Dracula Psychoanalytical Literary Analysis Essay

The novel Dracula, by Bram Stoker, is a classic for a reason, because it catches the reader’s attention and keeps them engaged throughout the whole story. Dracula is a story about one of the smartest serial killers. He attempts to befriend a solicitor, Jonathan Harker, in order to move him and his belongings to a new estate in London. He does this in order to be in a big city with a lot more potential victims. He attempts to lock the young solicitor in his castle in order to keep the truth of his plan sealed away. Unfortunately for him Harker escapes and tries revealing the Count’s plan in order to stop him from committing a mass amount of murders. The whole time Harker is trying to get back home the Count is preying on those close to John and his fiance, Mina. I will be discussing Renfield's mental delusions for which he suffers greatly. His role was a patient in a lunatic asylum, who was thought to be a madman but was actually a pawn under Count Dracula. In Dracula, schizophrenia is the disorder in which the character Renfield suffers from.

Renfield is suffering from undifferentiated schizophrenia. People who have schizophrenia often have bizarre behavior. (Heather Jones). While in his cell, “About eight o’clock he began to get excited and sniff about as a dog does when setting.” (Stoker 205). From this abnormal behavior it is easy to conclude that Renfield suffers from a type of schizophrenia. He is characterized as a very odd case in the asylum. The same night he was sniffing around as a dog he said something very unusual to the attendant. Someone suffering from schizophrenia may have delusions. (Heather Jones). While sniffing about, “I don’t wish to talk to you: you don’t count now; the Master is at hand.” (Stoker 205). By analyzing what he was saying it is verified that he also suffers from delusions which cause him to say these very bizarre things. Renfield escapes multiple times only to return to the same chapel just on the other side of the wall of the asylum. In many cases people with schizophrenia have trouble with logical thinking. (Heather Jones). After he escaped and was sitting by the chapel door, “I am here to do Your bidding, Master. I am Your slave, and You will reward me, for I shall be faithful. I have worshiped You long and afar off. Now that You are near, I await Your commands, and You will not pass me by, will You, dear Master, in Your distribution of good things?” (Stoker 208). Clearly from this example Renfield is not thinking clearly because he is talking to someone who is not there. Through these examples the reader can conclude that the character Renfield suffers from a type of schizophrenia.

Works Cited

Stoker, Bram. Dracula. E-Book, Signet, 1992. 

Jones, Heather. “What Are the Subtypes of Schizophrenia?” Verywell Health, Verywell Health, 21 Feb. 2021, https://www.verywellhealth.com/types-of-schizophrenia-5094170.