Dracula Animal symbolism

Brainstorm … What is your impression of rats? What has formed that opinion? What could change it in the future?

Rats & Wolves Brainstorm at least 10 adjectives to describe rats. Brainstorm at least 10 adjectives to describe wolves. Come up with the antonym (opposite) for each word on your list. Could your antonym still be used to describe rats and/or wolves if the animals were being used in a different way in the novel? Explain.

Breaking it down… So far in the novel, rats and wolves have both made an appearance. When have they been present? What have they represented? What do they foreshadow? Do the wolves that attack Harker’s carriage as he is going to meet Dracula for the first time have the same meaning and symbolism as the wolf that crashes through Lucy’s window? What other animals could be used to convey the same meaning that the rats and wolves do?

In groups of 4-5… Discuss the following questions until you can agree… Does a vampire count as a creature/animal or as a person in the novel? What factors define it as either? How can a reader decide, when reading something in the horror genre, whether a creature such as a vampire, zombie or monster is a human character or an animal character? What might they symbolize in this novel? Report on your discussion & decision to the class.