Papers presented at Dracula 97, a centenary celebration at Los Angeles, August 1997.

Monsters and shape-shifters have always held a special fascination in mythologies, legends, and folklore the world over. From ancient customs to famous cases of beasts and vampires and their reflections in popular culture, 600 entries provide definitions, explanations, and lists of suggested further reading.

Dracula is an 1897 Gothic horror novel by Irish author Bram Stoker. It introduced the character of Count Dracula, and established many conventions of subsequent vampire fantasy. The novel tells the story of Dracula's attempt to move from Transylvania to England so that he may find new blood and spread the undead curse, and of the battle between Dracula and a small group of men and a woman led by Professor Abraham Van Helsing.

For many in the West, Romania is synonymous with Count Dracula. Since the publication of Bram Stoker's famous novel in 1897 Transylvania (and by extension, Romania) has become inseparable in the Western imagination with Dracula, vampires and the supernatural. Moreover, since the late 1960s Western tourists have travelled to Transylvania on their own searches for the literary and supernatural roots of the Dracula myth. Such 'Dracula tourism' presents Romania with a dilemma. On one hand, Dracula is Romania's unique selling point and has considerable potential to be exploited for economic gain. On the other hand, the whole notion of vampires and the supernatural is starkly at odds with Romania's self-image as a modern, developed, European state. This book examines the way that Romania has negotiated Dracula tourism over the past four decades. During the communist period (up to 1989) the Romanian state did almost nothing to encourage such tourism but reluctantly tolerated it. However, some discrete local initiatives were developed to cater for Dracula enthusiasts that operated at the margins of legality in a communist state. In the post-communist period (after 1989) any attempt to censor Dracula has disappeared and the private sector in Romania has been swift to exploit the commercial possibilities of the Count. However, the Romanian state remains ambivalent about Dracula and continues to be reluctant to encourage or promote Dracula tourism. As such Romania's dilemma with Dracula remains unresolved.

Using question/answer format, the book covers: the origins of the vampire myth; the life of Bram Stoker, author of Dracula (1897); the novel, its genesis and sources; the historical figure (Vlad the Impaler) whose nickname Stoker borrowed for his Count; an examination of the connection between Vlad and Count Dracula; the impact the novel has had since its publication; and an overview of interpretations of the book. Included is a reading list. Some questions answered in the book: What are the roots of vampire lore? How did vampires move from folklore to literature? What do we know about the actual writing of Dracula? Where did Bram Stoker find his information about vampires? Are there any autobiographical elements in Dracula? Did Dracula originate in a nightmare? What do we know of the relationship between Stoker and his wife? Did Stoker die of syphilis? How did Count Dracula become a vampire? Does Count Dracula have any redeeming qualities? How was the novel Dracula received when published in 1897? What did Stoker himself say about the novel? Why did Stoker name his vampire "Dracula"? Why did he select Transylvania as the vampire's homeland? How much did Stoker really know about Vlad the Impaler? Was Vlad ever associated with vampire legends? What are our main sources of information about Vlad? Why do many Romanians consider Vlad to be a national hero? Which of the Dracula movies is the best adaptation of Stoker's novel? What impact has Dracula had on subsequent vampire fiction? Why does Count Dracula have such enduring appeal? How do Romanians feel about Dracula tourism in their country? Is there a real Castle Dracula? What are some of the interpretations of Dracula? Is Dracula a classic? And many, many more! Depending on the complexity of the questions, the answers range from 5-6 lines to several pages. -- from publisher description.

The bestselling author of "The New Annotated Sherlock Holmes" returns with this spectacular, lavishly illustrated homage to Bram Stoker's "Dracula." 35 color and 400 b&w illustrations.

Victorian literature is rife with scenes of madness, with mental disorder functioning as everything from a simple plot device to a commentary on the foundations of Victorian society. But while madness in Victorian fiction has been much studied, most scholarship has focused on the portrayal of madness in women; male mental disorder in the period has suffered comparative neglect. Valerie Pedlar corrects this imbalance in The 'Most Dreadful Visitation.' This extraordinary study explores a wide range of Victorian writings to consider the relationship between the portrayal of mental illness in literary works and the portrayal of similar disorders in the writings of doctors and psychologists. Pedlar presents in-depth studies of Dickens's Barnaby Rudge, Tennyson's Maud, Wilkie Collins's Basil, and Trollope's He Knew He Was Right, considering each work in the context of Victorian understandings--and fears--of mental degeneracy.An Open Access edition of this work is available on the OAPEN Library.

· Are any vampire myths based on fact? · Bloodsucking villain to guilt-ridden loner—what has inspired the redemption of the vampire in fiction and film? · What is Vampire Personality Disorder? What causes a physical addiction to another person’s blood? · Are there any boundaries in the polysexual world of vampires? · How could a vampire hide in today’s world of advanced forensic science? · What is the psychopathology of the vampire? · What happens in the brain of a vampire’s victim? Si...