Bram Stoker and Russophobia: Evidence of the British Fear of Russia in Dracula and the Lady of the Shroud

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During famed Dracula author Bram Stoker’s life in Victorian-era England, there was a marked and prevalent fear of Russia, termed Russophobia, in the government and the British public. Events such as the Crimean War and World War I created this perception of barbarous invaders in the English mind, and in his work Stoker responds to the Russian challenge to British hegemony through the character of Dracula, a primitive and menacing Eastern figure destroyed by warriors pledged to the Crown. Until this book, little attention had been paid to possible Russian influences on Stoker. Through its five chapters, the text investigates the role that Russophobia played in the formation of Bram Stoker’s fictional works, particularly his novels
Dracula
and
The Lady of the Shroud , both vampire novels, and argues that the author lived during a milieu rich in antagonism towards Russia. Offering historical information about Russophobia and the Crimean War, including the consequences of the post-war fallout, Slavic and Balkan connections and analysis of Stoker’s vampiric themes, this is a work of two nations’ histories that intertwine through an unexpected literary avenue. The book contains 28 photographs and illustrations, including historical political cartoons and editorial illustrations, as well as a full bibliography.