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| Odilon Redon, Portrait of Violette Heymann (1910) |
Q1: Dracula has no single narrator binding the entire novel
together from either an omniscient or an unreliable point of view. Rather, the
book is cobbled together from several different narrators, some consciously narrating
(Harker's diary, Mina and Lucy's letters, etc.), while others are forced into
the role unknowingly (newspaper reports, phonograph recordings, shipping
receipts). How does this affect how we read the work and understand even the
simplest ideas of plot, characterization, and narration? Is the entire work
'unreliable'? Or does the factual nature of the sources make it more reliable
than our previous works?
Q2: How does Stoker's characterization of Dracula differ
from modern versions of Dracula and of vampires in general? Though Dracula is
not the first literary vampire in England
Q3: Reflecting on the man who is holding him captive, Harker
reflects, “What manner of man is this, or what manner of creature is it in the
semblance of man? I feel the dread of this horrible place overpowering me; I am
in fear—awful fear—and there is no escape for me” (III /35).
How might the Dracula (as a person) compare to the Morlocks in The Time
Machine, and how might Harker be a little like the Time Traveler himself?
What makes him think he has gone “back in time” himself?
Q4: In Chapter 5, Lucy writes, “I know, Mina, you will think
me a horrid flirt—though I couldn’t help feeling a sort of exultation that he
was number two in one day” (57). What kind of woman is Lucy, and how does she
contrast (so far) with Mina? Based on this, how does she resemble a certain
type of woman still common in modern-day horror movies?
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