Representation Of Women In Dracula Essay

Typically, the Gothic genre can be considered a male dominated genre, historically speaking, however there have been exceptions since the birth of the genre, very notable examples are Mary Shelly and her book “Frankenstein” Angela Carter’s“ The Bloody Chamber” and of course the author of one of the most famous Gothic pieces ever written, “ Wuthering Heights”, Emily Bronte.

I do not believe that women are always excluded completely or presented entirely in a negative light, however what can be argued is that often, women are portrayed in a subtly, albeit negative light, as either promiscuous, conniving, or of weak character. The aforementioned can be observed throughout “Dracula”. Throughout the Victorian period, arguably the most principle

concerns was the role of women and the place they occupied in society. Two of the characters that feature prominently in Stoker’s novel are Mina Murray and Lucy Westenra. Other female characters worth discussing are on the topic of female representations are the three “brides” of Dracula. The way in which Stoker represents females says much about the similarities of views between novels of the time and the Victorian society on the whole. By analysing the female characters in “Dracula”, one may initiate an understanding of what Victorian views of women were in society, during that period. This can be done by registering an individual scrutiny of character development throughout the novel.
In Dracula, Stoker depicts some women as overtly sexual beings and depicts other women as pure and chaste beings.

These depictions are represented through different characters. The characterisations of the women who depict these varying representations are direct reflections of the ideal during the Victorian era. In the Victorian society, women that were pure and chaste were favoured. Women that were neither pure nor chaste were looked down upon and regarded as “whores” and did not partake in societal events. Much like the ideas of Victorians, in “Dracula” the sexual and unchaste women are depicted as evil; the pure and chaste women are depicted as strong, heroic, and steadfast in relationships, a valid example is

Mina.
Mina is the perfect embodiment of the ideal Victorian woman and inherently possess’ all the qualities that were viewed as essential within a woman of that time. Throughout the novel, we see Mina as a very loyal and intelligent woman. In the traditional sense, Mina is what the Victorians would consider a perfect wife. While Jonathan is trapped and essentially held as a prisoner at Dracula’s castle for months on end, Mina shows an evidently grave concern for him. One instance in which this concern is made apparent is in Chapter 6 when Mina is writing in her diary. She writes, “No news from Jonathan. I am getting quite uneasy about him…”. Not only does this one of many occasions display that she worries for Jonathan and his safety, but during his long stay away from her, Mina remains faithful to Jonathan. It would not have been demanding for her to find another man when she thought that Jonathan’s safe return was highly questionable, but she remained faithful and did what was in her power in order to get Jonathan back. Not only does Mina represent the traditional values of the Victorian woman because of the prior mentioned justification, but also because she is not sexualised in any of the ways Stoker’s other female characters are, and in Stoker refraining from sexualising her, Mina thus retains her purity that is so essential in an ideal Victorian woman.
In “Dracula”, Lucy Westerna becomes a character that concurrently represents both the “good” and “evil” Victorian woman. She possess’ a similar innocence to that of Mina’s, and consequently has three men in subtle competition in order to become the subject of her affections. In the most respectable fashion, Lucy declines two of their advances, in order to be in a relationship with the man she loves most. What further reinforces a positive reflection of her character is the fact that her best friend is Mina, and as previously established Mina embodies all the qualities, that ought to make the ideal Victorian woman. What appeals to the observer’s common sense is that Mina would not keep female company that may perhaps at some point taint her own purity and innocence. And thus by trusting Mina’s judgment, one can safely assume that Lucy, with possession of qualities not dissimilar to those of Mina, also represents the idea; characteristics of the Victorian woman.
Although having said this, as the novel progresses, Lucy’s ideal character of a Victorian woman becomes apparently blurred, and so blurred that the reader may lose sight of it altogether, with no remnants to indeed indicated that any of the such highly regarded qualities which Lucy once possessed, were ever there at all.

The first and foremost differentiating factor between Lucy and Mina is the somewhat sexual manner in which Lucy is portrayed. There is a blatant emphasis on Lucy’s beauty that is not visible with Mina; this may well be considered a foreshadowing of the fully transformed and evident sexualisation of Lucy later on. Of course alas she does fall to Dracula’s fangs and indeed does become an overtly sexual vampire. As a result, Lucy ends up being described by the quote, “The sweetness was turned to heartless cruelty and the purity to voluptuous

wantonness”.
In “Dracula”, we are presented with the expectations of a Victorian society, and the challenge of a more sexually liberated woman, whereas in Wuthering Heights we are actually introduced to what many would call “true feministic ideals”. Emily Bronte heavily emphasises on her female characters and their various struggles with their male counterparts. There are many moments in the novel where the women are shown in a positive light, exhibiting the qualities of intelligence, strength and willpower, however as with any penning there is also the negative light which is also often shone on female characters, which in this novel consists of, immaturity, and overtly dramatic behaviour. Through these diverse displays, Bronte expresses her own personal opinion on femininity, and that view is that while women may often be of little or no other choice other than that to conform to the will of men, however they will occasionally break free from such constraints and live in accordance to their own ideologies and standards, to a life of their own suiting.
There are many female characters that Bronte uses as her own mouthpiece to impose her ideas about women of the society of that time. One such character is a young girl by the name of Catherine Earnshaw, who lives with her parents, brother Hindley, and Heathcliff an adopted gypsy boy of the same age on the estate of “Wuthering Heights”. As Catherine and Heathcliff begin to nurture into young adults, they both become inseparable and develop and an emotionally intimate connection