Superstitions evolved from centuries ago. “To find a horseshoe brings you good luck”, “if you walk under a ladder you will have bad luck”, or “a broken mirror will bring seven years bad luck”; these are all common modern superstitions. One superstition that has seemed to have stuck around since the Victorian Age is vampires. Bram Stoker’s Dracula imitates the Victorian-istic culture’s rebirth of superstition from the past through the vampire king, Dracula, and the wisdom of the famous vampire slayer, Van Helsing, who manages to live in peace with science and religion, leaving wiggle-room for the two characters to have similarities.
Stoker reincarnates the history of the Victorian Age through Dracula, who is a symbolization of superstition. The Victorian period is also known as the “ago of science”, an era of comprehension that the world is dictated by the “natural laws”, instead of the divine supernatural, leaving supernatural beliefs to be rejected as superstitions (Noakes 23). Van Helsing promotes superstitious tactics frequently throughout the story, one when Van Helsing put a necklace of garlic around Mina’s neck after being bitten. Van Helsing also uses religious tactics like placing a cross on the body of Lucy, blocking evil spirits, and praying while placing a cross on Mina’s forehead burning her, a sign of evil invading her body. The “superstition”, Dracula, associates many of his actions with biblical scriptures to expo his degree of power to that of Jesus Christ; “And you, their best beloved one, are now to me, flesh of my flesh; blood of my blood; kin of my kin; my bountiful wine-press for while” (Stoker 328). A biblical phrase, similar of the sort, is also specified in the Bible, “Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you”, “This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me” (1 Corinthians 11: 24-25). Drinking the cup of wine representing the blood of Jesus, “the blood of the lamb”, compares to that of the drinking of human blood as an illustration of a demonic communion. Even though Dracula puts himself on a pedestal by using biblical phrases comparing himself to Jesus, and his demonic nature connecting to the spiritual communion, Stoker also involves the use of science.
Stoker displays the use of technology to document events through the type-writer, phonograph, telegraph, and Kodak; all used to Van Helsing’s advantage. Van Helsing’s obsession of the Count is a scientific characteristic, aggregating knowledge over time. Van Helsing states that Dracula was a “soldier, statesman, and alchemist-which latter was the highest development of the science-knowledge of all time”, also explaining how Dracula’s child-like brain matured into that of a man (Stoker 342-343). Both Dracula and Van Helsing, both scientists, have developing intellectual power, like the constant metamorphose of science. However, only the Count provokes the rebirth of the Victorian ideal bringing authority to science.
Spiritualism in the Victorian Age had to be caste out because it intimidates the betterment of science, according to the opinions of Victorian scientists (Noakes 24). This assumption, along with Stoker’s rebirth of the Victorian culture, is a violation of Stephen J. Gould’s non-overlapping magisteria, aka NOMA. Gould states religion and science have boundaries and are “non-authoritian”, meaning one magisteria cannot be cognizant in its entirety but both “hold equal worth” (Gould 58). Combining the two can cause controversial conflict, literal in Dracula’s case, but balance between science and religion can equal wisdom.
Stoker demonstrates the danger in combining science and religion by using Dracula as an example and the balance between them that amplifies Van Helsing’s wisdom. Dracula’s nature violates the rules of NOMA by resurrecting the Victorian past, a time where religion fuses into superstitions giving science the upper hand. Stoker's rebirth of the Victorian past allows questions to arise as to whether Stoker supports Christianity or Scientology, the knowledge of life.Work Cited:
Gould, Stephen Jay. Noma defined and defended. New York, NY: The Ballantine Publishing Group, 1999. Print.
Noakes, Richard. The Victorian Supernatural. United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press, 2004. Print.
Stoker, Bram. Dracula. Glennis Bryon, 1998. Print.
Great post, Bianca! It seems like everyone is interested in this topic. You should head over to David's post; although you structure your post differently, I think you two can build from each other's arguments. I like that you pulled from outside sources and used bible verses to support your claims. I plan to steal your quote from page 328 of Stoker to use in my paper!
ReplyDeleteOn to the arguments themselves, you say that spiritualism in the Victorian Age was "thrown out" by scientists because it didn't mix with science itself. Do you think all science was rejected by religious people during this time? Which do you think was more appalling? Also, with Gould's claim of religion and science being mutually exclusive, do you agree? And do you think this is what Stoker is trying to prove with his evil character, Dracula? I think David has a good point in his post, that Van Helsing also mixes science and religion but succeeds because he finds a better balance between the two. It seems like you touched on this briefly near the end, but do you agree with David's claim?
I really like your topic, Bianca! I loved the way that used bible verses to support your claims and textual evidence. It really is interesting how closely related all of these things are throughout the book. I winder what Stoker was thinking when he was writing this novel and what his reasoning behind using these similarities were? Something to think about! Overall, I think you have a really strong start to your paper!
ReplyDeleteThank you both! Rusty, I do agree with David that Van Helsing supports relgion and science in a healthy way, I only touched on it a little because I didn't want to say too much or my response would have been five pages. And yes I do think Stoker is using Dracula as an example of the dangers of combining the two. Stoker used a lot of bible verses in the novel but didn't mention a whole lot of science so it leaves me to question what side is he on, the relgious side or science side?
ReplyDeleteMaybe Stoker isn't on either side at all. Maybe he's simply warning against the mixing of religion and science, without supporting either in his book. Or maybe, as David wrote in his post, he's mocking the way in which Dracula combines the two (perverted religion and 'dark arts' science). It seems like both characters, Dracula and Van Helsing, mix religion and science in some fashion, but do it very differently.
ReplyDeleteHey Bianca, good job!! Love your post. I really like how you contrasted Van Helsing with the typical ideals of the Victorian era, in your first paragraph. When you mentioned how he lives in peace with science and religion, I began to think about how the Victorian era was driven by ideas of natural science, yet was turned off to real progression -- i.e. women's role in society.
ReplyDeleteI wonder what purpose spiritualism really served before the Victorian era, and if it relates at all to this time period's cynicism?