Relationship between Humans and Vampires in Bram Stoker's Dracula (Essay Sample)

Relationship between Humans and Vampires in Bram Stoker’s Dracula
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Relationship between Humans and Vampires in Bram Stoker's Dracula
Written by Bram Stoker in the year 1897, Dracula follows the story of an English lawyer, Jonathan Harker, who visits Transylvania to help a wealthy nobleman. With logistic details, Count Dracula wishes to buy a house in England. As he makes his way to the countryside, he meets with local peasants. The peasants warn Harker against the destination and offer him charms to protect himself against any evil. The peasants further utter certain words, which mean ‘vampire', as Harker later learns. Harker reaches his destination where he meets with Count Dracula, an elderly, hospitable, and well-educated man who owns the crumbling castle. It only takes him a few days to realize his status as a prisoner in the castle, and as he continues to investigate the nature of his captivity, he grows more uneasy. Dracula can be described as an abortive invasion of the comfortable, rational world by a vice from the middle ages.
Throughout his book, Stoker has characterized the relationship between human and vampires as complicated. Count Dracula, one of the principal characters in the book, is depicted as a bloodthirsty vampire who sucks blood from women. The relationship is shown to draw from the power dynamics of the scheming vampire and the feeble soul from where he drains. In addition, in the book, Count Dracula threatens the life not only of humans but also of his female prodigies and the three women who live in the Castle. He is the only vampire with the ability to drain the life of a human. He invades British society and is successful in his quest to convert humans, an act that makes him a noteworthy threat.