Dracula - Bram Stoker - So You Haven't Read

[@extrahistory]

Wanna watch without ads and see exclusive content? Go to curiositystream.com/extracredits​ to get a full year of Curiosity Stream & Nebula for 26% off. And Don't forget to check out our Vampire Stream tonight on Twitch!

[@dimitrivavoulis2184]

You guys should do Frankenstein next!

[@NarocoSuper]

Of course, I'm gonna miss the Vampire stream playing D&D tonight. Will you be posting the game on your channel at a later date?

[@9tailedKitsune]

@@dimitrivavoulis2184 They already did 6 episodes at the start of Extra SciFi

[@dimitrivavoulis2184]

@@9tailedKitsune yeah, i remember now, i had the feeling of that but when i typed frankenstein in the channel browser it gave no results, aparently it had a ":" attached so it didn't matched, that series was awesome,.

[@pawerRanjerah]

I like the other narrator.

[@rolfs2165]

One thing these retellings somehow always get wrong: van Helsing doesn't decorate the room with garlic _bulbs_ but garlic _flowers._

[@Waffletimewarp]

Also the exclusion of Quincy Morris. The man who organized every fight in the book, decided that Winchester rifles would be a proper addition to their arsenal, straight up shot Dracula when he was a bat, and was the one who actually staked Dracula in the heart with a BOWIE KNIFE. After finally reading the book, the exclusion of QM in every adaptation is criminal to me.

[@wajmgirl]

@@Waffletimewarp isn’t he in the film with Gary oldman?

[@MaaZeus]

@@wajmgirl Yes he is.

[@LegendStormcrow]

@@Waffletimewarp He was the very model of Texan Gentleman. The master of matters of fighting and agrarian.

[@badluck5647]

That is probably because film media found garlic bulbs easier to find at the grocery store for props than growing garlic flowers.

[@Waffletimewarp]

“A wolf appears.” Is a pretty weak change from the canon scene where Dracula steals the wolf from the local zoo and straight up THROWS said wolf through the window.

[@dianagoenaga7263]

He's so dramatic 😂

[@phousefilms]

YEET!

[@zoroearc2582]

Yeah, one of my favourite moments in the book is the newspaper report of the very bewildered looking wolf returning to the zoo

[@alexandreancel6423]

I would add that one of Dracula's most important themes to me is the deep respect, friendship and dedication bounding the heroes together, each of them, including Mina, being ready to sacrifice oneself for the others.

[@technelligence]

this, exactly this!

[@TheDarthbinky]

So you're saying it's not about the journey but the friends we made along the way?

[@alexandreancel6423]

@@TheDarthbinky Exactly ! :)

[@MerkhVision]

That’s really beautiful

[@nathanielleack4842]

I love that all the men gave their blood to try and save Lucy and never held it against eachother that they all proposed to her going completely against my expectations going in

[@DragoniteSpam]

"Victory delivered with the help of the train schedules" has got to be the most Victorian sentence I've ever heard.

[@Xagzan]

Ancient vampire magic is no match for good sense and punctiliousness.

[@davidtownsend6092]

I prefer "one of the french officials escaped the siege of paris with a hot air balloon'

[@solomonsheridan8272]

Bismarck would be proud

[@weldonwin]

Dracula's true nemesis was Bradshaw's Guide

[@garethfuller2700]

I mean, part of why the Prussians were able to put a smack down on the French in the Franco-Prussian war was due to Moltke's ability to mobilize faster, and get his armies where they needed to be. A large part of that was taking advantage of railways, and organizing things so that men and material could get where they needed to be, and *fast*.

[@jacobklein5543]

It's been a few years since I read Dracula so I might be misremembering this, but I really didn't get the impression that Lucy was supposed to be a modern, liberated woman leading along three men at once. In fact, I remember the complete opposite. The impression I got was that Lucy was just so dang sweet and innocent and beautiful and kind that all three of her suitors were just naturally drawn to her. I mean, all three of them proposed to her in the same day and she was so polite and considerate about the whole thing that the two rejected suitors were cool with it and remained good friends with her and her fiancé. If anything, the message of Lucy being turned into a vampire was that Dracula seeks out that which is pure and good and will do anything to corrupt it, to drag innocence down to his level. That's why seeing how brutal vampire Lucy was was so shocking: it was a complete reversal of everything she represented when she was alive. Also, I think it's important to mention that, before Lucy's mother was killed, she threw out all of the garlic blossoms (not bulbs) in her room and opened the window because she wasn't let in on the whole plan and thought that the strong smell of garlic would be unhealthy and it would be good to let in some fresh air. Her making that mistake was the thing that doomed Lucy in the end. Given how central the group communicating with each other is to their success later, it really served to show the reader how important it is to make sure everyone is on the same page.

[@screamingalgae9380]

One detail: They didn't tell Lucy's mother what was going on because of her heart condition (she then dies anyway when the wolf gives her a heart attack).

[@jacobklein5543]

@@screamingalgae9380 Ah yeah, I did forget that part. Still doesn't negate my point though. They could have at least said something like "don't remove the garlic blossoms because the doctor says they purify the air" or whatever would have been the lingo for that at the time.

[@Ajehy]

I’m surprised you view Lucy as “modern” and “tainted”, while Mina is “pure”. Lucy never courts multiple men-she sees Quincy and Seward as friends, not love prospects, and turns them both down before accepting her beloved Arthur’s proposal. There’s no jealousy after that, they really all do remain friends, and the men’s attempt to save her are painted as chivalrous, gallant, and selfless. It’s her purity that makes her Undeath so tragic, as even the sweet and gentle Lucy can be corrupted into a child-eating monster by Dracula. Mina, meanwhile, is closer to the “new woman” she is fond of referring to in her diaries. She brings up the possibility of “doing the proposing herself”, is clever and independent, and wields out a rifle in the final battle to brutal effect. In fact, the men imposing Victorian social standards on her, by trying to keep her out of the loop, always ends badly.

[@emmarichardson965]

He also missed that using Mina to track Dracula was actually Mina's idea! As was compiling the diaries, newspapers, and logs.

[@TheMewtata]

By modern standards, both are lovely ladies. But it’s worth considering what the original audience might have considered. And by that time period, even being courted by three men might be considered impure? It implies that she encouraged the affections of all three? (Yes I know it’s problematic) I like your modern reading though. Is fun!

[@thedemonhater7748]

I’d say that she does infact view the other two as romantic prospects, but her affection becomes platonic after she chooses her love.

[@GarkKahn]

It's always interesting to see how much perspectives can change from a time to another, what one thing can be seen as evil can be seen as the opposite or even something ordinary Like ancient myths

[@GarkKahn]

​@@TheMewtatai've read cases like that and in our modern standard that's just simple victim blaming, that's why we shouldn't judge things by OUR standards, maybe back then it was an act of justice to murder 10000 women and children just because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time, but it's funny to compare them

[@cheezemonkeyeater]

While I haven't actually read Dracula, I HAVE listened to the audiobook read by the late, great Christopher Lee. Highly recommended if you can find it.

[@hrothgargo7615]

Christopher Lee? That Exists? I just finished rereading, but I'd listen the hell out of that!

[@krankarvolund7771]

I'm not a fan of audiobooks ut Dracula read by Dracula could be cool ^^

[@cheezemonkeyeater]

@@hrothgargo7615 Yes, it exists. I've also got his reading of Frankenstein and am trying to get my hands on The Hunchback of Notre Dame, but all the copies of it I've found were absurdly expensive.

[@weldonwin]

@@krankarvolund7771 There's another one, with Tim Curry as Van Helsing

[@Nightcore-336]

The audiobook ver.of Dracula readen by a actor before his pasing played the charter in the movie of the same name in the 50s

[@dramajoe]

There's an excellent board game called Fury of Dracula (look for the third or fourth edition) which surprisingly captures the literary work better than any other adaptation. One player plays Dracula who moves around a map of Europe secretly, leaving behind a trail of vampires and traps, while the other players play Van Hellsing, Mina Harker, John Steward, and Lord Godalming trying to find and slay him. A major part of the game is collecting train tickets and planning routes around Europe.

[@GarrettPetersen]

Yes! I love hidden movement games.

[@ValerieEnriquez]

One time we made the mistake of sending Mina after Dracula (I think she happened to be the closest to him or we were running out of time or something), but since she was bitten once already... yeah we lost.

[@phousefilms]

Just got that a few weeks ago.

[@Nightwalker-zk6ce]

I don’t know if I completely agree with the interpretation that Lucy is supposed to represent a modern woman. From what I’ve been able to gather, it wasn’t incredibly unusual for women in the Victorian era to have multiple suitors at once, what’s unusual about Lucy’s situation is that they all proposed to her on the same day. The fact that these three men are so in love with her is also pretty much the only character trait that Lucy has too, it seems like all she ever talks about is getting married and living a typical Victorian life. I’ve read the novel a couple of times and it always sticks out to me how completely focused on traditional Victorian romance Lucy is. Mina on the other hand has her own job, travels across Europe on her own to go see Jonathan when he’s sick after escaping the castle, stands up for herself when the other characters say they don’t think it would be right or proper for her as a woman to come hunt down Dracula with them, and possibly the most important thing symbolically, Mina is constantly using technology like typewriters and wax cylinders, which as the video notes were incredibly new at the time. Another interesting consideration is the way both women view their fiancés, Lucy never really speaks about loving any of the men that much, and it’s seems to be of secondary importance to her when she’s trying to decide who to marry, all three of the suitors too only seem to want to marry Lucy because she’s beautiful. Mina meanwhile is constantly talking about how much she loves Jonathan, and he’s also always going on about how great she is and how he loves her so much, with neither one overly focused on the appearance of the other.

[@Oxtocoatl13]

Lucy is always slut-shamed in the adaptations but for me at least it was clear that she is portrayed as an innocent victim to be avenged. She received three proposals but she makes it clear that Holmwood is the one she wants to marry. Mina is indeed much more modern, in fact she is so modern that she has a line where she basically says "Don't worry guys I'm not a feminist and I firmly believe in traditional gender roles" so the victorian readership wouldn't be alarmed by her independence and behavior.

[@kmaher1424]

I agree. Lucy is courted by three gentlemen, quite chastely. She picks the most high born, wealthiest candidate. Mina is devoted to her fiance / husband but is independent minded and deals with modern technology.

[@Nightwalker-zk6ce]

@@Oxtocoatl13 I definitely agree that the main purpose of her character is being someone to be avenged, even though I kind of ragged on how one-dimensional she is, she’s shown to be a good and kind person who doesn’t deserve what happens to her. Her fast decline and death also increase the stakes (punk kind of intended) when Mina gets bitten. Mina’s more modern personality might not be the only think Stoker tried to sneak past polite Victorian society either. I’ve read interpretations before that every time someone is bitten or blood is exchanged in the novel it’s supposed to be an allegory for sex, which was something you absolutely did not discuss or even really mention in the era. The idea is that Stoker wanted to talk about taboo subjects without ruining his reputation as an author and playwright.

[@reginaldokeke8354]

Very brilliant insights, I've read the book too.

[@mrZanZibar777]

Yeah I definitely did a spit take when this video characterized these characters backwards. Mina is the modern woman, Lucy is the Victorian standard.

[@randalthor741]

Dracula is definitely one of those books that feels so far ahead of its time, both in terms of how it explores some of its themes (although some of the attitudes behind those themes do feel pretty out of date today), and in terms of its structure with the different narrative sources.

[@KasumiRINA]

Victorian sensibilities are so weird now like in the movie version, Dracula's true love for his mistress looks amazing, and poor Mina marrying the frigid Harker in the end is the rear horror, I rooted for Oldman over Reeves seriously... Literally the Mel Brooks parody roasted Jonathan's character being taught to repress passion (and Keanu's poor acting) badly while making fun of the Bri'ish in the process.

[@randalthor741]

@@KasumiRINA so true!

[@KasumiRINA]

@@randalthor741 Dracula and Addams Family have the best love stories somehow.

[@morganalabeille5004]

@@KasumiRINANothing will ever beat Johnathan saying that if Mina becomes a vampire then he’ll willingly become one too. And the movie completely erasing all of Mina’s detective work is unforgivable.

[@marcmcdonnell6586]

I’ve already scene the summary of Dracula from Overly Sarcastic Productions. From an interesting fact were Stoker never met a Texan in his life.

[@ecurewitz]

Saw that too!

[@kyleyoung5063]

I wish I never met Texans

[@e4ehco21]

Osp literally called quincy proof that Bram stoker had never talked to an American

[@nightrose1834]

That summary of the book is the best I ever seen

[@Nightcore-336]

Same and Van Hallsing serious face

[@shawnheatherly]

I never knew how the story was told through a series of journals, letters, and newspaper clips. That's really cool.

[@9tailedKitsune]

Yeah. Just like Frankenstein, if you've only seen movies and never read the book, you have never actually experienced the real story.

[@pauldwalker]

read it. it’s still a “modern” read.

[@michaelbushee3968]

It's also a surprisingly smooth and easy read, and also legitimately creepy in a way none of its adaptations or imitators manage. Give it a scan sometime.

[@rashkavar]

It's very readable, aside from the incredibly bizarre thing about marriage proposals. Just....don't read the table of contents. Ignore it entirely.

[@JanTuts]

A modern book that does something similar is "World War Z" (_completely_ different and much better than the movie, BTW): it's all framed as a reporter interviewing survivors.

[@sacramentum1988]

Harker doesn't escape by jumping in the river- that's Coppola's film. Harker, after seeing Dracula scaling the wall, realizes that he could do the same because the walls are so worn that there are essentially footholds. He scales the wall, and hobbles away. Also, it's made pretty clear in the book that the reason for giving Lucy all three men's blood is simply a matter of convenience, and practicality (at the time). Van Helsing didn't anticipate the problems that left Lucy unguarded and vulnerable to Dracula, meaning that he had to do three transfusions instead of the one. Each time he had to rely on a different person, in part because the amount of blood needed (As Quincy Morris observes) for one transfusion was so great as to be unsustainable. The transfusions are given in roughly the span of two weeks, and in two weeks no single person could give that much blood. Because the three healthy men are in proximity to Lucy during her struggle, they happily volunteer, even though Van Helsing initially discourages Seward from doing so. The use of garlic and the death of Mina's mother was described as if it happened in one night. Lucy's ordeal takes place over a good deal of time (roughly three chapters) and Dracula doesn't appear as a wolf until the event of her memorandum, when he drugs the maids and kills her mother. This sounds more, again, like the condensed version in Coppola's film. I question whether the person making this actually read the book- it sounds more like Cliff notes and Coppola to me.

[@LowSpecGamer]

Honestly, I had never heard anything of this book outside of Dracula´s depiction in popular media, and this epistolary approach makes it WAY more interesting than I though. Adding this book to my reading list. And thank you for the recommendation of my documentary at the end 😁

[@KasumiRINA]

Frankenstein is also epistolary... they just had a thing for that in 19th century horror.

[@fraelikkriil830]

@@KasumiRINA not in the same way though tbh. Frankenstein doesn’t really do anything interesting with that format besides a complicated Russian nesting doll of perspectives.

[@kyleyoung5063]

Really? You never heard of this? Odd.

[@Tortferngatr]

I came to watch this after reading the book. The epistolary approach was definitely neat.

[@marshmallow927]

It's the way Harker wasn't immediately sus when Dracula looked at his blood for me-

[@YouW00t]

Something to point out about the chase after Lucy's death, the crew points out how wonderful is the power of bribery and money as they use their pockets and some booze to get that sweet schedule as fast and orderly as possible.

[@alucard347]

the way they break into Dracula's houses in London is also great. they just pretend these are their houses (with the one I always forget his name being of noble birth helping), invide a professional lockpicker, and then enter the house in the middle of the day as if it's their own, so no one will suspect a thing.

[@toprak3479]

@@alucard347 It's Lord Godalming. And I love that part as well. Power of aristocracy LET'S GOO

[@alucard347]

@@toprak3479 indeed!

[@AegixDrakan]

@@alucard347 Yep, that was smart. XD I remember enjoying that when I read the book.

[@anyways4438]

@@toprak3479 also known as "Art"

[@Suntensatsu21]

My colleagues and I are breaking down Dracula as part of our master's program. It's nice to see there is still so much interest in this novel. On a side note, I still think it's funny that when we think of van Helsing, we go to the dark haired grizzled man. In the text he is described as clean shaven with a broad chin, having what amounts to shoulder length red hair, blue eyes, a barrel-like chest, and overall manly with a capital M.

[@shawnconway6009]

This book is basically an at the time catalogue of cool new stuff. Ergo, all the transfusions and hypnosis and stuff.

[@Oxtocoatl13]

I slightly disagree with the reading that Lucy's being liberated is framed as a deviation that the story punishes. In the letters it is made clear that the proposal from Holmwood is the only one Lucy wanted, and she expresses deep anxiety and anguish over having to turn down the other men. She isn't so much a player as one of those doe-eyed gals everyone falls for. That being said, as her disease progresses, she becomes more flirtatious (though only towards her fiancee, which remains true after she dies). Stoker repeatedly describes her as "voluptuous", which is framed as a bad and unsettling quality. Still, I think Lucy's reputation for getting slut-shamed has more to do with the various movie adaptations than the text itself, in which Lucy is clearly a victim, whose prolonged suffering is meant to make us anxious and scared when Mina is eventually also bitten.

[@matthewnewman3724]

Just sounds like good writing put emotional investment into Lucy with her being a character in a dynamic situation . She dies showing stakes of the situation. Mina who had a slower emotional investment is now under the same situation with raised stakes. Then payoff

[@SteamPoweredGoth]

I was literally about to slide in here and say this, this video really misses the point of that whole section of the book. Lucy is a sweet innocent bean and her death is a tragedy. That's kind of the point of her.

[@noxtrin1878]

@@matthewnewman3724 haha ”stakes”

[@matthewnewman3724]

@@noxtrin1878 hahahaha

[@mrZanZibar777]

I think the adaptations that cast Lucy as the modern "slutty" woman really lack any type of nuance. She was courted by three men, remained chaste, and chose the one with the best situation in a loveless way. She was the model Victorian woman, and Mina was the modern woman, independent and getting married for love not station.

[@Xagzan]

Also fun to read are Dracula's predecessors, Carmilla and The Vampyre, both of which are much shorter and so easier to get through quickly. And no less atmospheric.

[@KasumiRINA]

This, and I wish they do an overview about that competition in Geneva that gave us both vampires AND Frankenstein. Imagine, a party at Lord Byron's cottage failing due to bad weather, leading to most famous romantic poets (Percy Shelley got so scared he jumped out of the room) and their gfs Mary and Claire, telling each other scary stories while doctor Polidori remembered enough to write a novel later. Literally most important parts of horror pop culture were created due to weather shenanigans making a bunch of bored, creative people try to scare each other. Original vampire stories were picked up by Byron from the Levant, and he kinda hated when they become popular, lol.

[@Xagzan]

@@KasumiRINA Sorry, the Levant? I don't really know that part. All I'm familiar with is how the vampire hysteria of eastern Europe in the 18th century spread over the decades across the continent, gradually influencing artists.

[@LadySnowfaerie]

Not sure if I missed something, but to me Lucy didn't read as a modern woman dating three men at once. To be fair I'm not 100% sure how courting worked in Victorian England, but what I gathered from my read of the novel was that she was proposed to by three men in one day, but was only ever really interested in one of them and did her best to turn the other two down gently. In Lucy's own words: "Just fancy! Three proposals in one day! Isn't it awful! I feel sorry, really and truly sorry, for two of the poor fellows." (Lucy's letter to Mina on 24th of May, page 48 or thereabouts.)

[@oberstul1941]

Having transfusions from three men was probably done to show how drained of blood Lucy was; nevermind the fact that the blood types weren't discovered yet and most likely not all the donors were Lucy compatible. If the story was true, that ad-hoc blood transfusion might have killed her there and then. You're welcome, Watson! :)) Cheers!

[@alexdillahunt6908]

And the transfusions didn't occur on the same day. She would receive a transfusion, Dracula would drain her that night, van Helsing would call on a new person to give another transfusion, and repeat.

[@OscarGomez-hg8cb]

@@alexdillahunt6908it was also the fancy new medical technique when the book was written, so not only it fit *perfectly* with the vampire theme but it was also a way for Bram Stocker to show off how smart Van Helsing is

[@brockmckelvey7327]

My favorite thing about the book Dracula is that the first 4 chapters are a perfect spooky horror story, and the entire rest of the book is an Action Movie

[@cavc94]

I had the same impression until I re-read a couple months ago. But between the terror and the action is something closer to a detective novel. Specially when they are looking for Dracula's sarcophages.

[@MovieFan1912]

I’ve just finished reading and I can confirm that this book is more Sherlock Holmes than Stephen King.

[@raptorhacker599]

​@@MovieFan1912I think the writer was impressed by Sherlock Holmes.

[@VicForAChange]

@@MovieFan1912there’s actually a radio drama of Sherlock Holmes vs Dracula

[@MovieFan1912]

@@raptorhacker599 After doing a little research on that, it does seem likely that Stoker could have been influenced by Conan Doyle.

[@Rocketboy1313]

Wow, this video takes a wildly different reading of Lucy than is typical. Often Lucy is seen as the traditional beauty who is sweet and innocent while Mina is considered modern and capable. The idea of the modern world killing off old ideas about women's roles is often read into the text.

[@ryanmuth8954]

That's a nice way of saying they completely misunderstood the book. I have absolutely no idea how anyone could read Lucy that way. They're basically attaching the modern horror trope of "if a female character has sex, she dies" to a novel that was written 125 years ago.

[@StrokedGT]

He didn't read the book, he just saw the movie

[@LoneTiger]

Van Helsing: _"She's almost dead."_ Harker after being splashed by vampire blood: _"She's dead enough!"_

[@KasumiRINA]

Harker, holding back laugh: "SO MUCH BLOOD!" Mel Brooks: "SHE JUST ATE!!!" *puts newspapers around*

[@willhuey4462]

that movie was hilarious.

[@somewhatdubz]

I love that movie.

[@ivorytorea]

Dr. Seward is probably even to this day...or maybe once again in these days, one of the best portrayals of a psychiatrist/psych ward doctor in media. Nowadays they are pictured as everything in every kind of media BUT realistic humans. It´s like the more we understand of the field the more writers are scared to have them be anything less than controversial. Basically there is just three modes for them: They are allowed to be pointless know nothings that are a complete waste of space. Or they are portrayed as deeply entrenched in their own problems and basically do nothing for their patients but reflect problems back to them. Or the two ways to dehumanize them: Idolize them or make them be psychopaths. But the favourite passages in Dracula for me are those of when Dr. Seward watches over his patients and reflects not just upon the nature of their behaviour but also his own thought process about them in his diary entries. The fact that it was written over a hundred years ago and that we nowadays know of practices of the 1940s-1960s that speak to how curiously unaware we still were to completely normal human behaviour (even down to simple medical facts that body and mind are able to influence one another) makes it really interesting to pinpoint some of the sympathy he has for the regards of his patients wishes and needs. And the fact that he simply has a desire to do good work as a doctor and see inside his mind through those entries makes him stand out as a character simply trying to do good, for his patients, his friends and his own wellbeing. You know...what a normal sane and sympathic person should be like...

[@kyleyoung5063]

Sir this is a Wendy's

[@terradisiena]

I never thought of this, what a wonderful perspective. Thank you.

[@jannegrey]

I've read it. Surprisingly good book. Though if you know anything about transfusions - well they were damn lucky.

[@kevinschultz6091]

Yeah, in hearing about that, I was all "OK, WHAT's the stats of survival on that one?" Of course, she could have been a universal recipient (AB+), in which case she'd be fine...in the transfusion part. What's IN the blood, of course, might be a bit of an issue.

[@weldonwin]

To be fair, blood transfusion was a brand new science at the time the book was written and blood typing and rejection weren't known about yet

[@undefined40]

So that is the origin story for one of the "League of extraordinary Gentlemen" characters. Eager to watch your take on most of the others. :)

[@sbatou87]

Also the origin of one of the most legendary anime vampires ever.

[@ambarrose]

League is such a great movie too. So underrated.

[@SidheKnight]

@@ambarrose Agreed.

[@Tortferngatr]

@@sbatou87 Ah, yes, the Crimson Fuckr.

[@Voodoomaria]

I have read it, several times. Read it first when i was about nine. If you have only seen the movies, you're missing a TREAT it's an extremely imaginative way of telling the story, and makes Dracula far more menacing than any movie has succeeded in doing. I absolutely CAN NOT RECOMMEND IT ENOUGH. you just have to read it at least once.

[@Lupine.]

I think it starts out great... then it becomes a slog after Jonathan's first accountings. Another work to be emphasized as invaluable for its influence on future Literature.

[@Voodoomaria]

@Lupine. The slogging bits actually contain a great deal of subtle exposition, and the slowly growing shadow of Dracula's influence. One of the reasons it does drag in places was Stoker padding the narrative. It was originally published in serialized form in a weekly newspaper of the time. The more he drew it out, the more he got paid. Sneaky git.

[@BlackJack-iu1jm]

I’m so excited for this Halloween themed episode! October is the best month ever!!!!

[@Mistborn_San]

This is my favorite go to classic for the spooky season, for those who haven't read it I implore you to pick it up yourself, it is an amazing read.

[@jeremy1860]

It really is a tragedy that most people's ideas of Dracula will always come from adaptations, rather than the great original book 😟

[@sbatou87]

Ah, yes, Quincey P. Morris, "the walking personification of the state Texas." This is also when we learn the Stoker "has never spoken to an American in his life." #OverlySarcasticProductions

[@violetwitch9948]

i think both channel tell this story perfectly

[@hestiathena4917]

@Mark Morris ...Touché. (From a Yank who _tries_ not to be ignorant.)

[@ValerieEnriquez]

I once read a theory that Quincey was based on Walt Whitman, who Bram Stoker had a major nerd crush on.

[@weldonwin]

I will admit, a major thing the OSP review has over this one, is that "Vampire Hit Squad", doesn't nearly as good as "Lucy's Boyfriend Squad"

[@moondivine2288]

@Mark Morris just like English has it’s different dialects so does the US. Not every American sounds like that. Just the Southern ones, mostly Texans. And not every American is ignorant. I’m trying to be well informed about others. I don’t sound like that but I’m from California. And thanks to my social anxiety stammering near strangers.

[@Borninthewronguniverse]

I love how everyone’s British, and like European, then over here, there’s just like, Quincy, a cowboy.

[@galning2768]

This telling is great but osp’s video will always be my favorite.

[@hsgregorius]

My favorite parts of the novel is when jonathan starting to realize that he's trapped in the castle and lucy's death and resurrection as vampire. I got chills when i read it 😨

[@Gildedmuse]

Dracula is so good, if for no other reason than Mina. Yes, I have her name and so I'm biased, but seriously, the novel is so interesting! Even this rereading doesn't give Mina the credit she deserves! Mina might SAY she is traditional, but she is a New Woman. The evidence is all gathered by Mina and even Helsing says he cannot imagine solving the mystery without her! It really does feel like you're not giving Mina the credit she deserves.

[@thomascampbell127]

I am probably in the minority. I've read Dracula multiple times seen most of the movies many times and have written several fan fictions for school projects. Love IT.

[@davidcrisp5805]

It ran aground in Whitby, which is 100% a popular holiday destination both then and now.

[@bitflipped5337]

1:02 yep I can confirm that that's the best travel journal ever

[@ryanclark6402]

AAH! No mention of the most interesting character in the book- RENFIELD! Do we just dismiss him as an “insane minion” of a “dark lord,” or can we really examine his theory of finite “life” quanta and the ingestion thereof (fly to spider to sparrow to cat, etc)? It was likely somewhat revolutionary in its day, pertains to the overall scientific bent of the novel (think Darwin, Linnaeus, etc), and nearly perfectly foreshadowed our current discussions of energy consumption from sun to plant to animal and the nature and consequences of modern food production. That, and in 8th grade I named my pet mouse Renfield in honor of the character…. :)

[@Suntensatsu21]

I always feel disappointed that most adaptations leave him out. He's also essential to the plot in that it is because of him that Dracula is able to reach Mina in the first place. That and if played right he could work really well as an unsettling human antagonist.

[@Zimisce85]

Was it Mel Brooks who merged Harker and Reinfield into one character (the minion, spider-eater, former solicitor)? Or he was parodying another adaptation?

[@williamrosen3179]

"Renfeild, you asshole!" -Dracula, as played by Leslie Neilson

[@emblemblade9245]

@@Zimisce85 Probably parody. A lot of adaptations leave Jonathan out despite the first 5 chapters having some very signature moments.

[@MrAlexH1991]

*UUUGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHH* It KILLS me how many things you piece back together from the first reading whenever they’re mentioned by someone else. As in, “What the hell even WERE those blue ghost fires that Dracula went to interact with at the beginning of the book?!” *THOSE WERE HIS BRIDES.* They were his brides in spectral form. *face palm

[@lycanbroadcastingnetwork]

This video screams that Extra Credits might not have actually read Dracula

[@benreilly9513]

So what you're saying is that Bram Stoker's Dracula is a proto-Ghostbusters.

[@albertamalachi3560]

_Bloody Tears is heard in the distance._ "What is a man? A pile of secrets!"

[@Bethelaine1]

Enter freely and of your own will, the scariest invitation I can imagine.

[@inquisitorbenediktanders3142]

I personally prefer how Overly sarcastic Productions handled van helsing. He's shown as more of a CMHB character there.

[@AegixDrakan]

It's time for what I like to call *VAN HELSING SERIOUS FACE!*

[@inquisitorbenediktanders3142]

@@AegixDrakan exactly what I meant!

[@AegixDrakan]

@@inquisitorbenediktanders3142 Seriously, OSP's summary was amazing, and got me to actually read the book. And the book was every bit as awesome as Red made it sound. XD

[@trinkab]

It's always interesting to compare and contrast between extra credit and OSP. Red reads the women completely differently.

[@abcdef27669]

I wonder how much of the epistolary narrative of Dracula inspired Resident Evil series. In all games of the franchise there is a diary or a document explaining Lore, by the eyes of an observer.

[@KrimsonKattYT]

Fun fact, Bram Stoker's Dracula is 100% canon to the Castlevania lore. You know Johnathan Morris? Protagonist of Castlevania Portrait of Ruin? Quincy Morris was his grandfather. Meaning that in canon Johnathan has a southern accent and his grampa was a cowboy. The Japanese dub got this right by giving Johnathan a "Kansei dialect" which basically a Japanese hillbilly dialect, but the English dub got his accent completely wrong. Justice for southerner Johnathan!

[@sydryi3086]

this is honestly the best Vampire story ever written in my opinion, and i have read Vampire Chronicles, but nothing beats the Original Vampire story.

[@malcomalexander9437]

Carmilla predates Dracula. Carmilla was published in 1872, Dracula was published in 1897. However before either of those there was the gothic serial novel Varney the Vampire published in 1845-1847. And before those three, there was The Vampyre by John William Polidori, published in 1819.

[@GarrestheWarrior]

I've definitely read this book. Very abrupt ending. Better pacing than Frankenstein, but that's because Frankenstein insists on describing the countryside the way Tolkien can't shut-up about trees.

[@KageNoTora74]

In Bram's story, Dracula wasn't destroyed by sunlight. He could walk around in daylight, but in a weakened state. It was getting his heart transfixed on the point of Quincy's Bowie knife and being beheaded that ended the great vampire.

[@musicloverandclassicalmusi698]

you guys should do one on The Incredible Journey, its a great yet a bit underrated book it has a lot of very unique words

[@michaelhurley3171]

Basically a story about a realtor's worst client. Let me tell you I know realtors who had far worse! At least he seems to have paid on time, and hosted them very politely! Maybe other realtors should share their horror stories!

[@TheNN]

"I see Van Helsing, you are the kind of man who likes to have the last word. I will not be drawn into such a childish exercise." - Dracula, probably.

[@emblemblade9245]

FUSHTA!

[@justasoulsfan9805]

Quite Ironic, since Dracula in the novel pretty much acts like a brat. Not to mention he's literally described as having a child-like mind by Van Helsing and Mina.

[@mattresbert]

I live this this channel, it always reminds me that everything is open to interpretation ❤

[@canaan92]

I love how you depicted the bar staff wearing surgical masks, casual content creators nowdays are kinda overlooking this aspect of the 2021 normality, and I think it's cool that a channel such as yours included this small detail that will remain in KZbin for the years coming

[@TheCreepypro]

classics never die they only rise from obscurity to become relevant once again

[@Codraroll]

For April Fools' Day, I hope you do an episode on The Very Hungry Caterpillar or a similar book.

[@charliefarmer4365]

EC: "A man from from the exotic, far-away land known as Texas!" OSP: A walking Personification of the State of Texas which is when we also discover Mr Bram Stoker has never spoken to an American in his life."

[@carterdunlap9957]

Also, VAN HELSING SERIOUS FACE

[@TheNN]

"Vampire King. You lay upon the blood soaked dirt of your ruined land. Castles plundered, dominions in ruin; servants to destroyed, all to stop the hellfire which you sought to cover the world. A bloody conquest having consumed hundreds of thousands; countless villages razed to the ground, and over 20,000 impaled and prostrated by you and you alone to strike horror into the hearts of mortal men! What say you, monster, demon, devil conceived by the bleakest womb? What say you now!?" - Van Helsing, probably.

[@justasoulsfan9805]

Despite this quote being from the parody of the best Dracula fanfiction (Hellsing) ever made, it's still miles better than anything Van Helsing said in the actual novel.

[@VarangianGuard13]

I not only read Dracula when I was in Elementary School, but I acted ( the part of Count Dracula ) in Middle School and High School! To this day I read the story every Halloween, and love it like a part of my own life-story Master Bram Stoker should be shown more respect in our modern world! On an unrelated note, please keep all caraway seeds, poppy seeds, mirrors, running water and silver religious symbols at least three leagues from my home... All garlic, onions and musical instruments should not be allowed near me unless I am entering or leaving a graveyard.. It's an allergy, don't ask.. 🦇

[@TheKarishi]

For those who do opt to read it: It is worth mentioning, so that people are warned ahead of time, that Van Helsing is intentionally written as an incredibly bad writer. You'll have a much better time treating his segments of the book as a mid-novel session of code-cracking, or a kind of translation game. Also, "bloofer" is supposed to be lower-class children mispronouncing the word "beautiful."

[@toprak3479]

Did you mean "Van Helsing is intentionally written as a bad English speaker"? Because there's only about one page worth of entry from van Helsing and that's towards the end of the book.

[@Tighris]

van helsing is dutch in the book so he makes mistakes while speaking english, but I personally never had trouble understanding what he was trying to say. One should`t be discouraged to read the book because they might not understand van helsing.

[@MTG_Scribe]

I'm loving this series so far.

[@rlin]

loving this new series! can't wait for more!

[@hrothgargo7615]

just finished the rereading of this wonderful book and then you drop this. I love October!

[@redfishtex738]

I like the movie. The Texan might have died but his knife sticks in Vlad's heart then Mina uses it to cut his head off. I was 19 and dating this girl when the movie came out. Her family wanted to go see the film so we all went. So we get to the theatre and sit. I have my girlfriend on one side and her mother on the other side. Needless to say the scene with Vlad as a wolfish getting it on in the garden with Lucy came on and I turned and smiled at my GF and then out of the corner of my eye I could feel her mom looking at me. I turned and smiled and her mother smiled back. That wasn't awkward at all. Sheesh 🙄😬 Good times...

[@ImperatorPenguin]

Transilvania Peasant: Wait... we gave a crucifix to a cat?

[@Wintermute01001]

It would've been historically accurate for the Dracula novel to mention Coca Cola, Nintendo, Altoids, AT&T, and A1 steak sauce.

[@LateSleeper]

"Mina, walk to the door... Mina, you are in the closet. Open the door and come out."

[@Zimisce85]

"No, not you, you!"

[@oxylepy2]

Tried reading it, its drags on and on. Tried listening to the audiobook and found literally everything else in my day-to-day more interesting.

[@frozeneevee]

It's honestly really cool how the book is still influencing books, movies, and shows to this day. After watching this I think I might give the book a shot this Halloween!

[@KasumiRINA]

Finally! Now do Polidori's the Vampyre and explain its link to Frankenstein. Also Carmilla so we can link Dracula, Fran and Elizabeth Bathory together.

[@Katherine_The_Okay]

They track Dracula down using train schedules. Somewhere in the multiverse, Phileas Fogg is doing a respectful slow clap.

[@Z3AL316]

I always wanted an HBO mini series faithfully adapting the novel and staying true to it, have it be directed by an exceptional film maker, maybe Robert Eggers, someone who can do incredibly great cinematic very atmospheric adaptation of this horror masterpiece, with an incredible memorable score done by a great composer like maybe Han Zimmer

[@anastasiazhdanova1578]

Eggers like Nosferatu-where main female character dies, where her husband is useless and can’t protect her or save her or kill vampire

[@emilyangelicabridge3509]

Love that you said you would do a video on Dracula the book in the Vlad the Impaler series and then came out with this gorgeous video. Thanks! ☺️

[@doughnuts1434]

Yes finally you have no idea how much I waited for this my favourite series on this channel is extra Sci Fi

[@Гпник-д3ч]

This series is one of the best. Love this series much ❤️

[@GinKadia]

I'm really enjoying these "So you haven't read" videos.

[@michaelturyn4558]

Kudos for emphasising the importance of railway-timetables in the book. One small quibble: Mina is not the standard , Victorian, ideal woman-she is certainly less forward than Lucy, which I've always taken as criticism of the non-noble wealthy-but she is less retiring and more active than their ideal, and in fact exercising a very Victorian reticence with her-not sharing all the horrible details of their business-helps bring more trouble on them. (She is not quite the New Woman that Katherine Reed was supposed to be, I strongly doubt we'd see Mina on a bicycle, but 'Ideal Victorian Woman' misses the mark as well.)

[@Gojiragon]

If it wasn't obvious, Dracula replaced the actual coach driver with himself.

[@germanomagnone]

8:09 Zoe "I will give you the stake"💕❤

[@laurencelikestopgun]

I love this series already, keep it up!

[@xevirts]

you are back with another banger keep it up! I've been watching this channel for 5 years!

[@Murnauk]

Uhm…Mina represents the modern women, Lucy is more in line w/ the more antiquated victorian ideal…

[@billdehappy1]

nope

[@Nightwalker-zk6ce]

That’s the interpretation I’ve always heard too, Mina has her own job and is always using a typewriter, which was a super new invention at the time. Lucy is almost completely focused on getting married to the point it’s about her only character trait, but Mina is much more well-rounded, even standing up for herself when the other characters say they don’t think it’s safe or proper for her to go with them to track down Dracula.

[@Murnauk]

@@Nightwalker-zk6ce Exactly! I can sort of see how from a modern perspective Lucy might look somewhat sexually liberated (they mention her three suitors) but I think it's a very weak interpretation and is kinda ahistorical.

[@holidaychap]

i hate how in the movies thay make it a love story between dracula and mina. in the novel he goes after mina as a revenge for leading the others against him.he comes to her one night and tells her she is going to be punished for helping those who are looking for him.he tells her if she tries to wake jonathan up he will smash his brains all over the wall in front of her,then tells her before he punishes her that he is thirsty and he will drink from her again like his own wine press ,then forcing her to drink from him.not ONE movie as ever portrayed dracula as the evil monster that stoker wrote.stoker never wrote him as this aristocat who mingled with society ,hollywood created THAT dracula..francis ford coppolas dracula (altho a good movie)strays so far from bram stoker novel.i loved the way dracula was portrayed in the last voyage of the demeter ,pure evil and bloodthirsty,i think bram stoker would have loved it.maybe as he sat looking out of his window when he was writing dracula at the hotel he was staying at in whitby were apparently he heard about the russian vessel that crashed there, he thought the exact thing,exept about the huge dog/wolf that sprang from the demeter as it smashed against the shores of whitby .

[@theswirlingstar5470]

i read this book when i was 8 and couldnt sleep without crying for a week 💀

[@Gamesaucer]

man, you're really _hammering the point home_ with those puns.

[@scribejay]

6:09 Good attention to detail here that the novel does specify that the three men wielded, a stake, bowie knife, and kukri.

[@Comicsluvr]

Dracula was MUCH better than another classic novel, Frankenstein. THAT book consisted of PAGES of descriptions of walking through the beautiful Alps...and the whole 'I built a monster.'

[@bintimes]

My favorite thing about Dracula is it feels like Stoker only knows his english accent so he's just guessing Quincy and Vanhelsing's

[@mathiash.1379]

Clearly one of my favorite reads

[@couch2558]

It made me so happy to see you chose to draw the "reader" character as a wheelchair user. It actually looks a lot like my red Aero Z. Im an ambulatory user, and it makes me so happy to see small inclusions like this.b

[@Supernova10000]

Bram stoker was so real for this, he just like me fr

[@behzadparsa44]

thank you

[@aymantawfiq7557]

Really do love your content and your narration also the background music at the end of the video. Please keep up the good work as this is my favorite youtube channel.

[@ShaunCKennedyAuthor]

Someone totally needs to make a found footage modern retelling of Dracula.

[@ecurewitz]

Take my money!!!

[@ShaunCKennedyAuthor]

@@ecurewitz Fim making is not a skill of mine. Is anyone else with those skills interested in Em's money?

[@ecurewitz]

@@ShaunCKennedyAuthor start writing a script and hand it out to any filmamker you know

[@ShaunCKennedyAuthor]

@@ecurewitz Script writing is also, sadly, not a skill I possess.

[@ecurewitz]

@@ShaunCKennedyAuthor bummer

[@SoutherbBelle]

I am listening to Dracula now via Audible. Yes, it is a great read and perfect to read during October and Halloween . 😁🎃