Dracula

Dracula was a story that Bram Stocker wrote and that was published in 1897. Although Abraham Stocker wrote other books, Dracula was his most famous novel. Some versions tell that the story of this novel was based in the life’s story of a historical character Vlad Draculea Terpes (or Vlad III). Other historical character that probably inspired Bram stoker was Elizabeth Bathory also known as the "//Blood Countess//". These historical allusions give Dracula a semblance of truth. This Stocker’s story has inspired the script for many films and productions, and other books or adaptations that have been published. =Table of Contents= Plot summary Characters References External links

**Plot summary**
This Story of is about a young English lawyer, Jonathan Harker who travelled to Castle Dracula in the country of Transylvania to conclude a real estate transaction with a nobleman named Count Dracula. By his way through the picturesque countryside, the local people warn him about his destination, giving him crucifixes and other charms against evil. Even though Harker didn’t feel so scared and met the count’s carriage as was planned. On the way to the castle, the carriage is nearly attacked by angry wolves, but they are controlled by the coach driver. When they arrived to the old castle, Harker finds that the elderly Dracula is a well educated and hospitable gentleman. But strange things started to happen later during his stance there. After only a few days, Harker realized that Count Dracula is a kind of unnatural person with supernatural and diabolic powers who seems to be alive (but it wasn’t be like this) and also lives with some similar weird but attractive women (seductive female vampires) who together killed people to satisfy their thirsting desire of blood. He felt so scared but is a prisoner in the castle. Fearing for his life, Harker attempted to escape from the castle by climbing down the walls. Meanwhile, in England, Harker’s fiancée, Mina Murray, corresponded with her friend Lucy Westenra. Lucy has received marriage proposals from three men (Dr. John Seward, Arthur Holmwood, and an American named Quincey Morris). Although saddened by the fact that she must reject two of these suitors, Lucy accepted Holmwood’s proposal because he is the man who she really loved. Mina visited Lucy at the seaside town of Whitby. A Russian ship is wrecked on the shore near the town with all its crew missing and its captain dead. The only sign of life aboard is a large dog that escaped and disappears into the countryside. The only cargo is a set of fifty boxes of earth sent from Castle Dracula. A book with notes is found in captain’s pocket and it served to clarify the circumstances of their death later. After that some days passed when Lucy suddenly began to sleepwalk. One night, Mina finds Lucy in the town cemetery and believes she sees a dark form with glowing red eyes next to Lucy, so Mina’s called her but that strange thing disappeared and she promise to keep that as a secret. Then Lucy became pale and ill, and besides she has two tiny red marks on her neck. Mina wrote to Dr. Seward to check Lucy’s situation. Without a clear satisfactory diagnosis, Dr. Seward sent for his old mentor, Professor Van Helsing to help him. Mina received news from Harker reappeared in the city of Buda-Pest, but he was in a hospital because of his brain fever. Mina went to join him and there she married to Jonathan. Van Helsing arrives in Whitby, and, after his initial examination of Lucy, he ordered that her chambers be covered with garlic (a traditional charm against vampires, because he suspected she is suffering by that). For a time, this effort seemed to treat Lucy’s illness. She began to recover, but her mother, unaware of the garlic’s power removed the odiferous plants from the room, leaving Lucy vulnerable to further attack. Seward and Van Helsing spent several days trying to revive Lucy. Four blood transfusions were performed to Lucy, but their efforts ultimately come to nothing. One night, the men momentarily let down their guard, and a wolf breaks into the Westenra house. The attack made Lucy’s mother suffer a fatal death. After a few days Lucy died too. News about children who disappeared and came back home with tiny marks of bites on their neck started to be published. Van Helsing was convinced that that has to do with Lucy. So he led Holmwood, Seward, and Quincey Morris to her tomb to demonstrate his hypothesis. He explained to the men that Lucy belongs to the “Un-Dead (in other words, she had been transformed into a vampire like Dracula). The men remain unconvinced until they see Lucy taking a defenceless child, which convinces them that she must be destroyed. They agreed to follow the ritual of vampire slaying to give Lucy’s soul her eternal rest. While the un-dead Lucy slept, Holmwood nail a stake in her heart. The men then cut off her head and fill her mouth with garlic. After this deed is done, they pledge to destroy Dracula himself. Mina and Jonathan returned to England and join forces with the others. Mina helps Van Helsing collecting the various diary and journal entries that Harker, Seward, and the others handwritten, attempting to piece together a narrative that will lead them to the count. Once they know all that information, Van Helsing and his band went to search the boxes of earth that the count used in his castle. Their efforts seemed to be going well, but then one of Dr. Seward’s mental patients, Renfield, let Dracula get into the asylum where the others are staying, allowing the count to close Mina. It’s too late when they realised that. Mina had been attacked. Mina began the slow change into a vampire and the men sterilize the boxes of earth, forcing Dracula to flee to Transylvania. Mina asked Van Helsing to hypnotise her, so they could probably know what they could do and besides she could be protected from the powerful influence of Dracula. The men tried to follow the count, dividing their forces and tracking him across land and sea. Van Helsing took Mina with him, and they cleansed Dracula’s castle by killing the three female vampires and sealing the entrances with sacred objects (Host – The bread of God). The others caught up with the count just when he was about to reach his castle, and Jonathan and Quincey use knives to destroy him. The battle was hard and unfortunately Quincey died in his brave try. He finally was the Hero.

Characters

 * Count Dracula:** Vampire and villain of the story. A creature with supernatural powers that liked to drink blood and vampirise some victims.


 * Jonathan Harker:** lawyer and main protagonist of the story. He met Count Dracula in Transilvania.


 * Wilhelmina "Mina" Murray:** Harker's fiancée. Heroin of the story. The count was obsessed with her.


 * Lucy Westenra:** Murray's friend. Fell in Dracula's fangs. For that, Lucy died.


 * John Seward:** Quincey's friend and administrator of an insane asylum near Count Dracula's house in London.


 * Quincey Morris:** Harker's friend that received the help of Seward and Van Hellsing to treat Lucy's illness.


 * Abraham Van Helsing:** Sewards' mentor that helped in the case of Lucy's illness. He is the arch-enemy of Dracula.