Dracula+DL+Ashley

Part I: Analysis


 * THEME ANALYSIS**

Theme: //Good is able to triumph over evil because the individuals work together for a common, selfless cause.//

This section presents the conflict between the generalized 'good' and 'evil' in this novel - the 'good' being Van Helsing, Arthur, Quincey and Dr. Seward, and the 'bad' being Dracula and the beings that he has created, which posses the bodies of innocent people. Though it cannot be acertained that good always overcomes evil, as they have not yet defeated Dracula, it can be said that in this section a minor battle over Lucy's soul has been won. Near the end of the section, the "demon in [Lucy's] shape" (Stoker 190) is eliminated and she returns to the virtuous and pure image that she possessed in life. Yet this victory is only attained due to the four men and the selfless way in which they are willing to act in order to save the soul of someone they care about. This is evident when we look at how despite the fact that Arthur is told by Van Helsing that "It will be a fearful ordeal" (Stoker 191) he is still willing to drive the stake through Lucy's body in order to ensure peace in the afterlife for the woman he loves. Furthermore, the four men cooperate and work together - a factor that is very important as this is what allows them to form a group dedicated to fighting Dracula near the end of Chapter 16, where it states that "Each in turn, [they] took [Van Helsing's] hand, and the promise was made." (Stoker 193) This cooperation is achieved by their relationships of mutual respect, and this is most evident when Van Helsing refuses to kill Lucy without first gaining the consent of Arthur, showing that he values Arthur's friendship more than the convenience and safety that would result from killing the demon within Lucy immediately. This is shown when he says "... he may think that in some mistake of all we have killed her. He will then argue back that it is we, mistaken ones, that have killed her by our ideas; and so he will be much unhappy always... No!... He, poor fellow, must have one hour that will make the very face of heaven grow black to him; then we can act for good all round and send him peace." This theme can further be tied in to the constant religious allegories present throughout this novel, as the 'good' in this section is also comparable to Christianity, whilst the 'bad' mirrors the Devil and other such demons. The second similarity seems particularly emphasized in the manner in which Lucy reacts while being stabbed with the stake, as it is very similar to descriptions of exorcisms that were performed in human history.


 * CRITICAL PASSAGE**

//"With a careless motion, she flung to the ground, callous as a devil, the child that up to now she had clutched strenuously to her breast, growling over it as a dog growls over a bone. The child gave a sharp cry and lay there moaning. There was a cold-bloodedness in the act which wrung a groan from Arthur; when she advanced to him with outstretched arms and a wanton smile, he fell back and hid his face in his hands.////" (Stoker 188)//

This passage is significant because it illustrates the full extent of Lucy's transformation, or rather, the entirety of the entity that is possessing Lucy's body. It shows the complete rejection of traditional feminine traits that Victorian women were meant to possess, in particular, that of being a maternal woman. The description of "the child that up to now she had clutched strenuously to her breast" is worded in a manner that causes the astute reader to relate the image, in a morbid manner, to the painting of 'Madonna and Child,' in which Mary lovingly looks upon the infant in her arms and softly holds him towards her - the model of maternal love. This contrasts heavily with the heartless manner in which the monster in Lucy's body behaves towards the child. This alternation is particularly shocking as prior to her 'death' Lucy embodied the ideal Victorian woman, possessing traits such as kindness, gentleness, and piety. Furthermore, this passage directly compares the creature that Lucy has become with the "three young women" that are introduced in chapter 3 with "... brilliant white teeth, that shone like pearls against the ruby of their voluptuous lips" (Stoker 42). The comparison stems from the fact that they both have no maternal instinct that women were meant to naturally have in the Victorian Era. These women take a bag containing a "half smothered child" (Stoker 44) to eat, while Lucy feasts on the blood of small children that wander out too far. The three women are meant to be the symbols of what a Victorian woman should not be, as they are very forward and openly flirtatious with men, and thus the comparison of Lucy to them directly illustrates the contrast between the Lucy that was first introduced to us and the creature now possessing her body.


 * LITERARY DEVICES**

//Personification://

"... laughter who knock at your door and say, "May I come in?" is not the truth laughter. No! he is a king, and he come when and how he like. He ask no person; he choose no time of suitability. He say, "I am here."..." (Stoker 157)

Here, Stoker compares laughter to a king in order to illustrate how it answers to no one and is subject to no limitations. The manner in which it comes and goes as it pleases is also comparable to the behavior of a king, as kings do not have to answer to anybody, and - to a certain extent - may do what they like. I think that this comparison is very effective since it really highlights how individuals have no control over their laughter, and how it is like a separate entity that controls itseslf.

Symbolism and Allusion

"He crumbled the4 wafer up fine and worked it into the amss between his hands. He then this took and and rolling it into thin strips, began o lay them into the crevices between the door and its setting in the tomb.... What is that which you are using? ,,,, The Host."

The Host, is an evident symbol of Christ's body and I feel that this as a whole is making a twisted allusion to the activity of communion. The wafer and the wine is taken as a representation of Christ's body and by consuming it his followers are invigorated with his promise and are given life. Interestingly, the wine symbolizes blood, and this is mirrored in the vampire's lifestyles since by drinking blood they are also invigorated and energized. I feel that this is a twisted and corrupt allusion to communion to show how this is like communion which is holy, but on the opposite end of the relative spectrum, and this is why Lucy in her vampire form cannot touch the coffin that is lined with wafers.

REFLECTION

I think that our presentation went quite well. People actually participated in the theme role plays, which I think was actually in a large part due to the incentive of winning the chocolate bar. We chose to do a role play because we felt that it would get people the most involved in the activity and get them to try and get into the story. However, instead of the conventional role play we decided to go with a "theme" role play in which the students had to find sections in the book that reflected their respective themes. I feel that this made them analyze the book to find the important passages and this made them think for themselves. I think the activity went really well, and because students were motivated by the desire for food they were able to come up with some very interesting ways to portray their scenes. The socratic seminar also went quite well and I think that the work that we put into making our questions paid off. We tried to make questions that people would have a lot of opinions about and questions that would make people think and be interested enough to answer it without being at a difficulty level that they would not want to bother answering it properly. People participated well I think, and though a few people did not share there opinion I was surprised how many people actually volunteered to speak. One problem however was that we were very short on time because Mr Otis had spoken for about half the class regarding schedules so we were cut short, and could not carry on the seminar portion for very long. The next time we met for English we presented our Themes and Important passages, but I think my presentation was not as comprehensive as it could have been because I was very tired at that point.