Use context to explain a particular choice in the writing. This activity discusses events from Chapters 18–21. Read the passages in full before writing.
Name __________________________ Date __________________
“She has man’s brain — a brain that a man should have were he much gifted — and a woman’s heart.”
Van Helsing, recorded in Seward’s diary, Chapter 18. Continue through the decision to exclude Mina, then read Jonathan’s response in Chapter 19.
How does the praise define intellect and feeling? Who describes Mina, and in what kind of document? Analyse a particular word or grammatical choice.
Read the New Woman section of the Mina essay. Select one point about women’s work or education that helps explain this passage. Record the source and explain the connection; do not treat all Victorian women as a single group.
Compare the exclusion with Mina’s information-gathering in Chapter 17 and the aftermath of her attack in Chapter 21. Which detail supports your argument? Which complicates it?
How does Stoker present the limits placed on Mina’s independence? Begin with the passage, use context to develop your analysis, and qualify your conclusion.
Compare Charlotte Stoker’s educational advocacy with Mina’s useful work. What can the comparison establish? What further evidence would be needed to show direct influence?
Read the linked passages and scholarship at Mina Harker and the New Woman. For comparative work, ask how a woman’s knowledge is presented in your partner text.