On my rereading of the novel Dracula this year (that I posted about yesterday) one of the details that caught my attention was that Jonathan Harker references having a Kodak. This was a detail I had not noticed before. Since I was listening to an audiobook recording of Stoker’s classic, I double-checked when I got home that I had indeed heard correctly. And yes, there it was in black & white, a Kodak.

This got me thinking about the various technologies in Dracula and their role in the novel. So I tried paying particular attention to these as I relistened to the familiar story.

Several modern technologies of the Victorian Era play important roles in Stoker’s novel. He seems to use them in particular to contrast the supernatural threat of Dracula with the modernity and rationalism of the protagonists. These “modern” technologies reinforce the theme of modern science vs. ancient evil.

Here is an incomplete list of the Victorian technologies that play a significant role in the novel:

• Kodak camera
• Phonograph & Dictation Machine
• Shorthand
• Typewriter (both portable and desktop)
• Telegraphs
• Railroads
• Steamships
• Blood Transfusions
• Hypnosis
• Daily Newspapers

I include Hypnosis in this list because of the way Stoker has the Doctor and Van Helsing view it as a modern, scientific breakthrough.

No doubt I am missing a few technologies, but the point is that these played an important role in the plot in various ways. And that is what I was interested in.

On my next rereading, I wonder what new details or themes will I notice? And yes, there will be another rereading.