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Nguyen Falisha
Ms. Tinoco
AP Literature
November 8, 2014

Feminism and Dracula

In Bram Stokers novel, Dracula, he presents us with two views of women in the late
Victorian time period. He suggests that women are weak and need to be protected; however,
offered some progressive ideas towards feminine roles and rights in society. The Victorian era
was one of pious, strict mannerisms. Many writers during the age had similar views towards
women. The standard was that women were to be pure, submissive, and loyal to their husbands.
Bram Stoker offers us two contrasting views through his characters, Lucy and Mina.

First of all, we can easily see Lucy Westernas sweet innocence. This tenderness,
however, comes with great vulnerability. When Dracula was replenishing on blood, Lucy
quickly fell victim due to her weakness, a characteristic common in most female literary
characters during the era. Some critics interpret Lucys fate as a direct result of her desire for
sexual adventure. She had previously demonstrated when speaking of her three proposals her
interest in men. Although she did dismiss her comment about marrying all three as heresy, Lucy
still had that mentality. This want for sexual satisfaction directly comes into conflict with the
concept of a perfect, ideal woman. During the Victorian era, socially acceptable women were
pure and dedicated to one man only. Bram Stoker could have used Lucys death to condemn
unrestrained sexual activity. The consequences of such actions, as shown in Dracula, are costly.

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In the Victorian era, children were extremely important. Women were to stay home and nurse
these children and do everything they can to bring them up. By turning Lucy from a pure,
innocent girl to a senselessly cruel, child-harming monster, Bram Stoker shows how looked
down upon women who were disloyal to their husbands were. Nothing is worse than harming a
child, so Lucys transformation illustrates the Victorian perception of the punishment of sexual
impurities.

Mina Harker, on the other hand, portrays the opposite side of the spectrum. She, judging
by the fact that she needs to have a job as a schoolmistress, something that wasnt necessarily
common amongst women back then (outside of home-making), tells us about her upbringing.
Already, she is unlike Lucy, who grew up in a wealthy family. Adding on to their differences,
Mina attempts to be useful to her husband by learning shorthand. On top of working, she is also
trying to help out Jonathan. This provides a vivid distinction from Lucy, who gets to freely
wander about, socialize, and gather marriage proposals. Furthermore, Minas obtainment of
knowledge, such as the shorthand and her memorizing of train schedules shows a new type of
women who make choices and have intelligence, not just tend to the home all day. She also
mentioned the New Women, who were progressively working towards a freer, more independent
role for women in society. Although Bram Stoker probably didnt support the New Women
himself, he did indicate, through Minas character, that females could be more than just mothers,
more than just a beacon of hope (although that was her primary role as Van Helsing, her
husband, and the others hunted down Count Dracula). She exemplifies this new type of women.
Women who could actually be productive.

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In this way, Bram Stoker shows us two conflicting views of women, one of the Victorian
era, and a more promising, futuristic one. Although Van Helsing and the remainder of the Crew
of Light tried their best to shield her from the process of killing Dracula, as they thought she
wouldnt be able to handle it, Mina still represented a useful, stronger type of women, whereas
Lucy remained the weak, vulnerable girl that most Victorian women were portrayed as back
then.