He therefore carried out extensive research and searched through libraries and archives, especially those of the British Museum. However, throughout his life Stoker has never been to the “exotic” places of his novel. He died in London in 1912 after several strokes in financially modest circumstances some sources cite overwork as cause of death. The Hungarian orientalist Armin Vambery, with whom Stoker was known and from whom he came across the character of Vlad Țepeș, was even trained by the author as the liaison man van Helsings in the novel.īram Stoker did not live to see the great success of his novel Dracula. Why he gave the adversary of Dracula, van Helsing, his own first name (Abraham) of all things, would be interesting to question from a psychoanalytical point of view. In the appearance of his literary figure, Stoker was inspired by the features of the Shakespearean actor Henry Irving, of whom he was an agent. Three years earlier, she had already reported on the popular beliefs of the inhabitants of Transylvania in a magazine. Facts and Fancies from Transsylvania (Edinburgh and New York 1888) by Scottish travel writer Emily Gerard.There she describes the legendary figure Nosferatu, whom she translates as undead. However, the assumption that Stocker really chose Tepes as role model for his vampire is not undisputed. Bram Stoker has also published the book The Land beyond the Forest. Stoker also moved the plot because he wanted to refer to the historical figure of Vlad Țepeș, whom he transformed into a character in a novel. The first edition cover of Dracula, 1897 Moving the Plot to Transylvania The introductory chapter was taken out and later published as a short story under the title Dracula’s Guest. Stoker’s novel was initially to play in Styria and in an introductory chapter he let his protagonist Jonathan Harker discover the tomb of the vampire. Stoker was particularly influenced and impressed by the story Carmilla by the Irishman Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu. In addition, he is assigned to the genre of the horror novel because Stoker uses elements such as old castles, ancestral curses and supernatural appearances in his novel. Dracula followed a whole series of stories about vampires, which became a popular topos of literature in Romanticism and later in the 19th century. Stoker worked on this vampire novel for seven years until it was published on. From this character Stoker developed the figure of the vampire Dracula. In 1890 Stoker met the Hungarian professor Arminius Vámbéry, who told him about the legend of the Romanian prince Vlad III. In addition, he improved his income as an author of books. Following Irving, Stoker travelled the world. Through his work for Irving, he was introduced to London’s high society, where he met James McNeill Whistler and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, among others. He moved with her to Chelsea, London, where he worked as manager of Irving’s Lyceum Theatre. In 1878 Stoker married Florence Balcombe, a neighbour from Clontarf, who was also courted by Oscar Wilde. His interest in theatre led to a lifelong friendship with actor Henry Irving.īram Stoker (1847-1912) Meeting Arthur Conan Doyle He worked as a journalist and theatre critic and wrote articles for Dublin University Magazine. During this time Stoker wrote a handbook for magistrates’ courts or petty courts. Interestingly, he then became even an athlete and football star at Trinity College in Dublin, where he studied history, literature, mathematics and physics from 1864 to 1870. Next, he became a civil servant at the Department of Justice in Dublin Castle, where his father also worked, which did not satisfy him. Not only his illness was a mystery, but also his recovery was a miracle for his doctors. Eternal sleep and the resurrection of the dead, the central theme of Dracula, were therefore of great importance to him. This traumatic experience is reflected in his literary work. He was ill until the age of seven and could neither stand nor walk alone. Bram Stoker – Early Yearsīram Stoker was born on November 8, 1847, as the third of seven children in Marino Crescent (then in Clontarf near Dublin, now Dublin-Fairview). But the very first striking and still ongoing success is Bram Stoker’s Dracula. And vampire literature dates even further back to John Polidori‘s 1819 published novell ‘ The Vampyre‘. The vampire on the other side came from legends of the Balkans and Eastern Europe. Oh, obviously Vlad Tepes was anything else but a nice guy, as you might look up by yourself in Wikipedia. Nowadays most people don’t know that identifying Dracula with the historical Vlad Tepes - called Vlad the impaler - was completely made up by Stoker himself. On May 18, 1897, Bram Stoker published his seminal book ‘ Dracula‘ in London and established one of the most influential genres in fantastic literature by introducing the Transylvanian blood sucker.
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