The Victorian Movement In Dracula's Guest By Bram Stoker

Bram Stoker was a European author who wrote during the Victorian movement (1837-1901). During this literary period, authors focused their works around a multitude of topics, including, but not limited to, nature, the growing population and the industrial revolution in Europe, the relationships between people and their environment, the events that follow when one leaves their community, and how an individual’s actions affect either themselves or other people. Stoker explores some of these topics of the Victorian movement in “Dracula’s Guest” (1914) through his description of the environment and how different people are affected by varying behavior. The author’s description of the narrator’s environment aids in the changing mood of the short
story. The narrative begins with the main character noticing how bright the sun was shining and how one could feel summer approaching by the atmosphere. As the narrator was traveling through the woods in a horse-drawn carriage, he came across “a road that looked but little used, and which seemed to dip through a little, winding valley.” (Stoker 2). Even though he knew it was walpurgis nacht, or night of witches, and still decided to travel down the road to the “unholy village,” he caused the reader to feel apprehensive and fearful. During his walk down to the abandoned village, the sun was beginning to set and the sky was filling with thick clouds. The snow was falling lightly as the winds began to pick up speed. Eventually, the snow began to fall heavier and faster until he could no longer see the road in front of him. The narrator described how he was sheltered from the storm while standing underneath a horde of trees that were covered with snow. As the storm was passing by, he believed he heard the howl of a wolf, yet all the wolves were believed to have been gone from the town for many years. Just as he was beginning to turn around and head back to Munich, a tornado formed and enormous hailstones began to fall. Lightning then struck the tombstone he was admiring and a woman he believed to have been dead was standing in front of him. He was suddenly thrown into the storm by what he later found out to be a wolf. The reader felt both peace and suspense after reading about what the narrator endured during his journey. This scene established the author’s ability to develop the plot using the description of nature and the surrounding environment as opposed to the use of dialogue. Stoker also explored the results of how one’s actions affect themselves and others. Because the narrator decided to venture off into the woods and not return as the sun was setting despite the hotel manager’s objection, he was almost killed and his body may have been lying in the cemetery for days before anyone noticed he was missing. On page 1, the manager says, “Remember you are back by nightfall. The sky looks bright but there is a shiver in the north wind that says there may be a sudden storm.” (Stoker 1). His coachman also tried to change his mind by suggesting that he follow him back to Munich. The driver “stretched out his hands appealingly to me, and implored me not to go.” (Stoker 2). Ignoring the pleas of the hotel manager and coachman may have lead to the narrator’s death, had it not been for Dracula. Because Dracula was the main character’s “guardian angel” and he knew “He [the narrator] is English and therefore adventurous” (Stoker 17), he was able to warn the manager of his journey. As a result, the manager sent out a search-party of soldiers who were able to prevent the wolf from attacking him. The narrator’s life was affected, both knowingly and unknowingly, through his actions and the actions of others.
Based on the literary devices the author used, it can also be suggested that this work began to explore the themes of supernatural and mythological elements. Because the author chose to write a narrative with its focus on death and a vampire, Stoker was able to explore these elements while simultaneously speaking to the characteristics of the Victorian movement. By writing “Dracula’s Guest” in first person, the reader was able to understand how the narrator was feeling and what he was thinking. Knowing the main character’s emotions helps to better connect a reader to the story. Stoker focused his writings of the Victorian movement on his character’s surroundings and how their activities affected not only them, but the people around them. Based on the different types of literary devices Stoker used, it could also be said that this particular literary period was used to introduce mythical creatures and the inner emotions of the narrator.