successfully defeat a vampire: A wooden stake through
the heart, decapitation and garlic. After the deed was done Lucy turned back to the way
she used to be in life, “with her face of unequalled sweetness and purity.”73 Before her
transformation, Lucy was the embodiment of girlishness. After her death she becomes
the Un–dead Lucy who is far from the ideal of Victorian womanhood. She, in fact,
becomes quite the opposite of herself. The only traits she retains are her exceptional
beauty and her seductiveness, both of which have grown immensely. She twists and
violates the traditional role of motherhood by feasting on young children.74 This has
71
Jim Steinmeyer, Who Was Dracula?: Bram Stoker’s Trail of Blood (New York: Penguin Books, 2013),
66.
72
Carol A. Senf, “Dracula, The Jewel of Seven Stars, and Stoker’s ’Burden of the Past’,” in Bram
Stoker’s Dracula, Sucking Through Century 1897-1997, eds. Carol Margaret Davidson and Paul
Simpson-Housley (Toronto, Oxford: Dundurn Press, 1997), 81. PDF e-book.
73
Stoker, Dracula, 221
74
Bartlett and Bellows, “The Supernatural Ronin: Vampires in Japanese Anime,” 307.
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also made it easier for the men to kill her in such a brutal manner, after witnessing that
there was nothing of her good nature left.75
Mina is the second of the women characters who becomes the target of Dracula.
Bram Stoker portrays Mina as the ideal type of a woman. She is intelligent, does not
allow rules of her time to stop her from educating herself or to ruin plans for her career.
Most of all, she is faithful to Jonathan and Jonathan only. These traits that Mina exhibits
could be classified under the nineteenth century trend known as the New Woman.
This trend threatened and often inverted the traditional Victorian moral system
and sexual roles.76 In her article about Stoker’s portrayal of women in Dracula, Carol
Senf mentions that the New Woman was “often a professional woman who chose
financial independence and personal fulfilment as alternatives to marriage and
motherhood.”77 In matters of sex, New Woman was more open than her predecessors.
She could openly discuss sexual matters and even initiate sexual relationships.78 For
present–day readers, Mina’s role does seem to give away the impression of a standard
housewife, but that was not the case for Victorian society. Mina was involved in
manners that were out of bounds for nineteen century women such as career, education
or supporting a husband in his profession.79 Her character merges the traditional
femininity with self–reliance and intellect that is associated with the New Woman.80
Being mostly left behind by the men, Mina is the one person in the group who
recognizes the importance of gathering and compiling the documents about Dracula in
order to anticipate his movements.81 It might be worth mentioning that after Mina is
wed to Jonathan, her New Woman traits are put behind those of Victorian woman. By
her own admission, she becomes a mother–figure to the band of men.82 Lucy is also
showing signs of sexual emancipation connected to the New Woman.83 In the novel,
when she contemplates her three suitors she says: “Why can’t they let a girl marry three
75
76
Paul Marchbank, “Dracula: Degeneration, Sexuality and the Jew,” in Vampires: Myths and Metaphors
of Enduring Evil, ed. Carla T. Kungl (Oxford:Inter Disciplinary Press, 2003), 35, vol. 6, PDF e-book.
77
Carol A. Senf, “Dracula: Stoker’s Response to the New Woman.” in Victorian Studies 26, no. 1 (1982),
35. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3827492.
78
Senf, “Dracula: Stoker’s Response to the New Woman,” 35.
79
80
81
Kim Hoelzli, “Exorcising the Beast: The Darwinian Influences on the Narrative of Bram Stoker’s
Dracula,” in Vampires: Myths and Metaphors of Enduring Evil, ed. Carla T. Kungl (Oxford: Inter
Disciplinary Press, 2003), 28, vol. 6, PDF e-book.
82
83
18
men, or as many as want her.”84 In this example, Lucy expresses a desire of having
more than one husband, even though she immediately dismisses the thought with: “But
this is heresy, and I must not say it.”85
Mina is attacked by the Count. He forces her to drink his blood, which will soon
turn her into his servant. After this experience she becomes tainted by the Count, their
minds linked together.
Van Helsing declares that in order to save Mina from her fate of becoming a
vampire chasing him away is not enough anymore. They must destroy him.86 At this
point in the novel, it is Mina who is in need of rescue. A rare moment for Mina’s
character occurs. After Van Helsing explains that she has been infected, she
momentarily breaks down in Jonathan’s arms, an act which reinforces the men’s belief
that women are not strong enough to handle the truth about vampirism.87 When
describing Mina, Professor Van Helsing himself says that because of her intelligence
she must have a “man’s brain”, further illustrating the position of women in a male
oriented society. With that being said, Stoker’s male characters demonstrate the
misogyny that was prominent in Great Britain towards the end of the nineteenth
century. The men clash with Dracula over the possession and control of the women’s
bodies.88 It would appear that Dracula attempts to attack the men by targeting their
women. Dracula supports this idea by directly addressing the men: “Your girls that you
all love are mine already; and through them you and others shall yet be mine—my
creatures, to do my bidding and to be my jackals when I want to feed. Bah!”89 In the
novel, a woman’s position is always subordinate to that of a man. The three female
vampires or Lucy and Mina, all women are portrayed as being subjects to good or evil
men.90
84
85
86
Steinmeyer, Who Was Dracula?: Bram Stoker’s Trail of Blood, 13.
87
Jacqueline LeBlanc, “It is not good to note this down: Dracula and the Erotic Technologies of
Censorship,” in Bram Stoker’s Dracula, Sucking Through Century 1897-1997, eds. Carol Margaret
Davidson and Paul Simpson-Housley (Toronto, Oxford: Dundurn Press, 1997), 260. PDF e-book.
88
Livy Visano, “Dracula as a Contemporary Ethnography: A Critique of Mediated
Moralities and Mysterious Mythologies,” in Bram Stoker’s Dracula, Sucking Through Century 1897-
1997, eds. Carol Margaret Davidson and Paul Simpson-Housley (Toronto, Oxford: Dundurn Press, 1997),
344. PDF e-book.
89
90
Visano, “Dracula as a Contemporary Ethnography: A Critique of Mediated
Moralities and Mysterious Mythologies,” 344.
19
Corrupted by Dracula, Mina is excluded from the vampire hunting group’s
meetings for fear of giving away their plans to the Count. As was the case with Lucy,
Mina, who is during the day consciously working with the group of men to battle
Dracula, might do his bidding at night.91 Once again Mina is being underestimated. She
discovers that while the Count sleeps during the day, she is the one who has access to
his thoughts and does the exact opposite of what her companions feared. She reads
Dracula’s thoughts and relays them to Van Helsing and his group. With her help they
follow Dracula back to Transylvania. He tries to tempt her into joining him, by sending
his three vampire brides to convince her but Mina refuses. She even resists his control at
one point and successfully tracks him down inside his coffin, providing the men with an
opportunity to finally slay him.
2.4. The Supernatural
The final feature of Gothic horror which I am going to elaborate on is the existence of
the supernatural. When talking about the supernatural in Dracula, the first thing that
comes to mind is the curse of vampirism itself. Being a vampire, Dracula possesses
abilities which cannot be explained by any rational means. His vampiric powers include
inhumane agility and strength, which Dr. Van Helsing describes as a strength of twenty
men, the ability to shapeshift into a dog, a wolf or a bat. He can see in the dark, throws
no shadow and has no reflection in mirror. Dracula has a power to turn others into
vampires, spreading the curse by directly biting them, as was the case with Lucy, or by
forcing them to drink his blood as he did with Mina. A power that seems unique to
Dracula is the power to control other vampires.
Despite Dracula’s arsenal of supernatural abilities, he manages to claim only one

known victim during his stay in England. That is because his undoubtedly powerful
talents have equally powerful limitations that accompany them.92 Because of these
limitations Van Helsing describes him as being “even more prisoner than the slave of
the galley.”93 Dracula cannot use his powers often when they are most needed, such as
at the moment when he was killed. The sun renders most of his powers ineffective. He
can only use his shapeshifting powers during the night. He is not allowed to enter a
91
Nursel Icoz, “The Undead: To Be Feared or/and Pitied,” in Vampires: Myths and Metaphors of
Enduring Evil, ed. Carla T. Kungl (Oxford:Inter Disciplinary Press, 2003), 70, vol. 6, PDF e-book
92
Christine Ferguson, “Nonstandard Language and the Cultural Stakes of Stoker’s Dracula,” in ELH,
Vol. 71, No. 1 (Spring, 2004), 230. http://www.jstor.org/stable/30029928
93
20
person’s home without invitation or pass running water. Dracula can be easily repelled
by garlic, wild roses or holy water and can be warded off by sacred items like
crucifixes.94
94
Ferguson, “Nonstandard Language and the Cultural Stakes of Stoker’s Dracula,” 230.
21
3. Narrative Techniques and Elements
3.1. Epistolarity and Realism
How these papers have been placed in sequence will be made manifest in the reading of
them. All needless matters have been eliminated, so that a history almost at variance
with the possibilities of later–day belief may stand forth as simple fact. There is
throughout no statement of past things wherein memory may err, for all the records
chosen are exactly contemporary, given from the standpoints and within the range of
knowledge of those who made them.95
These are the words that Bram Stoker uses to establish the unconventional
narrative structure of his most famous novel, a novel which abandons the traditional
storytelling of a great majority of other works in favour of an episodic tale, composed of
diary entries, letters and other forms of communication. This form of narrative allows
Stoker to tell his story of vampires and vampire hunters in such a way that the reader
finds it convincing and almost believable, providing a very unique reading experience.
The type of novel which is made up of series of different documents is called an
epistolary novel.
The epistolary novel flourished in eighteenth century due to the works of authors
such as Samuel Richardson, who is considered to be largely responsible for the
development of the epistolary novel.96 Richardson’s most widely recognized works are
two epistolary novels Pamela (1740) and Clarissa (1749). The appeal of epistolary
narrative stems from the authenticity it yields, in contrast with the arbitrariness and
artificiality of romantic invention. The works of this genre are compiled of documents
of facts and feelings and thus they present themselves as their own direct evidence.
Unlike third person narrative, epistolary narrative does not reveal its fictitious nature
straight away, it appears far more convincing. It would not be difficult to mistake
epistolary novel for a genuine exchange of letters.97 Aarset claims that the difference
95
Stoker, Dracula, Preface.
96
Godfrey F. Singer, The Epistolary Novel: Its Origin, Development, Decline, and Residuary Influence,
(New York: Russel & Russel, Inc., 1963), 60. PDF e-book.
97
Hans Erik Aarset, “Archetextual palimpsests: Compositional structure and narrative self-awareness in
L’Astrée and other French baroque novels,” in Contexts of Pre-Novel Narrative: The European Tradition,
ed. Roy Eriksen (Berlin, New York: Mouton de Gruyter, 1994), 299. accessed February 18, 2018,
https://books.google.cz/books?hl=cs&lr=&id=ICPNMfN3TDgC&oi=fnd&pg=PA293&dq#v=onepage&q
&f=false
22
between real correspondence and fictitious epistolary novel resides in the fact that “the
novel must present itself as a complete and self–contained world with all the
information necessary to understand the story and its characters. Thus its mimetic nature
reveals itself only through its inherent self–sufficient structure”98 A complete epistolary
novel is an artificially created illusion of reality in form of believable collection of
letters. The authors of epistolary novels often present themselves as editors of the
material, not the writers, effectively distancing themselves from the story. The
characters of the novels narrate their own subjective experience from their own point of
view. The use of letters also grants the reader insight to what the characters are thinking
and feeling which makes the story even richer. The more narrators the author chooses to
introduce, the more viewpoints and opinions there are. The range of perspectives and
points of view adds to the authenticity of the story, creating a realistic image of truth.99
The interest in the epistolary novel eventually dropped after over forty years of
popularity. The form of letters was no longer a desirable way of telling a story that
relies on climaxes and events brimming with action. The genre was not entirely
abandoned, but its works became less sought after.100
The narration of Dracula is for the most part carried out by the characters of
John Seward, Mina Murray, Jonathan Harker and Lucy Westenra. The chapters of the
novel are divided to correspond to the particular diary entry or letter of a particular
character. By using different means of narration Stoker creates a sense of documentary
realism while telling his story. The characters’ descriptions of events blend together to
give the impression of realism, supported by the information presented as historical
facts.101 Likewise, the characters give their individual accounts on various number of
matters, including the Count. Dracula’s facial and bodily features are the subject of
detailed description repeatedly throughout the book by different characters. While these
descriptions remain mostly consistent, there still are peculiar variations which show the
differences between characters rather than the Count’s appearance.
Kawatra’s analysis of this matter shows that:
98
Aarset, “Archetextual palimpsests: Compositional structure and narrative self-awareness in L’Astrée
and other French baroque novels,” 299.
99
Aarset, “Archetextual palimpsests: Compositional structure and narrative self-awareness in L’Astrée
and other French baroque novels,” 299.
100
Singer, The Epistolary Novel: Its Origin, Development, Decline, and Residuary Influence, 102.
101
Mehak Kawatra, “The Rhetoric of Realism in Bram Stoker’s Dracula,” 2. accessed February 18, 2018,
http://jps.library.utoronto.ca/index.php/wcct/article/viewFile/25581/18788
23
The word “aquiline” is used consistently to describe the Count’s nose
by both Harker and Seward the vampire’s same “white sharp teeth”
(265) are first described as those with “astonishing vitality” (27) by
Harker and later like a “wild beast” (265) by Seward. In each case, the
descriptions provided of the Count’s features are largely consistent.
However, the primary difference between the narrators is that while
Harker uses plain adjectives to describe the Count’s teeth, Seward
opts for a metaphor.102
In addition, Stoker uses his perspective–based narration to point out the cultural
differences among his characters. The characters are portrayed to embody the main
cultural attitudes in the nineteenth century Western Europe. This mainly applies to
Lucy, Mina and Dr. John Seward. Because of her understanding of womanhood and its
responsibilities, her vanity and desires of romance and marriage, Lucy represents the
traditional nineteen century woman. Throughout her writings she displays signs of
sexism by constantly praising men for their bravery and nobility while belittling women
for their weakness. Lucy is narrating with a very simplistic, conventional and in sense,
old fashioned voice. A voice which was not unfamiliar to Victorian readers.103
Mina’s attitude is projected throughout her writings as well. In her way of

thinking, she is a woman of the advanced, modern England who embodies the new,
modern culture. Mina is a strong female character who is ahead of her time not only for
her contemporary England but for her sex as well. Mina is described as being “noble” a
trait used by Lucy while referring to men. Mina’s modernity is apparent in her narrative
style. In the novel, after climbing the endless steps to the Whitby Abbey she describes
the sensation her body feels in a very mechanical manner not unlike in manner one
would use to describe a machine. She says that her feet feel as if they were “weighted
with lead”104 and her joints as if they were “rusty”, showing the influence of
industrialization on her culture and society.105 Mina is the person responsible for
collecting all the letters, journal entries and records of other characters and putting them
together into what is essentially the text we are reading. If we would truly believe in the
102
Kawatra, “The Rhetoric of Realism in Bram Stoker’s Dracula,”2-3.
103
Kawatra, “The Rhetoric of Realism in Bram Stoker’s Dracula,” 3.
104
105
24
authenticity of the story, then the real author of the novel would be Mina, not Stoker.
Therefore, I believe that if Dracula had a main character, it would be Mina.
While the other narrators might prefer putting a pen to a paper, Dr. John Seward
chooses to record his thoughts in speech rather than in writing.106 Seward is introduced
to the story as a stoic, immovable man of science who can objectively assess a situation
with a sense of emotional detachment. His narration provides the novel with a rational
and scientific voice which was in accordance with the acceptance of science in modern
England.107 Kawatra says that “Seward’s unrelenting need for empirical evidence, as
well as his curiosity and adherence to rigid logic, in effect make him representative of
the ideals of science – a growing cultural trend that resurfaced during the industrial era
and that would have been all too familiar to Stoker’s contemporary readership.”108 His
actions and beliefs are governed by what he deems rational, the same kind of reliance
on rationality and science is reflected in his narration. When faced with the curse of
vampirism he constantly craves for some rational explanation. After accepting the
reality and joining the battle against the Count, the reader feels as if other interpretations
are no longer valid and that the existence of vampires and Dracula are the only reality
there is. With that being said, Seward’s scientific background and integrity further add
to his and the story’s credibility.109 Furthermore, when Seward reads Jonathan’s diary
and finds it truthful he adds to his credibility as a narrator as well.110 Dr. Seward’s
phonographic method of documentation stands out from all the other forms of narration
because it lacks the self–reflection and intimacy of writing a personal diary entry. For
Seward, the phonograph is a hollow method of satisfying his needs. When he feels
hunger or exhaustion he turns to phonograph,111 as he describes in the novel, “Cannot
eat, cannot rest, so diary instead.”112
106
Katherine Warriner, “The Mechanical Vampire: Examining the Relationship Between the Phonograph
and the Human in Stoker’s Dracula,” in QUEUC 2016: Conference Proceedings, eds. Gregory Brophy,
Alexis Chouan and Geoffrey Meugens (Sherbrooke: Bishop’s University Press, 2016), 83. PDF e-book.
106
107
108
109
110
111
Katherine Warriner, “The Mechanical Vampire: Examining the Relationship Between the Phonograph
and the Human in Stoker’s Dracula,” 83.
112
25
By bringing all the narrators together, Stoker creates a multi–layered story that
captures numerous perspectives and styles of narration which serve to intensify the
realism and, subsequently, its frightful appeal.113
3.2. Active Reading
While using the epistolary narrative structure for realism’s sake is obvious, I would say
that there is more to it then I have mentioned so far. It is plausible to say that the
epistolary format forces the reader to pay much more attention to the events that are
taking place. Rather than passively reading facts presented by the author, Stoker
encourages the reader to think for themselves, involving them in a more active way of
reading his story.
Reading through the chapters makes the reader think about what they have read
before, sometimes the clue to fully comprehend what is happening lies quite far back in
the story. The reader is thus encouraged to read particular sections and chapters of the
novel again. This factor of re–readability is what separates Dracula from a majority of
other books. Reading the book again and discovering something previously missed,
which explains the motives behind something else feels extremely rewarding. This is
why I believe that the narrative structure is what makes the novel truly great.
3.3. Narrative Language
There is no omniscient narrator in Dracula. The story is told through the separate points
of view of the individual characters in fist–person narrative. The first–person account
serves to further increase the distance between the author and the text. Through the
choice of narrative structure and points of view Stoker makes it clear that he wants the
reader to think that it is the character who tells the story and not Stoker himself. No two
people have the exact same type of language or speech and the same can be said about
Dracula’s characters.
The storytelling is mostly carried out by the characters of Mina, Lucy, Seward
and Harker. All these characters are British citizens. Stoker did include other major
characters that are non–British like Quincey Morris, Van Helsing or Dracula but these
characters are not the narrators of the story. The point of view seems to be restricted to
113
26
the British only. The Victorian culture and the standard English language are thus
presented as the set norm.
In Transylvania, Dracula seeks to imitate this norm of English language. The

result of his effort is something Jonathan Harker describes as “excellent English, but
with a strange intonation.”114 Dracula’s English is too perfect which makes him sounds
unnatural. Ferguson claims that Dracula’s obsession with the language derives from his
intentions to assimilate with the British society and to eventually dominate it.115 In
England, Dracula’s textbook English meets with a more diverse group of English
speakers with their own particular styles of language befitting their social status and
their respective homelands. Morris’ American dialect, Van Helsing’s bizarre speech and
disregard for correctness, Mina and Jonathan’s shorthand, the lower–class speech of the
children calling Lucy “bloofer lady” instead of beautiful lady, the sailor and the
Cockney zookeeper dialects, these are all different variations and deviations of English
language that Stoker implemented in the novel. These variations are a fundamental part
of standard human communication out of which Dracula is excluded.116
For Dracula, language proves to be an essential component in achieving victory.

Dracula is a conqueror. His ambitions are far higher than just satisfying his thirst for
blood. The first step of his conquest is to master the English language. Van Helsing is
aware of this and warns the others:
He study new tongues. He learn new social life; new environment of

old ways, the politic, the law, the finance, the science, the habit of a
new land and a new people who have come to be since he was. His
glimpse that he have had, whet his appetite only and enkeen his desire.
Nay, it help him to grow as to his brain; for it all prove to him how
right he was at the first in his surmises. He have done this alone; all
alone! from a ruin tomb in a forgotten land. What more may he not do
when the greater world of thought is open to him?117
This shows that the role of language in Dracula is greater than merely to add
diversity to the characters.
114
115
116
117
27
3.4. Different Sections of Dracula
Bram Stoker’s Notes for Dracula show that Stoker’s original outline of the whole novel
was quite different from the novel we know today as Dracula. In 1890 Stoker planned
to tell his story in a series of four books titled “Styria to London,” “Tragedy,”
“Discovery” and “Punishment.”118 The author eventually decided to release the story in
a form of a single book but the four mentioned book titles still correspond well with the
four different sections of the finished novel. These sections differ in pace and the way
they are narrated. In the following couple of pages, I will attempt to analyse each
section with respect to its content.
The first section of the novel is narrated exclusively by Jonathan Harker.

Through his eyes and mind, we are introduced to Stoker’s dreadful villain – Count
Dracula. As an unremarkable English solicitor, Harker’s role in this horror fiction is to
be someone with whom the readership empathizes.119 Jonathan Harker travels from
England into the foreign lands of Transylvania to help Count Dracula with legal matters
concerning his wishes to move to England. The foreshadowing, previously mentioned in
chapter 2.1., is especially prominent throughout this section. Originally, Stoker planned
on setting the novel in Styria, a province of Austria. Styria was later changed to
Transylvania as a home of Dracula.120 Dracula’s plan of moving from Styria to
England’s London corresponds with the first book’s title “Styria to London,” which
would make the first four chapters narrated by Jonathan Harker its content.121 The first
section of the novel, narrated by Harker, is written in a traditional gothic horror story
manner.122 It is scary, fast paced and linear, doubtlessly written to “hook” reader’s
attention. Stoker ends the first section on a cliffhanger, with Harker attempting a
dangerous escape from his imprisonment. Harker’s fate is not revealed until many
chapters later and the reader is left suspended.
Section two of the novel starts after chapter four. Other main characters are
introduced and the traditional gothic horror becomes a story mostly about tracking and
118
Bram Stoker, Robert Eighteen-Bisang and Elizabeth Miller, Bram Stoker’s Notes for Dracula
(Facsimile ed. Jefferson, London: McFarland & Company, Inc., 2008), 277. PDF e-book.
119
Mathias Clasen, “Attention, Predation, Counterintuition: Why Dracula Won’t Die,” in Style, Vol. 46,
no. 3-4 (2012), 383. http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5325/style.46.3-4.378.
120
Stoker, Eighteen-Bisang and Miller, Bram Stoker’s Notes for Dracula, 4.
121
David Seed, “The Narrative Method of Dracula,” in Nineteenth-Century Fiction, Vol. 40, No. 1 (Jun.
1985), 63. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3044836
122
Clasen, “Attention, Predation, Counterintuition: Why Dracula Won’t Die,” 383.
28
collecting information.123 The pace slows down considerably and the plot moves from
the mysterious and atmospheric lands of the East to a familiar, contemporary England.
Here Stoker fully exploits his choice of narrative and narrators each with their unique
narrative style, girlish Lucy, serious Dr. Seward and the modern Mina.124 The gaps in
the narrative, where the reader is left in the dark, become as important as the properly
narrated parts of the story. For the most of the second section Dracula is absent. His
actions are hidden from the characters as well as from the reader. By manipulating and
controlling the flow of information to the reader, Stoker creates suspense. He forces the
reader to actively participate in the story by presenting fragments of what is the Count
up to through the characters of Lucy and Renfield.125 The reader has to piece these
fragments together to understand the events that are taking place. Dracula’s absence is
thus not as striking because he still has to be in the consciousness of both the
protagonists and the readers.126 After becoming the victim of Dracula, Lucy becomes
the rallying point for the heroes.127 They all try their best to save her, but eventually fail.
Lucy dies, thus the second section corresponds with the second book’s title –
“Tragedy.” The second section consists of chapters five to sixteen and it shows Lucy
becoming the prey of Dracula, the group’s attempts to fight her worsening condition
and ultimately, her death and opening of her tomb. The section is concluded with the
characters vowing and promising to each other to “go on to the bitter end”128 in order to
stop Count Dracula.129
Section three mostly consists of information gathering. After Lucy’s death,

Professor Van Helsing reads through her journal and letters. The action where
someone’s correspondence is read by other person was already introduced in chapter
fourteen, where Mina reads Harker’s journal.130 In chapter seventeen Mina exchanges
Harker’s journal for Dr. Seward’s phonograph recordings. This type of information
sharing and collaboration proves to be essential in the efforts of understanding and
defeating Dracula. It becomes more difficult for Dracula to attack the characters when
they band together and share knowledge. In his novel, Stoker puts emphasis on
123
124
Seed, “The Narrative Method of Dracula,” 70.
125
126
127
128
129
130
29
information transmission as a modern way of fighting an enemy.131 As the characters
start collaborating with each other, the gaps in the narrative and between their accounts
start disappearing and their enemy, the Count, ceases being a mystery. He becomes
more defined and thus easier to resist. Dracula knows this and chooses to take action.
He attacks Mina and attempts to destroy the journals documenting his existence.132
Mina is infected by the Count. If Dracula is not destroyed, she will eventually succumb
to his vampiric powers and fall completely under his control. Stopping him or chasing
him away is no longer enough. This plot twist gives the male characters a more personal
reason to actively pursue him. The third section ends with chapter twenty–one, once all
the accounts of Dracula’s actions have been put together and a clear image of the
adversary with all his strengths and flaws is finally revealed – “Discovery.”
The final section of the novel consists of chapters twenty–two to twenty–six.

Originally titled “Punishment,” the fourth section focuses on the formulation of a battle
plan, the final pursuit and the ultimate death of Dracula. The narrative of this section is
still told in epistolary format through the journals of Harker, Mina and Seward, but it is
much more linear with a quick flow of events leading to the book’s conclusion.133
Quincey Morris dies in the final battle; however, his sacrifice is not in vain as the Evil is
banished, justice served and the damsel saved.
From the introduction of the vampire to his death, the plot of Stoker’s planned
four books eventually served him as a blue–print for the final version of his most
famous novel he named Dracula.
3.5. Timeline and Chronology
The novel is composed of letters, journal entries, newspaper cutting and other forms of
textual records which are not always put together in a chronological way. The previous
chapter dealt with the contents of different sections of the novel. It this chapter I will
attempt to analyse and discuss the timeline and continuity of said sections.
The sole narrator for the first section is Jonathan Harker. Other narrators are yet
to be introduced and his is the only point of view available to the reader for the first four
chapters. The narrative in the first section is the most conventional and linear because it
131
132
133
30
follows a single character without any major violations of chronological order of events.
This type of violation will be called discrepancy in time from now on. The first section
follows Jonathan’s arrival in Transylvania on May 3rd, his stay at Castle Dracula that
begins on May 5th and his eventual escape on June 30th. Jonathan’s diary had been
recorded and arranged chronologically which means the events follow one another in
the order of their occurrence. Not every day of Jonathan’s experience had been recorder
but the gaps between his accounts are usually no longer than four days. The largest gap
between the records happens from May 31st to June 17th. The reader has no knowledge
of what happened during this time. The first sections spans a period of fifty–nine days.
Section two starts with the correspondence of Mina and Lucy. Other narrators
make their appearance and the timeline becomes more difficult to follow. Chapter five
begins on May 9th which is not where the story was left off. The continuity of the
narrative is broken and the story is now situated in the past. Instead of following the
timeline where Jonathan escapes from Dracula it returns to the past roughly around the
time he realized that he is being held prisoner at Castle Dracula in chapter three. After
Lucy’s letter on May 24th, Seward’s introduction of Renfield recorded in phonograph on
May 25th and a brief exchange of letters between Quincey Morris and Arthur
Holmwood on May 25th and 26th, there is another major jump in time, this time almost
two months forward. Mina records her meeting with Lucy and Mr. Swales on July 24th
and August 1st. The story goes back in time again with Dr. Seward’s diary on 5th and
18th of June and continues up to 20th of July. Mina’s story continues on 26th of July and
spans the rest of the month until the 9th of August when Dracula arrives to Whitby on
the board of a ship Demeter. The captain’s log then narrates the disappearance of the
ship’s crew throughout the whole of July and the early August. For almost every day
there is a new record in the captain’s log. The rest of the August is narrated by Mina and
Seward in mostly chronological order, Seward’s diary entries being couple days behind
Mina’s. A single exception is a letter from Sister Agatha, informing Mina of Jonathan’s
condition. The letter from 12th of August was put between 18th and 19th August. The
order of events in September is mostly chronological as well. The interview with the
zookeeper is an exception. It should chronologically follow the wolf’s attack on Lucy
which happens on 17th of September. The interview takes place on 18th September but it
is placed before the attack. This was likely done to clear any confusions that could arise
from the appearance of the wolf. The attack could seem random without a proper
31
introduction of the animal in the interview. Seward’s diary entry on 29th of September
marks the end of section two. The second section has more discrepancies in time than
all the other segments combined which makes it the most difficult part of the novel to
understand and analyse. The events are not necessarily presented in chronological order
and are narrated by multiple characters. The second section spans a period of
approximately one hundred forty–four days.
The third section directly follows where Seward’s diary ended and it spans only
five days. These five days are however shown from different points of view of different
characters. For example, October 1st is narrated by all the major narrators multiple
times. Instead of moving the plot forward, Stoker shows what happens simultaneously
somewhere else to a different character. These jumps or shifts in time happen frequently
throughout the novel and they point out that the characters and events are still
connected, even though it might not be obvious at the time. The discrepancies in time of
this section are minimal and it is thus mostly chronological. The fourth and final section
spans thirty–five days. It starts with Harker’s journal on 3rd October and ends with Mina
on November 6th. The very end of the book contains a narrative technique known as
prolepsis or flashforward, where the story moves seven years forward to show that the
remaining characters all lived to see their happy ending.
The whole story of Dracula spans one hundred eighty–eight days in total which
is a little over six months. The primary narrators are Dr. Seward, Mina and Jonathan
whose diary entries make up the majority of the novel. Quincey Morris, Arthur
Holmwood and Abraham Van Helsing can be considered secondary narrators because
they have some voice in the story. Morris and Holmwood have a brief exchange of
letters in chapter five and chapter nine. Van Helsing wrote two memoranda in the final
chapter and when Lucy falls ill he becomes a frequent correspondent of Seward. Lucy
falls somewhere between the primary and the secondary narrators as her letters and
journal entries are more frequent than those of Van Helsing but are not as numerous as
those of Jonathan, Mina or Seward. Stoker supplements the narrative with other
characters and accounts that do not have a real purpose in the story like the zookeeper
or the captain of Demeter. Their accounts complement the accounts of the primary
narrators by adding extra information or explain events that the primary narrators were
unable to experience.
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4. Recurrent Themes of Dracula
4.1. Masculinity vs. Femininity
I have already mentioned in chapters 1.2. and 1.4. that Stoker was a firm believer in the
masculinity of men and the femininity of women. The word “brave” is mentioned
throughout the book forty–one times and the word “strong” seventy–six times. These
words are in majority of cases used to describe the male characters or Mina. On the
other hand, the most feminine character, Lucy, is often described as “poor.” Lucy is
described as “poor” thirty–five times. The sheer number of times that these adjectives
are being used to emphasize the manliness of a male character and the weakness or
helplessness of a female one is extremely high. The purpose of this chapter is to further
illustrate one of the book’s most recurrent themes – masculinity and femininity. To
learn what Stoker’s portrayal of masculinity is, we must first take a closer look at the
male characters. I will analyse the characters based on their masculinity from the most
masculine to the least.
On the top of my masculinity chart sits the American cowboy, Quincey P.

Morris. From the first moments he is introduced, Quincey’s masculinity is apparent. He
proposes to Lucy in a light–hearted manner, speaking in an American slang:
Miss Lucy, I know I ain’t good enough to regulate the fixin’s of your
little shoes, but I guess if you wait till you find a man that is you will
go join them seven young women with the lamps when you quit.
Won’t you just hitch up alongside of me and let us go down the long
road together driving in double harness?134
Quincey manages to perform something as serious as a marriage proposal in a cheerful

and humorous manner, but is still capable of “laying his very heart and soul”135 at
Lucy’s feet. Quincey takes Lucy’s rejection stoically by saying he takes it “standing
up,” and unselfishly wishes her happiness. While Lucy is crying, Quincey remains
composed and leaves the room “without looking back, without a tear or a quiver or a
pause.”136 After Lucy’s death, Seward acknowledges that Morris must have suffered as
134
135
136
33
any of the other men, but says that he “bore through it like a moral Viking,”137 and that
“If America can go on breeding men like that, she will be a power in the world
indeed.”138 I do not consider it to be a coincidence that an American happens to be the
manliest character in the novel. Stoker must have considered America to be a nation of
morally strong, rough–speaking and knife–wielding men. Quincey Morris dies in the
final battle with Dracula. He dies a very manly death, a death fitting for his character.
He loses his life fighting the immortal evil and saving a damsel in distress.
The character I believe to be the second most masculine is Professor Abraham

Van Helsing. Van Helsing is a Dutch professor with an abundance of experience and
accomplishments behind him. He is called in when Seward and Holmwood are out of
options and in need of help. With his knowledge of religion, science and the occult, he
could be considered a modern vampire hunter. This, combined with his intelligence and
open–mindedness towards inexplicable things makes him Dracula’s worst enemy.
Unlike Quincey Morris, Van Helsing does have a more vulnerable side. Lucy’s death
had a big impact on him. There was a moment where Van Helsing broke down and gave
way to “a regular fit of hysterics.”139 Seward describes this scene with:
He laughed till he cried and I had to draw down the blinds lest any one
should see us and misjudge; and then he cried till he laughed again;
and laughed and cried together, just as a woman does. I tried to be
stern with him, as one is to a woman under the circumstances; but it
had no effect. Men and women are so different in manifestations of
nervous strength or weakness!140
In this scene, we can notice a connection between the character of Van Helsing and
Bram Stoker. In chapter 1.4., I have mentioned that Stoker had a similar case of “a
violent fit of hysterics”141 after Irving’s recitation of a poem. Stoker’s breakdown was
likely due to the immense pleasure the recitation gave him. Van Helsing’s breakdown
was probably caused by the mixture of grief and confusion over Lucy’s death. Stoker
has his character, whom he named Abraham after himself and his father, undergo a very
137
138
139
140
141
Boudreau, “Libidinal Life: Bram Stoker, Homosocial Desire and the Stokerian Biographical Project,”
46.
34
similar breakdown that he experienced himself years before writing the novel. It is
unlikely that Stoker considered this experience somehow diminishing to his
masculinity. Therefore, I do not think that Van Helsing’s behaviour was meant to be
interpreted as feminine. Stoker would never call himself feminine. Showing a more
vulnerable or emotional side of a character does not necessarily has to take away from
the character’s masculinity. Van Helsing’s masculinity remains consistently high
throughout the rest of the novel.
The next character I am going to analyse is Dr. John Seward. Seward is

introduced to the story as one of Lucy’s suitors. Lucy describes him as “the lunatic–
asylum man, with the strong jaw and the good forehead”142 and also as someone who is
“one of the most resolute men I ever saw, and yet the most calm.”143 Seward is capable
of working tirelessly under great emotional pressure, such as when he was rejected by
Lucy. He praises Quincey Morris for his emotional integrity and when in need of help,
he calls for Van Helsing, making his masculinity fall behind these two. What makes
Seward stand out from among his peers is his ability to “command.” Lucy finds this
ability especially enticing. She demonstrates this by saying “what a wonderful power he
must have over his patients.”144 Seward is used to being the person in charge. He has
several patients under his care. Therefore, he must project a certain dominance over
them. This dominance can be seen in his interactions with Renfield, when Renfield begs
Seward on his knees for a cat but Seward remains firm and tells him “that he can not
have it.”145 Count Dracula himself has a similar dominance over other vampires.
The least masculine characters are in my opinion Arthur Holmwood and

Jonathan Harker. Out of these two, I believe Arthur is the more masculine one. He is
never described as being particularly masculine and until Lucy’s staking he does not act
masculine. The staking of Lucy shows the character of Arthur in a different light. It
shows the trembling Arthur putting a point of the wooden stake at Lucy’s heart and then
striking with his hammer.
“… Arthur never faltered. He looked like a figure of Thor as his

untrembling arm rose and fell, driving deeper and deeper the mercy–
142
143
144
145
35
bearing stake, whilst the blood from the pierced heart welled and
spurted up around it. His face was set, and high duty seemed to shine
through it; the sight of it gave us courage, so that our voices seemed to
ring through the little vault.”146
By the end of this scene, Arthur earns his masculinity and starts silently crying on Van
Helsing’s chest. Arthur’s newly found masculinity is followed by a more feminine
reaction. This is another instance where a masculine character shows his more
vulnerable side.
Jonathan Harker’s masculinity is a more problematic matter. Jonathan is an

average English solicitor and like Arthur Holmwood, he has no exceptional features.
Although Jonathan’s stay at Castle Dracula was involuntary, he was allowed to roam
the castle mostly freely. I believe that was because the Count thought him harmless. In
the time he was a prisoner, Dracula could have easily turned Jonathan into a vampire.
The reason he did not was likely because he did not expect that Jonathan would have
the strength to escape. As the result of his experience at Castle Dracula, Jonathan has a
mental breakdown. When Mina finds him in Budapest, he is a broken man. He suffers
from a brain fever. Whether he will get better in time or not is unknown. At this
desperate moment, Jonathan does something he considers the best course of action for
him. He marries Mina. Mina is thus legally bound to this husk of a man who might not
get better. While Mina is happy and Stoker likely meant to make this scene romantic by
showing that love can overcome any hardships, I still think it shows Jonathan’s
immature side. He needs his Mina to come back to him and take care of him.
I have established before that Mina becomes a mother figure to the group. It
would seem that she becomes a mother figure to her husband as well. With that being
said, Jonathan might not even think of Mina in a sexual way. While contemplating his
escape Jonathan says: “I am alone in the castle with those awful women. Faugh! Mina is
a woman, and there is naught in common.”147 He says that after failing to resist them,
after giving in to their temptation. Mina is portrayed as a good and chaste woman but
never as a sexual being. It would not be strange to say that Jonathan might think of her
in the same way – as his good, familiar Mina.
146
147
36
Jonathan Harker’s masculinity seems to resurface the moment Mina is in
trouble. By attacking Mina in a bed with a sleeping Harker next to her, Dracula attacks
Mina and Jonathan’s masculinity at the same time. Even Seward notices the change in
Harker after the incident. While contemplating everyone’s resolve he says:
We men are all in a fever of excitement, except Harker, who is calm;

his hands are as cold as ice, and an hour ago I found him whetting the
edge of the great Ghoorka knife which he now always carries with
him. It will be a bad look out for the Count if the edge of that “Kúkri”
ever touches his throat, driven by that stern, ice–cold hand!148
The man in Harker awakens and helps others track the Count down. In the end, it
is Jonathan who strikes the first fatal blow against Dracula, cutting his throat with a
knife.
To conclude this chapter, Stoker’s representation of the ideal of masculinity

could be found in the character of Quincey Morris. He is the most masculine man.
There are others, whose masculinity is more problematic, like Van Helsing and Arthur.
They are men who are not afraid to express their more feminine side, but whether that
makes them less masculine is open for interpretation. The most feminine woman is
Lucy. While Mina has a feminine side, I would argue that because this side was too
often overshadowed by her strength and bravery, she leans more towards the side of
masculinity. The feminine Lucy would never be able to do what Mina achieved. Stoker
created Mina to be strong because weak women would not be able to handle Count
Dracula, they would only end up like Lucy.
148
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4.2. Sexuality and Eroticism
The success of the book could also be explained in terms of its fixation on sexuality and
eroticism. Stoker managed to write a book full of sexual subtext without implementing
any actual sexual scenes. Possibly to avoid any controversies surrounding the sexual
themes. Nevertheless, the sex scenes are there. They have been carefully hidden behind
the scenes of supernatural creatures preying on Victorian men and women.
The first of the scenes with a heavy sexual or erotic subtext happens quite early
in the novel. Jonathan Harker ignores Dracula’s advice and decides to sleep outside his
room. He is approached by three young women with “brilliant white teeth, that shone
like pearls against the ruby of their voluptuous lips.”149 Jonathan describes his
conflicting emotions:
There was something about them that made me uneasy, some longing
and at the same time some deadly fear. I felt in my heart a wicked,
burning desire that they would kiss me with those red lips. It is not
good to note this down, lest some day it should meet Mina’s eyes and
cause her pain; but it is the truth.150
Jonathan has completely fallen under their spell. Even though he has a woman he loves,
he still cannot help but feel a strong sexual desire for these women. The scene continues
when one of the vampire women advances towards Jonathan, bends over him and gets
closer to his neck.
I could feel the soft, shivering touch of the lips on the supersensitive
skin of my throat, and the hard dents of two sharp teeth, just touching
and pausing there. I closed my eyes in a languorous ecstasy and
waited—waited with beating heart.151
At this point in the novel, the existence of vampires was still a mystery to Jonathan. We
can safely assume that what Jonathan expected to happen was not the act of blood–
sucking. He was sexually aroused and expected things to go more in the direction
leading to sexual pleasure. Dracula put an end to that by storming into the room
149
150
151
38
shouting: “Back, I tell you all! This man belongs to me!”152 A confusing thing to say.
Dracula claims Jonathan for himself. In what manner does Jonathan belong to Dracula
remains hidden. Gordon suggest some sort of a sexual rivalry over Harker between the
female vampires and Dracula.153 Jonathan’s lack of masculinity was explained in the
previous chapter and thus Dracula thinking that the frail Jonathan is his to satisfy his
thirst for blood or other carnal desires would make sense. If that was the case then their
relationship could be considered as homoerotic.
Another strange relationship worth looking into is the one between Dracula and
the female vampires. The female vampires have no real purpose throughout the story.
Dracula even abandons them entirely when he leaves for England. One of the vampires
says: “You yourself never loved; you never love!”154 To this Dracula replies: “Yes, I
too can love; you yourselves can tell it from the past. Is it not so?”155 From what past is
never mentioned. It could have been the past when the females were still humans. This
would explain why out of all the main characters Dracula chooses to target only the two
women. Maybe Dracula is capable of loving only humans, who are then corrupted and
turned into vampires. Another possible past is that Dracula loved the young women
when he was still a human. Did the eternal life took away his capacity to love? This
topic is never brought up again and the reader is left to create their own answers.
The next part of the novel that is sexualised is in chapter ten. In chapter ten,
Lucy lays dying in her bed and is in need of blood transfusion. All the men, with the
exception of Jonathan, band together and give Lucy their blood. Van Helsing states that
it would be best to keep the fact that Arthur was not Lucy’s only blood donor away
from him for it would “frighten him and enjealous him, too.”156 Arthur believed that the
act of giving Lucy his own blood “made her truly his bride”157 despite them never being
properly husband and wife. If that was the case then Lucy would be married to all of her
donors, not just Arthur. This shows that Stoker’s portrayal of blood transfusion is not
the same as we think of it today. In Stoker’s time, blood transfusions were an
152
153
Jan B. Gordon, “The Transparency’ of Dracula,” in Bram Stoker’s Dracula, Sucking Through Century
1897-1997, eds. Carol Margaret Davidson and Paul Simpson-Housley (Toronto, Oxford: Dundurn Press,
1997), 102. PDF e-book.
154
155
156
157
39
unprecedented procedure and even blood types were not discovered until the 1901.158
Nowadays there is nothing intimate or sacred about it, which makes Stoker’s depiction
of the transfusion somewhat sexualized.
The scene containing the heaviest sexual subtext happens in chapter twenty–one.
While the men are gone, Mina is alone with Jonathan and gets attacked by Dracula.
Dracula’s attack on Mina is something a reader can expect but the manner of his attack
is far from expected. After the heroes return from the lunatic asylum, they, as well as
the readers, are greeted with a dreadful sight of Mina and Dracula.159
With his left hand he held both Mrs. Harker’s hands, keeping them
away with her arms at full tension; his right hand gripped her by the
back of the neck, forcing her face down on his bosom. Her white
nightdress was smeared with blood, and a thin stream trickled down
the man’s bare breast which was shown by his torn–open dress. The
attitude of the two had a terrible resemblance to a child forcing a
kitten’s nose into a saucer of milk to compel it to drink.160
It is common knowledge that vampires aim for the throats of their victims. This scene
does not show us the expected blood sucking, but rather Mina forcibly ingesting blood
out of the Count’s chest.161 Dracula’s attack on Mina is thus more complex than him
simply satisfying his thirst for blood. The scene was constructed to resemble a ritualistic
rape, echoing and violating a marriage.162 However, it is not as simple as interpreting
the attack as a rape. Stoker’s portrayal of Dracula is not the one of a mindless beast
governed by its urges. Dracula’s power resides not in force, but in careful manipulation,
seduction and intent.163 While asleep, Mina was visited by Dracula a number of times
and was already under his influence to the point where she offered little resistance.
Mina herself states that when he came at night to attack her, she had given herself to
158
159
160
161
Charles E. Prescott and Grace A. Giorgio, “Vampiric Affinities: Mina Harker and the Paradox of
Femininity in Bram Stoker’s Dracula,” in Victorian Literature and Culture, Vol. 33, No. 2 (2005), 504.
http://www.jstor.org/stable/25058725
162
163
Prescott and Giorgio, “Vampiric Affinities: Mina Harker and the Paradox of Femininity in Bram
Stoker’s Dracula,” 504.
40
Dracula out of fear for Jonathan’s life, but is still horrified that she164 “did not want to
hinder him.”165
The reason she did not fight back might very well be out of fear for her
husband’s life. However, if we consider Jonathan and the female vampires at the
beginning of the book, another possibility presents itself. Mina did not want to hinder
him, because she felt sexual attraction towards Dracula. As unlikely as it seems, it is
still a possibility. Dracula’s appearance is repulsive. There is nothing alluring about
how he looks. Why Dracula might be considered desirable is because he represents
something new. As was the case with Jonathan, the female vampires were nothing like
Mina, which could be partially responsible for his attraction to them. They were new
and different while Mina was the old and familiar. The same thing could be said for the
Count. He looks nothing like Jonathan.
4.3. The Supernatural vs. Science
When confronted with the supernatural, Stoker has his characters resort to science.166
Bram Stoker himself was interested in science and its resources. Scientific topics
ranging from chemistry and geology to physiology and psychiatry are present
throughout his works. His characters are often scientist of various fields that possess
various modern devices and inventions. The more unusual world and story Stoker
introduces, the more deftly he manages to implement the technological innovations of
his time.167 The characters in Dracula are no strangers to science as well. Byron says
that “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.”168 This confusion with the inexplicable is especially noticeable in
Dr. Seward, who appears the most narrow–minded of Stoker’s characters. Seward’s
refusal to believe in anything that would contradict his concept of rationality is apparent
when Van Helsing tells him his theory that Lucy is the creature attacking Whitby’s
164
165
166
Glennis Byron, “Bram Stoker’s Gothic and the Resources of Science,” in Critical Survey, Vol. 19, No.
2, (2007), 230. ISSN 1752-2293
167
Byron, “Bram Stoker’s Gothic and the Resources of Science,” 48.
168
41
children. Seward responds with: “Dr. Van Helsing, are you mad?”169 His outrage about
believing in the supernatural is clear.
The novel suggests that science can control the violent or the criminal behaviour
that would threaten the established society’s rules. Blood transfusions, telegraphs,
typewriters and phonographs are some of the novelties that are mustered in the battle
against the vampire.170
Stoker’s portrayal of Van Helsing is the one of an unconventional scientist.

Unlike Dr. Seward, Van Helsing acknowledges the dangers of ignoring what seems to
be inexplicable by the means of science.171 He explains this matter to Seward by saying:
“It is the fault of our science that it wants to explain all; and if it explains not, then it
says there is nothing to explain.”172 Van Helsing is a scientist who quickly recognizes
that science in its current form cannot fully explain everything and thus when
confronted with supernatural being like Dracula, he does not depend on science only
and arms himself with folkloric weapons, such as wooden stakes, garlic and religious
items, bringing the past to the present.173 The Count’s weakness to religious items
shows that the he is tied to a specifically religious concept of evil. Being connected to
the supernatural or spiritual world, Dracula can only be defeated by the two opposing
visions, religion and science. Unfortunately for him, the man who is actively trying to
take him down is adept in both of these areas.174
169
170
171
172
173
Hoelzli, “Exorcising the Beast: The Darwinian Influences on the Narrative of Bram Stoker’s
Dracula,” 28.
174
Norma Rowen, “Teaching the Vampire: Dracula in the Classroom,” in Bram Stoker’s Dracula,
Sucking Through Century 1897-1997, eds. Carol Margaret Davidson and Paul Simpson-Housley
(Toronto, Oxford: Dundurn Press, 1997), 241. PDF e-book.
42
Conclusion
The aim of my thesis was to analyse and discuss the features of Stoker’s storytelling.
The biographical part of my thesis revealed that some features of the novel were not
necessarily born solely in Stoker’s imagination. Chapter 1.1. suggests that his childhood
interest in spies and secret communication resulted in Mina and Jonathan’s abbreviated
writing method called shorthand and that it was Stoker’s mother Charlotte whose stories
inspired him to write Gothic fiction. The later parts of the biographical chapter deal with
Stoker’s relationship with Henry Irving and Irving’s irrefutable influence on the
character of Count Dracula. Rather than stating biographical facts, I have attempted to
look for connections between Stoker’s life and his most famous novel. Unsurprisingly,
there were many.
The second chapter of my thesis dealt with a brief introduction to the history of
Gothic horror followed by a description of its features. The features were described and
discussed and examples were found in the text of the novel. This chapter made it clear
that Stoker followed the characteristics of the Gothic tales laid out by Horace Walpole.
Generally speaking, a horror is more frightening the more real it appears to the reader.
Stoker chose a genre that benefits a great deal from the realism that is provided and
enhanced by the epistolary narrative structure.
Chapter three dealt with the narrative structure, techniques and elements of
Dracula. The story of Bram Stoker’s Dracula is told in an epistolary format. The
beginning of the chapter defined the term epistolarity with a brief historical overview.
The epistolarity allows the reader to see exactly what every narrator’s motives, concerns
and feelings are, making them feel more alive. The narrators themselves are middle or
upper class British citizens with respectable professions which further increases their
credibility. Stoker presents a plethora of perspectives to help the reader get a clearer
image of his reality. The rest of the chapter separated the text of the novel into four
different sections and analysed them. Attention was paid to discrepancies and shifts in
time and narrative techniques such as suspense, foreshadowing and multiperspectivity.
The frequent jumps in time combined with multiple narrators and points of view make
the story non–linear and thus more difficult to read and analyse.
The final chapter of my thesis was concerned with Dracula’s recurrent themes.
The themes of masculinity and femininity, sexuality and eroticism and the theme of
43
supernatural vs. science were chosen because my thesis already introduced these
subjects in chapters 1.2., 2.3. and 2.4. The discussed themes played a great role in the
success of the novel because they explored some of the popular issues of Victorian
society.
This thesis explored some of the features of Bram Stoker’s storytelling and
attempted to discuss their purpose in the novel. The novel itself was not wholly original
when it first came out in 1897. It was by no means the first successful vampire fiction
story. Stoker borrowed a lot from his predecessors. John W. Pollidori’s The Vampyre
(1819), James Malcolm Rymer’s Varney the Vampire (1845–1847) and Sheridan Le
Fanu’s Carmilla (1871–72) enjoyed comparable popularity in their respective periods.
What, in my opinion, sets Dracula apart is Stoker’s realistic storytelling which manages
to incorporate Gothic tropes such as the supernatural without the loss of any of the
realism.
44
Resumé
Cílem mé práce bylo analyzovat význačné rysy stylu vyprávění Brama Stokera v
Drákulovi. V životopisné části mé práce bylo nastíněno, že zdrojem mnoha rysů
Stokerova stylu vyprávění, jako je například těsnopis, byl jeho osobní život. Velký vliv
na Stokerovu literární tvorba měla jeho matka Charlotte, která vzbudila jeho zájem o
gotickou literaturu. Životopisná část mé bakalářské práce také popisuje autorův vztah s
hercem Henrym Irvingem, který měl velký vliv na konečnou podobu Hraběte Drákuly.
První kapitola se nezabývá pouze životem Brama Stokera, ale také se snaží hledat
spojitosti mezi autorovým životem a autorovou nejznámější knihou Drákula.
Druhá kapitola mé práce začíná krátkým úvodem do historie gotické literatury a

jejími vlastnostmi a rysy. Tyto vlastnosti jsem se pokusil najít v textu knihy a
analyzovat. V této kapitole bylo také zjištěno, že Bram Stoker využil stejných rysů
gotické literatury jako jeden z jejích zakladatelů Horace Walpole. Obecně řečeno,
nejstrašidelnější horory jsou ty, které se co nejvíce podobají skutečnosti. Jako žánr
knihy zvolil Stoker horror, který působí velice realisticky v kombinaci s epistolárním
stylem vyprávění.
Kapitola tři se zabývá epistolárním stylem vyprávění příběhu románu a

technikami spojenými s touto formou. Začátek kapitoly popisuje historii epistolárního
románu a definuje ho. Díky epistolárnímu formátu má čtenář přístup přímo do mysli
postav. Jejich motivy, obavy a pocity jsou tak plně zřetelné, což je činí realističtějšími.
Příběh je vyprávěn z různých úhlů pohledu několika postavami, které jsou všechny ze
střední nebo vyšší společenské Britské třídy a vykonávají uznávaná povolání, díky
čemuž působí věrohodně. Zbytek kapitoly se věnuje analýze textu, který byl rozdělen na
čtyři části. Obsahem analýzy částí textu bylo najít určité techniky a postupy ve
vypravování, které Stoker využil při tvorbě Drákuly. Pozornost byla věnována
především posunům v čase, narušení chronologického sledu událostí a technikám
suspenze a předzvěstí. Příběh Drákuly se za použití těchto vyprávěcích technik dá
považovat za nelineární.
Čtvrtá kapitola se zabývá častými náměty díla. Náměty maskulinity a feminity,

sexuality a erotismu a námětem boje nadpřírozena s vědou. Tyto tři náměty byly
zvoleny, protože už byly částečně rozebírány v kapitolách 1.2., 2.3. a 2.4. Ve
Viktoriánské společnosti hrály tyto náměty podstatnou roli.
45
Stokerovo dílo Drákula se nedá považovat za zcela originální, protože se Stoker
nechal inspirovat ostatními autory upírské literatury. Mezi tyto autory patří John W.
Pollidori, James Malcolm Rymer a Sheridan Le Fanu. Dle mého názoru, to, co dělí
Stokera od ostatních autorů je jeho realistický styl vyprávění, který dokáže vylíčit
nadpřirozené události takovým způsobem, že působí uvěřitelně.
46
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Aarset, Hans Erik. “Archetextual palimpsests: Compositional structure and narrative

self–awareness in L’Astrée and other French baroque novels,” in Contexts of Pre–Novel
Narrative: The European Tradition, ed. Roy Eriksen. Berlin, New York: Mouton de
Gruyter, 1994, accessed February 18, 2018,
https://books.google.cz/books?hl=cs&lr=&id=ICPNMfN3TDgC&oi=fnd&pg=PA293&
dq#v=onepage&q&f=false
Altman, Janet Gurkin. Epistolarity: Approaches to a Form. Columbus: Ohio State

University Press, 1982.
Belford, Barbara. Bram Stoker a Biography of the Author of Dracula. London:

Weinfeld and Nicolson, 1996.
Boudreau, Brigitte. “Libidinal Life: Bram Stoker, Homosocial Desire and the Stokerian
Biographical Project,” Brno Studies in English, Vol. 37, No. 2 (2011), ISSN 0524–6881
Burke, Edmund. A Philosophical Inquiry Into The Origin Of Our Ideas Of The Sublime
And Beautiful With Several Other Additions. New York: P.F. Collier & Son Company,
1909–14.
Blackhouse, Sarah. “Narrative and Temporality in Dracula,” in MA TYPO/Graphic

Studies Major Project Report (2003), accessed April 1, 2018, http://the–
publishinglab.com/uploads/bookshelf/pdfs/SarahBackhouse.pdf
Botting, Fred. Gothic, (London, New York: Routledge, 1996), PDF e–book.
Byron, Glennis. “Bram Stoker’s Gothic and the Resources of Science,” in Critical
Survey, Vol. 19, No. 2, (2007), ISSN 1752–2293
Clasen, Mathias. “Attention, Predation, Counterintuition: Why Dracula Won’t Die,” in

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Davison, Carol Margaret., and Paul Simpson–Housley, eds. Bram Stokers Dracula:
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Eighteen–Bisang. Robert, and Elizabeth Miller. Bram Stoker’s Notes for Dracula. A
Facsimile Edition ed. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, Inc.,
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Dracula,” in ELH, Vol. 71, No. 1. Spring, 2004, http://www.jstor.org/stable/30029928
Hillyer, Lambert dir., Dracula’s Daughter, Universal Pictures, 1936.
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Hughes, William. “Bram Stoker (Abraham Stoker) 1847 – 1912 A Bibliography.”
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University of Queensland, 1977, ISSN 0158 3921
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Warriner, Katherine. “The Mechanical Vampire: Examining the Relationship Between
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49
ANNOTATION
Author: Michal Šubrt (F15053)
Department: Department of English and American Studies
Title of Thesis: Bram Stoker’s Storytelling in Dracula
Supervisor: PhDr. Matthew Sweney, Ph.D.
Number of Pages: 51
Year of Presentation: 2018
Key Words: Bram Stoker, narrative structure, storytelling, Dracula,

vampire, vampire fiction, Gothic fiction
Annotation: This bachelor thesis is concerned with Bram Stoker’s

somewhat unconventional choice of narrative structure in
his novel Dracula, as well as the important parts of
Stoker’s life that helped shape the final image of said
book.
50
ANOTACE
Autor: Michal Šubrt (F15053)
Katedra: Katedra anglistiky a amerikanistiky
Název práce: Styl vyprávění Brama Stokera v Drákulovi
Vedoucí práce: PhDr. Matthew Sweney, Ph.D.
Počet stran: 51
Rok Obhajoby: 2018
Klíčová slova: Bram Stoker, styl vyprávění, narativní techniky, Drákula,

upír, upírská literatura, gotický román
Anotace: Tato bakalářská práce se zabývá poněkud netradičním

stylem vypravování románu Drákula od Brama Stokera.
Zároveň popisuje určitá období v životě autora, která měla
vliv na konečnou podobu díla.
51

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What is the thesis about?

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What are some of the important parts of Stoker's life discussed?

What are some of the important parts of Stoker's life discussed?

PALACKÝ UNIVERSITY OLOMOUC

Department of English and American Studies

Bram Stoker’s Storytelling in Dracula

Supervisor: PhDr. Matthew Sweney, Ph. D.

V Olomouci dne…………… Podpis……………

Stoker joined two of Trinity’s most prestigious student organizations which

1.4. Whitman, Irving and other Men of Influence

2.1. Gothic Horror and its Features

Whatever is fitted in any sort to excite the ideas of pain and

danger, that is to say, whatever is in any sort terrible, or is

conversant about terrible objects, or operates in a manner

analogous to terror, is a source of the sublime.61

To put this idea to perspective with Dracula, it could be applied to Jonathan

Horace Walpole’s The Castle of Otranto (1764) is generally considered as the

2.2. The Setting, Atmosphere and Omens

2.3. New Woman in Distress

2.4. The Supernatural

Despite Dracula’s arsenal of supernatural abilities, he manages to claim only one

3.1. Epistolarity and Realism

Kawatra’s analysis of this matter shows that:

Mina’s attitude is projected throughout her writings as well. In her way of

3.2. Active Reading

3.3. Narrative Language

In Transylvania, Dracula seeks to imitate this norm of English language. The

For Dracula, language proves to be an essential component in achieving victory.

He study new tongues. He learn new social life; new environment of

The first section of the novel is narrated exclusively by Jonathan Harker.

Section three mostly consists of information gathering. After Lucy’s death,

The final section of the novel consists of chapters twenty–two to twenty–six.

3.5. Timeline and Chronology

4.1. Masculinity vs. Femininity

On the top of my masculinity chart sits the American cowboy, Quincey P.

Quincey manages to perform something as serious as a marriage proposal in a cheerful

The character I believe to be the second most masculine is Professor Abraham

The next character I am going to analyse is Dr. John Seward. Seward is

The least masculine characters are in my opinion Arthur Holmwood and

“… Arthur never faltered. He looked like a figure of Thor as his

Jonathan Harker’s masculinity is a more problematic matter. Jonathan is an

We men are all in a fever of excitement, except Harker, who is calm;

To conclude this chapter, Stoker’s representation of the ideal of masculinity

4.3. The Supernatural vs. Science

Stoker’s portrayal of Van Helsing is the one of an unconventional scientist.

Druhá kapitola mé práce začíná krátkým úvodem do historie gotické literatury a

Kapitola tři se zabývá epistolárním stylem vyprávění příběhu románu a

Čtvrtá kapitola se zabývá častými náměty díla. Náměty maskulinity a feminity,

Aarset, Hans Erik. “Archetextual palimpsests: Compositional structure and narrative

Altman, Janet Gurkin. Epistolarity: Approaches to a Form. Columbus: Ohio State

Belford, Barbara. Bram Stoker a Biography of the Author of Dracula. London:

Blackhouse, Sarah. “Narrative and Temporality in Dracula,” in MA TYPO/Graphic

Clasen, Mathias. “Attention, Predation, Counterintuition: Why Dracula Won’t Die,” in

Ferguson, Christine. “Nonstandard Language and the Cultural Stakes of Stoker’s

Hillyer, Lambert dir., Dracula’s Daughter, Universal Pictures, 1936.

Hughes, William. Historical Dictionary of Gothic Literature. Lanham, Toronto,

Hume, Robert. “Gothic versus Romantic: A Revaluation of the Gothic Novel,” in

Kawatra, Mehak. “The Rhetoric of Realism in Bram Stoker’s Dracula,” accessed