Count Dracula

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Count Dracula, character of theatre, literature and cinema created by Bram Stoker.

It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Dracula. (Discuss)

Count Dracula Quotes:

Template:Chronological

Dracula

Count Dracula depicted in an illustrated newsstand from C.E.1902

Welcome to my home. Enter freely. Go calmly, and give this place something of the happiness you bring with you!
Listen to them, the children of the night! This is their music! [...] Ah, sir, you who live in the city cannot make the feelings of a hunter your own.
I have come to know your great England, and to know it is to love it. I can't wait to find myself in the crowded streets of your endless city, to be caught up in the vortex and frenzy of that humanity, to share its life, its changes, its death, and everything that makes it what it is.
I know that in London, walking around and talking, no one would fail to notice that I am a foreigner. This isn't enough for me. Here I am a nobleman. I am a boyar. Everyone knows me, they know that I am the lord and master. But a stranger in a strange land is nobody. People don't know him, and not being known means not being important. It would be enough for me to be like everyone else, so that no one stops when they see me, or stops talking if they hear my words. 'Ah, ah! A stranger!' I have been a lord and master for so long that I would like to continue to be so, or - at least - that no one can call themselves lord or master over me.
Here we are in Transylvania, and Transylvania is not England. Our habits and customs are not yours, and many things will appear strange to you.
This region was disputed for centuries between the Vlachs, Saxons and Turks. And therefore there is no clod of earth that has not been embellished with the blood of men, patriots or invaders.
I come from an old family, and living in a modern house would kill me. A house cannot be made habitable in a day, and after all, how many a few days add up to a century!
A Transylvanian noble does not like to think that his bones can lie next to those of ordinary mortals.
I do not chase happiness and laughter, nor do I love the luminous voluptuousness of too much sun and crystalline waters. I am no longer young, and my heart, worn out by years of mourning for the many deaths, is poorly suited to happiness.
I love shadows, and when I can I prefer to be alone with my thoughts.
We szekely have the right to be proud, because in our veins flows the blood of many bold races who fought as the lion fights, for dominance over others. Here, the melting pot of European races, the Ugric tribes brought from Iceland the fighting spirit that had been given to them by Thor and Wodin, whose bersekers given such cruel proof on all the beaches of Europe; yea, and of Asia and of Africa, which the people thought were nothing less than werewolves. Here too, when they arrived, they found the Huns, whose fighting fury had swept the Earth like a living flame, until those dying peoples remembered that the blood of the ancient witches flowed in their veins who, driven out of Scythia, had united with the demons in the desert. Crazy, crazy! What demon or witch could compete with Attila, whose blood animates these veins?
Is it any wonder that we were a race of conquerors, that we were proud, and that when the Magyars, Lombards, Avars, Bulgarians, or Turks came in their thousands to threaten our frontiers we repelled them? Is it perhaps strange that when Arpad and his legions invaded the Hungarian homeland they found us here, on our borders, and here the Honfoglalás took place? And when the Hungarians spread towards the east, the Szekely, acclaimed blood relatives of the victorious Magyars, had the task of defending the borders with the land of the Turks for centuries.
Who redeemed the great shame of my nation, the disgrace of Kosova, when the flags of the Vlachs and Magyars were humiliated in the dust in front of the Crescent? Who, if not a Voivode of my race, Cite error: Closing </ref> missing for <ref> tag who in another and subsequent moment again brought and brought back his spears beyond of the great river, in the land of the Turks, which, once repelled by force, returned and returned, he alone escaping the bloody field where his troops had been slaughtered, knowing full well that he alone would triumph in the end? It is said that he thought only of himself. Bah! What good is an army of peasants without a leader? What good does a war do without a brain and a heart to direct it? And again: when after the Battle of Mohacs we freed ourselves from the Hungarian yoke, we of the blood of the Draculas were at the side of their leaders, because our spirit could not tolerate that we were not free .
Ah, my young friend, it is thanks to the courage, brains and sword of the Draculas, that the szekely can boast a history that the Habsburg and the Romanovs, born and raised in hurry like mushrooms, they will never be able to build.
The days of war are over. Blood is seen as too precious in this age of dishonorable peace, and the glories of the ancient races are a song no longer sings.
Let me give you some advice, my dear young friend. Indeed: allow me to warn you, in all seriousness, that if you wish to leave these rooms you will not have the opportunity to sleep anywhere else in the castle. It is an old castle, it contains many memories, and there are bad dreams for those who sleep there carelessly. Be careful! If you have to fall asleep, now or at another time, or are about to do so, hurry to your room, or to these rooms, because only in this way will you rest in safety.
You English have a saying that is very close to my heart, because it is in the same spirit that governs us boyars: 'Open arms to the arriving guest, golden bridges to the departing guest'.
And so you too, like the others, want to challenge my intelligence with yours. You want to help those men hunt me down and thwart my plans! You now know, and in part they know it too, and in all respects they will soon know, what it means to cut me off. They should have conserved their energies for other purposes more within their reach. Instead, they wanted to engage in a battle of wits against me - against me, who governed entire peoples, and who fought for them, and fought, hundreds of years before you were all born - and I faced them and attracted them in my trap. And you, their darling, are now flesh of my flesh, blood of my blood, branch of my lineage; for some time my generous source, then my companion and accomplice. You too, in your turn, will be able to take revenge in due time; because none of them will be able to oppose your wishes. But for the moment I must punish you for what you have done. You helped them against me, and now you will have to answer my every call. When my will tells you Come!, you will cross lands and seas to obey me. And to this end, so be it!

You think you've got the better of me, you – with those pale faces, all lined up there, like sheep in front of the butcher. But you will regret it, from first to last! You think you have taken away from me a place to rest; but I have others! And my revenge has just begun! I live in the ages, and time is on my side. The women you all love are already mine; and thanks to them you too and others like you will soon be mine - my creatures, to obey my commands and become obedient jackals when I am hungry and thirsty.

The Powers of Darkness:

Count Dracula depicted in an illustration from the Swedish edition of The Powers of Darkness

Now I live here [...] like an old hermit, in the house of my ancestors. I live among graying memories, but I also observe what happens in the outside world – I hear only a faint echo of it, in this remote desolation. It may surprise you to discover that, although my hair is gray, my heart is young and longs to take part in life, outside the castle walls, where the destinies of nations are forged and the wars of this world are fought. Once upon a time, I took part in this game and pulled quite a few strings.
Dominate, my young friend, dominate: this is the only thing worth living for, whether it is dominating the will of others... or their hearts.
England is a land of culture and pragmatism. Eyes that have been able to admire the light of modern civilization never see ghosts.
We stubborn old people may cling to our dogmas, but the future belongs to the new generations. This is why I long to get caught up in the whirlwind of young London life. Those who live in that big city have other things to think about and certainly don't waste time believing in ghosts.
That author of yours, Conan Doyle, has written many excellent books about London and I read your papers. They say barely two or three percent of all murder cases are solved. Yes, London is truly an extraordinary city.
It is the law of nature: the strongest and most cunning creatures feed on the weakest and stupidest ones.
Artistic ability, courage, wisdom and beauty... all this is power! It is passed from one generation to the next, my good friend; nature is always at work and constantly trying to produce something more refined, getting rid of a lot of material, selecting and rejecting. What is inferior contributes to him and is then eliminated, like garbage.
We of the Dracula lineage – direct descendants of the Sicilians – are convinced that our lineage derives from the ancient Huns, who once spread across Europe like a fire, destroying nations and people. It is said that they were the descendants of Scythian witches, who had been exiled to the woods, where they joined the demons. These of course are only tales, but it is known that there has never been a demon or sorcerer with greater power than Attila, our ancestor. Therefore it is not surprising that we, his descendants, hate and love with greater passion than other mortals.
O you cold, rational children of the West – you do not know this kind of love. A love that bites like the harshest hatred, with kisses that burn like red-hot irons and with hugs... but don't make me say anything else!
I have read your English books that talk about eternal love, but perhaps I will understand their meaning only when I arrive in London because at the moment I still don't fully grasp it - or rather, I don't understand the meaning that you give it attributed. Love has a life cycle, like a flower that grows in a field: once it has blossomed, it soon withers. Then spring returns, but the same flower does not return, nor another with the same roots. It's a law of nature. Once the flaring passion has reached its peak, it is more likely to die out.
We may ignore the snake crawling on the ground, but that doesn't mean it won't bite us. I learned this the hard way. That's why I now live like a recluse, with owls and ravens nesting atop the towers of my ancestors' castle. Perhaps, even at this moment, as I speak to you, my dear friend, there are people trying to tarnish my name.

Those who are weak were created only to satisfy the needs of the more powerful. The person who knows how to exercise strength will achieve supremacy, and will have dominion over everything - beauty, foresight and knowledge - just as a small seed planted in a cemetery will in time become a tall tree thanks to the life force of a thousand generations, and each of these will contribute its strength, attractiveness and other magnificent qualities.
Why should an old hermit like me have anything to do with the outside world? Who could ever want to write to me and who would I ever write to?
[On Tatars] They are good people. If only they were more numerous, many things would be different. For centuries, they have faithfully preserved many treasures of the occult sciences that would otherwise have gone into oblivion. When the time comes, their loyalty will be rewarded.
The masses are made up of common people of low intelligence and you will never gain any power. [...] They will never be anything more than an instrument in the hands of the strong, who govern with them and on them. But only a few fully understand the wisdom of this truth. Oh, you Englishmen are so proud of your political freedom and your progress – as you call it – but among all of you there are only two or three men who fully understand what progress is and how the freedom of the masses is the his worst enemy!
You Westerners still have so much to learn; you have not gone much further than the antechamber of the sciences, where life and death are still unsolved mysteries.

Bram Stoker's Dracula:

It's been a long time since I was used to... guests. And I feel the fatigue of the many years spent mourning the dead.
Mina, [...] I crossed oceans of time to find you. Can you understand how I feel about you? It was a continuous, desperate, interminable search. Until the miracle happened.
I have endured oceans of time, committed unspeakable acts, to cling to life, until I could find you.
I tell you that without you, without the life, the love that you give me, I am dead to all humanity. Without you I am nothing more than a beast that feeds on human blood!
I lied, to you, to myself. The gift of eternal life is far beyond my power. The truth is that you will be condemned, as I am, to walk in the darkness of eternal death. I love you too much to do this to you!
The love of mortals cannot have a hold... on us. Our love will last for all eternity.

Movie:

Dracula (C.E.1931:)

Count Dracula played by Bela Lugosi

[Hearing wolves howling] Listen carefully. They are creatures of the night. What music to my ears!
The spider is spinning its web for some unwary fly.
I never drink... wine.
Die a real death. It must be wonderful.
There are things far worse than death that await man.
For someone who hasn't lived a single existence, you are a very wise man, Van Helsing.
Van Helsing! Now that you have learned everything you have learned, you would do a great job returning to your home country.
It's too late now. My blood already flows in her veins. Mina will live. She will live for centuries to come, as I have lived.

Hammer Cycle:

Dracula's lovers

I want a girlfriend. [...] Monsignor Mueller's niece. [...] her Bring her to me.
You disobeyed me. [...] You must be punished.
And so my revenge is complete.
Remove that cross from my sight immediately! Throw it away!

1972: Dracula Strikes Again!:

She's not the one I want. You haven't learned to obey. That's not her!
You ask?! I have returned to destroy the Van Helsing family forever, both the old and the young. You and your friends have been chosen.
Are you crazy enough to compete against me? Against me who dominated entire nations?

The satanic rites of Dracula:

Count Dracula played by Christopher Lee in The Satanic Rites of Dracula

Some of us have firmly decided that the decadence of the present age must be, and will be, arrested. A new political regime is being organized that once again gives importance to moral values. In the midst of humanity's indifference and confusion, persuasive methods may be necessary.
I don't want such a simple and quick end, neither for Van Helsing nor for his granddaughter.
On this eve of the Sabbat of the uncorrupted, I summon you here to witness my supreme triumph! Van Helsing, I choose this young niece of yours to be my consort.
The instrument of my final victory, quicker, more frightening than the black death. The plague! From the first moments every muscle, every fiber will be in torment and agony. In the days to come, you will scream for death for your relief.
My revenge has been simmering for centuries and is beginning to explode.

The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires:

Who dares to disturb Dracula's rest?
I do not grant favors to anyone. I do not accept the requests of the miserable. Don't you know that Dracula holds sway even from within the remotest corner of the world?
I need your mortal remains. I need the shape of your miserable carcass. I will take on your living image.
I will give a breath of new life to the seven golden vampires and will make them my warriors, architects of my revenge on men.
Van Helsing! Damn you! Even in this remote country you continue to persecute me.
I am Dracula, lord of darkness, master of vampires, prince of the underworld, king of the damned!

Count Dracula:

I'm not young anymore, but I'm restless.
My family descends from the Slovakian branch. For us it is a source of pride that the blood of so many races flows in our veins. In these hands is the blood of the great Attila. We have been entrusted with the protection of the Hungarian territory for centuries. The Bulgarians, the Lombards, the Turks poured en masse against our borders and we always repelled them. The Draculas have always been the heart, the brain, the directing mind, the sword, the glory of their people! One of my ancestors crossed the Danube and destroyed the Turkish host. Rejected several times, he continued to fight, to fight against the enemy. And he alone left that battlefield alive. He alone emerged victorious. He was truly a Dracula. But now, the wind blows coldly through the ancient crenellated walls. And although it hurts me, I have to leave.
Are you interested in exchanges, Mister Harker? [...] he IS the best among all sports. The plan of action to kill the opponent is calmly prepared.

The Black Demon:

When the Magyars, the Avars, the Lombards and the Turks appeared with their hordes on our borders, we always repelled them. Whenever we were forced by circumstances to retreat, we then gathered our forces and counterattacked. And when Árpád and his legions invaded our ancestral land of Hungary... Why, it's morning again. I abused her, keeping her up, even though it was a pleasant and, all in all, educational night.
I'm going to England. And she? To Hell!
So you want to play cunning with me, I who led armies hundreds of years before you were born. Crazy people! Nothing and no one in this life can stop me. And to this end... Template:NDR Here! Template:NDR Now she will be blood of my blood, lineage of my lineage, then my follower in the night, now my slave and companion.
You are now in my domain, gentlemen. And you won't leave.

Dracula seeks virgin blood... and dies of thirst!!!:

File:Blood for Dracula (C.E.1974) 'The blood of these whores is killing me'.png

Count Dracula played by Udo Kier

A man in my position is aware of the dangers of modern life, especially for young girls.
How come you've never had a lover? It is unusual to find a girl as developed as you who has not been with a boy.
I don't care whether my wife is a virgin or not. You see, I am a modern man. In front of Anton I pretend that I only want a virgin because he reports everything to my family. I don't care at all if my girlfriend is a virgin or not. The essential thing is that she is beautiful. And you are very beautiful. Therefore, you can confide in me. You're not a virgin, are you?
Do you know that in Romania it is customary to only take virgins as wives? Here, their husbands treat them like saints. [...] Not all women. Only virgin brides.
The impure blood of these whores is killing me!

Dracula (C.E.1979):

Template:NDR You understood me very well.
No, no medicines. You must not pollute her blood.
This kind of pain can be overcome with suggestion.
I can't stand women who have no vitality... or blood.
I have the habit of staying indoors. There are wolves in Transylvania.
You have to be patient with me. You have to try to understand me. I can reward you with a long and fruitful life, but I must have your loyalty. Are you ready to give it to me?
Bad news flies like the wind.
If my company became unpleasant to her, she would have only herself to blame for having accepted a friendship which I very rarely grant, but which is difficult to free oneself from.
Can you hear them? They are the children of the night. What a mournful melody theirs is. [...] It's so sad. It's like a moan.
Sunrise, after all, is such an obvious thing, the warmth of the sun's rays. But the night... [...] It is made to love life and love.
Template:NDR Let's go! Is it a curse or an invocation?
In the past, 500 years ago, professor, anyone who crossed my path would have died, and certainly not a pleasant death.
Template:NDR It's always daytime somewhere on Earth, professor. Besides rest, my only need is to stay in the dark.
You don't know how many have had the misfortune of facing me. I am the king of my race. You got nothing, Van Helsing. Time is on my side. In a century, when you are dust, I will wake and call Lucy, my queen, from her grave.
In my long existence, I have had many wives. But for me, Lucy stands above them all.
For some time yet you will be a creature of the sun, until we have left behind us those who would destroy us. [...] Afterwards you too will be part of my race. We will feed on them and create other beings of our kind.

Nosferatu, the prince of the night:

Ah, young man you are like the village people who can never get into the spirit of a hunter.
Now I no longer attach any importance to the sun, nor to the sparkling fountains that young people like so much. I just love darkness and shadows, where I can be alone with my thoughts.
Time is a deep abyss like long endless nights, centuries come and go. Not having the ability to age is terrible. Death is not the worst: there are things much more horrible than death. Can you imagine it? Lasting through the ages, experiencing the same futile things every day.
Those who say that death is cruel are only the unaware. But death is just a clean break. It is much crueler not to be able to die.
The lack of love is the cruelest and most abject of punishments.

Monster School:

[To Frankenstein's Monster] Wake up, my old friend. The moment has come.
Oh, Van Helsing, your disciples were very foolish to try to hide from me what is mine. Nothing is hidden from my eyes.
Here we go, Van Helsing! Soon the creatures of the night will dominate the world. There is no one who can stop us!
[To the wolfman in human form under tranquilizer] I'm sorry about the dose, my friend. It is quite lethal to humans. And then, a human dose would be out of place, wouldn't you say? Well, I'll go and get something to eat while you proceed to change into a more "comfortable" outfit.

Bram Stoker's Dracula:

Dracula's helmet in Bram Stoker's Dracula

I renounce God! I will rise from my death to avenge his death with all the powers of darkness. Blood is life... and it will be mine!^[1]
Do you believe in destiny? That even the powers of time can be altered for a single purpose?
The luckiest man to walk this earth is the one who finds true love.
I was married. It seems like centuries now. She died. [...] She is lucky; my life is pitiful at best.
I crossed the oceans of time to find you.
There is a lot to learn from animals.
Absinthe is the aphrodisiac of the self. The green fairy who lives in absinthe wants your soul. But with me you will be safe.
There was a princess, Elizabeth; she was the most radiant woman in all the empires of the world. The man's deception took her away from her ancient prince. She threw herself to her death in the river you spoke of. In my native language it is called Argeș, the princess's river.
Your helpless men with their foolish spells will not protect you from my power. I condemn you to eternal hunger for vital blood and living death.
I am nothing. Lifeless. Soulless. [...] Hated and feared. I died for all humanity.
I am the monster that breathing men long to kill. I am Dracula.
I give you eternal life, eternal love, the power of storms and animals of the Earth. Come with me to be my beloved bride, forever.
Do you think you can destroy me with your idols? I who served the Cross? I, who commanded armies centuries before you were born! [...] I was betrayed. Look at your God what he has done to me.
Give me peace.

Dracula: Dead and Happy:

Night creeps. How dirty they are!
Renfield, don't bother me.
There is not always misfortune in a burial.
I never drink... wine. Oh, to hell with it! Let me taste it!
I had... a solar nightmare.
Van Helsing! Name known even in the wild places of Transylvania.
I notice, Van Helsing, that you like to have the last word. You will not drag me into such childish practice. Paloștoi!
Renfield, you're an asshole! Template:NDR

Van Helsing:

[Addressed to Victor Frankenstein] I regret that your moment of glory should be ruined for a little thing like robbing a tomb.
But why don't they leave us alone? We never kill more than we need, or less than we deserve. Can they say the same?
I don't have a heart! I don't feel love! Nor fear! Nor joy! Nor pain. I am an empty man, and I will have life for eternity.
I am at war against the world and against every living soul. But soon the final battle will begin.
wolfmen are such a nuisance during their first full moon. It's so hard to control them.
I can understand a man's character by the beating of his heart. Usually when I get close I can almost dance to that beat.

Dracula 3D:

You must forgive my niece, Mr. Harker. Sometimes girls his age tend to be a little too bold.
I never eat... in the evening.
A woman's place is next to her husband.
Although they were warriors, my ancestors have always placed great value on books.
It was a mistake to turn against me. I am your master and you are just a servant who betrayed me.
Tonight is the anniversary of the death of my wife, Dolingen of Gratz. [...] A dark evil tore her from me when she was only twenty years old. [...] But there are things much worse than this. [...] You must know what they are. "Nosferatu", the undead, the monster that everyone fears.
I was taken from the darkness and sent to Earth to rob my people of blood. It's the only way I can still feed this stinking corpse.
I am nothing more than an out of tune instrument in the divine symphony.

Dracula: (miniseries)

The Rules of the Beast:

I look forward to seeing England Mr. Harker. People here are so limited, and I wither within these walls. They are all as if deprived. They are all tasteless.
You will find my home not easy to navigate. It is a very intricate growing maze of stairs and doors and shadows. [...] There is no map of my castle. No finished project was ever recorded in documents. It is said that many souls are trapped in the tangle of these corridors. Reserata amministrazionem, the prison without locks.
Where meat is found, flies are found.
What is the purpose of a mirror? No one will ever find any inspiration in their gaze.
Ah, a stake driven through the heart. You see, sometimes legends are right. However, this cannot be tested too often. I can only have three brides at a time. [...] Brides, yes. I think that's the right word to define them. You see, I'm trying to reproduce, which, frankly, can be a bit of a challenge when there's only one of you.
Why does passing always come as such a shock to you mortals?
[On why he wants to move to England] For the people. All those sophisticated, brilliant people. As I have tried to explain to everyone for centuries: "You are what you eat."
[On the sun] I haven't seen it in hundreds of years. [...] I had artists who painted it, poets who described it in verse, and Mozart composed such a beautiful melody. I... I should have spared him, but what does the lawyer see? Johnny, in my memory, sets behind the second highest peak this time of year, and is quite red.
The end is a blessing. Dying gives you perspective. It is the mountain top from which your whole life is finally visible from beginning to end. Death completes you.
Suicides don't work. Don't you think the undead tried? A stake through the heart is fine, but someone else has to drive it.

The Dawn Treader:

At sea you meet an interesting variety of individuals, and I advise you not to get too attached to any of them.
[On why he kills people] Why do you pick flowers?
I have always maintained that too much is just enough.
Mirrors have deeper and more dangerous magic than people think. Mirrors can give space to the imagination or, worse, show us the truth.
The refinement of a gentleman, Agatha, is always just a facade.
I was a good detective, don't you think? I have a particular gift for "eliminating" suspicions.
[On why she fears the crucifix] Everyone fears her, and that's the problem. It is not a symbol of virtue and goodness at all, it is a symbol of horror and oppression. Your stupid Church has terrorized the peasant population for centuries and I have drunk the blood of those people for so long that I have absorbed their deep fear of the cross. My God! I can't wait to eat some atheists.

The Dark Compass:

I have been in this world since the fifteenth century. Things change, but you get used to it. Although I admit that there was a great acceleration.
Killing is healthy competition. Pity is disrespect.
Look at all these things, all this food, the box with the moving pictures, and that thing out there... Bob calls it... a car. Is that yours? [...] And this treasure island is your home?! [...] Wonderful! Kathleen, I am a nobleman who has been alive for 400 years. I have lived in castles and palaces among the richest people of every age, and never, never have I found myself in more lavish luxury than that which surrounds me. This is a chamber of wonders. There is no king or queen or emperor that I have ever known or eaten that he would have walked into this room and agreed to leave. I knew the future would hold wonders. I didn't know it would make them accessible to everyone.
I missed an entire century. What are rights? Nobody has rights, Zoe. Men, women or monsters, no one anywhere. It's just a senseless fantasy.
I have always supported the heredity of power. Democracy is the tyranny of the ignorant. It is only in blood that we are able to find the truth.
It is not my custom to eat livestock. If we're talking about blood, I'm a connoisseur. Blood is vine. Blood is a testimony. The testimony of all those I have killed flows through my veins. Now I will carefully choose who will join them. Maturity is the first step towards decay, sweetness is a promise of corruption.
Death is the only act that still feels new. Every other human experience is cataloged somewhere in your infinite digital libraries. There is nothing new. Every moment of life is deteriorated and second-hand, except that one moment of existence that no one has ever been able to tell. In a world of roads already travelled, death is the only snow still pristine.