Femininity In “Dracula” Essay

Many critics and literary analysts believe that femininity or to some extent metamorphosis of women constitutes the central theme of Stokers Dracula. For instance, Kline explains that femininity occurs in ii ways first by the transformation of the good English women into internally or intellectually challenging New Women, and then again when their potentially revolutionary attributes be destroyed, one way or other either through death, as seen with Lucy, or reduction to a silent (and therefore no long-term intellectually challenging) inspirational figure, as occurs with Mina (Kline, 144).Explaining the idea behind women in Dracula Stoker argues that for women to decline their traditional role was to deny their womanhood, to challenge the distinctions between women and men upon which the family and therefore society depended (Stoker, 206). Stokers Dracula addresses these concerns regarding femininity as outlined by Stoker and Kline, and contains examples of it, through the brute force and inner wantonness of the vampire women that plan of attack Jonathan, as well as Lucys transformation and the masculine aggression represented by Minas capabilities.The men in the refreshed are established as representatives of a patriarchal society, but it is the authoritative presence of Van Helsing that is primarily utilise both to root on a return to a patriarchal system, and to refeminize women through either denial of their abilities or by repeated insistence that they are objects of chivalric concern. The textual matter is replete with examples where female identity is transformed.This is accomplished through a variety of methods that are, like the vampiric taint from the mixing of blood, interrelated. For example, Mina is transformed into an object of idealization and chivalric concern, and as a way out of this protection, she is to a fault attacked by Dracula and emotionally altered as a result of her exclusion both of which occur precisely beca using up the men remove her from their counsel and leave her unattended.The text is used to show that these women in a sense new women representatives are dangerous and in need of correction, which occurs in the novel through punishment, including death and destruction, and the denial of authority. The sexual aspects of the New Woman are vilified through tie-up with the monstrosity of vampirism, and what vilifies the intellectual woman in the text is her challenge to male intellect and authority.The attack on the sexual woman begins with Jonathans transgress by the vampire women at Castle Dracula, which then justifies the attack on Lucy when she takes over as their modern equivalent since he gets no retribution against these vampire women, it is needful in the text to have Lucy punished for her seemingly similar challenge to gender roles as a result of her potentially promiscuous behavior. The attack on the intellectual woman begins with what Johnson calls Minas blunt act in first handing Van Helsing her shorthand diary, which he is unable to read.The sexual woman in the text is first represented by the weird sisters (Stoker, 80) at Castle Dracula, through both their role-reversing assault on Jonathan and their anti-maternal behavior in feeding on the half-smothered child given to them by Dracula when he halts their attack (Stoker, 71). These women symbolize what Griffins calls the worst nightmare and dearest fantasy of the Victorian male the pure miss turned sexually ravenous beast (Stoker, 143), with these vampire women universe classified as frightening and by extension, all modern or sexual women in part due to the emotional confusion they induce in men.Although they are draw by Jonathan as ladies by their dress and manner (Stoker, 68), having brilliant colour teeth, that shone like pearls and a silvery, musical laugh (Stoker, 69), their effect on Jonathan is described, through his own reporting, to make him awkward (69) due to their deliberate vo luptuousness which was both thrilling and repulsive and his reaction that he felt in my heart a wicked, burning desire that they would kiss me (Stoker, 69).Interpreting Jonathans mixed emotions as resulting from a fear of an inability to sexually handle three women presents an interesting parallel later with Lucy, who wistfully speaks of being able to marry three men (Stoker, 91). By presenting womens sexuality as aberrant and ugly rationalizes the violence that is utilized in destroying Lucy and the vampire women, and the text is therefore suggesting, through this vampiric taint, that all sexual women are dangerous and need to be destroyed. It is this destruction, in addition to physical death, that sends the message that there is no salvation for new women.Sewards diary records the event that lets Lucy take her place with the other Angels (253) The Thing in the lay writhed the sharp white teeth champed together till the lips were cut, and the mouth was smeared with a crimson f oam. besides Arthur drove deeper and deeper the mercy-bearing wager, whilst the blood from the pierced heart welled and spurted up around it (Stoker, 254). Similarly, Van Helsing records the horrid screeching as the stake drove home the plunging of writhing form, and lips of bloody foam as he restores these vampire women to their dead selves (Stoker, 412).From the beginning of the novel Mina is presented as different from the vampire women, signifying that the woman who challenges gender roles through her intellect is different from the sexual woman. Jonathans journal distinguishes her from the awful vampire women Mina is a woman, and there is nought in usual with the vampire women. They are devils of the Pit (Stoker, 85). Once the sexual woman has been dispensed of through Lucys death, the text then attacks the intellectual woman through Mina and it is not until the former is eradicated that Minas talents are presented as dangerous or threatening.Although Charles Prescott and Grace Giorgio opine Lucys transformation and destruction function as cautionary examples for Mina. She learns not only that vampires and transgression must be brutally brought into line but also what can happen to anyone outside the Victorian codes of normalcy (Stoker, 151), it is only after she is stripped of the ability to use her intellect, as she is silenced by Van Helsing and excluded through the presumably chivalric protection of the men, that she becomes sexual.Descriptions of violence against women a retribution for their challenge to gender roles serve to impart the message that there is no redemption for femininity, that scorn any atonement or transformation, their transgressions are considered so heinous that they must be destroyed. Interestingly, the eradication of Dracula, described merely as his crumbling into dust and passing from sight (Stoker, 418), without the brutality that is levied against the female vampires, serves as proof that the destruction antecedently described is in reprisal for the female transgression of gender codes, and not a necessity in shutdown the threat of vampirism. Works Cited Stoker, Bram. Dracula. Ed. Glennis Byron. Ontario Broadview Literary P, 2000 Kline, Salli J. The Degeneration of Women Bram Stokers Dracula as Allegorical admonition of the Fin de Siecle. Rheinbach-Merzbach CMZ-Verlag, 1992