The last chapters of Dracula pass rather quickly as Van Helsing, Seward, Morris, and the Harkers search for Dracula and eventually destroy him in order to keep other innocent people from harm as well as to help Mina avoid a dreadful fate.
Throughout the book, Dracula is described as the stereotypical vampire that one generally sees around Halloween. As a vampire, Dracula has a ridiculous amount of power that he uses to overtake his victims and accomplish his goals. He is able to turn into mist or small particles of dust so he can go where he chooses for the most part unnoticed. Dracula can “within his range, direct the elements; the storm, the fog, the thunder” (261). The vampire is able to control the nocturnal “meaner creatures” such as owls, moths, rats, bats, and wolves. One of the passages from an earlier blog entry describes how Dracula has the ability to transform into a dog. Later the reader is able to discern that he is also able to change into a bat, like most people believe a vampire can.
No matter how strong vampires are, they always have weaknesses that lead to their eventual downfall. They are only powerful when the sun is down; sunrise comes and they are weakened, hence, why they usually sleep in the daytime. Dracula “may not enter anywhere…unless there be some one of the household who bid him to come” (264). Vampires cannot cross water unless carried across it somehow (like by sailing in a boat). He has to sleep somewhere that has a connection to his home. In the novel, Dracula keeps boxes of Transylvanian earth in multiple locations around London so he can sleep soundly. Then there are the more obvious limitations such as garlic and holy objects.
Stoker describes Dracula as a bloodthirsty animal, without human emotions (except for rage, fear and the like). With sharp teeth, unimaginable strength, and an insatiable thirst for blood, vampires are monsters that should be feared, according to Stoker.
Throughout the book, Dracula is described as the stereotypical vampire that one generally sees around Halloween. As a vampire, Dracula has a ridiculous amount of power that he uses to overtake his victims and accomplish his goals. He is able to turn into mist or small particles of dust so he can go where he chooses for the most part unnoticed. Dracula can “within his range, direct the elements; the storm, the fog, the thunder” (261). The vampire is able to control the nocturnal “meaner creatures” such as owls, moths, rats, bats, and wolves. One of the passages from an earlier blog entry describes how Dracula has the ability to transform into a dog. Later the reader is able to discern that he is also able to change into a bat, like most people believe a vampire can.
No matter how strong vampires are, they always have weaknesses that lead to their eventual downfall. They are only powerful when the sun is down; sunrise comes and they are weakened, hence, why they usually sleep in the daytime. Dracula “may not enter anywhere…unless there be some one of the household who bid him to come” (264). Vampires cannot cross water unless carried across it somehow (like by sailing in a boat). He has to sleep somewhere that has a connection to his home. In the novel, Dracula keeps boxes of Transylvanian earth in multiple locations around London so he can sleep soundly. Then there are the more obvious limitations such as garlic and holy objects.
Stoker describes Dracula as a bloodthirsty animal, without human emotions (except for rage, fear and the like). With sharp teeth, unimaginable strength, and an insatiable thirst for blood, vampires are monsters that should be feared, according to Stoker.
2 comments:
Im a little bit confused as to how this book ends and some of the points you are trying to make.What happens to the other people that were involved with Dracula. And is to your understanding that vampires aren't human? or is that they are a creature they have human emotions.
Does the author give any thoughts about their take on the topic and how they came about to find out this information for their book.
I think that this ideas that you bring up are great I never really thought about vampires and how they originated i had always felt that they were just a myth. I am really interested into knowing more.
Basically, after Dracula is killed, the other people involved go home and live out their lives. There is a very brief epilogue in which Mina and Jonathan have a child which they name Quincey after their friend that died while they were killing Dracula...Happily ever after, the end.
Vampires are not physically human. This does not mean they don't have human emotions (as many recent novels suggest). They can definitely have human emotions. Why not?
The author doesn't say anything about their point of view because Dracula is written as a series of the journal entries of the characters. All of it is in first person. However, I have read that Stoker based much of his vampire information on local myths and legends (see one of the first posts) and possibly on a historical figure (see next post).
If you want to know more, just ask me. I can probably answer most, if not all, of your questions concerning vampires.
Post a Comment