Christopher Craft

Thesis: Bram Stoker’s particular articulation of the vampire metaphor in Dracula, a book whose fundamental anxiety, an equivocation about the relationship between desire and gender, repeats, with a monstrous difference, a pivotal anxiety of late Victorian culture.

This essay asks us to think about the male’s desire to be penetrated and the relationship between the vampires, blood, milk, semen, and bodily fluids. Craft suggests thinking of the other vampires as extensions of Dracula since Dracula is their master and probable creator. Craft gives the example of Jonathan’s anticipation and desire to wait to be penetrated by the three vampire sisters, but Dracula interrupts this, which causes a build-up of inner sexual tension according to Craft. Craft suggests that the male’s desire to be penetrated and feelings of homoeroticism are diffused and displaced throughout the rest of the novel. He gives the example of Dracula saying, “Your girls that you all love are mine already, and through them you and others shall yet be mine…” The crew of men is all penetrated when they give blood to Lucy. Craft notes how their strength and blood are given to Lucy who has been taken by the vampire suggesting they are also being taken over by the vampire. I never thought about the connection Craft makes between Dracula’s words and the transfusion, but it seems that they could coincide to support Craft’s ideas. Craft goes on to suggest that Dracula’s abilities to transform into dust or a bat shows that restrictions are limitless which may be applied to gender roles being limitless in the sense of sexual desires. Craft points out the symbolism of Mina as being crafted by God’s hand and how she may represent the perfect woman in some ways. He also points out Lucy as being “Voluptuous” and notes how her progressive sexual views about her suitors make her susceptible to Dracula, which is very similar to ideas discussed about Lucy in class. Craft continues talking about Lucy and the transfusions suggesting that the blood may have been suggestive of semen: penetration, withdrawal, penetration, infusion. He also notes the book’s mentioning of Lucy being a polyandrist. He also talks about the scene where Mina is being attacked and how her being forced to nurse Dracula breaks all expectations of gender because he is in the feminine role. I think Craft’s ideas are all very similar to things we have discussed as a class about gender inversions, but Craft takes it further by noting the male’s desires to be penetrated and scenes of sexual tensions and desires being acted out. I think it might not be fair to look at the novel as being all sexual in its entirety, but knowing Stoker’s personal background and the hesitations about homoeroticism in Victorian society at the time, Craft gives a very interesting outlook on vampires, gender, and sexual curiosity and anxiety.