The Reciprocal Relationship Between Mental Illness and Vampirism
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Journal of Multidisciplinary Research at Trent Volume 2 Issue 1 Journal Article Retrospective Analysis of Renfield: The Reciprocal Relationship Between Mental Illness and Vampirism Erika Crowleya* a Environmental and Life Sciences Graduate Program, Trent University, 1600 West Bank Drive, Peterborough, K9J 0G2, Ontario, Canada *Correspondence to: [email protected] Received: May 1, 2019; Accepted: December 22, 2019; Published: December 31, 2019 Abstract R.M. Renfield is a character in Bram Stoker’s 1897 Dracula that has contributed to a GrowinG body of literature that uses the term Renfield Syndrome to describe real-life clinical vampirism. Renfield, an inmate of Dr. John Steward’s lunatic asylum, has a growing obsession with immortality that leads him to consume living creatures for their life force and eventually results in him lickinG Dr. Steward’s blood from the Ground. Renfield’s zoophagous behavior is encouraged by the vampire Count Dracula, with whom Renfield has a telepathic connection. The current work explores the character Renfield in Dracula and identifies him as an anti-vampirism archetype that has a reciprocal relationship between mental illness and vampirism because while his mental instability causes his vampirism, the exacerbation of his mental instability is also the punishment for his vampirism. Keywords: Renfield Syndrome, Vampirism, Vampire, Dracula, Renfield Main Text Renfield Syndrome, about R.M. “selfish” and “purposeful” (Stoker, 1897/2001, Renfield in Bram Stoker’s 1897 Dracula, was p. 67). His growing obsession with immortality coined by psychologist Richard Noll in 1992 to compels him to consume living creatures to describe real-life clinical vampirism. Although obtain their life force. He starts with eating rare and not currently classified in the flies. He then feeds the flies to spiders to eat Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental the spiders and subsequently feeds spiders to Disorders, Renfield has contributed to a birds to eat the birds. He later requests a cat growing body of literature by influencing likely for further consumption. Dr. Steward researchers to study clinical vampirism. As an diagnoses him as a “zoophagous maniac” due inmate of Dr. John Steward’s lunatic asylum, to his obsession with consuming more and Renfield is first described as having “sanguine more life (Stoker, 1897/2001, p. 69). temperament” and “great physical strength” Renfield’s cravings eventually escalate to true (Stoker, 1897/2001, p. 59) as well as appearing clinical vampirism when he attacks Dr. Crowley (2019) 178 Steward and is “licking up, like a dog, the background is a mystery, he claims to “have blood that had fallen from [Dr. Steward’s] worshipped [Dracula] long and afar off,” much wounded wrist” (Stoker, 1897/2001, p. 137). before Dracula travelled to England, indicating Renfield corresponds telepathically with Count that Dracula and Renfield had a relationship Dracula, who encourages Renfield’s before the events in the novel. Johnathan zoophagous behaviour and sends him life Harker is found close to madness with “violent forms in exchange for loyalty. Renfield’s brain fever” after his captivity in Dracula’s zoophagous behaviour is a moral failing that castle (Stoker, 1897/2001, p. 97). If Renfield likely results from mental instability and was once in a position similar to Harker’s, as influence from Dracula. Since sanity is a seen in the 1992 film adaption Bram Stoker’s virtue, the exacerbation of Renfield’s mental Dracula, then perhaps his later mental illness illness is punishment for his vampirism. and vampirism are manifestations of traumatic Renfield’s character is, therefore, a cautionary events that occurred in Dracula’s custody. anti-vampirism archetype with a reciprocal Alternatively, an early mental instability and relationship between mental illness and affinity towards life-consumption could have vampirism wherein mental instability is both made Renfield vulnerable to Dracula’s the cause of and the punishment for vampiric telepathic manipulation despite the distance. behaviour. Regardless of Renfield’s backstory and connection with Dracula, mental instability Renfield likely had a predisposition to appears to be a precursor to his zoophagous life-consumption idealizations and mental behaviour. instability, and his association with Dracula exacerbates his zoophagous behaviour to a Reciprocity between mental illness and clinical concern. A review of scientific clinical vampirism is evident in Renfield’s literature regarding clinical vampirism was progression, starting with initial the mental completed (Figure 1) and seven cases were instability that results in zoophagous behaviour isolated to exemplify the management of and continuing throughout the novel when modern vampirism (Table 1). Oppawasky zoophagous and manic episodes are paralleled. (2010) describes a patient with a history of Scholars believe that Renfield’s psychiatric poor mother-child relations and drinking care in Dracula was influenced by Stoker’s two animal blood since childhood (p. 61). Although younger brothers (physicians), eldest brother this patient developed schizophrenia, he did (lunatic asylum surgeon), and brother’s wife not become a vampire until joining a vampire who had a mental illness (Alliata, 2015, p. 180; group. Similarly, Sakarya, Gunes, Ozturk, and Winter, 2012, p. 53). Few academics have Sar (2012) describe a patient with an considered Renfield’s mental instability association with multiple traumatic events who retrospectively. However, Alliata argues for a subsequently developed dissociative identity diagnosis of manic depressive disorder, which disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder accounts for his bouts of depression “periods leading to vampirism (p. 323). Hervey, of gloom” (Stoker, 1897/2001, p. 69) without Catalano, and Catalano (2016) describe a association to zoophagous behaviour and patient who had blood-drinking idealizations mania “sudden passion” (Stoker, 1897/2001, p. since childhood but only began acting on these 127) with association to his progression from idealizations following a traumatic brain injury zoophagous behaviours to clinical vampirism (p. 141). According to the literature, a and the proximity of Dracula (Alliata, 2015, p. combination of mental illness and external 182). The reciprocity of Renfield’s mental factors can catalyze and intensify vampiric state and clinical vampirism continues as behaviour (Table 1). Although Renfield’s JMRT 2(1): Page 177-182 Crowley (2019) 179 Renfield’s mental illness is exacerbated to human emphasizes the taboo and illogical punishment for his vampirism. nature of vampirism because he does not require blood to sustain his life. To fulfill the As Renfield’s zoophagous behaviours cautionary tale, Renfield is challenged with the develop into clinical vampirism, his mental ultimate punishment that is unequivocal instability also advances to mental illness as a mental illness. Mental illness is a fate that punishment for the clinical vampirism. Instead haunts nearly every living character in Dracula, of providing treatment for Renfield’s for example, Johnathan Harker begs “God exacerbated mental state, Dr. Steward enables preserve my sanity, for to this I am reduced” and promotes the zoophagous behaviour as “it (Stoker, 1897/2001, p. 36) when in Dracula’s would almost be worthwhile to complete the castle. Stripping sanity from an individual is a experiment” (Stoker, 1897/20, p. 69) due to his seemingly fatal punishment. Renfield’s ideals of personal gain from the discovery to concluding act of warning Mina and “advance [his] own branch of science” (Stoker, subsequently getting killed by his “master” 1897/2001, p. 69). Renfield and Dr. Steward’s Dracula finalizes the failure of Renfield’s goal similarities are paralleled through their times to achieve immortality, the immorality of of mental instability. Renfield may have Renfield’s vampirism and the permanency of manic-depressive syndrome (Alliata, 2015, p. his punishment. 182), and Dr. Steward may have depression over the loss of Lucy (Stoker, 1897/2001, p. Renfield represents an anti-vampirism 59). In addition, they have an obsession with archetype with reciprocity between mental zoophagous behaviour as Renfield needs to instability and zoophagous behaviour wherein consume life, and Dr. Steward needs to mental illness is both the cause of and understand Renfield’s need to consume life punishment for vampirism. Consistent with (Stoker, 1897/2001, p. 69). Both men also use modern understandings of clinical vampirism, scientific methodologies to obsessively Renfield likely tended towards mental document their test subjects as Renfield studies instability and life-consumption idealizations, his various life forms, and Dr. Steward studies and correspondence with Dracula intensified Renfield (Stoker, 1897/2001, p. 69). Renfield’s his zoophagous behaviour to clinical immorality due to his vampirism is, therefore, vampirism. Mental illness and vampirism, in the separating factor between Dr. Steward and association with Dracula’s presence, are Renfield. Renfield is punished for his paralleled throughout the novel and can be vampirism by a worsening mental state. explained retrospectively by the manic- Renfield, not permitted to leave or be treated, depressive syndrome. Renfield’s punishment is a prisoner at the lunatic asylum. Dr. Steward for his vampirism is his exacerbated mental might have been more eager to treat Renfield’s illness, which was studied but not treated by mental illness