Tag Archives: Bram Stoker

The Change of the Vampire Archetype

Posted on by Standard Respond

 

Vampires have changed a lot over time, now a days we see them plastered everywhere as some sort of boy band with fangs, but they weren’t always like that, they were originally much, much different. Back in the time of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, vampires were not something mainstream that people ever talked about, in their minds it was just some stupid ancient legend. But when Bram Stoker’s novel was released, Dracula was the population’s first true look at a vampire. The vampire depicted in the original book was very different than those of today in many ways however. Dracula when he first appears in the story, appears as an old man with extreme strength and very flamboyant outfit, with, what is possibly the strangest part, hairy palms on his hands. But, when he eventually drinks the blood of Lucy, the young British woman, his youth is restored, and he is seen a handsome young man, with, like before, very flamboyant and posh dress, along with the hairy palms from before. Another thing I should mention is his connection to wolves. He seems to almost control them, and he also has the ability to transform into a half man/half wolf, so pretty much what we see today as a werewolf.

So now let us take a look at today’s vampire. They are seen as handsome, strong, and very pale. They are also sold as total heart throbs instead of the scary monster they were back in Dracula. First of all, they have lost the wolf connection they originally had, vampires have split into two different beings instead of being the same being like they were in Dracula. Also, they lost the extremely religious ideals about them that they used to have, for their origin of powers and immortality were originally due to highly religious meanings. But as the world itself has become less religious, the vampires have too. Another thing to note is how they used to be scary monsters, but now are heartthrobs for teenage girls, who are about as intimidating or manly as one of the boys from One Direction.

So in all, they really have changed, as the culture around it changed, and I believe they were continue to change as long as the culture does.

 

Dracula iSearch

Posted on by Standard Respond

The detail from Dracula that i decided to research was the gold that Dracula was hoarding, ancient gold.

“The only thing I found was a great heap of gold in one corner—gold of all kinds, Roman, and British, and Austrian, and Hungarian, and Greek and Turkish money, covered with a film of dust, as though it had lain long in the ground. None of it that I noticed was less than three hundred years old. There were also chains and ornaments, some jeweled, but all of them old and stained.” – Jonathan Harker, Dracula.

I feel like this scene really had an impact on my view of the Count, for, after that, I went from seeing Dracula as a wealthy man to a extremely rich man.

It also leads me to believe that he may have more gold in the other locked rooms of the castle, and probably even some gold from Transylvania itself because I found out in my research, that Transylvania was very rich with minerals like gold.  I feel like Bram Stoker put the pile of gold in to add to his feel of mysteriousness and superiority, because you never know how he got it for sure.  The pile of gold may not be significant to the actual story, but it certainly was a good thing to include

“In his speaking of things and people, and especially of battles, he spoke as if he had been present at them all.” – Jonathan Harker, Dracula.

I feel like this also shows that Dracula actually was in those battles that he was talking to Jonathan  about, as it would seem that he got a share of the loot when he won, which is one of the first pointers full out given to show that Dracula may not be human, but rather something that lives a lot longer.

It also leads me to believe that he may have more gold in the other locked rooms of the castle, and probably even some gold from Transylvania itself because I found out in my research, that Transylvania was very rich with minerals like gold.  I feel like Bram Stoker (the author of Dracula) put the pile of gold in to add to his feel of mysteriousness and superiority, because you never know how he got it for sure.  I do not believe that the pile of gold plays a significant role in the story, but it sure adds to it for the reader, for it really helps develop the character of Dracula. I tried to research where the gold came from or any other details that I should know about, but I could find very little, since pretty much everything that came up were “gold deals” at hotels with Dracula in the name.