Dracula: Safely Scared

Early in my adolesence, my younger brother and I camped out in front of the TV and watched the early horror flick, Dawn of the Dead. Although it is very tame in comparison with today's movies, it terrified the two of us. I was plagued with nightmares after viewing it, and my brother was so frightened that he crept up to my parents room and slept on their floor. He gripped my mother's hand, and yelled, "Mom!" every time she started to fall asleep and loosen her hold on his hand. Now that we are older, we laugh about the night we watched Dawn of the Dead and how much the corny film scared us.

There is something about being scared (safely) which humans love. We are thrilled by a good horror movie, entranced by a well-woven ghost tale, and terrified of fantastic stories which someone swears are true. To experience this kind of safe fear is to forget yourself and your own problems for a moment and dwell in a more dangerous place. After reading a Stephen King novel you will no doubt come to realize that nothing in your life is too terrible. This is why horror fiction endures. This is why we are so powerfully drawn to the genre.

Although I enjoy reading modern horror, it is the classics which stand out most in my mind. I have already written about The Phantom of the Opera and Frankenstein, both frightening tales. However, perhaps the most famous tale of terror is Bram Stoker's Dracula. Reading this novel brought me back to the night that my brother and I spent watching Dawn of the Dead. The nightmares and fears which gripped me then returned to haunt me.

Count Dracula is, of course, a terribly frightening figure. He is powerful enough to command the elements, force night creatures into submissiveness, change his own shape, and steal the blood out of his victims. Not only is the vampire a symbol of great power, but he also embodies a magnetizing sexuality. Thus, he blurs the line between desire and fear.

Since his creation, Dracula has become a popular icon. He is everywhere: books, comics, movies, cereals, cartoons, etc. In fact, many have said that if Bram Stoker were still alive he would be a multi-billionaire, profiting from all of the imitations of his most popular novel. There is something about this figure which terrifies and fascinates us at the same time.

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