What Is Harker's Purpose Of Dracula

Dracula, by Bram Stoker, began the new era of horror novels when it was published in 1897. It was also the first book to be written in the vampire genre. It still frightens and shocks its readers even today, over one hundred years after it was published. Stoker looked to vampire and Gothic myths, legends, and history as inspiration for Dracula. It tells the story of a Jonathan Harker through his personal journal and letters, and his and others’ interactions with Dracula.

The novel’s main characters are Jonathan Harker; his fiancée, Mina Harker: Arthur Holmwood; Lucy Westenra, who is Arthur’s fiancée and Mina’s best friend; Abraham Van Helsing; a vampire hunter; Jack Seward a past student of Van Helsing; Renfield, a victim of Dracula; Quincey

The Count only appears a handful of times throughout the entire book. Each time he does make an appearance, however, makes even the audience wary and anxious, and contributes to the mystery of the story.

Jonathan Harker is one of the only characters in the novel who uses his logic. He is a new lawyer, organized and sensible. Considering all the fantastical events that happen, Jonathan’s natural character allows Bram Stoker to make the story more believable and less hysterical. Jonathan attempts to rationally analyze the strange things that happen to him and the other characters using common sense.

The first time Count Dracula appears in the book, it is in an unfamiliar land with new languages and traditions. It is very specifically in early spring, a time of change, for nature as well as for Lucy and Mina alike—with Lucy preparing for marriage and Mina getting ready to start a family. It’s even a time of transition for Dracula, as he moves into the castle. Under these foreign conditions, it’s easy to succumb to irrational fears, and succumb to the unknown. Bram Stoker begins to whip the characters into a frenzy at this point, using descriptions of the dark colors in nature, and strange and mysterious

When Jonathan Harker arrives at Count Dracula’s castle for the first time, Dracula comes out of complete darkness, wearing all black, with no color except his white face. He’s tall and old, with a white moustache (p. 23). Jonathan remarks in his journal entry that despite the Count’s old age, his grip is incredibly strong. His hand was ice cold, too cold to belong to a living human (p 24). He has a face like a bird, bright red lips, a thin nose, thick eyebrows and abnormally sharp teeth. He is impossibly pale with ears that come to a point. The strangest thing about him is the hair on his palms(p.26-27). Later, on page 195, the zookeeper says he has a hooked nose and a pointy beard with a white streak. His normally blue eyes change to red when he is angry. Every time he appears, he seems to become younger and younger. Dracula is frightening to the other characters and the audience because they don’t understand this new fear. He changes so much, as soon as the other characters and the audience get to a point where they understand him, he transforms again. Bram Stoker does this to keep his audience wary, poised, and ready for new action. It also makes Dracula seem even more