Impurity In Dracula

The novel Dracula by Bram Stoker has plentiful examples of key concepts we have examined in class including: Purity and impurity, magical thinking, strong emotions such as disgust and shame, , formalization, and myth. In this essay I will summarize events that take place within the novel when the protagonists deal with Dracula and then relate these events to the key concepts to demonstrate why the characters view him as dangerous, and therefore something to be avoided completely. The first and foremost example of danger is with purity, impurity, and magical thinking. Before interacting with Dracula, Lucy is described as physically attractive by Mina in her journal entries, stating “Lucy met me at the station looking sweeter and lovelier

However; once she sleep walks and has her interaction with Dracula, who is then the embodiment of impurity (undead), she becomes gaunt and ashen, her demeanor is that of a wild animal and she is impure. This follows the law of contagion as well, the interaction with the impure body (Dracula) transfers his undead essence into Lucy and therefore makes her impure. Dracula’s undead essence is acquired through the law of similarity. He sleeps in coffins, and through that he is then given the essence of the Undead. Much like the Corpse handlers in Cantonese society, Dracula carries the essence of death with him through the law of similarity. , Conversely, there cannot be impurity without the possibility of purification. For Lucy, the purification ritual is her true death once Van Helsing and Seward drive the stake through her heart and cut off her head. Although Lucy is the strongest example of contamination via impurity, the same can be said about Mina in chapter 21 when she is bitten and forced to ingest The Count’s blood. She is later touched with a communion wafer and her skin is burned, signifying her contamination from the

A severe example of this formalization is Jonathan Harker’s whole stay at The Count’s castle. Throughout the stay, The Count keeps Jonathan confined to a specific wing of the castle, locking doors and restricting his ability to freely move about. This formalization of Harker’s movement is plainly imprisonment, and therefore a dangerous behavior to which Jonathan is averse. This comes to a head when The Count summons a pack of wolves as he is about to let Jonathan escape, restricting his ability to leave in a final demonstration of authority. To go even further, Van Helsing details the few ways that the protagonists can destroy Dracula, rooted in tradition and superstition. These rules themselves are formalization placed upon the protagonists once again that make Dracula a dangerous figure. He forces them to perform rituals outside of the standard ways they would kill a regular human being, solidifying Dracula as a power figure to be feared. These restrictions that Dracula places on Harker’s movements show the power that he holds over the protagonists, and again makes him a figure to be viewed as