Dracula-sexual women Essay Example

Dracula-sexual women Essay Phyllis Roth believs dracular has remained so popular throughout the years as it involves a fantasy that is shared and understood by many, and this fantasy is strongly linked to the Oedipus complex. The fantasies of this novel change horror into pleasure. Draculas hostility to female sexuality would have been appealing to both the victorians and 20th century reader and Carrol Fry compares the vimpiressess to the fallen women of 18th and 19th century novels. The division between the dark and the fair women and the fallen and idealised is clear. Roth states ; quote Perhaps nowhere is the dichotomy of sensual and sexless women more dramatic than it is in Dracula and nowhere is the suddenly sexual woman more violently and self-righeously persecuted than in stokers thriller. Vampirism and sexuality are closely related, and Freud observes morbid dread always signifies repressed sexual wishes. Although the tone of morbid dread is evident throughout the novel, also is that of lustful anticipation; anticipation of killing dracular himself and anticipation of a sexual consummation. One instance of morbid dread mixed with sexual desire is when Harker meets Draculas 3 vamire women; We will write a custom essay sample on Dracula-sexual women specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Dracula-sexual women specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Dracula-sexual women specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer All three had brilliant white teeth that shone like pearls against the ruby of their voluptuous lips. There was something about them that made me uneasy, some longing and at the same time deadly fear. I felt in my heart a wicked , burning desire that they would kiss me with thoses red lips. Johnathon is described as being in an agony of delightful anticipation as the three discuss who should feast on him first and later in the novel, Van helsing experiences the same kind of seduction by these vamires. Another scene of uninhibited sexuality is that of Dracula forcing Mina to drink the blood from his breast. With his left hand he held both Mrs harkers hands keeping them away with her arms at full tension;his right hand gripped her by the back of the neck, forcing her face down on his bosom. Her white nightdress was smeard with blood, and a thin stream trickeled down the mans bare chest which was shown by his torn-open dress. The attitude of the two had a terrible resemblance to a child forcing a kittens nose into a sauser of milk to compel it to drink. The few sexual scenes in the novel are both heterosexual and incestuous. It is only scenes with vampires that are allowed to be sexualised. All the healthy or normal realationships are spiritualised. The way people are viewed changes after they become a vampire. For example it is only when Lucy has become a vampire that she is reffered to as voluptuous. Phyllis Roth comments; Clearly, then, vampirism is associated not only with death, immortality and orality; it is equivilent to sexuality. In psychoanalytic terms, vampirism conceals desired and feared fantasies, fantacies that point to the Oeipus complex. Dracular turns people into vampires, he plays the creator and therefore father figure. The brothers battle against the father who has stolen the desired woman , and mother figure from them. Rivalry between the men in the Van elsing group is also present yet it is covered up by constant use and often too much stress on their value of friendship. This is evident in the giving of blood from rivals Arthur, seward, quincy morris and helsing to lucy. The rivals friendship is futher strained when Helsing emphasises the sexual nature of these transfusions. Arthur feels asthough he is married to lucy due to the transfusion. So we can understand Roths statement the friendships of the novel mask a deep seated rivalry and hostility. And so, the Oedipul rivalry between the sons themselves aswell as against their father for their mothers affections becomes clear in dracula. In this novel the fantasy of paracide killing your parents is depicted as satisfying. Other fantasies are life after death, good over evil, man over super human forces and the west over the more mysterious east. These fantasies bring out the moral of the story, that, as Roth puts it, All is right with the world Dracula is killed, mina is purifed and the boys have won. Eveything is as it should be.Yet, the underlying oedipul theme brings out the darkness of the novel. Many of the same characteristics are shared by both the asexual Helsing group and sexual vimpires. As the Helsing group feel overwhelmingly attracted to the female vampires they utilize the defence of denial and project the blame onto the vampires of the females wanting to seduce and kill them rather than the other way round. Religion is often used to justify the actions of murder in the Helsing group, and Roth notes; The repeated use of the Host , the complicated ritual of the slaying of the vampires, and the ostensible,though not necessarily conscious, renunciation of sexuality are the prnance paid by thoses in Draula who violate the taboos against incest and the murder of parents.