3. Van Helsing and Decadence

About this Lecture

Lecture

In this module, we think about the characters of Dracula and Van Helsing in Freudian terms —Dracula representing the unrestrained and instinctual desires of what Freud called the ‘id’, and Van Helsing the order, neatness and reserve of Freud’s ‘super-ego’.

Course

In this course, Professor David Punter (University of Bristol) explores Bram Stoker’s 1897 Gothic horror novel, Dracula. As we move through the course, we think about the centrality of blood to the novel (both literally and figuratively), the socio-political issues at stake in the novel, including the issue of equality, as well the impact of technology on society and culture.

Lecturer

David's research interets range from eighteenth-century to contemporary literature, and he has written most extensively about the romantic and the Gothic. He is Life Chair of the Executive Committee of the International Gothic Association, as well as being a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, Fellow of the English Association, Fellow of the Institute for Contemporary Scotland, Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, and Fellow of the Royasl Society of Arts (RSA). With regard to the RSA, he has just completed a two-year stint as Chair of its West Region. He has also published on postcolonial literature, critical theory and psychoanalysis. As well as his qualifications in English, he also has a partial psychoanalytic training, and has recently completed a degree in law. He has published five small volumes of poetry, and performs his poetry regularly in Bristol and beyond.