The Professor and the Typist : Characterisation and Plot Devices in Dracula

Dracula is a novel that has been said to have flat and uninteresting characters. Only two characters have been acknowledged as having depth, Wilhelmina Harker and Abraham Van Helsing. However, no extensive research has been done to determine what it is that makes them complex, leaving a gap in the understanding of Dracula. This essay will appraise the significance of the two characters to the novel by examining how they are characterised and by studying their importance to the plot. This allows for a new perspective on Dracula that revises the standard generic definition of the novel as Gothic. The stereotypical characters in Gothic novels are replaced with more intricate characters and subtleties. For instance, this essay argues that one can find Mina an ambiguous character who is stuck following rules she despises, and Van Helsing might be hiding his fear of Mina behind the mask of appreciation. Furthermore, the importance of Mina and Van Helsing to the plot, shown in several ways where the most prominent one is their associations with knowledge, changes what characters are the real protagonists of Dracula and shows another difference to the traditional Gothic novel. This essay reveals that there are holes in the Dracula research, and that many new readings can still be found. If one resists looking at the novel as purely Gothic, there are nuances that show that it does not quite fit the genre, and characterisation is one aspect that clearly differs