Gothic literature uses genre to discuss social norms and explore stereotypes while questioning whether gender stereotypes should be maintained or disrupted in society. In this essay, I will compare two female characters and two male characters in Gothic texts to establish how gender stereotypes are maintained and disrupted in Gothic literature. I will analyze the characters Count Dracula and Mina Harker from Bram Stoker's Dracula, Laura from Christina Rossetti's "Goblin Market", and Aylmer from Nathaniel Hawthorne's "The Birthmark" as examples of the genre's impact on Gothic literature. I will also compare how these characters interact with people of the same sex and people of the opposite sex. There is a connection between gender and submission versus subversion, which I will explore in more detail using these characters (Gbogi). I will argue that although Gothic literature uses characters who disrupt gender stereotypes, the texts primarily promote gender stereotypes as morally better and aim to normalize and enforce them among readers. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay At the time all of these texts were written, social norms determined that a woman's place was in the home, meaning that they should be housewives and mothers (Prescott and Giorgio) . The literature of this era and that which preceded it promoted the stereotypical female character to normalize and impose these stereotypes on readers, both men and women (Gbogi 506). Laura Mulvey (Wagner xxxii) argues that cinema focuses on men who actively seek out a passive woman and that in turn, women become passive as they are deemed more attractive. Although Mulvey discusses the representation of gender in terms of cinema, his argument can also be applied to the representation of gender in literature. Passive female characters in Gothic texts tend to be better perceived by the male characters in the text; they are pure and behave as good Victorian ladies should behave (Prescott and Giorgio 487). Female characters are rewarded for their femininity and punished for displaying masculine traits such as intelligence or unrepressed sexual desires (Mendoza). Similarly, male characters are presented as strong and powerful if they are very masculine, while any deviation from this is seen as weak and unnatural (Kuzmanovic). The character of Laura in Christina Rossetti's "Goblin Market" lets her curiosity get the better of her. and is consumed with the desire to eat the fruits of goblin men. Laura is unable to pay the goblin men for their fruit, but instead gives them a lock of hair "made of gold" (Rossetti 261). However, his weakness is not attributed to his character but rather to the "bad gifts" (Rossetti 261) of the goblin men, in other words, their masculine seduction is too powerful for a woman to resist and this So it's not the man's fault. stereotypically simple-minded woman. Many critics believe that Laura's desire for the fruit of goblin men is actually a desire for sexual pleasure (Mendoza). Rossetti's poem also warns women of a new sexual consciousness and of the consequences of giving in to sexual desires, from which it is difficult to return. Laura's misfortunes due to her curiosity become a warning to women about letting desire control them and constitute an endorsement for women to stay at home. Mina HarkerDracula (Stoker) is another female character who doesn't fit the typical female stereotype. Mina Harker is a new woman, but despite all her ideals, she settles into the role of the passive wife whose primary duty falls to her husband (Prescott and Giorgio 488). This is a complex character who cannot be classified as an “ideal Victorian woman” (Prescott and Giorgio 487), nor as a pure new woman. As a new woman, Mina rejects traditional gender stereotypes and advances by working as a schoolteacher's assistant. She is reluctantly accepted into a group of men who praise her for her masculine intelligence while admiring her femininity. However, when Mina recounts her seduction by Count Dracula, she seems to forget her role as a new woman and becomes the submissive female stereotype when she says, “strangely, I didn't want to embarrass him” (Stoker 251). By the end of Dracula Mina becomes the devoted wife and mother she aspires to be and abandons her title of New Woman in favor of the socially acceptable woman. Masculinity is just as stereotypical as femininity and, like female characters, a male character who goes against the norm is objectionable. However, unlike these female characters, who are often portrayed as victims of male temptation or femininity (Mendoza), male characters who transgress social norms are depicted as villains (Zurutuza). Count Dracula in Stoker's Dracula represents classical notions of masculinity through his physical and political strength, his wealth, his power to control others, especially women, and his title as a conqueror of blood (Zurutuza 542). Even Dracula's physical appearance exudes masculinity with "strong" facial features (Stoker 23) and an "aquiline" nose (Stoker 23). The comparison between Dracula and an eagle when first meeting Jonathon Harker alludes to his intelligence, associated with masculinity rather than femininity. However, Dracula's indiscriminate seductive advances toward people of all genders call his masculinity into question (Kuzmanovic 412). Dracula's drinking of blood by piercing flesh with his "particularly sharp white teeth" (Stoker 23) which "protruded from the lips" (Stoker 23) is the vampire version of sexual penetration. Dracula is a figure of unrepressed sexual desire. Kuzmanovic (413) discusses Dracula's seduction as being intended to tempt those with repressed sexual desires and causes identity confusion for these characters, particularly Jonathon Harker who unwittingly participates in a homoerotic encounter with Count Dracula (41-4 ). The sexual confusion and desire caused by Dracula as well as the questions of masculinity he raises ends in his death, which is the result of the honest masculinity of the other male characters combined with the masculine intelligence of Mina Harker. Aylmer from Nathaniel Hawthorne's "The Birthmark" is not interested. in seduction like Dracula, but rather in control. He uses his masculine authority to persuade his wife to let him remove the birthmark that "destroyed the effect of Georgiana's beauty and made her face still more hideous" (Hawthorne 233). Aylmer becomes obsessed with its destruction and measures his own success as a man by his ability to rid his wife of the mark. He perceives the birthmark “as a threat to his masculine dominance” (Howard 133). The birthmark isn't really Aylmer's problem, it's just a symptom. Aylmer's real problem lies in his wife's obedience to him. At first, she was hesitant to remove the birthmark, but was convinced by Aylmer's insistence. When Aylmer succeeds in removing the stainfrom birth, he rejoices in his masculinity. However, the removal of the birthmark results in the death of his wife. Aylmer's attempt to prove his masculinity results in "ultimately destroying the brand, his wife, and his own all-powerful self-perception" (Howard 135). Laura in “Goblin Market” (Rossetti) and Count Dracula in Dracula (Stoker). ) are imbued with sexual desire, but their gender determines how their sexual desires are interpreted. Laura's femininity makes her sexual desire the symptom of being a victim of her femininity and therefore weak in the face of men's seductions. Dracula's sexual desires transgress the norm of masculinity, making them unseemly, abhorrent, and villainous. Mina Harker, on the other hand, seems to be the epitome of a Victorian lady and is praised by the male characters for this. It is also revealed that she possesses masculine intelligence for which men also praise her, albeit reluctantly. However, she is neither completely feminine nor completely masculine and is therefore placed in an in-between category where she is not entirely accepted by either party. It is only when she fully adheres to the female gender stereotype that she is accepted. While Mina Harker is criticized for being a mixture of feminine and masculine, Aylmer is criticized for being excessively masculine and dominating his wife to the point of death. These texts demonstrate that there is a fine line between being a socially acceptable gender character and being chastised for gender representation. In “Goblin Market,” Laura attempts to subvert the feminine role by allowing her curiosity to control her and, in doing so, becomes ill. She recovers after submitting to the feminine role. However, Laura is not portrayed as a villain, but rather a victim of the temptations of the goblin men (Gbogi 8). Goblin men are deviants who trick women into buying their fruit, thereby tempting their sexual desires (Mendoza 914). In the same way, Mina Harker also tries to become an atypical woman in the guise of the ideal woman (Prescott and Giorgio 488). Where Laura is punished for breaking the norm, Mina is welcomed, however reluctantly, into male-dominated territory. Laura and Mina have one major thing in common: they both conform to social norms and adopt the persona of the stereotypical female character, which, as Gbogi (506) argues, encourages readers to maintain the stereotype. However, there is also compelling evidence for Kuzmanovic's argument that while female stereotypes are reinforced in Dracula, he also encourages an open-minded approach in working with people from socio-economic, ethnic and ethnic backgrounds. and different genders. Although these Gothic texts feature female characters who in their attempt to subvert social norms, it is the male characters who ultimately force them into submission by using their masculinity as a weapon of strength against the weakness of femininity. Dracula uses his transgressive masculinity to seduce men and women and force them to submit to his will. His seduction of Mina Harker oppresses his New Woman principles and attracts the docile Victorian lady (Prescott and Giorgio 487). However, Dracula's monstrous masculinity is depicted as villainous and is used to contrast the gentlemanly masculinity of other male characters in order to impose socially acceptable standards for men. Aylmer's domination and forced submission of his wife which results in his death are a warning from Hawthorne about the destructive consequences of men forcing women to submit. If these texts somewhat encourage female liberation, they identify a.