“A strong woman who recklessly throws away her strength, she is worse than a weak woman who has never had any strength to throw away”- Thomas Hardy. Dracula, by Bram Stoker was written during the late nineteenth century, and is classified as a horror film. Further analysis however, has brought to light the buried symbols and themes of sexuality that the novel holds within it. Mina and Lucy are very significant to the novel as they are the only female characters, and they are both given very different characteristics, Mina is the ideal Victorian woman, and Lucy is a rebel to society, which leads her to fall under Dracula’s spell. Bram Stoker makes it very clear that the two represent Victorian women, though what makes Mina the ideal one?
Firstly, Stroker uses Mina to exemplify his idea of the perfect Victorian woman. In the novel, Van Helsing describes Mina, “She is one of God's women, …show more content…
Lucy is much different than Mina, she is driven by her sexual openness and flirtatious, tempting nature, unlike Mina who is a very intelligent woman who is devoted to her husband. Lucy is not committed to one man throughout the whole novel, at one point, she receives three proposals from three different men, “Why can't they let a girl marry three men, or as many as want her, and save all this trouble?” (Stoker 96). Although the social norm doesn’t allow Lucy to do such a thing, Lucy clearly shows that she will if such an act was permitted. However, this demonstrates how she mentally crosses the boundaries set by a Victorian society. Furthermore, Lucy is a very sexual person, “Come to me Arthur. Leave these others and come to me. My arms are hungry for you. Come, and we can rest together. Come, my husband, come!”. Lucy is very sexually aggressive. In a Victorian society, sexuality of this sort needs to be repressed. Lucy’s characteristics clearly show that she is not the ideal Victorian woman, according to
Firstly, Stroker uses Mina to exemplify his idea of the perfect Victorian woman. In the novel, Van Helsing describes Mina, “She is one of God's women, …show more content…
Lucy is much different than Mina, she is driven by her sexual openness and flirtatious, tempting nature, unlike Mina who is a very intelligent woman who is devoted to her husband. Lucy is not committed to one man throughout the whole novel, at one point, she receives three proposals from three different men, “Why can't they let a girl marry three men, or as many as want her, and save all this trouble?” (Stoker 96). Although the social norm doesn’t allow Lucy to do such a thing, Lucy clearly shows that she will if such an act was permitted. However, this demonstrates how she mentally crosses the boundaries set by a Victorian society. Furthermore, Lucy is a very sexual person, “Come to me Arthur. Leave these others and come to me. My arms are hungry for you. Come, and we can rest together. Come, my husband, come!”. Lucy is very sexually aggressive. In a Victorian society, sexuality of this sort needs to be repressed. Lucy’s characteristics clearly show that she is not the ideal Victorian woman, according to