Dracula by Bram Stoker Review

Beware: this might turn into a longer review..
Now that you've been warned, let me begin: I don't quite know why I chose to pick up this book. I guess the rainy weather here in Germany made me feel like picking up an autumnal read, but since I rather disliked this novel the first time I read it, I can't say why I immediately turned to this. It was probably time to give this a second chance and see if there might not be more to it than what I noticed on my first read. And let me tell you: there is.

It has been several years since I first read it, and I remember feeling utterly bored by it and being very put off by it being written completely in diary entries, letters and telegrams. My reading tastes seem to have changed a lot since then, because these were exactly the factors I now liked. This format allows you to really experience the narrated events, you not only get the plot but also the emotions and thoughts of the characters. I especially enjoyed reading Dr. Seward's entries, I think, because they were very detailed and also included much about the fascinating Mr. Renfield. Mina's entries were also extremely enjoyable to me, because they are so full of energy and motivation, even in the darkest of times. One might think this form of narration could take away from the suspense, which every gothic novel should create at least in some part, as you learn about events when they have already happened. This wasn't the case at all, however. Through the character's emotions, their fear and compassion, I was so invested in the story that I was often on the edge of my seat, especially when the Count was near.

One can not really speak of world building in this case, as Dracula takes place in Victorian London and Transylvania, but through the mentioning of every single detail that might in any way relate to the plot, the narrative weaves a very colourful and intricate story. There are so many layers to it, not only the overlaying plot of the vampire hunt, but also the human relationships that are being formed along the way and the underlaying themes of love and friendship. This novel is mostly known as a gothic horror novel about the original vampire, but I felt that it was about so much more.
It was so lovely to read about how this group of characters, Seward, Van Helsing, the Harkers, Arthur and Mr. Morris, united over the death of a loved one and formed such strong bonds in order to fight the personified evil. The characters were all prepared to die for each other and frequently confirmed their mutual trust and loyalty. This portrayal of co-operation and heroism was possibly my favourite part of the novel. I was not too impressed by Mina's submissiveness and her frequent emphasize on the bravery of the men, as she herself was very courageous and her modesty was a bit over the top, but other than that I found the group's relationships simply lovely. The great love frequently portrayed between the two Harkers was especially sweet. I'm not that big a fan of romance, but in this case I really liked how close the couple were and how much they loved each other, they really appeared as soulmates.


I can't really think of anything I disliked about this novel, to be honest. There were so many parts of it that made me think and even do additional research. Had the Cambridge Companion to Dracula been out already, I would have bought it immediately (sadly, it isn't released until this winter 😭).
I did find some very intriguing journal articles on the MLA server, however, as I was very keen on reading something about the gender roles in this novels. Mina's subservience and Lucy's completely handing herself over to the men often had me consider the novel more in depth. There were many mentions of the superior intellectual qualities of the men over those of women, but thanks to the character of Mina Harker, the novel didn't strike me as truly misogynic.
Mina is frequently shown has being extremely practical, always working either on her diary or something else, she memorises useful data such as timetables. In contrast to Lucy, who simply gives herself up to the hopes of married life and later the treatment of the doctors, Mina only wants to help and participate actively in fighting their enemy. True, she makes herself very dependent upon the men, but they do, after all, swear to fight the Count in collusive agreement.
The men did several times try to stop Mina being involved in the dangerous adventure, as they feared her being harmed, and she simply acquiesced. Her being kept in the dark, however, always proved as wrong and extremely dangerous, as she was thus turned into easy prey for the Count and could have brought vampirisim into the closed group of hunters.

That's why I felt that the portrayal of women in Dracula was rather different than expected and that it offers many interesting points of interpretation. I felt that the novel might actually advertise a more active role of women in society. As I wasn't quite sure about that, I looked up some articles and found a perfectly fascinating one in the Victorian Review: ''You Can't Trust Wolves No More Nor Women': Canines, Women, and Deceptive Docility in Bram Stoker's Dracula' by Keridiana Chez. Please go try and find this if you can, it is really highly interesting!
Chez links vampirisim to rabies. In Victorian Times, this disease was frequently transmitted by lap dogs, which were owned by rich ladies. Thus, the lady becomes a danger due to her closeness to a, at that time, fairly feared disease. I don't want to repeat everything she says in her article, I would likely butcher it with a short summary and can only implore you to read it yourself to get the most of it. All in all, I felt like her article also takes the view that Dracula wants to 'advertise', so to speak, active and working women, who, unlike Lucy, don't succumb to idleness but fight for life.

The killing of the vampires is another very interesting point. When the killing is done, they each are described as showing very peaceful and relieved expressions. This made me wonder, as Seward calls what they are doing 'euthanasia'; The characters' minds are thus set at ease about their rather gruesome tasks, they feel justified in eradicating these creatures as they are not only ridding the world of evil, but also setting tortured souls to rest. How would they feel about their work, then, was there no peaceful expression in the faces of their 'victims'? Would they still feel justified? I have no answer for this, but I would be very curious to hear of any suggestions from you!

Well, I think this review might be long enough now. I think there are many more interesting themes to discover in there, and whole books could be written on the roles of gender in Dracula. I tried my best to be as brief as possible, but I hope I conveyed how much I enjoyed this gothic novel. The underlying tones of happiness, love, light and friendship, the detailed format, the happy notes on which it ends, interspersed with very gothic elements such as the eerie mood and atmospheric scenery of old houses, castles and Transylvanian landscapes; All this made for a very enjoyable novel already. That it set my brain working about it and made me want to analyze it, added to it and made it a fully engrossing reading experience. So I can't but give this novel a full five stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

If anyone actually made it through this awfully long post: congratulations! I also thank everyone for having a look at this review 😊 Have you read this classic? What were your thoughts on it? 💕📚