Xenophobia is a deep-rooted fear towards foreigners and the theme of xenophobia is present in the novel, Dracula, by Bram Stoker. By building on Micheal Kane’s suggestion that Count “Dracula … sucks the very life blood of the community” (Kane 1) and Kane’s remark about hoe the “'outside' becomes the imagined repository of anything deemed undesirable which exists ‘inside’." (Kane 10), I will be discussing Count Dracula’s actions which signify the fear brought by Count Dracula into England. Further by discussing Leila S. May’s remarks “about the fear of a contamination that, already exist[s] within, could even infect the forces of vigilance themselves” (May 16), I would like to further investigate Dracula’s role as an existence to be feared and
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Count Dracula is a resident of Transylvania and Van Helsing is a Dutch professor. Both of these characters possess knowledge which is not available to other characters. Count Dracula has lived for centuries and “through [the books he] ha[s] come to know … great England” (50). By utilizing this power of knowledge he is able to enter England without letting the people of England know of his arrival. Also, by using his knowledge of England’s culture he prepares for his arrival beforehand and has three estates ready for himself in England. Similarly, Van Helsing has the knowledge which the other characters are lacking, such as his knowledge about transfusions and the fact that he is the first character to perform transfusion in the novel, however unlike Count Dracula, Van Helsing shares his knowledge with the other characters. In the novel, Stoker draws upon Cesare Lombroso and Max Nordau’s argument “to suggest racial and artistic decline and attack many contemporary writers … as having degenerated through excessive emotionality” …show more content…
The first time, Van Helsing is mentioned is when Lucy has had her blood sucked by Dracula and is in need of a blood transfusion. Although Van Helsing is not originally from England, he tries to keep the cultural values and uses Arthur Holmwood, Lucy’s fiancee’s, blood for the transfusion. Afterwards, when Lucy is in need of more blood, Van Helsing makes sure that he does not take more blood from others and tries to have Arthur being the man who has donated the most blood to Lucy. The transfusions carried out by Van Helsing represent something that allows the ‘outside’ to invade the ‘inside’. This situation is similar to Count Dracula invading England, however here the invasion is a ‘good’ thing as it can allow a life to be saved, whereas the invasion by Count Dracula only leads to fear and
Count Dracula is a resident of Transylvania and Van Helsing is a Dutch professor. Both of these characters possess knowledge which is not available to other characters. Count Dracula has lived for centuries and “through [the books he] ha[s] come to know … great England” (50). By utilizing this power of knowledge he is able to enter England without letting the people of England know of his arrival. Also, by using his knowledge of England’s culture he prepares for his arrival beforehand and has three estates ready for himself in England. Similarly, Van Helsing has the knowledge which the other characters are lacking, such as his knowledge about transfusions and the fact that he is the first character to perform transfusion in the novel, however unlike Count Dracula, Van Helsing shares his knowledge with the other characters. In the novel, Stoker draws upon Cesare Lombroso and Max Nordau’s argument “to suggest racial and artistic decline and attack many contemporary writers … as having degenerated through excessive emotionality” …show more content…
The first time, Van Helsing is mentioned is when Lucy has had her blood sucked by Dracula and is in need of a blood transfusion. Although Van Helsing is not originally from England, he tries to keep the cultural values and uses Arthur Holmwood, Lucy’s fiancee’s, blood for the transfusion. Afterwards, when Lucy is in need of more blood, Van Helsing makes sure that he does not take more blood from others and tries to have Arthur being the man who has donated the most blood to Lucy. The transfusions carried out by Van Helsing represent something that allows the ‘outside’ to invade the ‘inside’. This situation is similar to Count Dracula invading England, however here the invasion is a ‘good’ thing as it can allow a life to be saved, whereas the invasion by Count Dracula only leads to fear and