Question 5. Mina

[Ashley]

What did you think of Mina? How was she portrayed? How might her depiction reflect Victorian-era views of women?

[Carol]

As I said in earlier posts, I was really nervous when one of Dracula's "meal tickets" was picked. Mina was a very surprising character, and it was interesting to see how they worked with her and showed how all the characters were affected by it, and what they were able to do. Sad...:-(

Written in 1897, the book can be seen as very much part an English work of art created at the end of the glorious Victorian age which nevertheless reveals anxiety about the world around it. There are also new fangled inventions like the phonograph, and the great wonders of transport created in the Victorian age are put to great use.

Undoubtedly Stoker did his research into Victorian folklore, as his knowledge is loaded across the pages. Indeed there are numerous scenes of gore and violence which stand up even now (particularly the fate of Lucy in the graveyard) and it all builds to a genuinely exciting chase sequence.