On 2010-02-23 Jason Golomb, wrote: It´s Gothic, intricate, romantic, tragic, fun and surprising. I haven´t read Stoker´s original ´Dracula´ in about 20 years and most of the details I´d either forgotten or had been smudged, smeared, and overwritten by a lifetime of modern vampire stories and myths.
´Dracula´ is set in the late 19th century and is presented through a series of letters, memos and recordings between numerous characters who, through no fault of their own, become entangled in Dracula´s plot to move away from his rapidly dwindling (and more ´vampire-aware´) food supply in Romania to the hip and crowded urban living in London.
Stoker´s mythology around Vampires had a few surprises (to me, at least...apologies in advance if any of these are common knowledge to Stephanie Meyers lovers...). Vampires only lose their powers during the day. They don´t burn up or anything in the daylight...they just can´t morph into animals, use superhuman strength, etc. Vampires can´t turn into anything fancy when they´re over water...which was a convenient plot point revolving around Dracula´s travels to and from London via boat. Also, Stoker describes Dracula as having a long thin moustache...so I can´t help imagining a fu manchu.
Van Helsing comes across as a Victorian age vampire-fighting Yoda. Stoker may have been writing Van Helsing´s backward-talking soliloquies to be delivered with a Danish accent, but perhaps the Stoker estate should have a chat with Lucasfilms...
Harker´s wife Mina is a central figure throughout the book - initially only as the target of Jonathan´s letters from Transylvania, and eventually as a key figure in the hunt for the Count. Her passion and love for hubby Jonathan is both melodramatic and touching. One can´t help but feel a very Victorian-England vibe in their relationship.
I thoroughly enjoyed the Stoker original. He does a masterful job connecting the plot dots through diaries and correspondence. Even by today´s standards, I find his approach very fresh. The first quarter of the story takes place in Romania and Dracula´s castle, and Stoker is at his best in his exposition of place and in setting the weighty and Gothic tone of Dracula in his environs. The image of the Count crawling down the outer walls of his castle, while Jonathan Harker watches from above, is burned into my mind.. And summed up by saying An Epic Original. Currently Dracula (Barnes & Noble Classics) has an overall rating of 10 over 10.
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Brooke Allen claimed Dracula, by Bram Stoker, is part of the Barnes & Noble Classics series, which offers quality editions at affordable prices to the student and the general reader, including new scholarship, thoughtful design, and pages of carefully crafted extras. Here are some of the remarkable features of Barnes & Noble Classics: New introductions commissioned from today´s top writers and scholars Biographies of the authors Chronologies of contemporary historical, biographical, and cultural events Footnotes and endnotes Selective discussions of imitations, parodies, poems, books, plays, paintings, operas, statuary, and films inspired by the work Comments by other famous authors Study questions to challenge the reader´s viewpoints and expectations Bibliographies for further reading Indices & Glossaries, when appropriateAll editions are beautifully designed and are printed to superior specifications; some include illustrations of historical interest. Barnes & Noble Classics pulls together a constellation of influences—biographical, historical, and literary—to enrich each reader´s understanding of these enduring works. Count Dracula has inspired countless movies, books, and plays. But few, if any, have been fully faithful to Bram Stoker´s original, best-selling novel of mystery and horror, love and death, sin and redemption. Dracula chronicles the vampire´s journey from Transylvania to the nighttime streets of London. There, he searches for the blood of strong men and beautiful women while his enemies plot to rid the world of his frightful power.Today´s critics see Dracula as a virtual textbook on Victorian repression of the erotic and fear of female sexuality. In it, Stoker created a new word for terror, a new myth to feed our nightmares, and a character who will outlive us all. Brooke Allen is a book critic whose work has appeared in numerous publications including The Atlantic Monthly, The New Criterion, The New York Times Book Review, The Wall Street Journal, and The Hudson Review. A collection of her essays, Twentieth-Century Attitudes, will be published in 2003.
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