Ambiguity?

Within this new context of gender roles and the feminist idea, a few new ideas arise regarding Stoker’s Dracula, portraying a different light to the work when compared with the related essays of defining gender criticism, Craft’s “Kiss Me With Those Red Lips’”, and Eltis’s “Corruption of the Blood and the Degeneration of the Race”. Each one, addressing various levels of the feminist idea, begins to add depth the multiple layers of Victorian feminism, sexual energy and gender roles, as portrayed throughout the novel. The interesting thing though, as portrayed by Stoker’s comments, is his somewhat ambivalent state regarding the feminist position within the work. On one hand Stoker represents Lucy as for the most part, a submissive, weaker, well kept, young proper Victorian lady, who when in times of distress needs the “strength” of four men’s blood to keep her alive. This is juxtaposed with Mina, the working woman, who with her own strength plays the stronger support to Jonathan as he struggles with his position within Mr. Hawkins home post his traumatic experience. As Mina states it is, “my belief in him [that] helps him to have a belief in himself” (Stoker 170) representing a complete role reversal from the “norm”. Craft’s work brings the imagery of sex one step beyond in discussing the “wicked desire” as portrayed earlier with Jonathan’s run in with the 3 vampire brides. So does it, for the moment it seems that Stoker appears to perpetuate this ambiguity?