Dracula and Science, Superstition, Religion, and Xenophobia

There are many debates in the United States that have been ongoing for decades, and some for even centuries. Some of these issues are in relation to science, religion, and some are even a combination of the two. Film and other media outlets have commonly been used to address these types of issues ever since these outlets were started. In the film Dracula, directed by Tod Browning in 1931, many controversial issues of the 1920s and 1930s including science, superstition, religion, and xenophobia are addressed. An argument that has been extremely controversial and debated for centuries is science versus religion. Dracula takes the side of religion in this debate, which is shown throughout the novel. Many times the protagonists attempt to stop Dracula, but one of the only ways that they can hurt Dracula is through religious objects. The two religious objects that harm Dracula are the cross and the communion wafer. The cross is a replica of Jesus Christ, and the communion wafer is representative of the body of Christ by Christians. These objects’ ability to cause harm to Dracula, while science cannot, shows religion’s power over science. Another example of science being insufficient in this film is the analysis of Renfield’s mental illness. The doctors proclaim he is a zoophagous, and that it is a known mental illness which he has, which we know is completely untrue. He acts as a zoophagous because of Dracula’s control and influence over him. The diagnosis created by the scientists makes sense, and would in pretty much any other case be considered to be absolutely acceptable, but this film continues to attempt to show that science by itself is not enough. The character Dr. Van Helsing in Dracula is prime example of how this film believes in religion’s power more than science’s. Van Helsing is a scientist, but he is also a believer in Christianity. This provides an interesting set of circumstances because he has a mixed view of the world. The fact that a