DRAFT: This module has unpublished changes.

                

 

 Blood a necessity to humanity in keeping us alive, in motion until our deaths but what happens when what keeps us alive and vital is a mere supply for others self benefits and is something taken away by force? Such is the case when speaking of the unscrupulous female murderer in history known as Countess Elizabeth Bathory de Ecsed otherwise known as “the blood countess”. And who else can be compared in both the evilness and position in power other than her counterpart the character of the story Dracula written by Bram Stoker. Both uphold the position of blood hunters and caused fear and death to those that had the misfortune of crossing their paths. Elizabeth Bathory was wealthy, with a cold demeanor and had a thirst for blood and torture such characteristics that lead us to believe that the character of Dracula was somehow written to represent her.

 

The way in which Elizabeth’s horrible history begins on blood is what makes her character so dark and vampire like for example,  “Story has it that one night a servant accidentally pulled the countess’s hair while combing it out; the countess upset with her completion in the mirror, struck out at her servant with such ferocity that she drew blood. Later the Countess discovered that her skin where the servant had bleed on her looked younger- with verification from scholars of the healing power of virgin blood the BloodCountess was born!”(Forder, 96). Such violence and dark intentions is something not becoming of a countess but seeing as she had power and kept her secret well hidden it was natural for the people to not know that she had tortured and murdered 650 to 1000 young women. This is something that can be compared to the character of Dracula because be it as it may that he is a monster that can live eternally which is what countess Elizabeth wants he is also someone who abuses power by holding the position of count. Even if count Dracula feeds on blood he like Elizabeth drains his victims and somehow manages to evade others by doing away with the bodies.

 

 

Like Elizabeth Bathory, the character of Dracula has that relation to blood and eternal youth this can be seen when Stoker writes, “there lay the count, but looking as if his youth had been half restored. For the white hair and moustache were changed to dark iron grey. The cheeks were fuller, and the white skin seemed ruby-red underneath. The mouth was redder than ever, for on the lips were gouts of fresh blood, which trickled from the corners of the mouth and ran down over the chin and neck” (Stoker, 50). This is where the relation of the character of Dracula and Elizabeth Bathory become striking, not only do they need blood but they are both looking for such a substance for the pure need of rejuvenation in other words youth is the key as to why they take away life. Even though Elizabeth’s case was do to the influence of people that practiced witchcraft and believed in dark forces but when looking at the relative closeness to their actions Dracula is a dark being himself hence another aspect that relates these two which is a relation to darkness or in other terms evil.

 

 

The way in which Elizabeth lured her victims was also much similar as how did count Dracula. Her underhanded tricks involved that “she and her four accomplices brought young peasant women to the castle, often on the pretext of offering them work and, subjected them to horrific tortures and murder including freezing and starving victims to death, prolonged beating, and mutilation with red hot poker” (Powell, 24). Even if Count Dracula showed no instances of severe treatment of his victims he still found means of luring his victims to his castle where he could feed on their blood. It is also noticeable how both count and countess use the castle they live in as a means of safety in hiding their atrocious behavior one that hides their goal of blood given youth.

 

It is out of conclusion that it is viewable by history and work of literature the way in which a person is compared to a character with a blood thirst. In common we find their power in society, need of youth and hidden attribute. If their differences where to be argued one may say that their sexes come into play, the fact that Dracula was a lone killer in occasions and the most important of all that one was alive and not a none fictional character and the other was in fact such and dead. Their ideologies on youth were somehow similar but at the same time divided. Elizabeth was a woman very much alive seeking to stay youthful and by all means alive. Yet Dracula was a dead being seeking to stay alive from the clutches of the paradoxical position of being undead but maintaining the vitality of the living.  Words that describe both Elizabeth and Dracula are, blood thirsty, powerful, alluring and out of all killers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                            WORKS CITED

 

Forder, Jay. “Vampire Owners Manual”. N.P. 2010.

 

Powell, Michael. “101 People you won’t meet in Heaven; the twisted achievements of the most brutal and sadistic individuals the world has ever known”. Connecticut: First Lyons press edition, 2007.

 

Stoker, Bram. “Dracula original text”.Forgotten books, 2007.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DRAFT: This module has unpublished changes.