Dracula: Chapter 9 Summary & Analysis

Now Mina is, once again, in the caretaker role, and Harker, who is devoted to his now-wife, wishes to do everything he can to "get better" and return to normal English society—even if that means ignoring the terrible visions he had while at the Castle. In other words, he tries to repress his visions of the occult—to treat them as hallucinations rather than real.

Harker believes, now, that his journal is explicitly a document of madness, and that to trust the journal as an accurate account of his time with Dracula would be madness as well. But Mina, of course, learns eventually that this is not the case, and that the journal of Harker's is a very useful document in the search for Dracula.

Mina is perhaps right in having Harker marry her right away—Lucy, who waits to marry Arthur until after Arthur's father is taken care of or passes away, dies unwed, whereas Mina may rely upon her husband, and he upon her, in a socially-recognized union.

Lucy seems to think, at this point, that her own wedding will take place soon, and that she will soon be joining Mina in the realm of married bliss, with Arthur at her side.

Here Renfield appears to invert the typical pattern of the vampire. While Dracula operates at night and must "sleep" during the day (more like recharge in his wooden box), Renfield, on the other hand, finds normal human calm only at night.

Renfield appears to recognize the form Dracula can take—the bat. Seward, again, persists in a condition of not-knowing, thus prompting a good deal of dramatic irony on the part of the reader, who has, at this point, deduced that Renfield is a disciple of Dracula's.

Lucy is simply losing too much blood to continue to maintain her weight, health, and healthy appearance. Yet all of the characters think that the cause must be some illness—there must be a natural, as opposed to supernatural, explanation for what is happening.

Again experiences of the occult manifest as dreams for rational Westerners. One might wonder why Arthur does not split his time between his father and his fiancée more evenly—as it seems he spends a good deal with the former. But perhaps this is an unfair position in which to place a grieving and over-taxed young man. (Also, him being around would mess up the plot of the story.)

Arthur knows that Seward was devastated when Lucy rejected his proposal of marriage, but now he can call upon their friendship to ask that Seward look after Lucy, as a favor to himself (to Arthur).

Again, Arthur is forced to choose between Lucy's health, which he considers more stable, and his father's, which he considers to be far more precarious.

Van Helsing is introduced. The Professor is a strange man, and what is most notable about him, to the reader, is his bizarre manner of speaking, in a kind of broken English that must derive from his heavy Dutch accent. But Van Helsing is an intelligent man, a man of both science and broad cultural learning, whose knowledge of eastern legend and superstition, and willingness to trust these legends, place him in contrast to Seward and all of the other Western characters who don't grant any reality to the occult described in superstition and so are vulnerable to it.

It is not mentioned how Van Helsing is able to travel between England and Holland at a moment's notice, but it appears that train and ferry travel between these location is quite efficient.

Van Helsing seems to suspect right away, when he labels Lucy's anemia as being "atypical," that something supernatural is to blame. But Van Helsing appears also to understand that he must slowly and carefully lead Seward, and others of the group, to the conclusion he suspects from the beginning—that Lucy has been bitten, and is being visited, by a vampire.

Renfield's behavior grows more disturbed, and Seward struggles to find a reason. What is interesting is the fact that Renfield's behavior is only inexplicable if one disregards superstition, legend, and instances of the occult. Seward, a man of science, is blinkered by his inability to consider explanations beyond the scientific realm—and Van Helsing helps Seward to see these supernatural explanations.

Another instance of false hope, as Lucy's blood has returned in sufficient quantity, only to be sucked again.

This ruddy glow, in Victorian culture, was often associate not just with health, but also with sexual arousal.

It appears that Dracula has been to visit Lucy, after a brief respite—and Lucy's condition deteriorates accordingly.