Discuss the presentation and role of Mine in Bram Stoker's "Dracula", considering the historical and social context of the novel.

In many ways, Dracula is more than just a thriller. It explores, among other themes, issues of sexual repression and the conflict between the old and new. Stoker presents Mina as the model Victorian female: she is dutiful to her husband, pure and chaste, and sympathetic. Furthermore, she exemplifies the Victorian ideals of progress, technological advancement and rationality. As such, she is key to the conflict between old and new (the irrational and the rational), …

…the Host to her forehead burned rather than helped. Dracula's dire warning: Your girls that you all love are mine already...my creatures, to do my bidding echoes in the reader's mind from chapter 21 onwards - Mina is constantly under threat. The combination of Mina's vital importance and her vulnerability mean that the final parts of the book are pervaded by feverish tension and suspense, as her life and all Victorian society are fought for.