“Mere “modernity” cannot kill. » The year is 1897 and European culture is changing. Skepticism of Christianity and the introduction of Darwinism into common thought is common, and the concept of what we today call "feminism" is planting its roots, as evidenced by the rise and fall of political parties. and political movements such as the Paris Commune, which favored women. in France (Smith 72). For a man like Jonathan Harker, sitting in Dracula's castle, it is uncomfortable (Stoker 53). These words demonstrate his doubts about the failure of the Count's societal model, as he will soon know it. Say no to plagiarism. Get a Custom Essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get Original Essay Stoker created the character of the Count in Dracula to personify sexual promiscuity and various other counter-cultural ideals meant to address British society. Seen as obstructing and infiltrating a system that does not need to be fixed, Dracula embodies the feminist movement. Its setting for English society presents more radical ideas than what activists considered avant-garde, making Dracula the perfect villain even for progressive readers. Dracula works primarily through the captivation of women in the novel, enticing them to know him sexually. He seeks to take control of societal thought through the control of women's desires. But Dracula is not the only one seeking this type of control. Although it seems that Dracula is the only one violating Lucy and Mina's prerogatives in the story, what remains unchecked is how the other male characters also belittle the two women. In Dracula, we watch as the presumably male protagonists who defeat Dracula at the end of the novel practice manipulative tactics similar to those of the Count. Some examples are the men's benefit from but lack of recognition of Mina's literary contributions, which led to Dracula's conquest, and their poor relationship to Lucy's inherent sexual frustrations. Dracula and the "good" men, such as Harker and Van Helsing, fight throughout the text over which societal ideals regarding female sexuality will prevail, at a time when sexual standards for women were so conservative. Unfortunately, in Stoker's analysis of Victorian era ideology, women are downplayed; they are pawns used to their advantage by men. Despite women being reduced to tools of male domination, Stoker defends the vastness and importance of female opinion. As influence over Lucy and Mina's philosophies is the prize up for grabs, the battle indicates the absolute value of feminine ideals in the culture. Perhaps it is this awareness of their self-worth that could allow women to escape the societal confinements illustrated by Stoker. In Dracula, all men act as antagonists to establish their own societal ideals, specifically involving women's sexual freedom. To adequately examine Bram Stoker's Dracula, it is necessary to provide a brief contextual and historical background of Victorian era society. Appearing at the end of the 19th century, Dracula takes place in England. Dominated by masculine ideals and religious piety, a woman had two reasonable lifestyle options: marry or remain a virgin. Women's only role in the sexual domain was to bear the child; sex was not for their satisfaction. As sexually constrained as they were, women had to take pride in controlling their sexual desires (Kline 105). That theywhether they accepted the pressures of quasi-asexuality, as in the Social Purity Movement, or whether they rebelled against it, women had little choice one way or the other. In Victorian thought, it was important for the man to be sexually dominant: “If women were more sexual than their men...then the man would not be the dominant, active, highly sexual partner” (Difilippantonio 4). popularity of this kind of sexual philosophy, Stoker's text serves as a commentary on the opinion of the time (Stevenson 139). "Most critics agree that Dracula should be considered an excellent example of the “Victorian male imagination, primarily as it relates to female sexuality” (Pektas 1). Sexuality is a theme often explored in the analysis of Dracula, as many scenes in the novel feature this tension (Fleissner 418). Harker's near-seduction in Dracula's castle, Lucy's desire to marry multiple men, Dracula's visit to Lucy, and the blood transfusions proposed by Van Helsing and Arthur Holmwood, among others, are all references to sexuality of the societal context in which Stoker worked. The restraint to which Victorian women were subjected allows us to understand specific instances in history in which women serve only as pieces in men's game of ideological domination. But before we look at these examples, let's look at the main female characters in the text. The two notable women in the story, Lucy and Mina, have differing opinions on the societal pressure to keep sexual acts within marriage and to stay out of men's work. . Lucy doubts the appropriateness of monogamy and, therefore, why sexual relationships are limited to one person. She asks Mina at the beginning of the book, "Why can't they let a girl marry three men, or as many as she wants, and avoid all this trouble?" But it is heresy, and I must not say it” (Stoker 87). Lucy raises the dilemma but quickly dismisses it, knowing that it is impossible in her given social context to have multiple men and then be considered acceptable. This quote also reveals Lucy's lack of absolute satisfaction with any of her options, which later plays a role in her downfall. Additionally, Lucy offers little help or effort when it comes to conquering Dracula. Almost no reference to Mina's sexuality is made in the novel and, depending on the era, that is how it should be. However, Mina is brilliant and serene as she plays a central role in Dracula's defeat in chapter 26. Van Helsing tells her that she has a "man's brain", a remark she takes as a compliment (Stoker 335) and this is understandable, given her submission to men throughout the novel. She “practices shorthand,” but not for herself, but so that she can be useful to her husband Harker (Stoker 79). His scrupulous journaling throughout the novel proves essentially informative and inspiring for him. the group in pursuit of Dracula, only to be belittled by the novel's ending. “A woman who engages in inappropriate assertive behavior is put in her place at the end of the novel; this behavior is not sexual predation but her tireless work. to type” (Fleissner 418). Her efforts are apparently "nothing but a mass of typing," for the child she bore is the only legitimate proof of victory over Dracula that interests Harker and Van Helsing (Stoker 541-542). After examining the characters of Lucy and Mina, we can better assess the antagonistic work of Count Dracula. The only acknowledged antagonist of the story, Dracula strives to uproot the normsVictorian sexual relations already in place. Dracula studies English culture, as shown by his collection of English literature and his constant questioning of Harker about the society there (Stoker 29-33): "I long to walk the crowded streets of your mighty London, to be amid the whirl and rush of humanity...and all that makes it what it is” (Stoker 30). Dracula also tells Harker of his family's past military fame and the power his ancestors held (Stoker 42-44). ). All of this hints at Dracula's coming attack on English ideals. But the first attack takes place before Harker even leaves the castle. Three sexual vampires attempt to seduce Harker, and Dracula's true intentions become apparent. When I am done with him, you will kiss him as you please” (Stoker 57) Once Dracula is done conquering the common Victorian thinking that sex is only for marriage, he will no longer be necessary to convince men like Harker to give in. Harker is close to submissiveness. The vampires reveal the weakness in Victorian sexual thinking that Dracula hopes to exploit. The desire expressed in Harker's dream would be considered sinful, "debauchery" by the conservative standards of the time (Foucault 893). Once in England, Dracula begins his assault by luring Lucy into multiple sexual encounters. While Victorian men advocated absolute chastity for women, Dracula desired the opposite. Notice how Dracula doesn't pursue the men after he arrives, instead targeting Lucy and Mina. In a later confrontation, Dracula taunts the religious men, saying, "Your daughters that you all love are already mine." And through them, you and the others will still be mine” (Stoker 440). His strategy almost works, as the men watch the now demonized Lucy in the graveyard, until Arthur Holmwood kills her (Stoker 309). This illustrates the main method by which Dracula attempts to take over England, through the repressed sexuality of women. The evil Count desires to work through women to reach men, a strategy which the other party also executes upon closer examination. Unlike the way Dracula attacked Lucy and Mina, the cultural norms of the time are demonstrated through the antagonistic perspectives of the English men. on female sexuality and their contributions to the defeat of Dracula. Much like Dracula, the men in the story manipulate women out of a desire for order. Aware that vampiric and female sexuality threatens patriarchal hegemony, Harker and Van Helsing aim to destroy Dracula and thus regain the philosophical attention of women today (Arata 632). The pretense that women are supposed to contain themselves sexually crumbles when Lucy and Mina encounter Dracula. In response to Dracula's attack on their power over sexuality, the men respond by putting to death such a threat to the ideal Victorian woman as Lucy was (Stoker 310). As Arthur Holmwood kills Lucy, Mina also tells Harker to get rid of her if she shows signs of being a vampire: "There have been times when brave men have killed their wives and wives, to prevent them from falling into the hands of the enemy. Nor did their hands falter because those they loved implored them to kill them” (Stoker 475). Mina repents of having made a sexual mistake, true to society's code that her encounter with Dracula was bad. Van Helsing praises Mina's character for her adherence to Victorian dogma: "She is one of God's women...So true, so gentle, so noble, so unselfish" (Stoker 268). Only when a woman is pure and corresponds towhat men desire is that they praise her like this, which stands in stark contrast to how Van Helsing hates Lucy's character once she becomes a vampire. To counter the Count's sexualization of women, the men attempt to regain control of the women. Just as the Count needs blood to survive, men need social order. So who will win this battle against feminine thinking? Based on Dracula's death, it would seem that Van Helsing and the rest of the men are triumphant (Stoker 540). Van Helsing, who has been tempted by the aforementioned seductive vampires, is able to avoid giving in to them, symbolizing the victory of his sexually conservative ideals over Dracula's loose morals (530). In the final scene of the book, a married Mina is shown with Harker's child, further boasting that the traditional Victorian view of sexuality has prevailed (Fleissner 418). But as before, that's not all there is to the story. Although the story appears to have a happy ending, it is important to note the methods the men used to defeat Dracula. When we look at the actions of men like Van Helsing and Arthur Holmwood, we realize that these men ended up compromising the belief that their goals were to protect: the chastity of sexuality. Through their victory, the active objectification of women by men is evident, and looking at a few key examples, Dracula appears to be much more of a protagonist than a religious figure.English. In a sense, Dracula ended up accomplishing what he set out to do: compromising the sexuality of Victorian women. By breaking Lucy and Mina out of their sexual repression, he forced the men to respond. Van Helsing is wise not only in Western medicine but also in ancient medicines (Stoker 161). Van Helsing's medical knowledge of ancient times symbolizes his awareness of Dracula's familial war roots and Dracula's rekindled desire to conquer. The doctor therefore seems ready to fight Dracula's bites. However, Lucy's health deteriorates until Van Helsing resorts to blood transfusions to try to save her. In Dracula, blood serves as symbolism for sex (Pektas 11). Additionally, the meaning of blood was linked to sex: "According to medical science, sexual intercourse meant a decrease in sperm, which meant blood and it was not something to be wasted" (Pektas 8). The gender symbolism is reinforced as he only allows men to provide Lucy with blood, not the competent handmaids whom Van Helsing does not trust (Stoker 213). The men react to Dracula's drawing of blood from Lucy's neck with their own sexual force. , in turn. Her desire to have multiple husbands, as previously mentioned, is heresy. But it seems her wishes have come true, as her three suitors give her their blood, no doubt symbolic of sexual intercourse. Van Helsing acknowledges his polygamous wishes, surely troubled by the affair (Stoker 251). Blood is also important in the story in a religious context. Dracula's taking of Lucy and Mina's blood is perhaps a twisted reference to the death of Christ, as the women are rescued from their sexual confinement. The return of the four men's blood to Lucy could represent the return of Christ's blood to her own body. Just as they abandon their religious mantra and sexual purity, the work of the Christian savior is undone in their lives. In this, the morals of men are compromised because the ideals executed by Dracula consequently push religious men to act. Another scene in which Dracula replaces the ideologies of the English takes place in the cemetery, as Holmwood drives a stake through Lucy's heart, killing her 2015.