Mina vs. Lucy

[Robinflamingo]

One of my students asked why there was such a difference in the period of time that it takes for the two women in Dracula's life to become undead. I said I'd ask here. What do you think?

[closedbyrequest]

Dracula was slowly giving Mina his blood, whereas he quickly gave it to Lucy.

[tommyb90]

i have been studying Dracula for school for the past year or more and have decided that Mina takes longer to be effected and to undergo the transformation because she is a stronger and more willful character. in many ways she can be linked to the suffragette movement and i think that in the social contect of the text, reading the thoughts and movements of such a character would have been incredibly empowering to women

[crisaor]

i have been studying Dracula for school for the past year or more and have decided that Mina takes longer to be effected and to undergo the transformation because she is a stronger and more willful character.

I'd go in that direction as well. Not only that, but of the two, Mina is the one who's innocent, while Lucy constantly teases her about the pleasures of the flesh and the like. It's in this way that Dracula gains influence over her, approaching to her lustful side. Also, I think it's a common association to consider Lucy's name as a sort of analogy to Lucifer. With Mina, his temptation has to be much more subtle, and even then she rejects him (the movie difers in this point), he has to force himself over her.

[ainscough]

Dracula was largely Stoker's view of the developing sexuality of woman, and his opposition to it. Lucy, who was courted by three men and described physically in much more depth than Mina, was supposed to be Mina's sexually corrupted counterpart. She falls victim to Dracula because he prays on what Stoker perceived as her tragic flaw, her lustful nature. Mina Harker was the mother figure, and only pursued romantically by one of the protagonists. She is much less susceptible to Dracula's seduction.

[Vlad Dracula]

I think Count Dracula was more attracted by Mina as he was the innocent girl, so the most difficult to convert. However, it is interesting that Stoker decided to put two women in Dracula's life and the way he used them!