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CommentsClassic Constant: Realizing a Changing Time
BookIt: Review of Bram Stoker's Dracula
By Eve QuesnelPublished: November 1, 2006
As the witching hour approaches, everyone begins thinking about stacking wood, moving the down vest to the front of the closet, and carving a pumpkin. You may also be considering which book to hunker down with during blustery fall evenings. Naturally, there are Stephen King novels to make a stomach turn and who doesn’t love a gripping Anne Rice vampire tale? But, what about reading a “classic”? One that incorporates the spookiness of Halloween yet contains all those qualities that make a complex story compelling? Such is Bram Stoker’s “Dracula,” published in 1897.
While the premise of “Dracula” may appear obvious, a vampire’s need to suck blood to gain life and youth, Stoker’s ideas venture deeper (no pun intended). He incorporates topics that were very much on the Victorian reader’s mind: Religion. Science. Tradition. Superstitions. And yes, Sex. Gender plays a significant role in Stoker’s evocative tale as the “New Woman” – so called by society as she gains new rights and responsibilities – replaces the “True Woman” – the traditional Victorian. Stoker takes the evolution of women’s rights (and men’s desires) to the extreme, writing erotic scenes of passion and lust. This is where Stoker’s brilliance shines; he shows both “New Woman and “True Woman” in his two female characters, allowing his audience to debate the two types. One might wonder how these steamy scenes, much less the entire book, were received by an 1897 audience. It appears that some critical reviewers found Dracula excessively provocative and stirring, but most found it exciting and enlightening. One critic praised Stoker for his ability to “eclipse all previous efforts in the domain of the horrible.” Another flattered him by recommending that adult readers “will both shudder and enjoy.”
On all fronts, the Victorian culture was experiencing transition. Foremost, technology flooded the Victorian way of life in a big way. In “Dracula,” the telegraph, typewriter, phonograph, train, and electric lamps are all mentioned as means to communicate and chase the pale, fanged creature. Religion also undergoes a metamorphosis as science challenges the conventions of Christianity. Yet, again, like the two types of women that Stoker allows the reader to debate, Stoker writes scenes that provoke discussion on religion versus science, the Bible being quoted throughout. Plus, the tools used to ward off Dracula include the crucifix, the Sacred Host and prayer. Hmm, who could Dracula represent?
We often hear too of London’s pollution caused by its coal burning factories during this time period, plus Britain’s surge of imperialism and influx of emigrants startle the Victorians to a new reality. Yes, all hell was breaking loose in the late 1800s and Stoker exposes it all!There is one constant in life – everything changes. This ironic element is the beauty of classic literature. While we settle in for the night with our scary story, listening to the wind howl outside (and listening to the wolves howl at Dracula’s castle), 110 years later we continue to contemplate change. Like Stoker’s protagonists, we wrestle with nostalgia for the past and grapple with fear for the future. And like the Victorians, I bet that we’re asking the same questions concerning religion, science, society, and those who rule.
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