Unseen Forces Lesbian Relationships in Stokers Dracula...

Though it appears on the surface to be an engaging horror story about a blood-sucking Transylvanian man, upon diving deeper into Bram Stokers novel Dracula, one can find issues of female sexuality, homoeroticism, and gender roles. Many read Dracula as an entertaining story full of scary castles, seductive vampires, and mysterious forces, yet at the same time, they are being bombarded with descriptions of sex, images of rape, and homosexual relationships. In Francis Coppolas Bram Stokers Dracula, Stokers presentation of homoeroticism is taken, reworked, and presented in a different, stronger light. Coppola does much in the area of emphasizing a homoerotic relationship between Mina Harker and Lucy Westerna: a relationship Bram Stoker†¦show more content†¦Mina claims she loves Lucy with all the moods and tenses of the verb, implying that she does not love her like a sister or friend, but as a lover and confidant. Because Jonathan only sends his respectful duty, the reader can s ee that he realizes the womens relationship is a little too close and is envious of Minas attention towards Lucy. This envy shows itself in the resentment Jonathan harbors towards Miss Westerna. The homosexual relationship that is hinted at in the novel is made clear in Bram Stokers Dracula, but only in scenes that are not in the book. This fact takes the legitimacy, for many, out of the proof of a lesbian relationship, but as Jeffery Chown points out, Coppola clearly believes that fidelity to the original literary text will ultimately enhance the filmic results of the adaptation (1). In staying true to the novel in terms of Lucy and Minas lesbian relationship, Coppola grabs his audiences attention and leaves them wondering and contemplating. The images he provides for the audience are quite obvious as to what they are implying as well as scandalous in some parts. Towards the beginning of the movie, Mina and Lucy are shown in a sex scene that Coppola depicts as a thunderstorm. As the scene unfolds, the two are shown dancing in the garden, laughing and moaning while being drenched in the pouring rain, along with a brief clip of them kissing. These proper Victorian women are shown in nightgowns so wet that the