Xlibris returns with the one true Lord of the Night, in Heroes and Villains: Dracula.
What does Count Dracula Do?
In the beginning Dracula invites John Harker into his castle on the pretext of buying property in London, through Mr. Harker’s employer. Initially John Harker is treated as a dear guest. But as time passes John realizes he is a prisoner in the Count’s home. Dracula’s presence becomes more threatening and chilling. The Count’s true, monstrous self comes out, through his vampire brides, through the disappearances of local children, and through his mastery of wolves to scare John Harker.
It is only after Dracula leaves the castle and Transylvania that John Harker is able to escape. But where Dracula goes, death and horror follow. In the captain’s log of the Demeter, the ship’s captain writes of an unseen presence haunting the ship, sudden storms coming out of nowhere, and crewmen mysteriously disappearing. The ship is found run aground, with only the captain’s body found, lashed to the wheel to keep the ship straight. Without being directly mentioned through the entire segment, Dracula’s presence is felt.
In London Dracula sets his sights on Lucy Westenra. He haunts and feeds upon her for many nights. To her friends and loved ones Lucy appears to waste away from a strange sickness. This continues until Dracula attacks Lucy and her mother in the form of a wolf, killing them both. After she is buried Lucy rises as a vampire and preys upon the children of London before being slain by Abraham Van Helsing and Lucy’s friends.
Dracula moves on to prey on Mina Murray, John Harker’s fiancée. As he did with Lucy Dracula tries to turn Mina into a vampire, only to be thwarted, tracked down, and finally destroyed by Van Helsing, John Harker, and their allies.
What motivates Count Dracula?
Due to the way the story is written it is difficult to be sure what Dracula’s motives are. At best we can infer.
When John Harker and Dracula are conversing, the vampire becomes the most excited when talking about the past. The Count speaks with longing about the old days when great warriors fought and ruled. He speaks of past glories as if we wanted them to return. Dracula also displays an obsession with England, praising it as an empire and excited at traveling there. From these two facts, we infer that Dracula sought a return to the days of conquest and conquerors, starting with England.
Dracula also sees himself as a hunter. He compares himself to predatory beasts. He acts territorial with what he claims as his, as he did when protecting John Harker from the three female vampires. He hunts and kills in the form of a great wolf, as he did to Lucy. And he lets his lusts and hungers take rule him.
How does Count Dracula Struggle?
The Count is stuck in the past. He misses the world he used to live in, but knows that world is gone and will never return. This desire to relive that old world is what drives his plans, drives the death and terror he causes, and ultimately, drives him to his own destruction. It should be noted that when Dracula is finally destroyed, Mina sees a look of peace on the Count’s dying face, as if the vampire king could finally rest.
Conclusion
Throughout the novel, up until the final confrontation, Dracula’s presence pervades the story. It ranges from being subtly creepy to being outright terrifying. The vampire’s involvement drastically hurts or even ends many characters’ lives. Even when the character in question is not clearly in a segment, Dracula’s presence can still be felt by the other characters, and most importantly by the reader. How characters react to or remember the villain and the villain’s actions translates into a presence. It is what helps make one’s villain memorable. People remember the iconic scenes of Darth Vader choking officers who displeased him. People remember Heath Ledger’s Joker, and the “off” way he spoke. How Dracula acted, carried himself, and terrified others, is what has helped make him the vampire of modern literature.
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By Ian Smith