Chapter 3: Jonothan Harker's journel (extract 2)

Heroes and Monsters

In this extract Harker described a disturbing incidence in which he witnesses the Count crawling out of his window and down the castle walls and he realises he is trapped. The extract begins; 'When he left me I went to my room.'

At the beginning of this extract Harker has been left alone by Count Dracula. Feeling nocturnal Harker gazes out of the window and to his surprise and horror witnesses the Count emerging from his window and crawling down the walls of the castle, heading towards the courtyard below. Here, Harker compares the Count to a 'lizard' and says, about his cloak; 'spreading around him like great wings.' This description makes Dracula seem inhuman and grotesque, typical features of a Gothic monster, there's also the element of deception, Harker asks; 'What is this thing with the semblance of man.' This re-enforced the idea that the Count is a non-human being. But it also shows that he is very deceptive, as he has managed to fool these intelligent, Victorian British men into thinking that he is, thus gaining their trust, they then send Harker to do business with him, who he then traps within his castle, thus, stripping him of his manliness. By trapping him, Dracula has victimized Harker, making him seem effeminate.

By taking the role as jailer, Dracula evokes a feeling of fear and unease, Harker states that; 'This nocturnal existence... It is destroying my nerve. I start at my own shadow.' This shows that this imprisonment is having an effect on our narrator's state of mind, this links to the theme of insanity. A recurring image that shows madness, within this chapter and chapter 1, is the moon. Within this extract the moon is mentioned twice: '...bathed in soft yellow moonlight...yellow moonlight flooding in through the diamond pane.' Like the wolves in chapter 1, the moon seems to be representative of Harker's failing nerves.

Despite being a prisoner in Castle Dracula, in this extract we do see some elements of heroism within Harker's character. For example, he seems to be strong-willed and determined in spite of his captivity; 'I knew he had left the castle and thought to take the opertunity to explore.' This quote shows that despite having just described and disturbed the reader with his depiction of the in-human Count, he is still determined to break-put of his prison, a characteristic of a Gothic hero.

We also see his determination to cling-on to his sanity; 'sitting at the little oak table... writing in my diary.' For Harker, his diary is his only comfort and possibly his saviour, as it keeps his mind active, thus, keeping him sane. We also see him trying to comfort himself with thoughts of Mina, these thoughts also show him to be a typical romantic hero; '... possibly some fair lady sat to pen... many blushes, her ill-spent love letter.' I believe that this is possibly a reference to Mina, if she were writing him a love letter it would be 'ill spent' as he is imprisoned and unable to receive it.