In the horror novel Dracula, Bram Stoker utilizes the symbolic elements in the story to create the theme that any good can defeat any evil(or the mystery solving process). Specifically, the symbolic elements help establish the integrity and beliefs of the main characters. The allusions to christianity and garlic help characterize Dracula as the blood-sucking demon he is.
The novel begins with Jonathan staying in a town near Castle Dracula. The night before he travels, the innkeeper “tak[es] a crucifix from her neck offered it to [Jonathan](Stoker,#)”.Stoker uses the crucifix, a religious item, to convey Jonathan as a protagonist in the story. In the Victorian Era, Christianity was the most popular religion, meaning most readers would see this …show more content…
Jonathan, desperate, holds the crucifix he was given, which seems to hurt Dracula, making his back away. “When the Count saw my face, his eyes blazed with a sort of demoniac fury, and he suddenly made a grab at my throat. I drew away and his hand touched the string of beads which held the crucifix. It made an instant change in him, for the fury passed so quickly that I could hardly believe that it was ever there(Stoker,#).” The reaction of Dracula to such a “holy” object helps characterize him as the villain. This reference to christianity establishes that Dracula is synonymous with the devil, which is …show more content…
The newspaper reports,“It[the child] was terribly weak, and looked quite emaciated. It too, when partially restored, had the common story to tell of being lured away by the ‘bloofer lady’”. As any normal “scientific” methods do not seem effective, Van Helsing informs Seward of his theory that Dracula is taking different forms and drinking blood. The “Bloofer Lady” is actually Lucy, just “possessed” by Dracula himself. “Do you not think that there are things which you cannot understand, and yet which are, that some people see things that others cannot[...] men believe in all ages and places that there are men and women who cannot die? We all know, because science has vouched for the fact(Stoker, #). Van Helsing reads Jonathan’s journal of his time at Castle Dracula and connects him to the myths regarding Dracula himself and the
The novel begins with Jonathan staying in a town near Castle Dracula. The night before he travels, the innkeeper “tak[es] a crucifix from her neck offered it to [Jonathan](Stoker,#)”.Stoker uses the crucifix, a religious item, to convey Jonathan as a protagonist in the story. In the Victorian Era, Christianity was the most popular religion, meaning most readers would see this …show more content…
Jonathan, desperate, holds the crucifix he was given, which seems to hurt Dracula, making his back away. “When the Count saw my face, his eyes blazed with a sort of demoniac fury, and he suddenly made a grab at my throat. I drew away and his hand touched the string of beads which held the crucifix. It made an instant change in him, for the fury passed so quickly that I could hardly believe that it was ever there(Stoker,#).” The reaction of Dracula to such a “holy” object helps characterize him as the villain. This reference to christianity establishes that Dracula is synonymous with the devil, which is …show more content…
The newspaper reports,“It[the child] was terribly weak, and looked quite emaciated. It too, when partially restored, had the common story to tell of being lured away by the ‘bloofer lady’”. As any normal “scientific” methods do not seem effective, Van Helsing informs Seward of his theory that Dracula is taking different forms and drinking blood. The “Bloofer Lady” is actually Lucy, just “possessed” by Dracula himself. “Do you not think that there are things which you cannot understand, and yet which are, that some people see things that others cannot[...] men believe in all ages and places that there are men and women who cannot die? We all know, because science has vouched for the fact(Stoker, #). Van Helsing reads Jonathan’s journal of his time at Castle Dracula and connects him to the myths regarding Dracula himself and the