Final Chapter

The final chapter begins with the continuation the groups' pursuit of the Count. As Van Helsing and Mina approach Castle Dracula, Mina's power to be hypnotised and reveal the position of Dracula lessens before disappearing completely. She also starts to show other characteristics of vampires, particularly sleeping patterns. She begins to sleep on their journey during the day and experiences periods where Van Helsing is unable to wake her. At night she doesn't eat, claiming she isn't hungry and seems fuller of life all of a sudden. One night Van Helsing decides to test her by using a holy wafer and placing it around the fire. He then asks her to come nearer the fire, but she says she is unable to. The duo are then visited by the three female vampires that Jonathan met during his stay at the Castle. The wafer defends Van Helsing from the women and Mina is safe because she is practically the same form as them. They ask her to come with them, referring to her as "sister" but her soul is still clean, meaning that she is able to resist them. Van Helsing goes the next day to the Castle, discovers the tombs of the three females and destroys their sleeping bodies, similarly to how he set Lucy free. He then discovers the empty tomb of Dracula and places a holy wafer so that he can't return to it. He also covers all entrances to the Castle with the same thing, so that Dracula can never return to his home. He then leaves with Mina who seems to already be in better spirits their horses have been killed though so they have to walk. They can hear wolves in the distance and find a cave to hide in. In the distance they witness the Szgany being chased by Jonathan, Quincey, Dr Seward and Arthur. As they approach the cave Van Helsing and Mina appear and help to surround the fleeing group. Jonathan appears to become possessed with immense strength as he battles his way through the group to get to the cart and to kill Dracula with the help of Quincey who gets wounded and sadly bleeds to death. To be honest I was slightly disappointed with the ending of Dracula. That is because I was anticipating one final encounter with Dracula in his vampire form, rather than them being able to kill him easier as he was in his sleep. However I did actually enjoy reading the book as it was quite interesting and at times you don't want to put it down.

Chapters: 25 and 26

The group arrive in Varna after a journey of just three days from London. Before they leave however, Mina makes all of the men swear that they will not hesitate to kill her if she becomes a threat to their survival. Jonathan is the last to painstakingly swear to this. He then emotionally reads out the burial service for Mina at her request. Van Helsing and Dr Seward have their doubts about the safety of Mina and are very wary of any changes in her. They keep any suspicions they have, between themselves so as not to make the others more anxious, especially Jonathan. Mina is hypnotised every sunrise and sunset by Van Helsing and continually gives the same description of the Count at sea. Incidentally these are the times of day that she is most alert and awake. They make preparations in Varna for the Count's arrival and successfully get permission to search the ship upon its arrival. They then discover that the boat has been spotted at Galatz, with Dracula trying to deceive his pursuers. They head to Galatz the next morning in an attempt to catch him off guard. As they near Galatz by train, Mina's power and ability to warn of the positioning of Dracula is fading. Dr Seward suspects that the Count's power is strong over her and that they could be misled. After visiting the docks they discover that the boat has landed and the box has been collected by a man named Skinsky who is later found to be dead. They seem to be at a dead end. Mina decides to look through all of their information and ponders over the Count's possibilities of travelling by road, train or water. She comes to a conclusion that he travelled by boat and uses maps to find a route that can be taken to reach Castle Dracula. She is praised once again by the whole group for her brilliance. They then decide to split up to increase their chances of intercepting him. Arthur and Jonathan go by boat in an attempt to catch him up the river. Quincey and Dr Seward ride horses alongside the river to see if they can intercept the boat when it lands. Van Helsing takes Mina, hoping to use her powers to help them find Castle Dracula.

Chapters: 23 and 24

Dr Seward, Van Helsing and Jonathan wait at the Piccadilly house until Arthur and Quincey return; thankfully this is before the arrival of Dracula. They get in position to attack him when he arrives. He was expecting the attack though and tries to fight back despite being stabbed in the chest by Jonathan. The crucifix again scares him off and he threatens the five of them that he will seek revenge, before fleeing. The stress of everything and dealing with what his wife has been through has made Jonathan look a lot older and more 'haggard'. This is in contrast to the Count, who is made younger and more energetic by feeding on Lucy and on Mina. Early the next morning, Mina asks Van Helsingto hypnotise her and this helps them to discover that he is on a boat. They visit the dockyard in search of boats that have set sail for Transylvania. They discover that the Count is aboard a boat for Varna, which will land in about three week's time. Eye-witness accounts confirm it is the Count from his physical description and his superior strength, which is showcased when he easily lifts his heavy box. The group decide that they will travel across land because it is much quicker and will meet the Count at the end of his voyage. Van Helsing and Dr Seward both have doubts over the safety involved in telling Mina all of their plans. This is because of the possibility that Dracula has previously hypnotised her and could learn their plans of attack through her. They are saved the trouble of telling her when she decides not to attend a meeting and then makes Jonathan promise not to tell her anything of their plans until her red scar has disappeared. He promises, but then she seems to have a sudden change of heart and becomes adamant that she comes along on the journey. She believes she could be helpful and would be safer if she stayed with them. It is hard to tell whether or not Mina has the best intentions of the group at heart, or if she is in some horrible way still being influenced by Dracula...

Chapters: 21 and 22

Dr Seward arrives in Renfield's room to find him lying in a heap on the floor. The attendant believes that he may have broken his back. Van Helsing is sent for and then Arthur and Quincey also come down to see what's happened. Renfield wakes and recalls what happened. He explains that the Count came into his room a few days ago in his smoke form. Renfield however realised, that Dracula had been feeding on Mina, because of her pale appearance when he last saw her. Wanting to protect Mrs Harker, he tried to attack the Count when he came to visit him again. The Count's strength was too much for him and his injuries led to his eventual death. It is a mystery though as to why the Count fed on Mina, but not Renfield and similarly on Lucy and not Jonathan whilst he was staying at Castle Dracula. He may possibly prefer female victims or he was just using Renfield and Jonathan for purposes other than food? Dr Seward, Van Helsing, Arthur and Quincey go straight to Mina's room, where they have to barge their way in and are horrified to see the Count forcing Mina to suck blood from his chest. She has bite marks on her neck and Jonathan is still asleep and in a trance thanks to the Count. Dracula advances on the four of them until Van Helsing produces a crucifix, which scares him off. Mina and Jonathan soon come to their senses and are terribly upset and horrified about what has happened. Arthur goes to the study to find some manuscripts have been burned, luckily there was a spare in the safe. Mina is now going through similar stages that Lucy suffered and the others have time against them now in their battle against Dracula. The next day they visit Carfax and in each of the boxes of earth, they place a piece of 'sacred wafer' rendering them useless in future for the Count. They also manage to get into his Piccadilly home and do the same to eight more boxes, meaning they only need to find one more. Arthur and Quincey go to search the remaining houses whilst the other three wait at Piccadilly. Religion is a major theme in the novel that is particularly evident in this section of it. Renfield was heard shouting "God! God! God!" as he's being attacked by the Count in an attempt to get help from him. It is used as a superstition against vampires, which is evident when Dracula flees at the sight of Van Helsing's crucifix. This is also evident when the cross used to bless Mina burns into her forehead leaving her to believe "Even the Almighty shuns my polluted flesh!"

Chapters: 17, 18, 19 and 20

These chapters involve the start of the search and hunt made for Dracula by Van Helsing, Dr Seward, Lord Godalming, Quincey Morris and Jonathan Harker. After her initial help, they relieve Mina of any further duties as she may not be able to deal with the scary reality of some of the things she may discover. The fact that they don't let her help anymore could be seen as sexist or it could just be that they want to protect her. She helps them prior to this by typing up Dr Seward's phonographic diary and then by chronologically ordering all diary entries and newspaper cuttings they have. Once this collection is read by everyone, a meeting is held in which they discuss how to deal with Dracula. Van Helsing informs the others of typical strengths (e.g - can transform into bats and wolves and human blood regenerates them) and typical weaknesses (e.g - garlic, crucifixes and daylight) of vampires. Once it is discovered that the house next door to the asylum is owned by Dracula the five men decide to investigate it straight away. This fact also again raises suspicions that the Count has in some way possessed the lunatic Renfield, who twice escaped and ran to the house where he was heard talking to his 'master'. In the house they discover that twenty one boxes of earth are missing. Jonathan manages to trace them to a house in Piccadilly which they plan to investigate further. He also begins to notice that Mina is looking paler than usual and has been sleeping for longer. Mina has a dream in which she wakes in the middle of the night and is surrounded by a thick smoke. It is said earlier in the chapter that vampires can take this form. This worries the reader, as she is also showing similar symptoms to ones which Lucy had and Mina might not have been dreaming after all... Dr Seward starts to keep a much closer eye on Renfield, as he believes that his mood swings can be linked to the actions of the Count. He also believes that Renfield is after a 'human soul' which could also signify his cooperation with the Count in some way. Chapter 20 ends with a cliffhanger as Dr Seward learns that Renfield has "met with some accident" and is "covered with blood". Could this be linked to an impending attack of some kind that the Count is preparing to make?

Chapters: 13, 14, 15 and 16

Van Helsing contemplates carrying out an autopsy on Lucy's body before the funeral, but then changes his mind saying "it is too late - or too early". He then gets permission form Athur to read through Lucy's papers. This leads him to Mina, who he visits in Exeter. Here he learns all about Jonathan's ordeal and his sighting of a 'younger Dracula' in London. Van Helsing tells Mina and Jonathan that he will keep in touch with them. He then discovers an article about a child with wounds in his neck, identical to Lucy's, when he returns to London. After showing it to Dr Seward they visit the child to see him personally before visiting Lucy's tomb, where they discover that her body is missing. Seward implies that her body was stolen but Van Helsing is determined to prove him wrong. They hide in the graveyard until seeing a 'white figure', which they advance upon and find a child. It is suspected that the child was to become another of Lucy's victims. They return to Lucy's tomb during the day only to find her body there, however she is very healthy looking for a week-old corpse, with red lips and rosy cheeks. Her appearance here can be linked to Jonathan's sighting of Dracula, who looked younger and healthier. This could be evidence that the consumption of blood makes vampires younger and fuller of life. Van Helsing and Dr Seward return to Lucy's tomb a few days later along with Quincey and Arthur, who reluctantly come after hearing Van Helsing's plan to remove Lucy's head. They hide in the graveyard until she arrives again with another child. This is when they first see Lucy's "unclean and full of hell-fire eyes" and their feeling of love for her turn to hatred. The four of them return the next day to finish the job. Van Helsing allows Arthur to hammer the stake as it will set Lucy's soul free and she would have wanted him to do it. When Arthur and Quincey leave the tomb Van Helsing and Dr Seward finish the job by removing her head and filling her mouth with garlic. The four of them all swear to help in the hunt for Dracula...

Chapter 12

The chapter begins with Dr Seward's diary as he arrives at Lucy's home the day after her attack. He grows impatient when there is no answer to his knocking. Van Helsing then comes running up to the house and they decide to find somewhere to force their way in. Once inside they discover the maids, passed out on the floor. They go to Lucy's room and find the dead, Mrs Westenra laying with her. After hearing Lucy's heartbeat Van Helsing realises that she can still be saved. The maids are awoken and ordered to run a hot bath as Lucy is extremely pale and freezing cold. Whilst contemplating how they will perform the blood transfusion, Quincey Morris appears and volunteers to be the blood donor. The transfusion however, isn't as effective this time. Later on Quincey asks Seward what is wrong with Lucy and also tells him that he had a nightmare in which she was bitten by a bat. An unopened letter from Mina to Lucy asking how she is and about her wedding also informs us that Mina and Jonathan are back in Exeter and are currently staying with Mr Hawkins. Seward then receives a letter updating him on Renfield, saying that he escaped and attacked two men who were moving boxes into the old abandoned house. Whilst attacking them he shouts "They shan't rob me! I'll fight for my Lord and Master!". Mina then writes another letter to Lucy informing her that Mr Hawkins has suddenly died and that she might see her soon when visiting London. The next night, whilst Seward is watching over Lucy, he notices her teeth "seemed longer and sharper" (Typical vampire characteristic). When Arthur comes in the morning she wants a kiss but Van Helsing doesn't allow it. He holds her hand instead before Lucy has a fit of rage and then suddenly dies. Seward then consoles Arthur before being told by Van Helsing that "It is only the beginning!"

Chapter 11

Starts with Lucy saying how grateful she is for all the help she is receiving and that the garlic is already having the effect of making her not afraid to go to sleep. Then Van Helsing and Seward arrive at Lucy's home and begin talking to her mother before they wake her. However she informs them that she removed the garlic in the middle of night, believing that she was helping her daughter. Van Helsing remains calm in the presence of Mrs Westenra, knowing that she is in a very fragile state. He breaks down when she leaves though and then the two of them go to attend to Lucy, who requires yet another blood transfusion. Van Helsing is the blood donor this time to help restore Seward's strength a bit more. He then asks Mrs Westenra not to remove anything from Lucy's room without consulting him first. Lucy's diary entry then shows that the garlic has been helping her to sleep, despite the bat that's been continually flapping at her window! Then there is a newspaper article about a wolf that escaped from the zoo and it has an interview with one of the zookeepers. Towards the end of the interview though the wolf arrives at the zookeepers' house. He takes him in and feeds him, as if he was his own dog. The wolf was however wounded and had cuts on his head and broken glass in him. There is then an account of Dr Seward's where he is attacked by a patient whilst in his office at the asylum. He is cut badly on the wrist before fighting back and knocking his attacker over. He is then even more surprised to see the attacker lapping up his blood off of the floor and repeating "the blood is the life!". He is then telegrammed by Van Helsing to once again visit and spend the night looking over Lucy. The chapter ends with a memorandum by Lucy. In which the mystery of the wounded wolf is discovered as it smashes through her window. The shock of which gives her dear old mother a heart attack, killing her. The maids come rushing in and take Mrs Westenra away and make themselves drinks. When Lucy comes to find them, she finds them all asleep and realises that they have been drugged, leaving her all alone and fearing for her safety and survival. She hears another low howl from the wolf and then writes her last goodbye to Arthur fearing that she will never see him again.

Chapter 10 - Dr Seward's diary

Chapter 10 concentrates greatly on Dr Seward and on Dr Van Helsing as they continue to treat Lucy. Van Helsing is very shocked when he arrives and first sees Lucy again, for she is very pale and struggling to breathe. He immediately plans for carrying out a blood transfusion and Dr Seward volunteers to be the donor. Whilst preparing for this however, Arthur arrives to see how Lucy is for himself and Van Helsing suggests that Arthur is to be the donor because he is stronger than Dr Seward. Arthur agrees saying "I would give the last drop of blood in my body for her" showing his love for her. The effect of the transfusion can be seen as it's carried out as Lucy starts to show more colour on her face. However Arthur is very weak and drained by the end of the operation as he has lost a lot of blood himself. He is fed well and sent home to rest by Van Helsing to rest. Van Helsing then discovers two red marks on Lucy's neck and is astonished by it. He leaves at once for Amsterdam as he has books there and tells Dr Seward to spend the night watching over her. When Lucy wakes, she is in much higher spirits, however she is scared to go to sleep as she fears it. Seward promises her that he will wake her the second he sees the signs of a bad dream, this reassures her enough to send her to sleep. The next night, Dr Seward is to do the same again, however he is very tired and sleeps on a couch in the next room after Lucy reassures him that she is much better now. Seward is woken in the morning by Van Helsing who then goes with him to check on Lucy. They are both once again shocked when they find her because she is extremely pale and struggling for breath again. Arthur is not around so it is Dr Seward who is the donor for the transfusion this time. Van Helsing takes less blood from him though, saying that he still has more important work to do. Seward then gets some much needed rest and Van Helsing goes for a walk and to send a telegraph. The next day a parcel arrives for Van Helsing containing "flowers". Lucy asks whether the wreath of garlic she is given to wear is a joke and he says that it is for her own good. He also spreads garlic all around her room and near the doors and windows, possibly in an attempt to scare something or someone off? When asked if he is "working some spell to keep out an evil spirit" Van Helsing replies "Perhaps I am!". Van Helsing and Dr Seward both leave Lucy for the night and intend to visit her early, the next morning.

Chapter 9 - Letter, Mina Harker to Lucy Westenra

Chapter 9 starts with a letter from Mina to Lucy, informing her that she had a safe journey and that she is now safely with Jonathan. She also says that she is now married to Jonathan as he asked her if should would before they returned to England. She also receives Jonathan's notebook but decides not to read it and find out what happened to him. Lucy's reply shows that she is getting better, sleeping well and spending lots of time with Arthur. Then there is another of Dr. Seward's diary entries describing the behaviour of Renfield. He has started to become violent during the day, then quiet during the night. He also keeps repeating "now I can wait" and refuses some cats that he is offered. Dr. Seward then carries out another experiment and assists Renfield to escape again. He follows him with the attendants into the abandoned estate next door again. Renfield is very violent when they arrive at first, however he soon has a sudden change of heart when he sees a bat flying around and then goes quietly. Another diary entry from Lucy says that she still has sleeping problems, then a letter from Arthur shows that he wants Dr. Seward to meet with her to see what her problem is. He meets at once with Lucy and then sends for his friend Van Helsing who lives in Amsterdam. He comes to England at once and also meets Lucy. He doesn't give his full conclusion to Arthur but says that he will keep in touch with good friend. Dr. Seward then notifies Arthur of Van Helsing's visit and that he will continue to keep Arthur up to date with the condition of Lucy. Dr. Seward's dairy entry then shows that Renfield has again calmed down a bit and gone back to his old ways of catching flies. He apologises for his previous bad behaviour and gets moved back to his old room. When asked about the events of the last few days he says that "All over! all over! He has deserted me. No hope for me now unless I do it for myself!". This could be referring to the bat that was seen flying during his last escape attempt. Renfield then has another change of behaviour and again gets rid of his flies. Dr. Seward ponders over the possibility that Renfield behaviour is affected and determined by day and night. The chapter ends with an urgent telegram from Dr. Seward telling Van Helsing to come quickly because the condition of Lucy has changed!

Chapter 8 - Mina Murray's Journal

Chapter 8 starts with Mina's journal and gives a continued account of her stay with Lucy. She recalls another night where she awakes to find Lucy missing for her bed. She discovers that her dress and dressing gown aren't missing and therefore expects to find her in the house. She isn't though so Mina leaves the house and sets off for the bench on the cliff, which is one of Lucy's favourite places. As she nears the cliff she sees Lucy, however she also sees a dark figure looming over her. She calls out to Lucy; scaring off the figure. When she gets to Lucy she finds her still asleep. Mina uses a safety pin to try and wrap Lucy up warm; however she catches Lucy on the neck and believes that she has cut her. She wakes her then gives Lucy her shoes and walks her home. They are both very relieved not to come across anyone on their return journey. They decide not to tell Lucy's mother of the incident as her health is very fragile and Mina later discovers that Mrs. Westenra only has months to live. A few nights later she finds Lucy sitting up in bed, asleep and staring out the window. When Mina gets up to look she sees a bat there which seems startled and flies away again. Bats are linked to transforming into vampires and so this can be linked to the dark figure that was seen looming over Lucy at the cliff edge. Over the next few days Mina notices that Lucy is losing strength and becoming paler despite eating and sleeping well. Mina also discovers that the cuts on Lucy's neck are still open and are possibly bigger. This makes Mina very suspicious, this could suggest that she has been bitten repeatedly by a vampire! Mina then receives a letter from Mr. Hawkins and from a nun notifying her that Jonathan is recovering but safe, much to Mina's relief. She is told that he seems to have had a traumatic experience from the stories he's told and needs a few more weeks rest. She then leaves Lucy to go and look after Jonathan. The chapter then turns its attention back to Dr. Seward and his observation of Renfield. He seems to have now lost interest in his 'pets' and is less talkative. He escapes one night and Dr. Seward chases after him into the abandoned house next door and overhears Renfield talking "I am here to do Your bidding, Master. I am Your slave, and You will reward me, for I shall be faithful". Dr. Seward then manages to detain Renfield with the help of several attendants after Renfield showcases his strength by resisting them. Dr. Seward will from now on be very weary of the threat of Renfield!

Chapter 7 - Cutting from the Dailygraph

Chapter 7 starts with a newspaper cutting that was pasted in Mina's journal that first describes the terrible storm in Whitby on August 8th. The storm is described as being very sudden and very strong. It is written as an eye witness account and recalls the coastguard shining lights to guide to ships to the safety of the harbour. However one of these ships, a Russian vessel miraculously makes it to the harbour before it is discovered that everyone aboard is dead! When the boat lands on the beach a dog comes up from below deck and runs onto land and is reported missing the next day, although a Whitby resident's dog was seemingly attacked and killed by another dog! The reporter then says that the ship had a small cargo and that there were a few boxes of mould for a Whitby solicitor who has collected them. The chapter then moves on to the captain's log, which shows that one by one his crew slowly disappeared during the voyage. This makes it a lot harder for the remaining crew who become very scared and paranoid to keep the ship going through the torrential storms they come across. As they approach England they are suddenly surrounded and followed by a thick fog "which sunrise cannot pierce". The mate then approaches the captain telling him that there is another man / being aboard and that he has seen it. He says that he tried to stab him "but the knife went through It, empty as the air". He says that he believes it to be hiding in one of the boxes and goes below deck to search for it. He comes back screaming; telling the captain to flee as well then jumps overboard. The captain cannot abandon his ship and is willing to get his ship to land before ending his log. It then goes back to the article, saying that he will have a public funeral. The chapter then returns to Mina's journal and her account of the stormy night and of the captain's funeral. Whilst at the funeral she watches a very obedient dog; suspiciously howling and quivering seemingly in fear.

Chapter 6 - Mina Murray's Journal

This chapter includes the journal entries of Mina (Jonathan's fiancee) and of Dr Seward who was one of the men who proposed to Lucy in the previous chapter. Mina's first journal entries show that she has moved to Whitby to stay with her friend Lucy for a little while. She describes the area and finds a lovely place to sit, overlooking the harbour. It is here that she meets the old man, who she asks questions about some local legends and myths but he says that he doesn't believe in any of them. He also tells Mina and Lucy about the graves that don't have any bodies in them because they have been lost at sea. This is followed by Dr Seward's diary, which shows his continual observation of Renfield who has become obsessed with animals. He has begun to catch flies and eat some of them. Then he catches spiders and feeds the flies to them, then he catches some sparrows and feeds the spiders to them. He then asks Dr Seward for a kitten, that he obviously intends to use to kill his sparrows but Dr Seward denies his request. The next day the sparrows are gone and there are some feathers scattered around his room, when asked what's happened he says "they all flew away". Later that day he is sick and more feathers are found in it, giving more evidence to the fact that he himself has eaten his sparrows. Dr Seward comes to the conclusion that Renfield is a homicidal maniac and considers experimenting to see how far he would have gone if he'd met his demand of a kitten and gone further. After this, it returns to Mina's journal and she says of her worries for Jonathan who hasn't written to her for ages. This sets up the return of Jonathan's story very well as you now see the fear for his safety from another point of view (his fiancee). Then she goes back to her seat near the harbour and is once again approached by the old man who apologizes for his earlier behaviour and comments he made about the dead. He talks about not being scared of death himself and then shakes Mina's hand and leaves. She is then approached by the coastguard who is looking out at a Russian boat behaving very weirdly as a storm rapidly approaches.

Chapter 5 - Letters from Miss Mina Murray to Miss Lucy Westenra

This chapter includes a series of letters between Miss Mina Murray (Jonathan's fiancee) and Miss Lucy Westenra who appears to be a childhood friend of Mina. It seems as though they haven't seen each other for a little while as they use the letters as an opportunity to catch up with each other. Mina wants to see her friend again "I am longing to be with you" however she is busy with lots of work from her job as an assistant schoolmistress and from attempting to improve her skills at shorthand and with a typewriter. This is a good example for showing when the story is set. Lucy replies to Mina's letter and explains that she has been "proposed" to by three men all on the same day. She then goes on to talk about and describe the first two men and how they proposed to her. The first, Dr John Seward runs a lunatic asylum and the second, Mr Quincy P. Morris is an American from Texas. She tells of how she rejected them because she loved someone else and then ends the letter saying that she is so happy to be engaged but a bit upset at the same time for having to reject the other two. The series of letters is followed by a diary entry by Dr Seward concerning a peculiar patient of his and then by a letter sent by Mr Morris to his 'good friend' Arthur Holmwood. In this letter he congratulates his friend on the fact that he has won the heart of Lucy and will marry her.

Chapter 4 - Jonathan Harker's Journal (Continued)

Chapter 4 begins with Jonathan trying to decipher whether or not the previous night events with the three women were real or just a dream. He finally comes to the conclusion that it was real when he discovers that his clothes have been folded in an unusual way and he concludes that the Count must have carried him back to his room. He tries to get back into the room but finds it to be locked now. Then the Count asks him to write three letters saying that he is leaving in a few days, leaving the day after writing this letter and has already left the Castle and arrived in Bistritz. Jonathan's reaction after finding what dates to date the letters "I know now the span of my life. God help me!" shows that he believes that the Count thinks he knows too much to stay amongst the living. Shortly after Jonathan sees a group of gipsies in the courtyard outside his window and throws them some personal letters to deliver and some gold for their troubles but they are handed over to the Count, who cannot understand the shorthand used to write his letter to Mina. This "outrage upon friendship and hospitality" leads to Jonathan's possessions and writing materials disappearing shortly after, furthermore Jonathan next witnesses the Count leaving the Castle wearing his suit and impersonating him. Fearing he has not long to live Jonathan makes a bold move and climbs along the Castle wall and into the Count's room through his window in search for a key to help him escape. He does this during the day because he has yet to see the Count during the day. He finds the room to be empty, but finds a door and a winding staircase leading to an underground passage where he eventually finds the Count lying neither dead nor asleep in a coffin. Anxiety takes over and Jonathan runs back to his room. On the date of his last letter Jonathan is told by the Count that he is to leave the next day, however Jonathan volunteers to leave by walking. The Count allows him to leave and walks him down to the front gate, although as it is opening the howling of the wolves gets louder and closer and Jonathan shouts "Shut the door; I shall wait till morning!". During the night Jonathan hears voices outside his room, warning the female vampires that their time is not until tomorrow. Desperate to escape on his last day, Jonathan again goes underground to search the Count's body for a key. He is shocked when he discovers the Count to look younger and more full of life. In a desperate attempt he hits the Count on the forehead with a shovel before again running upstairs and again discovering that he is alone with the Count. This ending to the chapter really entices the audience to read on.

Chapter 3 - Jonathan Harker's Journal (continued)

Chapter 3 begins with Jonathan starting to panic at the realisation that he has become a prisoner. He also thinks back to his journey and the way he was treated by the old lady at the hotel and his fellow coach passengers who all seemed to fear for him. He decides not to mention anything to the Count and to try to act natural. Upon the Count's return they have another long conversation about soliciting and of the history of the Count's race. Then the Count informs Jonathan that he will have to stay for another month, making his heart grow "cold at the thought". He is also told to write some letters home and given paper and 'thin envelopes' allowing the Count to read what he has written. He writes formal letters home to his boss Mr.Hawkins and to Mina. When the Count leaves with the letters he warns Jonathan not to sleep anywhere in the Castle other than where he has currently been staying! After going to his room for a while, Jonathan again decides to do some more exploring. This time however, he is filled with "repulsion and terror" as he witnesses the Count climb out of a window and crawl down the side of the Castle like a "lizard" and leaves Jonathan to contemplate: "What manner of man is this, or what manner of creature is it in the semblance of man?" He witnesses the Count crawling down the Castle once again several days later, knowing that he has left the Castle for now, he tries to explore rooms that seem to be locked. He finds one with a beautiful view of the moonlight and falls asleep on a couch and wakes up to the voices of three females. He looks at them under his eyelid so as not to alert them. One of them steps forward and places her sharp teeth on his neck before the Count reappears in an angry state. He throws the woman aside and then tells all of them "How dare you touch him, any of you?" and that Jonathan is "forbidden" and belongs to the Count. A female asks "Are we to have nothing tonight?" and the Count produces a child for them and they disappear with it. This makes it known that these women are suspected vampires along with the Count himself! The chapter ends with Jonathan sinking into unconsciousness.

Chapter 2 - Jonathan Harker's Journal (continued)

Chapter 2 of Dracula is also taken from 'Jonathan Harker's Journal' and it follows directly on from the first chapter as Jonathan arrives at Castle Dracula. When he arrives at the Castle he is unsure what to do because it is late and no sign of a knocker or a doorbell. After a while of standing there the grand door is opened and he is greeted by Count Dracula. Dracula's hand is described as "more like the hand of a dead than a living man" and has "strength which made me wince". He is very pale without a "speck of colour about him" and has "long, sharp, canine teeth". Dracula greets him and insists on carrying Jonathan's luggage to his room. After showing him to his room they then settle down for supper, although it is only Jonathan who eats as the Count has already dined. They talk for a while, generally about Jonathan's journey and then he goes to bed. Jonathan sleeps until late the next day and finds some breakfast along with a note excusing the Count because he has business to attend to. He eats alone and then discovers some of the Castle and finds the library. It is here, where he finds lots of English books and magazines that the Count returns and finds him. They talk about English life and the Count gets Jonathan to show him the house that has been procured for him. Jonathan tells him of the castle style, dark and medievil estate that the Count is purchasing. They continue to talk as well about Jonathan's trip again and the blue flames that he saw on his coach journey, however the Count gets annoyed at some of his questions. They continue talk until daybreak, when the Count apologises for keeping him so late and leaves him. The next day when Jonathan is shaving he feels the Count's hand on his shoulder, however he has no reflection in the mirror. This surprises Jonathan and causes him to cut himself. When the Count sees blood dripping from the wound and Jonathan's crucifix he is taken over by "demoniac fury" and reaches for Jonathan who backs away before the Count suspiciously throws his mirror out of the window, smashing it. Jonathan then notes how he hasn't seen the Count eat or drink during his stay and states that he is a "peculiar man". Then after doing a bit more exploring of the Castle and discovering a lot of locked doors Jonathan comes to the conclusion that "The Castle is a veritable prison, and I am a prisoner!". Jonathan, who had slight worries from when he first arrived at the Castle is now very concerned for his safety.

Chapter 1 - Jonathan Harker's Journal

The first chapter of 'Dracula' (Jonathan Harker's Journal) is the diary entries of an Englishman named Jonathan Harker spread on the 3rd and 4th of May. His diary entries describe his journey to visit Castle Dracula by the invitation of Count Dracula in Transylvania which is mentioned to be a very superstitious place. He gets from England to Transylvania by train and comments on the fact that trains seem to become more and more unreliable, the further East you go. He is directed by the Count to the 'Golden Krone Hotel' which is run by an elderly couple. It is here that Jonathan is begged by the old woman to reconsider going to visit the Count and to have an extra day or two to think it over and says that it is "the eve of St.George's Day" and that after midnight "all the evil things in the world will have full sway". She gives him a holy cross to wear, which he accepts and he is fed very well before he leaves. A coach journey is arranged for the next day to take him on the remainder of his journey. There are a lot of crosses that are being made by other passengers and the crowd that is there when he leaves as a sign that they all wish him to have a safe journey and trip! This again highlights the superstitious beliefs of the people of Transylvania. He overhears conversations and looks up their translations and discovers a word that could mean either 'were-wolf' or 'vampire'. The Coach trip is one which goes into the night although it gives Jonathan a chance to witness the beauty of the Transylvanian countryside. The coach reaches its destination where Jonathan is supposed to be picked up ad taken by another coach. There is no sign of it until it suddenly speeds up behind the coach: frightening the other passengers. Jonathan travels alone with the tall bearded man and is scared by the constant howling of dogs and wolves that seem to get closer until they have a confrontation with a fierce pack of wolves. The mysterious coach driver seems to 'brush aside' the wolves as they complete the remainder of their journey and finally arrive at Castle Dracula. The castle seems from the beggining to be a creepy and mysterious place and there are clues that it could be the home of a vampire with its "tall black windows" that don't let light in or out. The long journey builts suspense and leaves you wanting to read onto chapter 2 and Jonathan's first encounter with Count Dracula.

Introduction

Hello my name is James and I am a sixth form student currently studying English Lang & Lit as an A-level course. I have been asked to write a blog as I read through 'Dracula' by Bram Stoker and I am going to use it to record my thoughts and ideas on the book as well as reviewing and analysing it. This will give me experience in writing a blog that I could possibly use for when I write my coursework on a gothic theme. Dracula was written by Bram Stoker in 1897 and is one of the most well-known gothic stories and vampire novels, although not the first of its kind. There have been many different film interpretations of Dracula including 'Dracula' in 1932 and 'Bram Stoker's Dracula' in 1992. In total there have been more than 160 films made in which Dracula plays a main role. This blog will record my thoughts on the novel as well as summarising it chapter by chapter; I hope you enjoy reading my blog and find it of any use to yourself!