“Dracula” Annotated

She/Her ♡ 26 I’m annotating Dracula Sometimes there are jokes ✧ No kids ✧

[belalugosi1882]

Bela Lugosi in a publicity photo for Dracula 1931

[perplexingly]

I know this is an old meme but I felt like it summarizes the ending of Frankenstein perfectly

[projectiondepartment]

bela lugosi's dead and me also i feel not so good

[argentavis]

i liked this post a lot so i made it into a cross stitch

[dracula-annotated-not-serious]

Him: “Are you stupid?”

Me:

[dracula-annotated-not-serious]

Chapter III, Page 32 and 33

Johnathan Harker’s Journal

Text [Johnathan]: “In the moonlight opposite me were three young women, ladies by their dress and manner. I thought at the time that I must be dreaming when I saw them, they threw no shadow on the floor. … All three had brilliant white teeth that shone like pearls against the ruby of their voluptuous lips. There was something about them that made me uneasy, some longing and at the same time some deadly fear. I felt in my heart a wicked, burning desire that they would kiss me with those red lips. … I lay quiet, looking out from under my eyelashes in an agony of delightful anticipation. … There was a deliberate voluptuousness which was both thrilling and repulsive, and as she arched her neck she actually licked her lips like an animal, till I could see in the moonlight the moisture shining on the scarlet lips and on the red tongue as it lapped the white sharp teeth. Lower and lower went her head as the lips went below the range of my mouth and chin and seemed to fasten on my throat. Then she paused, and I could hear the churning sound of her tongue as it licked her teeth and lips, and I could feel the hot breath on my neck. Then the skin of my throat began to tingle as one’s flesh does when the hand that is to tickle it approaches nearer, nearer. I could feel the soft, shivering touch of the lips on the super sensitive skin of my throat, and the hard dents of two sharp teeth, just touching and pausing there. I closed my eyes in languorous ecstasy and waited, waited with beating heart.”

Serious Annotation: In this notably lengthy and drawn-out moment, Johnathan, in a sort of dream-like state, is wrestling with his innate desire for sex and intimacy and his normative sexually conservative beliefs. I wanted to include this entire section of text here so that I could highlight how much emphasis is placed on Johnathan’s internal struggle. I also wanted to accurately portray just how long Stoker chooses to let Johnathan languish in this moment- how he masterfully pulls the reader right into Johnathan’s perspective, letting us experience this thrilling and terrifying moment with him. Here sexuality, particularly female-led sexuality is portrayed as sinful and repulsive. Dracula’s wives in this instance represent the temptation of the flesh for Johnathan. Sexually liberated and dominant women being portrayed as sinful and repulsive, yet alluring and exciting, is a recurring theme in “Dracula.”

Unserious Annotation: This fanfiction-esque screed is dripping with so much blatant horniness for blood and neck biting that I hesitated to type it all out on my work computer in fear that Bram’s gorgeously written personal spank bank would be burned permanently into the screen. I am as sure that Stoker wrote this part with his hand down his pants as I’m sure that my own two hands are typing right now. Anyway, 11/10 I am in love thank you so much for the delicious food, Bram.

[dracula-annotated-not-serious]

✧ Love this quote ✧

[talkstobugs]

I think it needs to be included in more Dracula media that his breath smells fucking god awful and he sleeps in dirt

[prokopetz]

Modern vampire fiction: Vampires are scheming masterminds whose plots cannot be fathomed by mortal man.

Bram Stoker's Dracula (1897): Most people become mindless animals when they turn into vampires; Dracula is exceptional in that he retained any intelligence at all, but he's still dumb as hell, and his schemes literally only work because he's rich.

[belalugosi1882]

Bela Lugosi in Dracula on the stage (circa 1927)

[dracula-annotated-not-serious]

Johnathan [having a mental breakdown]: “What manner of man is this, or what manner of creature, is it in the semblance of man? I feel the dread of this horrible place overpowering me.”

The Count:

[dracula-annotated-not-serious]

Chapter III Page 29

Johnathan Harker’s Journal

Text [Jonathan]: “There was some sense of freedom in the vast expanse, inaccessible though it was to me, as compared with the narrow darkness of the courtyard. Looking out on this, I felt that I was indeed in prison, and I seemed to want a breath of fresh air, though it were of the night. … I looked out over the beautiful expanse, bathed in soft yellow moonlight till it was almost as light as day. In the soft light the distant hills became melted, and the shadows in the valleys and gorges of velvety blackness. The mere beauty seemed to cheer me. There was peace and comfort in every breath I drew.”

Annotation: Here the reader shares a beautifully illustrated moment of mindfulness with Johnathan, as he is taken by the serene beauty of the sprawling landscape outside his prison walls. This moment provides a brief sense of normalcy for Johnathan- a calm before the storm. He’s finding an innate sense of safety the beauty of nature. He may even be feeling a deeper connection with his God in this moment, considering the Christian undertones and overtones in the novel. This is about to be abruptly contrasted by a moment of sheer terror. Johnathan is about to be confronted once again with the reality of this deeply unnatural situation, twisting this serene moment into an instance of mind-bending horror.

[belalugosi1882]

Bela Lugosi smoking on the set of Dracula 1931

[dracula-annotated-not-serious]

Jesus H Christ I need him

[my-name-is-not-kimmy]

[stjohnstarling]

Oh shit he's being chased by a horde of sexy, sexy monsters - save his ass!!

🏃‍♂️

🧛🏻‍♂️💀🐺👹🦇👻

Voting ended onFeb 16, 2023

[justaslime]

Van Helsing in movie adaptations: Dracula's nemesis

Van Helsing in the book: Dracula's real estate lawyer's wife's girlfriend's fiancé's boyfriend's university professor

[dracula-annotated-not-serious]

The count hopping off that fuckin boat in chapter 7

[dracula-annotated-not-serious]

Chapter III Page 25

Johnathan Harker’s Journal

Text [Johnathan]: “He did not come at once into the library, so I went cautiously to my own room and found him making the bed. This was odd, but only confirmed what I had all along thought, that there are no servants in the house. … This gave me a fright, for if there is no one else in the castle, it must have been the count himself who was the driver of the coach that brought me here. This is a terrible thought; for if so, what does it mean that he could control the wolves, as he did, by only holding up his hand in silence? How was it that all the people at Bistritz and on the coach had some terrible fear for me? What meant the giving of the crucifix, of the garlic, of the wild rose, of the mountain ash? Bless that good, good woman who hung the crucifix round my neck! for it is a comfort and a strength to me whenever I touch it.”

Annotation: This series of thoughts by Johnathan; this rapid spiraling into horrific realization, is a shining example of Stoker’s ability to capture the depths of grief and terror in his writing. The journal format through which this moment (and the entire book for that matter) is delivered, allows for a deeply impactful and personal reading experience. As revelation after revelation piles atop one another in Johnathan’s mind, one can’t help but imagine his handwriting becoming sloppier as his thoughts grow more panicked and erratic. His loneliness, his retrospective relief at the presence of his crucifix, the warping of his sense of reality; all of this emotion is just oozing through the text. What on earth is Johnathan to do? Will he live to see Mina again? Is he doomed to die in this castle? Johnathan is utterly, utterly helpless.