Dracula

[onthemove]

Hi,
I was wondering if you guys knew about Dracula's 'sub meanings'. Or if some situation Stoker has made in the book are drawn from history of the UK, Ireland or his life?

[Durgamol]

As you probably know a prototype for Dracula from Bram Stoker’s novel from 1897 was Romanian prince Vlad Tepes, born in November or December 1431. Already during his life he was beeing called Dracula (in contemporary Romanian “dracul” means “devil”, but by then the whole meaning was “son of a dragon”) and was well-known because of his crusades against Ottoman Empire. Since early childhood he was trained to be a warrior. Bloody revenge on the killers of his family and tough regime in the country between years 1456-1462 made him a legend. All suspected of betrial without any hesitation were convicted to death by impalement (which he observed during the years spent in Ottoman Empire). Most of the execusions were having political reasons, but some believe that Vlad was also killing when he was simply bored. Prince Dracula was killed in a battle in 1476. His body was brutally mutilated and his head was never found.

Before writing Dracula, Stoker spent a few years researching European folklore and stories of vampires, being most influenced by Emily Gerard's 1885 essay "Transylvania Superstitions", and an evening spent talking about Balkan superstitions with Arminius Vambery. The image of a vampire portrayed as an aristocratic man, like the character of Dracula, was created by John Polidori in "The Vampyre" (1819). The Lyceum Theatre, where Stoker worked between 1878 and 1898, was headed by the tyrannical actor-manager Henry Irving, who was Stoker's real-life inspiration for Dracula's mannerisms and who Stoker hoped would play Dracula in a stage version. Although Irving never did agree to do a stage version, Dracula's dramatic sweeping gestures and gentlemanly mannerisms drew their living embodiment from Irving.

[GothMan]

...and talking about inspirations don't forget to mention Le Fanu's "Carmilla". ;)

[Durgamol]

...and talking about inspirations don't forget to mention Le Fanu's "Carmilla". ;)

True, how could i forget this one :p ;)

[CrazyDiamond]

Also, look up "The Annotated Dracula" by Leonard Wolf, and "The Land Beyond The Forest - Facts Figures and Fancies From Transylvania." By Emily Gerard.

Hope that helps!!

[Niamh]

Stoker grew up pre famine ireland so alot of what he used as inspiration for dracula came from the horrors that people did during the famine also he grew up close to a cemetry for suicide victims and trations held that they must remove head from body and stake heart to prevent them from rising srom the dead

[Phangirl7]

I read this last year and loved it! I wish there would've been more of Count Dracula, though. And except for the part with Dracula's wives and Johnathan, (That part freaked me out!,) Dracula is not scary! I can't believe my stepdad told me that. He was 12 when he read it for the first time and I was 18.
P.G.7.

[Bellatrix]

Dear Phangirl7 are you obsessed with he "Phantom" as in "The Phantom of the Opera"? Because i am as well!

[Bellatrix]

Historical references are very important for "Dracula" but if one were to take a look into the type of descriptive language that Stoker uses, Dracula's obsessions delve into obsession with fornication and blood lust....for example, the part where jonathan happens upon the room were Dracula's brides are locked away, when he is seduced by the ghosts i think it's pretty obvious what they are there for. The count says that they are there to kill victims and bring them back to the castle, but there are no men among the "slaves". Also, we know that Dracula or Prince Vladimir as i believe he is called in the earlier stages of the book had a wife Elizabeta who committed suicide after hearing of his murder by the turks. When Dracula finds Lucy, many literary critics believe that he saw her as the physical embodyment of his dead love.

Also, the fact that he never bites any part of the body but the neck, there is a scene where Jonathan and Dr. Van Helsing enter and find Dracula forcing Lucy to drink his own blood. this can be read as Jonathan accidentally finding his wife fornicating with evil.

[Bellatrix]

also, the name dracula comes from the ancient romanian word Dracul or "dragon" the orthodox christian church used the dragon as a symbol for the devil which is where many historians get confused.