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.