Today, there are many well known fantasy monsters. However, in Victorian Europe, fantasy was not an idea that most people would have been familiar with, let alone fantastical monsters. Yet, there was one famous monster who was born out of that era, and it is not hard to see that it was a product of its time. When Bram Stoker created the character of Dracula, he unknowingly created the archetype for a whole new fantasy species. The traits and characteristics that Stoker gave to vampires, which were not well defined before him, have become so iconic that straying away from them has become the “creative twist.” However, these ideas, which are taken for granted now, were not simply ideas that Stoker came up with on his own, but came from the adaptation of old ideas
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In his novel Dracula, Bram Stoker uses the vampires as a metaphor to show some central societal fears of the time: foreign immigrants, flamboyant sexuality, and disease. He show these ideas through the character of Dracula and his culture, the contrast between the main characters and vampires, and the transformation from human to vampire. In Stoker 's novel, Dracula is a very important character. He is not only the primary vampire, but he is also, arguably, the only important foreigner other than Van Helsing and Quincey. As Dracula says: “We are in Transylvania, and Transylvania is not England. Our ways are not your ways, and there shall be to you many strange things.” (p. 62). Dracula comes from a culture that is vastly different than what Jonathan is used to, and this is important in creating the fear in the book. There are other foreigners that are not feared, such as Van Helsing and Quincey, because they come from countries that are similar to England, and so they are understandable and relatable. However, Dracula comes from a country that is very different than England, and therefore he cannot be related to, or understood. This difference between them puts Jonathan ill at ease. This uncomfortable
In his novel Dracula, Bram Stoker uses the vampires as a metaphor to show some central societal fears of the time: foreign immigrants, flamboyant sexuality, and disease. He show these ideas through the character of Dracula and his culture, the contrast between the main characters and vampires, and the transformation from human to vampire. In Stoker 's novel, Dracula is a very important character. He is not only the primary vampire, but he is also, arguably, the only important foreigner other than Van Helsing and Quincey. As Dracula says: “We are in Transylvania, and Transylvania is not England. Our ways are not your ways, and there shall be to you many strange things.” (p. 62). Dracula comes from a culture that is vastly different than what Jonathan is used to, and this is important in creating the fear in the book. There are other foreigners that are not feared, such as Van Helsing and Quincey, because they come from countries that are similar to England, and so they are understandable and relatable. However, Dracula comes from a country that is very different than England, and therefore he cannot be related to, or understood. This difference between them puts Jonathan ill at ease. This uncomfortable