With Buffy the Vampire Slayer taking the Australian television market by storm, it is becoming increasingly obvious that Buffy does more than just kick vampire butt.
Star Sarah Michelle Gellar not only entertains teens nation wide, but also questions morals and values – the same values that have been plaguing the gothic genre since Bram Stoker’s Dracula – and socialises with the majority of young Australians’ lives.
Popular culture is becoming increasingly consumed by a moralistic tone, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer is the perfect example. Ever since Stoker wrote his highly publicised novel in 1897, Dracula has had a large effect on today’s society.
The classic good versus evil morals that Stoker introduced in his book is highly evident in
…show more content…
When the good guys in Dracula are up against the odds, the odds of a stronger and smarter enemy, the faith they have in the good fight get them over the line. The message this conveys to audiences worldwide is both strong and important. Buffy might be all about entertainment and appealing to the emotions, yet clearly the series does more than just entertain.
And yet the meaning behind Buffy doesn’t stop there. One of the most recognisable features of the gothic genre is also evident throughout the series.
Bram Stoker was the first to publish a book that questioned the morals of an individual, the idea that every person had two sides – that of a light side and a dark side, or a good and evil personality. The idea of a vampire’s bite, created in the novel Dracula, is completely based around the value of turning to the dark-side. Star Wars and Hitchcock’s Psycho are also highly-rated films that have questioned the same notion. Buffy the Vampire Slayer is another in a series of followers who have dealt with the same morals of the individual.
Yet while the idea was first raised in the sixteenth century, it still very much applies to today’s young society. This is where Buffy steps in and leads Aussie teens down the right path. In the episode ‘Buffy vs. Dracula’, Gellar’s vampire-slaying character is struck with the allure of the dark side. The dark side is very evident in today’s society, although it comes through different forms. Teenagers face many choices
To start with, there is a reason why Dracula can never be evil. He doesn’t have an innate quality that makes him evil. In the beginning of the novel it seemed like he had some capacity of goodness in him. From the article Dracula and Philosophy, it says “Dracula is not perpetrating evil acts for their own sake, simply to cause harm and chaos”. What it means is that Dracula is selfish and attempting to reclaim the former glory of his family but it doesn’t make him evil for doing that. An example to compare Dracula’s scenario, it is the same as how Dr. Seward treatments were on Renfield. Dr. Seward causes Renfield to suffer, but only because he does not fully understand the distress it will cause him. If he did this in another way out of specific intent to hurt Renfield, he would be counted as Evil. His intentions were decisive. While the results are same whether or not he meant to harm Renfield, his own character is determined by the motives which make him act the way he does. In this case, Dr. Seward is not evil. Another character that would portray good would be Arthur. He was put into a difficult situation where the love of his life Lucy who was turned into a vampire. Him and his group set a trap for her and caught her in the moment here he had decide whether to kill her or not but he didn’t want to see her like that
Are there still connections between Bram Stokers famous novel Dracula and modern day society? In Dracula, Stoker expands on many themes that indeed exist today. Not only does he touch on the most obvious theme, sex. He expands on gender division and good versus evil. Some say since times have changed the themes I introduced have changed as well, leaving connections between then and now irrelevant. However, I feel that although times have changed they still have roots from the time of the novel to now. In this essay I will expand on the themes of this novel while connecting them to modern day society, the critical texts I have chosen and will mention later on in the essay are a good representation of the commonalities between the chill, dark Victorian days in which the era that Dracula was written in and modern day.
“Vampire Religion” is an article written about Bram Stoker’s “Dracula.” The article is one that was found very useful in reading and understanding the story. Christopher Herbert, the author, argues of the importance that religion and events of the world played on the writing of “Dracula.” There are two parts to the article, one is “Religion/Superstition” and the second part is “The Vampire in the Church.” Both parts are vital to the article.
Where there is evil, there is good in the darkest shadow. Van helsing as the antagonist is the most threating adversary towards Count Dracula in the novel “Dracula” by Bram Stoker. In many novels, the protagonist is the main character who is usually a hero and the antagonist is the character who opposes them, however in this novel “Dracula,” the protagonist is a demon from the pits of hell while the antagonist is the hero who opposes the evil creature. Vanhelsing’s role as the antagonist is seen through specific events of conflict, characterization of both Dracula and Vanhelsing, and the theme of where there is evil, good arises to fight.
subject of social ostracism, and the New Woman, the advent of which was feared by the majority of the British Victorian patriarchy, was a prominent aspect of much mid-to-late Victorian era literature. Supplementary evidence to support the compelling Victorian era literary connection between the vampire and the New Woman can be extrapolated from the unique gender role standards that defined that socially complex era. As Catherine Siemann suggests in her essay, “Darkness Falls on the Endless Summer: Buffy as Gidget for the Fin de Siecle,” the Victorian New Woman’s “personal
As we all know Dracula not only has to do with the horror, blood and vampires, but religion, christianity and the Victorian society that play a huge role in the story. These topics all have a reasonable amount of influence on how Dracula was written, and how the various themes in Dracula were developed. The input of religion is seen from the start all the way to the ending no doubt about it. In addition, there are also various examples of how the Victorian society also mixed in with religion, like the ideas of people back then and what they thought was wrong and right due to society’s beliefs . The exploration of thoughts and ideas by all the characters regarding what is wrong and right due to society and religion is also easily seen throughout the story. In the novel Dracula, written by Bram Stoker, the Victorian society influenced overall in the way it was written, and how their beliefs at this time of Christianity are being explored to these new ideas.
Mentors feature prominently in the Gothic genre. From Dr Van Helsing in Bram Stoker's Dracula, who leads the young heroes into their quest to annihilate the Count, to Rupert Giles, the Watcher in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, older and more experienced adults have provided essential guidance for the younger protagonists of the genre. The differences in media of expression and the subsequent adaptations from novel to television series has not affected the presence of this character, more than a hundred years after the publication of Dracula in 1897. What also unites the novel and the series is their fin-de-siècle resonance.
Throughout history, vampirism has become an acclaimed topic of discussion. It has sparked conversation regarding their demonic nature, supernatural qualities, and existence. In addition to the opinions prevalent in popular culture, the Christian community has also developed their own stance pertaining to these fiendish creatures. Bram Stoker's 1897 gothic horror novel, Dracula, has played a role in influencing such religious beliefs. Stoker's integration of Christianity, specifically Catholicism, Anglicanism, and Protestantism, has resulted in diverse perspectives. Each of these, however, possess underlying similarities centering around the satanic representation of the vampire, Dracula. Stoker distinguishes Dracula as an Anti-Christ who promises
In everyday life, as in literature, there will always be an opposing force to evil. In the novel “Dracula,” by Bram Stoker, Professor Van Helsing acts as Dracula’s main antagonist. An antagonist is the character who acts against the main character, which increases the conflict of the story and intensifies the plot. Through the use of theme, characterization and specific events, the author shows readers how Dr. Van Helsing effectively fits the role of Dracula’s most threatening adversary.
Vampires have held an interest for many even before Bram Stoker wrote Dracula. I always found it ironic that in most of these tales women were portrayed as the victims. To my knowledge until Buffy the Vampire Slayer came out there were few if any stories about vampires that had a female heroine. Buffy stood out for me with its characterizations of strong female heroines. Not only the main character, but many of the female supporting characters on the show were strong women. Maybe not like Buffy who was physically, and supernaturally, strong, but in mind. This not only included the so called good guys, but the bad guys were strong women characters to. It seemed the shows emphasis was on strong women. Women were no longer the just the pray in vampire tales they were the hero, or villain. Then Stephenie Mayer comes along and creates the Twilight Saga and blows away all of Joss Whedon’s hard work. I’ll start my comparison of the two main characters by first telling you about their creators.
The vampire is an embodiment of society 's deepest fears. Throughout literary history, the vampire has always been characterised as a vile figure of pure evil. However the depiction of the vampire is affected by the social, historical and political context of the time. As context shifts, so does the collective fear of society, with the portrayal of the vampire following suit. Dracula, I Am Legend and Twilight, three extremely popular books of vampire fiction created during vastly different periods in history, are representative of this shift. In Dracula, the titular character is depicted as an anti-christ figure by the author, Bram Stoker, who attempts to warn people about the dangers of straying from traditional Christian ideals. I Am Legend, a nineteen-fifties post-apocalyptic novel, emphasises the dangers of a world ravaged by environmental destruction. The wasteland, that was once earth, becomes populated by animalistic, brutal vampires that have been created as a result of an environmental plague. Finally, Twilight is a teen-angst novel written by Stephenie Meyer in 2005 and adapted into a movie of the same name in 2008. In a day and age where more people have begun to adopt humanitarian views, society has put a strong emphasis on rehabilitation and redemption. Contrary to this ideology, Edward Cullen, the main vampire, has a deeply ingrained fear that he is beyond saving thus reflecting society 's fears that one can inherently be beyond redemption.
The theme in Dracula is that classic Gothic theme of the epic battle of good versus evil. In this novel this is expressed in a very direct way, there is never any question as to who is right and who is wrong. As it can be clearly seen the protagonists on the side of good have many endearing qualities while the antagonists on the side of evil have a pact with Lucifer and are of the purest evil. The main antagonist in this story, Dracula, has
The play-script book “Dracula”, adapted by David Calcutt, is a captivating reword of the iconic epistolary horror novel of a same name which was written by Bram Stoker, The author outlines the power struggle between good and evil in the text through messages and symbols. The author focuses on Dracula and a group of friend’s actions and emotions in which he uses narrative conventions to convey key messages in the book. The messages I found that were prominent were “evilness is an infection”, “greed is consuming” and “good always prevail”.
The legend of the vampire has emerged countless times within human imagination over the past few centuries. The first available representation of the mythical creature in prose fiction can be found in John Polidori’s “The Vampyre” (1810). It was not until eight decades later that Bram Stoker popularized the existence of this figure with the publication of “Dracula” in 1897. The folklore of the vampire has come a long way since and can be found in today’s popular media more frequently than ever before. However, with due course of time, the representation of the creature has taken alternate routes and today’s vampires are noticeable different – socially and physically – from their predecessors. One effective path to trace this
Bram Stoker’s ingenious piece of work on writing Dracula has set the expectation for gothic novels all over the world and time to come. The mindset of writing Dracula through the Victorian Era really sets the tone for the reader by creating a spine-tingling sensation right through the novel. With this in mind, Stoker wouldn’t have been able to succeed his masterpiece without the effective uses of symbolism, imagery, foreshadowing, and its overall theme.