One of the most disturbing parts of the novel is when Dracula murders a little boy and puts him in a box. This part is disturbing because Dracula feels no remorse for what he just did to an innocent child not thinking about the little boys life. The reader is able to tell how frightened and shocked Harker is because the wives and Dracula choose to turn a blind eye instead of carrying what happened to the young boy. What makes it even more disturbing is that the mother quickly finds out the little boy was kidnapped by Dracula and when she tries to confront him, she’s uncontrollably crying but doesn’t know that her son is in fact dead. Harker seeing the woman only further devastates him but when Dracula finds the woman he sends his wolves to eat her to end her sorrow. As for the movie I have never seen a Dracula film but I believe that if I had, that there would be the similarity of the little boy but much creepier because it’s a movie so they would up the antics, the setting would probably be dark and Dracula would come out of nowhere to prey on his victim but there would also be lots of creep factors that’s different from the film but still hold creep factors that you can visualize.

Now that I have met the character Dracula, I think he’s become such a fixture in pop culture because he is the original “monster” to ever be written. I think Dracula stands as a test of time because he is unlike any of the monsters that came after him, in all honestly their reinvented copies of him. Pop culture is fixated on Dracula because for a long time he was undefeatable against his opponents who tried to stop him but not only that, he is what it means to be a true monster. Monsters after him show more empathy towards their actions and begin to feel guilty but Dracula doesn’t feel empathy for those he’s hurt. Dracula is the monster that most people would fear if he were real because he harms the innocent with no remorse. I think Dracula has changed over the years into a lady’s man because the public feels that people don’t want to see a monster as grotesque as Dracula is made in the novel and so they make him out to be more marketable and appealing to the public by making him soft. I think Stoker would feel mixed emotions because I think he’d feel like Dracula isn’t himself but might also like the idea of a sparkly vampire because it was never done before.

If I could leave one piece of literature or topic out of Humanities 101 it would be maybe the Sherlock Holmes stories. I say this only because I feel like although Sherlock Holmes set the path of a lot of detective stories, movies, and shows that we have today, I also feel like it’s not as important as maybe other topics or works of literature that are discussed throughout the class. The novels are enjoyable to read and a lot easier to comprehend as to what’s going on than other works of literature but I don’t think it provides as much of an importance as say, “The Goblin Market” does. I feel like the class couldn’t survive without learning about real life impacts the Victorian’s still have on todays society and learning about where it steams from and how its different or the same from then till now, for instance, Prostitution during the Victorian era.

Since being introduced to some of the gothic monsters during the Victorian times, it’s very clear that the authors of the stories definitely use their monsters to portray certain gender roles of that time. For example, Bram Stoker created the main character or monster of Dracula who in some ways represent Stoker’s personal life because men during the Victorian era were supposed to like the Texan, Quincy Morris, a manly man who’s tough, loves women, and brave, whereas Dracula embodies parts of Stoker like his homosexuality that he struggled with and in the Victorian era, being homosexual was taboo and frowned upon. Then of course there are the brides of Dracula who were mainly labeled as “voluptuous” and in Stoker’s eyes, women were the root of all of his personal life problems due to their ways of temptation on males, especially whom Stoker longed to be with. The women who were “voluptuous” were whores, except one woman who was Mina who was the quintessential all around perfect Victorian lady or Madonna. Homosexuality is more accepted in today’s society but not in all parts of the world is it accepted.

My initial thoughts on Dracula so far is it’s a lot different as far as the writing goes than I originally thought. I didn’t expect Dracula to be this somewhat complex character nor did I think other characters besides his victims or love interests were involved in the story. I think this story version of Dracula goes more in depth about who Dracula was as a human to when he became a vampire and shows the reader why he is the way he is. How Dracula compares to what I have in my mind is, like the story, he’s dark, he lives in a creepy house and turns into a bat, and he also drinks the blood of multiple women. Dracula is the embodiment of the definition of what it means to be a true vampire but he also has layers which I think the author brings out through his victims. Jonathan Harker is not what I expected because one minute he’s the epitomy of a man and then the next Dracula has taken it away from him by having his wife in bed with him and Harker seemed to have lost his manhood. At the same time I believe he hit Dracula over the head with the shovel to prove he was manly enough and boost his pride.

When it comes to Dracula and vampires I know that their main source of living is blood. Without blood, especially human blood they aren’t able to sustain being a vampire for long because they get weak like how humans need water to survive. Dracula and vampires prey on certain girls and they are tempted to turn them into one so they can live for eternity. Dracula and Vampires cannot stand the sunlight they come out at night instead of the day and can sometimes transform into other creatures. My source of information would have to be from movies such as “Twilight” and shows like “The Vampire Diaries” that involves vampires and is based on them. I think people are so fascinated by vampires is because their is a mysterious way about them that also makes them dangerous and although the girl shouldn’t want to be bitten by the vampire, she stays anyways and eventually wants to become one herself. I think the secret that they hold would have to be that they are afraid to end up alone and so they round up a victim or in Dracula’s case, victims to turn into vampires because they know they cannot die and they don’t want to live an eternity by themselves. The attraction people have for vampires is they are dark, witty, dangerous, and unafraid to speak their mind and take risks which should be repulsive but in actuality it’s what makes a vampire intriguing.

During the Victorian era, people admired the many different machines that began to be invented during this time. Such as printing presses where newspapers were able to print in a single day within hours for people to read, not to mention of course the railway which allowed people to transport freely and arrive back to their original destination in the same day which was something that was never done. The victorians passion is similar to ours today because they always wanted to invent a new idea that could be accessible to people that has never been done before and make life a bit easier on the everyday person. Similar to toady, the Victorians wanted their technology to represent the time they were in and provide new opportunity for the country, in Victorians case trade. I think the Victorians would love the digital age because it continues to advance and everything is on the internet so it doesn’t make it hard for people to communicate or find what they are looking for when they have it at the tip of their fingers on their phones.

In today’s society verses how Dorian Gray sought to escape consequences of living, such as age, waste, sin, and retribution, the 21st century tries to escape as well but we try to avoid aging by using products such as aging cream that’s supposed to make you look “younger” in the face. We try to avoid sin or the consequences of our sins by going to church or deciding that he or she will change their ways starting that day and no longer commit that sin or do good deeds for people in the hows that they will be repented. As for waste, people try to be as adventurous as possible even at an older age because they fear wasting away. When it comes to retribution, their are a select few people who seem to greatly avoid it because of the people who they know that lets them off or maybe their parents are high up business people who can make their child’s mistake go away. I think in some ways we are like Dorian Gray because people are too prideful to admit the wrong that they have done and aren’t mature enough to apologize for it.

If I found a way to be invisible I think initially I was test out my invisibility by finding someone I know and talk to them to make sure it actually worked. I would probably be a bit freaked out myself because I would have to learn how to turn my invisibility on and off. I would use my new gift of invisibility for good, such as maybe saving someone or go to places where someone may need help without getting caught. If I were invisible I would probably go into places that maybe I would not be allowed or I would see if I could make other people invisible with me like friends or family just for the fun of it. I would haunt someone just to see what they were up to especially if I hadn’t seen them in a long time I would probably haunt them until I revealed that I was invisible.

I think what makes the story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, everlasting is that the premise of the story is relevant in all time periods. Everyone has a part of themselves or “Hyde” within them that comes out ever now and again. Dr. Jekyll wanting to bring that part of himself out in the form of Mr. Hyde is an example of how some people in society always showcase their “Hyde” such as criminals. The story is everlasting because it’s relatable and most people don’t normally show that part of them that’s maybe not the best version of theirselves to the world so instead the Hyde is hidden and replaced with a better version of themselves or “Jekyll”. The themes might relate to us like they related to the Victorians because people often like to pretend that they do not have a part of them that is a bit wicked or put on a facade like they would never do certain things when actuality no one is innocent and everyone has a Hyde deep within in them but most people don’t let that dark part of them control them.