Tatum Schultz

Dr. Howarth

The Rise of Gothic Literature

April 25, 2022

Gothic Seminar Paper- Dracul

In Dracul, Dacre Stoker uses the Gothic trope of mystery to show that duality is a

negative quality that everyone has, whether they are human or otherwise. The constant lies and

concealment of truth in the novel cause pain and suffering to all of the characters that often could

have been avoided by not keeping secrets. The overall theme of duality is recurring throughout

the entire novel; no character has just one side to their personality or is a completely truthful

person.

Bram Stoker is a mysterious character and has a major dual persona. There is a difference

in who Bram truly is and how he would like to portray himself to others. Bram’s occupation is

one of the most prominent examples of this. Bram has a prestigious office job because that is

what his father wants for him, and that is what is considered acceptable. Matilda points out that

everyone knows that Bram hates this job and that he would much rather be in the theater, even if

he will not admit it (133). Being in the theater would not be viewed as socially acceptable, so

Bram conceals this part of himself; only letting it out when writing his theater reviews. Bram

also has an internal struggle relating to Ellen. He often wants to abandon everything he is doing

just to be held by her when she calls for him. There are several points within the novel where

Bram is close to choosing Ellen over his family. He knows that following Ellen will lead him to

harm, but under the surface he always longs for her and only wants her.

Matilda believes that she knows Bram better than anyone else does, so she is very upset

when he admits that he lied to her when he told her that he has not seen Ellen in years. When
Tatum Schultz

Dr. Howarth

The Rise of Gothic Literature

April 25, 2022

asked for his secret that he has never told anyone, he reveals that Ellen has visited him several

times over the years to replenish his blood (266). Bram often lies to present himself as someone

that he is not. His lie about Ellen’s visits causes Matilda to lose much of her trust in him and

appear foolish in front of Vambery. This late revelation of his connection with Ellen causes the

entire group to distrust Bram and wonder if he is really on their side, Vambery especially. This

deep connection with Ellen is something that Bram often downplays and keeps to himself. Bram

is deeply troubled by these internal conflicts and they cause many issues for him.

Although Matilda is upset by Bram’s revelation, she is not completely innocent either.

Her secret that is revealed at the Hellfire Club is that she lied to her parents and said that she was

going to a friend’s house, when she actually was going to a dance with her friend Philippa (262).

At this dance, she gets separated from Philippa, and Philippa ends up getting raped. Although

this event is not Matilda’s fault, Philippa never speaks to Matilda again and Matilda never tells

anyone about what happened.

Thornley proves that none of the Stoker children are without secrets. It is revealed that

his wife Emily is grappling with very serious mental illness. Instead of dealing with the issue

head on, he attempts to conceal it and even uses drugs to put her to sleep when it is convenient

for him (168). Not even Bram or Matilda know about Emily’s condition until they are at

Thornley’s house and witness Thornley acting suspicious towards her. Later on, another secret of

Thornley’s is revealed. When Thornley was in medical school, him and some other students

illegally dug up someone’s remains to use them for their studies (261).
Tatum Schultz

Dr. Howarth

The Rise of Gothic Literature

April 25, 2022

The secret lives that these siblings have kept from each other eventually end up causing

all three of them pain and suffering. Bram’s secret connection with Ellen causes him to greatly

suffer, the strong desire to be near her constantly pains him and nearly kills him multiple times.

Because of her lying to her parents, Matilda is alienated from Philippa and all of her family

members because she has no one to discuss what happened to her with. Thornley is punished for

his lies through Emily. He desecrated someone’s remains for his own personal gain, so he is later

punished by Dracula taking Emily’s body for himself (205). This solidifies the idea that people

will always be harmed by the concealment of the truth and the mystery that it shrouds others in.

Vambery is a character that has a major internal struggle. He believes that aiding the

vampires is wrong, and he suggests multiple times that they should just kill them all (389). The

other characters do not agree with this, so he tries to keep these urges to himself. This internal

struggle causes problems for the other characters though, because they are constantly keeping an

eye on him and afraid that he will make a rash decision and try to harm one of the vampires.

Vambery’s main duality is similar to Bram’s, he is another person of high social class that tries

to portray himself as someone that he is not. The only time he is truly himself is in the Green

Room at the Hellfire Club.

Outside of the double lives within the siblings and Vambery, another character that

prominently exhibits duality is Ellen Crone. Ellen shifts physical forms throughout the entirety of

the book, depending on her health at the time. An example of this is when Bram is born. Bram’s

mother describes her appearance after Bram’s birth as looking old and drained as if she had just
Tatum Schultz

Dr. Howarth

The Rise of Gothic Literature

April 25, 2022

given birth (17). Ellen then disappears for two days and comes back looking very young and full

of life. This constant change in physical forms is why Matilda struggles with getting an accurate

portrayal of Ellen in her drawings (21).

Ellen shows duality not only in her physicality, but also in her personality. The

aforementioned duality of her physical appearance is due to the duality in her personality, the

softer side of her. At the Stoker’s home, she appears sickly because she is giving life to Bram.

When in Transylvania, she essentially starves herself because she is not willing to feed on the

humans that Dracula offers her. This is the side of her that the children see of her. She is loving

and nurturing; the children consider her as a mother figure. This changes one night when Bram

awakes to Ellen watching him. She asks Bram if he trusts her, and when he tells her that he does

she replies that he should not trust her (31). At this time Bram feels scared of her, but his view of

her changes as he learns more about her and she lets down her guard. She is constantly shrouded

in mystery throughout the novel. Even at the end of the novel after the majority of Ellen’s secrets

are out and the team has already confronted Dracula, Matilda feels that she is even further from

the truth (467). Throughout the novel, the reader often is caused to question what Ellen’s

intentions are towards the Stoker family.

This mystery causes many issues for Ellen and other characters. If Ellen would have

reached out to the Stoker family earlier for help, this could have prevented many deaths and

injuries, including her own staking and burial (462). It would have been much more efficient for

Bram and Matilda to be helping Ellen track Dracula down rather than them being on a pointless
Tatum Schultz

Dr. Howarth

The Rise of Gothic Literature

April 25, 2022

hunt to find Ellen since they believed that she was a villain. The group was kept in the dark about

her agreement with Dracula to let Deaglan and Maggie O’Cuiv go free in exchange for her

freedom until the exchange was happening in front of their eyes. Without the overall mystery of

what the actual plan was, the group very well could have assisted Ellen with coming up with a

different approach to her predicament.

The overall concept of the Hellfire Club furthers the idea that uncovering secrets is for

the better. When Vambery reveals that he has killed multiple people, this shocks the siblings

(260). Although it shocks them, it causes them to trust Vambery and to eventually work with him

up until they complete their mission to find Dracula. Although they believed they were going to

the Hellfire Club to learn more about Dracula from Vambery, they actually ended up learning

more about themselves and about the struggles that each of their siblings had faced. The

unveiling of these secrets bonded them not only as a team formed against Dracula, but also as

family members. Without this trust and those secrets unmasked, the team would not have been

able to accomplish their goal of confronting Dracula.

Although he may not seem like it on a surface level, Dracula also represents the link

between mystery and duality in the novel. When he is with Ellen in his castle, he refuses to

explain to her why he is keeping her and will not let her leave (368). He comes and goes when he

pleases and does not answer to anyone. Dracula tells Ellen that he loves her and is protecting her

by keeping her in the castle. This causes the reader to be uncertain if his intentions are good or

bad. Dracula also can get into the minds of humans and attempt to manipulate them, he does this
Tatum Schultz

Dr. Howarth

The Rise of Gothic Literature

April 25, 2022

to Bram to try to get him to invite him in so he can get rid of Deaglan. Dracula is arguably the

most mysterious character in the novel, so it only makes sense for him to also exhibit this

duality. He presents himself as benevolent to manipulate those around him so he can pursue

Ellen. He also has an internal struggle; he wants to have a life with Ellen and for her to love him,

but he cannot stop his evil ways.

The mystery surrounding Ellen and Dracula makes the reader wonder, who is truly the

villain in the story? Are either of these two capable of truly loving someone? Both characters

commit horrible acts, but it is for the one that they love. There is duality in both characters, the

duality of good and evil. Although Dracula exhibits more evil tendencies than Ellen, Ellen is still

not entirely benevolent. Ellen murdered her father along with dozens of other victims (278). The

concept of duality in the novel is stating that no matter who you think a person is, there is always

another side that they may not be showing, and secrets kill.

Sleep is another element used in the novel to represent both mystery and duality. In the

parts of the novel meant to be written in the present, Bram is having problems staying awake (3).

He is very confused by what is going on around him and falling asleep is not helping him. This

creates a suspense in these parts of the story and makes the reader even more curious about

where Bram is and what is happening. Many of Bram’s visions of Ellen happen when he is

sleeping or in an unconscious state. This represents the side of him that is always underneath the

surface that he cannot conceal. When he is awake, he is fully in control and can conceal this part

of him, but this cannot be controlled when he is sleeping. This also represents both the vampires’
Tatum Schultz

Dr. Howarth

The Rise of Gothic Literature

April 25, 2022

strength and weakness. They are strong because they can manipulate humans into sleep, but

sleep is also their weakness because they are at their most vulnerable point during the day when

they have to sleep to avoid the sunlight.

The entirety of the novel is a caution against mystery and people’s duality. Through this

novel, Dacre Stoker highlights the idea that people have deeply rooted internal struggles and

secrets that they would never admit to unless forced. Since the majority of the novel is in the

first-person point of view, there is a possibility of an unreliable narrator. Due to this, there is a

duality engrained in the novel itself because of the different perspectives on every event.