The Theme of Sexuality In “Dracula” and “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been” Essay Example

three ladies open sexuality. Jonathan states, “ There was something about them that made me uneasy, some longing and at the same time some deadly fear “ (Stoker- Chapter 3, 31). This quote states that he wanted the seductive vampire ladies to take advantage of him, but also feels unease, because of the dissimilar views of sexual repression in the Victorian era.

Sexual repression is next demonstrated when Lucy tells her husband, “Arthur! Oh, my love, I am so glad you have come..For a little bit her breast heaved softly, and her breath came”. (Stoker- Chapter 16,4). When Lucy became a vampire it was like she had an increase of sexual desires for him. When Van Helsing told Arthur to just hold her hand, it was like this action was more comforting to her and it changed her back into her normal ways. Lucy is a vampire had changed her into being a very sexually open person and seductive, like the three vampire ladies who tried to seduce Jonathan.

Sexual repression is also shown when Dracula states, “How dare you touch him, any of you? How dare you cast eyes on him when I had forbidden it?.. This man belongs to me!” (Stoker- Chapter 3,33). This shows how Dracula seems to be closely attracted to Jonathan and wants him kept in his castle like a slave. It also shows that Dracula was somewhat bisexual when Jonathan stated,”The blood was trickling over my chin.. when the Count saw my face, his eyes blazed.. and he suddenly made a grab at my throat.” (Stoker- Chapter 2,21). The blood dripping from Jonathan’s skin made Dracula even more sexually interested in

him. With Dracula, sex and blood are closely associated with each other, reflecting the Victorians’ belief that blood is sperm. I will base my research on William Hughes and his study of Dracula’s blood sucking and its connotation with the “spermatic economy” which claims that feeding on blood indicates an exchange of bodily fluids which can be associated with sexual intercourse. (Pektas,4)

Pedophilia is also another source of sexual impression, because Dracula and Lucy went out to find young children to get their blood. When Lucy turned into a vampire she started snatching children and was known for as “The Bloofer Lady”. In Dracula it states, Several cases have occurred of young children straying from home, but the consensus of their excuses is that they had been with a “bloofer lady.” (Stoker- Chapter 13,151). This means when Dracula changed Lucy into a vampire, Lucy turned her attention to small children for blood, which was closely associated with sex. Also In Dracula, it shows the many ways of pedophilia when Dracula feed his vampire bride small children. It states, “Are we to have nothing to-night?... If my ears did not deceive me there was a gasp and a low wail, as of a half-smothered child.” (Chapter 3,33). This shows pedophilia, because Dracula knows that children are his easiest target and he goes around taking them away from their home for his sexual advantages.

Next, sexual repression is also described when Dracula raped Lucy and Mina went outside to search for her. When Dracula moves to England, so does sexual impropriety. Dracula’s attack on Lucy symbolically suggests rape, and once she is transformed into an sexualized vampire, Dr. Seward

describes her, “ she seemed like a nightmare of Lucy as she lay there; the pointed teeth, the blood stained, voluptuous mouth—which it made one shudder to see the whole carnal and unspiritual appearance, seeming like a devilish mockery of Lucy’s sweet purity”. (Grove,11)

Mina claimed, “ there was undoubtedly something, long and black, bending over the half-reclining white figure. I called in fright, “Lucy! Lucy!” ( Stoker- Chapter 8,79). This quote describes the sense of Lucy first getting raped and possessed into a vampire by Dracula. The night before Mina kept finding Lucy sleepwalking, and this was because Dracula kept appearing in Lucy’s window to seduce her.

In “Where are you going, Where have you been”, Connie is very obsessed with hanging out with older guys and her looks. She reflects on sexual repression when her father dropped her off at the plaza and she left to go to the restaurant to simply talk to boys. However, closer to the end of the story she claims, “ but all the boys fell back and dissolved into a single face that was not even a face, but an idea” (Oates, 2). This means that she really just wants to be with a guy, any guy. This may signify that women just want to have a husband who can provide for them and a future family, rather than really finding someone with whom they are compatible (Wilber).

In Addition, during the nineteenth century women were not as capable of showing their many sexual desires, but rather pursue their career. In fact, after the sexual revolution, the pill liberated millions of wives from unwanted pregnancies. It also allowed single women

to have lovers while pursuing careers, instead of compelling them to marry just to satisfy their erotic urges. (Archer, 119). This explains why Lucy has only seen the boys as a single face, because in her time period women were not supposed to compel men for just sexual pleasure or attention.

Sexual repression is also represented when Arnold Friend walked into Connie’s house without her consent, because she did not want to come out and take a ride with him. 'Just two things, or maybe three,' Arnold Friend said. 'But I promise it won't last long and you'll like me the way you get to like people you're close to. You will. It's all over for you here, so come on out.”(Oates, 10). At this moment Connie is terrified of Arnold Friend, because he will not listen to her rejection. He forces himself inside the home of a young pretty girl, who feels fearful of an unperceived guy in her home, who is looking for sexual attention. At the same time, a young girl was not expected to focus too obviously on finding a husband. Being ‘forward’ in the company of men suggested a worrying sexual appetite. Women were assumed to desire marriage because it allowed them to become mothers rather than to pursue sexual or emotional satisfaction. (Hughes)

In addition to this novel, it states “Connie liked the way he was dressed, which was the way all of them dressed: tight faded jeans stuffed into black, scuffed boots, a belt that pulled his waist and showed how lean he was... He looked as if he probably did hard work.” This means the men in the nineteenth

century the men were expected to look older for the lady to make them look more suitable for them. It also tells of Arnold Friend jalopy convertible painted gold with his name written across from it. In the nineteenth century men displayed many of their valuable items to show a woman that he was able to financially provide or make that woman a suitable wife.

However, Connie had long dark blond hair that drew anyone’s eye to it, and she wore part of it pulled up on her head and puffed out and the rest of it she let fall down her back. This what made Connie look like a very attractive young woman. Girls usually married in their early to mid-20s. Typically, the groom would be five years older. Not only did this reinforce the ‘natural’ hierarchy between the sexes, but it also made sound financial sense. A young man needed to be able to show that he earned enough money to support a wife and any future children before the girl’s father would give his permission. Some unfortunate couples were obliged to ensure an engagement lasting decades before they could afford to marry. (Hughes)

In Conclusion, both novels demonstrated numerous example of sexual repression in the Nineteenth century. In the novel, Dracula demonstrated sexual repression by having, possessing humans and having them take blood away from other people to help provide for their needs. In the short story, Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been, Connie established sexual repression by working hard to present the appearance of being a mature woman, into going back into reality to realize that she is not ready for

adulthood. In Overall, both Bram Stoker and Joyce Carol Oates conveyed sexual repression through their own unique way.