Mina Quotes In Dracula

The beloved novel “Dracula” by Bram Stoker is an influential piece of gothic literature. Horror stories typically portray the Victorian woman to be a helpless victim and to be sexually objectified, but the story “Dracula” continuously uses the character Mina Murray Harker to challenges these gender norms. Mina is one of the several protagonists in the story, and it is important to note that she is the only female in the protagonist group. She is engaged to a man named Jonathan Harker who is also in that group. Initially, she embodies the ideal Victorian woman who is gentle, maternalistic, and loyal to her husband, but as the story progresses, her character develops to show independence and take on a more active role in defeating the antagonist, Count Dracula. Mina challenges traditional gender norms by unveiling her intelligence, bravery, and by refusing to be defined by her purity.

In chapter 16, Mina confronts one of the men in the group and demands to be included in tracking down Count Dracula. Asserting this dominance over several men shows how she is not afraid to stand up for herself. In chapter 21, Mina offers to use herself as bait to lure Count Dracula into a trap, knowing that it is a dangerous and risky task. She knows she can use herself as an advantage over Count Dracula and is courageous enough to put herself in a situation that could end with her becoming a Dracula or becoming “un-dead”. Later, in chapter 24, Count Dracula makes several attempts to control Mina’s mind and use her against the protagonist group, but she was able to combat his influence and retain her own free will, which ultimately proves her mental strength. These scenes are significant because they show that Mina is not afraid to take on difficult tasks and she is just as, if not more, capable as the male characters when face to face with