Biography
Bram Stoker, the man who would one day create one of the most recognized figures in literature, did not have a normal childhood. Stoker had been sick since his birth in 1847. His mysterious illness prevented him from walking and his mother Charlotte would have to carry him when he wanted to move. Most of the time Stoker lied in bed alone with his thoughts and all the sounds and sensations that came from the window in his room. Stoker’s only playmates were his siblings Thornley and Matilda, he especially enjoyed their company when their mother became busy with Stoker’s younger brothers Tom and Richard.
However, Stoker’s mother did find time to tell him bedtime stories. She told grand fairytales full of bloodsucking vampires and mischievous …show more content…
It’s interesting to read the original book that gave birth to one of the most iconic characters of all time. I will admit that the beginning was a little vapid, but as I read more of the book the story really started to pick up. This book reminded me of Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, in the sense that it’s not what I expected. I thought the novel would be about Dracula killing people, but instead it was about Dracula killing people and people killing Dracula. In Dracula: Novel by Bram Stoker, 1897 Rebecca Stott states that Dracula “...claims authenticity by narrating events through the diaries and letters of the characters involved” (Galens 37). I agree with Stott, the narration of the book gave it a unique feeling that I have have never experience from any other novel. From journals and personal letters I got an in depth view at the inner workings of the main characters. Carol Senf agrees with this point, but also insists that “...Stoker provides several clues to [the characters] unreliability and encourages the reader to see the frequent discrepancies between their professed beliefs and their actions” (Senf galegroup.com). Personally I never thought of the characters being wrong about Count Dracula. From what I know about Dracula through pop culture and the book I assumed he was a monster. True the Count never gets to state his own opinion, but it’s a horror novel, the point of it is to be scary. Bram Stoker even says “‘the book is necessarily …show more content…
Stoker’s writing style gave birth to a figure who is imbedded in many aspects of society today. This novel’s themes are so universal that it has survived to this very day. This story is unlike anything I have read in awhile. Today so make stories are cliche and overdone that it makes one think that there are no more good ideas. Then there is Dracula. From my point of view this book was written in a time where ideas were bursting forth and everything was new, but people back then could have thought that there was no more creativity as well. It’s not just the characters or the universe that was original, it was how the story was told. Another factor that makes some works trite is the narration. Not every book has the same point of view, but books with the same point of view tend to sound the same. If someone came to me and asked how to write a good book, I would say “read Dracula and try to pull some inspiration from that.” Bram Stoker’s gothic novel still has influence in today’s
Bram Stoker, the man who would one day create one of the most recognized figures in literature, did not have a normal childhood. Stoker had been sick since his birth in 1847. His mysterious illness prevented him from walking and his mother Charlotte would have to carry him when he wanted to move. Most of the time Stoker lied in bed alone with his thoughts and all the sounds and sensations that came from the window in his room. Stoker’s only playmates were his siblings Thornley and Matilda, he especially enjoyed their company when their mother became busy with Stoker’s younger brothers Tom and Richard.
However, Stoker’s mother did find time to tell him bedtime stories. She told grand fairytales full of bloodsucking vampires and mischievous …show more content…
It’s interesting to read the original book that gave birth to one of the most iconic characters of all time. I will admit that the beginning was a little vapid, but as I read more of the book the story really started to pick up. This book reminded me of Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, in the sense that it’s not what I expected. I thought the novel would be about Dracula killing people, but instead it was about Dracula killing people and people killing Dracula. In Dracula: Novel by Bram Stoker, 1897 Rebecca Stott states that Dracula “...claims authenticity by narrating events through the diaries and letters of the characters involved” (Galens 37). I agree with Stott, the narration of the book gave it a unique feeling that I have have never experience from any other novel. From journals and personal letters I got an in depth view at the inner workings of the main characters. Carol Senf agrees with this point, but also insists that “...Stoker provides several clues to [the characters] unreliability and encourages the reader to see the frequent discrepancies between their professed beliefs and their actions” (Senf galegroup.com). Personally I never thought of the characters being wrong about Count Dracula. From what I know about Dracula through pop culture and the book I assumed he was a monster. True the Count never gets to state his own opinion, but it’s a horror novel, the point of it is to be scary. Bram Stoker even says “‘the book is necessarily …show more content…
Stoker’s writing style gave birth to a figure who is imbedded in many aspects of society today. This novel’s themes are so universal that it has survived to this very day. This story is unlike anything I have read in awhile. Today so make stories are cliche and overdone that it makes one think that there are no more good ideas. Then there is Dracula. From my point of view this book was written in a time where ideas were bursting forth and everything was new, but people back then could have thought that there was no more creativity as well. It’s not just the characters or the universe that was original, it was how the story was told. Another factor that makes some works trite is the narration. Not every book has the same point of view, but books with the same point of view tend to sound the same. If someone came to me and asked how to write a good book, I would say “read Dracula and try to pull some inspiration from that.” Bram Stoker’s gothic novel still has influence in today’s