Removing FeminismIn 1897, after seven years of writing, Dracula was finally published. Written by Bram Stoker in the Victorian era. There were many sentiments in favor of the emancipation of women. Although these feelings emanated primarily from women, there were also opposing feelings, mainly from men, who did not share the same feelings towards women's liberation. The feminist movement was beginning to take hold of society and many would have to get used to the new ideals that women could eventually rise to power. Dracula attracts a lot of criticism. There is so much symbolism depicted in the novel that many wonder what exactly Bram Stoker was trying to convey to his audience. Some believe that his repressed feelings of homosexuality were shown in the novel, along with other things such as fear of anti-Victorian beliefs of the time. Broker didn't live to see how popular his novel became, so no one will ever really know what repressed feelings Stoker had while writing Dracula. There are a few characters in Dracula who embody the views of society at the time towards uplifting women for the better. rights. On the other hand, there are also characters who portray Victorian ideals that men are stronger than women and how it should stay that way. As author Bram Dijkstra mentions in his response essay, "Stoker's work demonstrates how thoroughly 19th-century male culture's war against women's dignity and self-respect was waged" ( Dijkstra, p. The well-known character of Dracula is Mina Murray, a virtuous, kind and good-natured schoolteacher. Murray is the embodiment of the “New Woman”. She empathetically embraces the anti-Victorian sentiments of that era in front of the real...... middle of paper ......n. Throughout the novel, these men have been presented as very dominant men who seek out Count Dracula to kill him and restore society to its normalcy. In the novel, women were overpowered by his powers because they were too weak and men were strong enough to find the reckoning that would end him. It appears that Bram Dijkstr was against Bram Stoker's possible implications regarding Dracula's anti-feminist symbolism. . In Dracula's Backlash he states: "Stoker was clearly a man of limited intelligence, typical of the fairly educated, fairly well-off, middle-aged middle class" (460). While Dracula did not attract any criticism in the years following its publication. It actually gained its fame after the Victorian era. With all his subliminal messages, the public is left wondering why Bram Stoker wrote such a controversial novel..