sexual side of dracula

[Pretty^Athens]

hey you guys,
since I'm reading "the historian" right now, i decided to study the novel Dracula by stocker. have you guys noticed any sexual sides of the book?
how does it deal with sexuality at all

[Page Sniffer]

Hey P^A -- I'm not a scholar of Stoker, but have always loved Dracula. Ironically, I've always thought of it as a romance instead of horror, or if not romance, then a peek into love and lust. Also to covet what is not ours to have. It could also imply the turmoil of living in socially constricting times where the outer world thinks our passions should be extinguished, like passion and lust might be considered an evil thing.

Also, for me, it speaks to the idea of an unobtainable love. I think Dracula was the quintessential "Alpha male" and a frustrated seeker of a true soul mate.

A few things I've found it to speak to of a sexual nature -- Unbridaled passion, the desire to consume your intimate other, sexual prowess and power. Our blood "boils" (so to speak) when aroused, leading to the release of pheromones, which perhaps can lead to arousal by scent (i.e., the idea of smelling blood).

I find the original to generally show the woman as the weaker of creatures between the two. This could be typical of social ideas of the times of course.

I find there to be a woven idea of transcendence and rebirth and the idea that if we are in love, we want it to last forever, but it very rarely if at all, ever does. And when the magical love is over, it is heart breaking (the stake through the heart). Cupid's arrow could have some play here as well -- at least for me, but then I am a hopeless romantic -- May peace be with you.

[Pretty^Athens]

wow.. i do like the things you've mentioned. i read it about 8 years ago i was just a child. being a horror book amazed me then, but today i was at the bookstore and took a look at it, the introduction said that it has a sexual side too. when he bites his victim's neck it expresses sexuality, also the blood boiling ting as you said, we feel our blood boil when we're aroused by something.

[Page Sniffer]

Cool, thanks for the great question and quick response.

:~)

[Page Sniffer]

P^A, your question was thought provoking, and I know of another very strong parallel that is much less romantic but symbolically very close. Crack cocaine addicts are like vampires. They seduce, steal, and drain you dry to feed their habit. And not even look back into the mirror.

Peace be with you always.

[curlyqlink]

I find Dracula brimming over with repressed Victorian sexuality. Repeated scenes of women in white nightdresses stained with blood (lost virginity). Repeated use of the word "wanton" in describing the appearance of these women, while under the influence of Dracula's spell.

A scene involving the pounding of a stake (phallic) into the body one of these "wanton" women. This violation is described in terms of the utmost horror. It is a macabre scene, to be sure, but it also can be seen as representing horror at the sex act itself.

The English men are all rather refined and polite; they are also remarkably ineffectual (i.e., they are impotent). This contrasts sharply with the masterful seductive powers of the dark foreigner, Count Dracula.

The women, once they fall under the vampire's spell, become animalistic. Not only are they attracted to Dracula-- they actively "want it". They are no longer the demure, innocent young ladies they were before, and once this transformation takes place, they are nearly impossible to "cure".

The most horrifying parts of the novel, the parts meant to evoke the utmost revulsion in the reader, are precisely these sections that detail the awakening of the animalistic side of these virginal young women. It seems a thinly disguised metaphor, pointing at the Victorian male's revulsion towards (and denial of) female sexuality.

Bram Stoker, I am convinced, had no conscious clue about any of this.

[Pretty^Athens]

hey,
there's another thing that came to my mind a couple of days ago -about the fact that Dracula's picture cannot be reflected in the mirror- is it because, as Dracula represents sin and sinners by being bloodthirsty, and it is known that when people feel they are sinners they don't feel like facing themselves or looking at themselves in the mirror. what do you think?

[Page Sniffer]

Ah ha, interesting point. If we roll that around for a bit then, may we also say then that Dracbaby has a conscience? Perhaps he is afraid to look himself in the mirror as well, in that he will not like what he sees?

[Pretty^Athens]

this is intresting too... i didn\t think of it this way coz i\ve always thought of him as astisfied of the way he is and the way he lives. i also thought of it that he appears only at nights coz usualy sins take place at dark... where no one can notice

[Page Sniffer]

We are all, complicated love seeking creatures.

[Pretty^Athens]

so i really wanna know this: what you think of dracula as as person? do you dislike him? feel sorry for him...?

[Page Sniffer]

Hmm, part of me dislikes him because he is a manipulator, and I don't like to be manupulated. Part of me sees him as an elitist too, and I don't care for them either. I don't feel sorry for him, but can empathise a little.

[Jane'sRedRose]

I find that Dracula knows his power and how to use it. I would say that he does abuse his power a bit, especially over his enemies and the women he fancies. Vampires are often portrayed as sexual beings in their intimacy with their victims and sensuality in luring their meals to them and in their feedings. The only question about Dracula's mannerisms that I cannot seem to decide between on whether he is passionate or lustful. He does enjoy the being he is in every way, but then again, he is often lustful in his behaviors and actions. He seems to me the character that lives life in the moment presented to him without much consideration for the past or future. In general, I find that his uniqueness is what makes him stand out and ingnite a touch of sympathy for him. After all, he was forced to live for eternity and eternity is a long time. Who knows what anyone would do if they could live forever? I guess one would have to be in his shoes to really understand him.

[ShakespearesCat]

hey,
there's another thing that came to my mind a couple of days ago -about the fact that Dracula's picture cannot be reflected in the mirror- is it because, as Dracula represents sin and sinners by being bloodthirsty, and it is known that when people feel they are sinners they don't feel like facing themselves or looking at themselves in the mirror. what do you think?
i heard the theory that no reflection is related to the idea that a vampire has no soul...