Comments on: Mejor Vampira Que Mal Acompañada

By: Mike

Mike — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 21:18:07 +0000

Very good catch there Kevin. I had noticed a distinct shift in the two female characters but hadn’t been able to put my finger on it before reading your analysis.

By: OneBigParty

OneBigParty — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 09:44:04 +0000

Anyway Kevin–now that we’re on chap. 11 I can say this–I think you’re right in a sense: Becoming acquainted with what it is to struggle against a sense of dread has made Lucy’s daintily “ditzy” personality (because she’s been brought up in privilege and kept sheltered, more than because she’s young and female) give way to something that seems to have more depth, as well as the “maturity” you mention. Maybe a bit of a cliche, but this is often the case with suffering. I don’t think it’s Dracula necessarily that causes this, at least not directly which is what you seem to be saying, but correct me if I’m wrong.

Her Sept 12 entry (Chapter 12) says “How blessed are some people, whose lives have no fears, no dreads; to whom sleep is a blessing that comes nightly, and brings nothing but sweet dreams.” And “..oh the terrible struggle I have had…the pain of the sleeplessness…the pain of the fear of sleep…”

She, who one would think would have gone through life feeling extremely blessed (and she snagged a Lord) now feels a deprivation that drives her to more of an “examining life” stance. Her complaints culminate in her comparing herself to a suicide, so radically has the emotional tenor of her existence changed. And for me, Lucy’s diary here quoting Shakepeare, quoting great poetry (and a particularly beautiful line, at that), indicates that she is somewhat of an aesthete if not much more intellectual than I saw her at first and this changes the idea of how mature she is as well.

By: OneBigParty

OneBigParty — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 01:21:42 +0000

Well, I had never heard of “STFU Marrieds” and I wanted to know what the heck you were talking about so I followed the link.

Somebody shoot me.

By: kevinfanning

kevinfanning — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 00:25:21 +0000

Wow, you’re totally right, sorry about that, I misread the schedule. I’m actually having a hard time following the schedule–the book moves along at a pretty good clip, it feels like we’re throttling things with our schedule.

By: meave

meave — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 18:46:50 +0000

I completely miss Mina. All the CONSTANT CONCERN from the doctors about Lucy, it’s tiresome. Actually, the revolving-around-Dear-Lucy everyone seems to do is tiresome as well; when Mina stops, I don’t blame her. She has enough on her plate with Mary Sue Harker, does she have the time and energy that being Dear Lucy’s BFF requires (demands) as well? No, I say, not at all. One woman, no matter how modern, can only do so much.

By: Jamie

Jamie — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 16:46:36 +0000

Thanks for warning us in the first line. According to the schedule, today we’ll have finished Chapter 11, not 12.

By: Pierce

Pierce — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 15:44:41 +0000

Interesting. I had appreciated Lucy’s development as a real character (assuming it strength coming in the face of adversity, rather than in the hand of Dracula, which was a little short-sighted of me maybe). Now that I think of it, I am recently infuriated by Mina’s increasingly distant and disconnected voice in the story. I hadn’t drawn a line across the two.

Although it’s early days yet, I was much frustrated by her tritely worded letter to Lucy on the death of Hawkins. And her description of his earlier reunion with Harker was equally unfulfilling. Did they discuss Dracula? Harker’s experience on his work-trip? Did Hawkins fake his gout, and sacrifice his apprentice to save himself? Did he know, or have some intimation? Maybe the answers are coming, but with Hawkins written away in a paragraph I’m dubious.