My Literary Paper

Hi mates! Here is the first part of our paper (introduction and thesis paragraph); all trimmed and (hopefully) improved after the first correcting session. I'll be waiting for your feedback! Hugs

DRACULA: THE NOVEL AND DRACULA: THE FILM
Love and redemption, or evil for its own sake?

Horror literature reached new heights and dimensions when the Irish Bram Stoker wrote his greatest contribution to it: his masterpiece “Dracula”, published in 1897. This novel, in which Stoker synthesised numerous myths about vampirism and afterlife from the Europe of old and of his time, has become a legend, delightful and at the same time terrifying, which stills enthrals and shocks readers all over the world as it has done for over 100 years; and which has been adapted for the screen on several occasions. However, the majority of these films have presented a version of the story which has been remarkably altered in many respects ; turning Dracula from a black-hearted demon into a tormented man in love. For the sake of simplicity, we will work with only one film in this paper, Dracula (1992), by F. Ford Coppola, which is one of the freest versions.

The purpose of this paper is to analyse the possible reasons for the changes in the plot. Why did the filmmaker feel it was necessary to alter a story which in its original form has become one of the best-known works of literature? What could he have considered unsatisfactory or missing in the novel, that he wished to add in his film? We will focus on three possible reasons: The attraction that a love story may exert on the audience; the will to exploit the sexual implications which could be found in a vampires’ tale; and the will to present a more humane Dracula whose actions are justified and whose end is softened.