Dracula: Chapter 23 Summary & Analysis

Seward's Diary. October 3. Still at the Piccadilly house, Van Helsing explains to Seward and Harker that Dracula used Renfield, whom he considered a weak and "mad" mind, to enter Seward's home, which is also the insane asylum—for Dracula cannot enter a new home unless invited in by someone. Thus Renfield's invitation to Dracula, earlier in the novel, was sufficient for Dracula to gain admittance to Seward and Mina. When Van Helsing and Seward have finished consoling Harker, who is terribly worried about Mina's fate after her encounter with Dracula, they receive a telegram from Mina, which says that Dracula has left his Carfax estate (as she has observed) and headed south, perhaps looking for the five men.

Morris and Arthur return, saying that they sterilized six boxes in each of the two houses—this means that, in all, 49 of the 50 boxes have been sterilized—the group must find Dracula's final box. Van Helsing tells them to prepare for Dracula, whom he believes to have made the rounds of London that day, in search of boxes in which he might "rest." Checking his watch, Van Helsing believes Dracula will arrive soon to attack the group to keep them from sterilizing his 50th and final box.

Dracula enters the house as the men arrange themselves to prepare for his attack. Suddenly he leaps into the room and confronts the five men. Harker attempts to stab Dracula with a knife but narrowly misses; Seward, holding a crucifix, drives Dracula out—he leaps through the window and into the courtyard of the asylum. Dracula then mocks the men and promises that he has a final box, or resting place; that he can fight the five men for a long time; and that he "already" has possession of Lucy and Mina, the women of the group.

After Dracula runs away, however, Van Helsing tells the shaken members of the group that the group has the upper hand, and that Dracula appears afraid. Van Helsing also notes that a good amount of the gold stored in the Carfax basement was not there when they sterilized the boxes, meaning that Dracula appears ready to flee. The group members go to Seward's house to check on Mina.

Mina, however, has not been touched by Dracula, and appears proud of the men that they have repelled him successfully—at least for now. The men and Mina have supper and prepare to go on watch, for the night, to guard for the Count, as they formulate a plan to find him out, and the final box, and to destroy both.

Jonathan Harker's Journal. October 3-4. Close to midnight. During the night, Harker is awakened several times by Mina, who tells him she think she hears something. But the other men of the group, on watch, seem to guard successfully against Dracula, as no one attempts to enter the house.

Later that night, Mina calls for Van Helsing, as she has an idea to discuss with him. Van Helsing comes into the room, and Mina asks him if he can hypnotize her—she feels that, since she is now "connected by blood" to Dracula, perhaps she can be hypnotized into a state in which she communes with the Count, or at least has knowledge of his whereabouts. Van Helsing proceeds to hypnotize Mina, as Harker watches.

In her hypnotized state, Mina says she can see only darkness and hear the lapping of waves—this causing Van Helsing to think that the Count is attempting his escape, with the final wooden box, aboard a boat somewhere. He and the rest of the group resolve to find out where this boat might be headed, and Van Helsing, waking Mina up, has Harker stay with her to watch over her, in case Dracula returns.