An Analysis of the New Woman Phenomenon Present in Bram...

The gothic vampire classic Dracula, written by Bram Stoker, is one of the most well known novels of the nineteenth century. The story focuses on a vampire named Dracula who travels to England in search of new blood, but who eventually is found out and driven away by a group of newly minted vampire hunters. A major social change that was going on during the late nineteenth century, around the time of that this novel was being written, was the changing roles of women in British society which constituted as the â€Å"New Woman† movement and the novel seems to explore and worry about this subject extensively. These women wanted to be freed both politically and sexually, but much of the general population at the time found it unsettling (Dixon,†¦show more content†¦These aspects would suggest that she is â€Å"New Woman†, however Mina is very much sexually reticent which is against the sexually assertive nature that helps define the â€Å"New Woman† movement. While the â€Å"New Woman† movement did have some focus on the former aspects it was likely that the more outward sexuality present in the movement was what Stoker and many Victorians were worried about with the movement â€Å"Financial independence and personal fulfillment as alternatives to marriage and motherhood were not responsible for the New Woman’s becoming a symbol of all that’s challenging and dangerous in advanced thinking. The crucial factor was..sex† (Senf, 1982). While the well educated Mina does have several aspects of a â€Å"New Woman† she would not feel comfortable being associated with the movement as she is reluctant to display affection for her fiancà © and she consciously rejects the forwardness and sexual frankness of â€Å"New Woman† writers: Some of the ‘New Woman’ writers will some day start an idea that men and women should be allowed to sleep with each other before proposing or accepting. But I suppose the New Woman won’t condescend in future to accept; she will do the proposing herself. And a nice job she will think of it too! There’s some consolation in that. (chapter 7 or 8) Mina’s conscious rejection can also be thought of as Stokers thoughts on the subject, further pointing to the belief that Stoker was against the sexual openness in the movement, however Mina’sShow MoreRelatedEnglish Source Doc.7581 Words   |  31 PagesTitle: Dracula: Stoker s Response to the New Woman Author(s): Carol A. Senf Publication Details: Victorian Studies 26.1 (Autumn 1982): p33-49. Source: Nineteenth-Century Literature Criticism. Ed. Jessica Bomarito and Russel Whitaker. Vol. 156. Detroit: Gale, 2006. From Literature Resource Center. Document Type: Critical essay Full Text: COPYRIGHT 2006 Gale, COPYRIGHT 2007 Gale, Cengage Learning Full Text:   [(essay date autumn 1982) In the following essay, Senf contends that, contrary