I must abandon my character and speak from 2026 for this, forgive me! Just watched the video and my jaw dropped to the floor when you mentioned that the villagers’ behavior had been orchestrated by Dracula, and also that he was himself the howling dog. I had not considered either possibility before. I rather chalked the howling dog(s) up to animals sensing evil and danger (or something in that vein). I will be paying much closer attention to those dogs and wolves!
I was also surprised about the hidden meaning of the castle that cannot be located on any map as a clue to the sort of unreality that our man of reason is about to enter.
Sorry I go on and on but I MUST mention the following dream state references!
“Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again” - from Rebecca, carrying on the gothic tradition in the 20th century. Classic!
Wilkie Collins’ The Woman in White is awash with references to dreams, and so many gorgeous ones I couldn’t possibly choose, not to mention the very title is such an almost cliché vision either in dreams or in supernatural tales.
And finally, another written well into the 20th but set in 1900, Picnic at Hanging Rock, also carrying on the tradition but also borrowing from the idea of dreamtime in aboriginal Australian culture - GORGEOUS, I will admit to recency bias but I loved that little gem of a novel so so much.
I feel like a little spider is weaving an elaborate web in my brain, making some sense of all of these things.
My friend, there is nothing to forgive! My mind was blown when I started digging into the inner workings of the book. The construction is so clever and the Count is truly an incidious villain! Ugh! I can't wait for some of the revelations still to come!
You have just mentioned so many of my favorite lines from Gothic fiction! Rebecca is one of my favorite novels. Woman in White would have been hugely influential to Bram. It was a mega bestseller in its time, and likely part of the reason Bram chose an epistolary narrative structure.
I am looking forward to all the secrets you have yet to reveal! And now I think I need to add The Woman in White to my re-read pile. Just visiting it to refresh my memory, I was like….wow. I did not spend enough time with this!
Thanks - loved the video and the accompanying piece. It's really hard to try to imagine the experience of reading this for the first time when it came out. Dracula is so soaked into our culture that every scene is brimming with associations and baggage. It must have been really thrilling to pick up that alarming looking yellow book!
Thank you! I’m so glad you have been enjoying. Thank you for your support and engagement.
It is such a deceptively complex book. I feel like my research has opened my eyes to some historic patterns that I just can’t unsee now. It might sound weird to say, but it brought me a lot of peace. One of my secret hopes is to help people find the revelations they need because none of us is alone in what we are experiencing today.
The coach that appears when the good folks clumsily try to get Jonathan away... then moving in circles with the dark driver...
This broke my brooding reverie and became intense for me. Not only could I no longer dwell on my own issues, I was at a loss to piece together just what I was reading.
Ah, nothing like immersion into the world of another to find better understanding in our own. I can sense a thoughtful nature in you, and I look forward to learning more of your journey.
Fascinating stuff! Just watched the video, and glad you mentioned all the food that comes into Chapter 1. That was something I noticed - the way Jonathan keeps putting in reminders to get the recipes for Mina and so on. I was wondering whether the paprika-heavy dishes he talks about would just be rather exotic for British Victorian readers, and whether he's including them to heighten that sense of the exotic, or whether he just really liked writing about food. Or whether he's setting things up for introducing the importance of garlic later on.
Thank you! Great question! I do think part of it is that the food would have been exotic. Traveling was also becoming very popular among those who could afford it. Even folks who couldn’t still enjoyed reading about these far off places. There was a popular brand of portable travel guides called Baedeker, published out of Germany. Bram used resources like this in his research for writing the book. So the impression he’s trying to give us that of a regular guy having this completely strange experience.
I've finally received Klinger's annotated edition (I'm in the UK, and had to order from the US). The number of notes, and their level of detail, is absolutely insane!
Also! Ugh! Rebecca! Don't get me started on my adoration of Rebecca. Mr. DeMonica and I are currently reading (rereading, for me) Mexican Gothic and the use of Dream States is just so epic. *chef's kiss*
Sorry! Another thing! Woman in White actually was massively popular in its time. No doubt, this would have been a huge influence on Bram. There are just so many layers.
You know, I read a good chunk of Chapter 1 in the car (my mother was driving, just to clarify, lol) and I kind of felt like I was being driven to Dracula's castle myself, lol. It really added a sense of relatability to the reading experience.
Anyway, I'm going to reread Chapter 1 now that I have the Norton Critical Edition and pay much closer attention to dream states. 👍
I can just picture reading the book while driving, and I think that would definitely add to the creep factor. I love it! The more you pay attention the trippier it gets. Eeek! I can't wait to hear what you think as we get deeper into the narrative.
I must abandon my character and speak from 2026 for this, forgive me! Just watched the video and my jaw dropped to the floor when you mentioned that the villagers’ behavior had been orchestrated by Dracula, and also that he was himself the howling dog. I had not considered either possibility before. I rather chalked the howling dog(s) up to animals sensing evil and danger (or something in that vein). I will be paying much closer attention to those dogs and wolves!
I was also surprised about the hidden meaning of the castle that cannot be located on any map as a clue to the sort of unreality that our man of reason is about to enter.
Sorry I go on and on but I MUST mention the following dream state references!
“Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again” - from Rebecca, carrying on the gothic tradition in the 20th century. Classic!
Wilkie Collins’ The Woman in White is awash with references to dreams, and so many gorgeous ones I couldn’t possibly choose, not to mention the very title is such an almost cliché vision either in dreams or in supernatural tales.
And finally, another written well into the 20th but set in 1900, Picnic at Hanging Rock, also carrying on the tradition but also borrowing from the idea of dreamtime in aboriginal Australian culture - GORGEOUS, I will admit to recency bias but I loved that little gem of a novel so so much.
I feel like a little spider is weaving an elaborate web in my brain, making some sense of all of these things.
My friend, there is nothing to forgive! My mind was blown when I started digging into the inner workings of the book. The construction is so clever and the Count is truly an incidious villain! Ugh! I can't wait for some of the revelations still to come!
You have just mentioned so many of my favorite lines from Gothic fiction! Rebecca is one of my favorite novels. Woman in White would have been hugely influential to Bram. It was a mega bestseller in its time, and likely part of the reason Bram chose an epistolary narrative structure.
I am looking forward to all the secrets you have yet to reveal! And now I think I need to add The Woman in White to my re-read pile. Just visiting it to refresh my memory, I was like….wow. I did not spend enough time with this!
I have it in my reread TBR as well. I haven't read it in maybe, 20 years? I'm so curious how my perspective on it will be different now.
Thanks - loved the video and the accompanying piece. It's really hard to try to imagine the experience of reading this for the first time when it came out. Dracula is so soaked into our culture that every scene is brimming with associations and baggage. It must have been really thrilling to pick up that alarming looking yellow book!
Thank you! I’m so glad you have been enjoying. Thank you for your support and engagement.
It is such a deceptively complex book. I feel like my research has opened my eyes to some historic patterns that I just can’t unsee now. It might sound weird to say, but it brought me a lot of peace. One of my secret hopes is to help people find the revelations they need because none of us is alone in what we are experiencing today.
The coach that appears when the good folks clumsily try to get Jonathan away... then moving in circles with the dark driver...
This broke my brooding reverie and became intense for me. Not only could I no longer dwell on my own issues, I was at a loss to piece together just what I was reading.
Ah, nothing like immersion into the world of another to find better understanding in our own. I can sense a thoughtful nature in you, and I look forward to learning more of your journey.
Fascinating stuff! Just watched the video, and glad you mentioned all the food that comes into Chapter 1. That was something I noticed - the way Jonathan keeps putting in reminders to get the recipes for Mina and so on. I was wondering whether the paprika-heavy dishes he talks about would just be rather exotic for British Victorian readers, and whether he's including them to heighten that sense of the exotic, or whether he just really liked writing about food. Or whether he's setting things up for introducing the importance of garlic later on.
Thank you! Great question! I do think part of it is that the food would have been exotic. Traveling was also becoming very popular among those who could afford it. Even folks who couldn’t still enjoyed reading about these far off places. There was a popular brand of portable travel guides called Baedeker, published out of Germany. Bram used resources like this in his research for writing the book. So the impression he’s trying to give us that of a regular guy having this completely strange experience.
I've finally received Klinger's annotated edition (I'm in the UK, and had to order from the US). The number of notes, and their level of detail, is absolutely insane!
Isn’t it so cool! He’s such a nice man. His annotated Sherlock is equally amazing. He’s another who is very invested in playing “the game.”
I’m soooo going to follow this!
Thank you! I can't wait to hear your thoughts.
Bless you 🥹
Thank you! I’m so glad you’re enjoying the series. I’m having a blast already. Thanks for making the chat so much fun.
Also! Ugh! Rebecca! Don't get me started on my adoration of Rebecca. Mr. DeMonica and I are currently reading (rereading, for me) Mexican Gothic and the use of Dream States is just so epic. *chef's kiss*
My friend, this is why I say, talk in character are much as feels fun for you! Sometimes you just need to gush, I get it. My tiny mind was blown!
Sorry! Another thing! Woman in White actually was massively popular in its time. No doubt, this would have been a huge influence on Bram. There are just so many layers.
Awesome start to the read-along, Monica!
You know, I read a good chunk of Chapter 1 in the car (my mother was driving, just to clarify, lol) and I kind of felt like I was being driven to Dracula's castle myself, lol. It really added a sense of relatability to the reading experience.
Anyway, I'm going to reread Chapter 1 now that I have the Norton Critical Edition and pay much closer attention to dream states. 👍
I can just picture reading the book while driving, and I think that would definitely add to the creep factor. I love it! The more you pay attention the trippier it gets. Eeek! I can't wait to hear what you think as we get deeper into the narrative.
I am SO looking forward to it! 👍