Powers of Darkness

by Hans De Roos

  3 Fjallkonan and the 1901 book edition use “sögufolkid,” literally “the storypeople” or “the people of the story.” The 1950 and 2011 editions replace “sögufolkid” with “sögunnar,” lit.: “storytellers.”

  4 “For obvious reasons”: an elegant formula to skip the vital weakness of the truth claim staked out in this preface. If the dangers described in this novel were real, it would—for obvious reasons—be much wiser if the survivors would step forward to take the lead in a public campaign, aiming to completely eradicate such threats. For a further analysis, see my article Dracula’s Truth Claim and its Consequences in the Journal of Dracula Studies, October 2014, pp. 53-80.

  5 Dalby’s translation omits the Icelandic word “stranga,” which in this context can mean “solemn,” “strict,” “grave,” or “serious.” Cf. German and Dutch “streng.”

  6 The italics, emphasizing the authenticity of the novel’s events, appear in the Fjallkonan serialization only, not in the 1901 book edition and later republications.

  7 Dalby gives “in years to come.” The Icelandic expression “þegar minnst varir” means “without any warning,” “when we least expect it,” “suddenly” or “unexpectedly.”

  8 A first hint at an altered plot, because in Dracula neither Scotland Yard nor the secret service perceives an interrelated pattern of crime.

  9 Again: “sögufolkid.”

  10 Dalby proposes “at the same time,” but in the Icelandic expression “á sínum tíma,” “sínum” (“their”) points back to the mentioned crimes, which took place before the Ripper murders. See also next footnote.

  11 Dalby’s translation states “… which came into the story a little later,” suggesting that the Ripper murders will be featured—a little later—in this very novel. The Icelandic expression “ad koma til sögunnar,” however, means “to occur,” “to take place,” or “to come into existence.” Stoker’s preface simply states that the Ripper murders took place after this incomprehensible series of crimes discussed in Makt Myrkranna, that is, the Thames Torso Murders. Bram Stoker was much more likely to be familiar with these Thames murders than Valdimar. Even if Valdimar knew that they were rumored to stem from the same root as the Ripper murders, it is highly improbable that he would insert a reference that his Icelandic readers would not be able to understand; the preface thus appears to be written by Stoker himself. See Introduction.

  12 Dalby’s translation gives “group of foreigners,” although “group” is not mentioned in the Icelandic text.

  13 In Dalby’s text, the Icelandic “saman” is translated as “together,” but “saman” relates to the seasons (“on end,” “in a row”), not to the foreigners.

  14 Icelandic: “annar þeirra,” lit.: “the other one of them.” Ásgeir Jónsson points out that this refers to the other of a pair (i.e. two), not to one of a group, and he suspects that a line articulating what this pair is may have been dropped from the preface.

  15 Icelandic: “… án þess að nokkur merki hans sæist framar,” lit.: “so that no signs of him was ever seen again.” The 1950 and 2011 editions change “sæist” to “sæjust” (“were seen”). The final meaning stays the same.

  16 Icelandic: “Allt það fólk, sem sagt er, …” Dalby’s translation omits the relative clause.

  17 The end of this novel mentions Dr. Seward’s death; the preface—supposed to be written after the pictured events—does not match the plot in this point. See my Introduction essay.

  18 Dalby’s translation “… will also be too famous” could be understood to mean that this scientist is not famous yet, but will be so in future. The Icelandic auxiliary verb “munu” can express a probability in the future, in the present or even in the past. I have opted for the present here, because the word “likewise” places the famous scientist next to the Harkers and Dr. Seward, that is, in the category of people who are—presently—“widely known and well respected.”

  19 In his 1897 interview with Jane Stoddard, Stoker had already stated that the character of Professor Van Helsing was based on a real person (Stoddard, 1897, p. 185)—again an indication that this Icelandic preface was authored by Stoker himself, not Valdimar. Various role models have been proposed over the years: Dr. Gerard van Swieten (1700-1772), personal physician of Empress Maria Theresa of Austria; the Flemish physician and al-chemist Johan Baptista van Helmont (1580-1644); Prof. Arminius Vámbéry from Budapest; Prof. Max Müller from Oxford; Prof. Moriz Benedikt from Vienna; and John Freeman Knott, a physician married to the sister of Florence Balcombe, Stoker’s wife. Knott was a friend of Bram’s brother Thornley, a highly renowned brain surgeon and a possible role model himself.

  20 The interjection “which I prefer not to mention” is confusing and may lead readers to believe that this scientist is “famous for his real name”—just like Paris is famous for its Eiffel Tower. In fact, the text states that this scientist is so famous that his real name cannot remain hidden from the public.

  21 Icelandic: “af reynslu,” lit.: “from experience.” This again indicates that the real Van Helsing is a friend, a personal acquaintance or at least a contemporary of Bram Stoker, like the Harkers and Dr. Seward, and thus excludes the long-deceased Van Swieten and Van Helmont—the only candidates who actually speak Dutch. In 2012, the biography of the Dutch filmmaker Tonny van Renterghem drew my attention to his grandfather, the psychiatrist Dr. Albert W. van Renterghem, whom his grandson claimed to have been the true role model for Stoker’s protagonist. Together with the physician and writer Dr. Frederik van Eeden, Dr. van Renterghem had opened a clinic for hypnotic treatment in Amsterdam in 1887, which soon became internationally famous. I indeed discovered a whole network of interconnections, which makes it highly probable that Stoker was familiar with Van Renterghem’s work and reputation. See my article in De Parelduiker of October 2012.

  22 Icelandic: “snilld.” Dalby’s translation gives “genius,” which is the first translation listed in modern dictionaries; Cleasby/Vigfússon, 1874, gives “masterly skill, eloquence” and “excellency of art, skill” as translations, referring to acquired skills or knowledge or great intellect rather than to the romantic concept of genius.

  23 A quote from Shakespeare’s play Hamlet, in which Prince Hamlet addresses Horatio. Instead of retranslating the Icelandic, I have reinstated Shakespeare’s original text. Stoker’s friend and employer, the actor Henry Irving, was famous for his performance as Prince Hamlet, so Stoker must have known these words by heart.

  24 The date of August 1898 suggests that some of the most significant modifications of the novel must have been discussed between Bram Stoker and Valdimar Ásmundsson more than a year before the first installment was published in Fjallkonan: the appearance of “remarkable foreigners” in “London aristocratic circles,” the reference to a series of horrible crimes causing public concern and finally the involvement of the secret police.

  25 The Castle in the Carpathians (Le Château des Carpathes) is also the name of an 1893 novel by Jules Verne, which may have inspired Stoker’s description of Castle Dracula.

  26 Stoker borrowed the surname “Harker” from Joseph Cunningham Harker, a set designer at the Lyceum Theatre.

  27 The first deviation from the original story: in Dracula, Harker takes the train to Bistritz, not the mail coach.

  28 Between 1867 and 1920, Transylvania was a principality within the Hungarian empire, which had controlled it since medieval times. Bukovina had been annexed by the Habsburg Empire in 1775; only in 1918 was it reunited with Moldavia, of which it had been a part since the 14th century. Moldavia and Wallachia united under the name “Romania” in 1859. Following the defeat of the Ottomans in the Russo-Turkish War, Romania proclaimed sovereignty in 1877. The territory of modern Romania was formed only in 1920 (Treaties of Trianon and Paris), when Wallachia, Moldavia, Transylvania, Bukovina, and Bessarabia were united. During World War II, Romania was compelled to leave a part of the northern territories to the Soviet Union.

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p; 29 Icelandic: “herstjórnarráðuneytið.” Up till 1964, the British Ministry of Defence was called “War Office.” In 1855, the Board of Ordnance, traditionally in charge of Ordnance Survey mapping services, became a part of this War Office. In Dracula this sentence reads: “I was not able to light on any map or work giving the exact locality of the Castle Dracula, as there are no maps of this country as yet to compare with our own Ordnance Survey maps.” In fact, the military maps of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, including Transylvania, were highly detailed, but not available to the public.

  30 “Bistri a” in modern Romanian, a city in the northeast of Transylvania (“Nösnerland”), fortified and inhabited by Saxon (German-speaking) settlers after 1200.

  31 From Bistritz, the road to the Borgo Pass (today known as “Tihu a Pass”) went in a northeast direction. After the village of Maros-Borgo, the road continued up the mountain past the customs post of Tihucza where the Borgo Pass began, and gradually turned north until the border of Bukovina was reached at M gura Calului at a height of 1,117 m.

  32 Transylvania was dominated by the Saxons, Magyars, and Szeklers, who in 1437 had proclaimed the Union of the Three Nations (Unio Trium Nationum). Although the Romanian-speaking people (named “Vlachs,” “Wallacks,” or “Wallachians”) constituted the majority of the population, they were deprived of political rights; in Dracula, they are hardly mentioned. For an analysis of Stoker’s “mythical Transylvania,” see Cri an, 2013.

  33 Reflecting the overall shape of the Carpathian Mountains, like Dracula’s term “horseshoe.”

  34 Icelandic: “hjátrú og hindurvitni,” a first example of alliteration in this novel. Alliterative rhyme had a strong tradition in the Old Icelandic Poetic Edda (13th century), a text that Valdimar was very familiar with.

  35 Stoker knew about these topics from the article Transylvanian Superstitions by Emily Gerard, July 1885; other important sources on local traditions and history were the books by William Wilkinson, Charles Boner, Major E. C. Johnson, A. F. Crosse, and Elizabeth Mazuchelli (see list of references).

  36 Icelandic: “allur í lögfræðinni”—this can also translate to “completely the lawyer.” Perhaps coincidentally, in Dracula Harker calls himself “a full-blown solicitor” (Chapter 2, Journal of 5 May) while he is waiting in front of the gate of Castle Dracula.

  37 Similarly, in Dracula the hotel is named “Golden Krone,” which Stoker may have derived from Baedeker’s description of Salzburg; the story originally was set in Styria. See Klinger, 2008, pp. 22f., note 42.

  38 Baedeker’s Travel Guide for Austria, 1896, tells us that the distance from Bistritz to Kimpolung (Câmpulung Moldovanesc) was 126 km, and could be covered by post coach in 17 hours. Klinger, 2008, p. 33, note 81.

  39 This archaic sign-off is rarely used today, but we can find several examples of it in the letters of George Washington.

  40 Stoker took the name “Dracula” from a book by Wilkinson about the history of Moldavia and Wallachia, but understood it as the denomination of a whole dynasty or clan. The Drăculesţis, named after Vlad II Dracul (a member in the Order of the Dragon), ruled over Wallachia. From the 1970s on, Professors Raymond McNally and Radu Florescu propagated the idea that Stoker had heard of the cruel reputation of Vlad III Dracula the Impaler, the son of Vlad II, and, with this in mind, had picked him as the model for his vampire character. In their book Prince of Many Faces (1989) they even presented a mistranslation of a medieval poem by Michael Beheim, who, according to them, describes Vlad III as drinking the blood of his enemies (see my article The Great Dracula Swindle,www.vamped.org of 26 May 2016). While the Count in his conversation with Harker actually refers to a voïvode whom we recognize as Vlad III, Stoker neither knew the name “Vlad” nor his bloodthirsty reputation. In Chapter 25 of Dracula, Van Helsing and Mina identify their enemy as “that other of his race who in a later age again and again brought his forces over the great river into Turkey-land.” This might be a reference to Michael the Brave, on whom Stoker took notes from Wilkinson’s book. In the novel itself, however, it appears as if Stoker preferred this “other” to remain anonymous (see my article Bram Stoker’s Vampire Trap, Linköping University Electronic Press, 19 March 2012).

  41 Both in Dracula and Makt Myrkranna, the Count calls himself a Szekler and claims that the blood of Atilla runs through his veins; the Szeklers lived in the eastern part of Transylvania and spoke Hungarian. There are at least three different theories why Stoker introduced a noble with a Wallachian name but a Ugric origin. See also note 134.

  42 Stoker’s notes of 14 March 1890 also mention “the purchase of London estate”; in the typed manuscript (1897), Plaistow (eastern suburb of London) was replaced by Purfleet in Essex, 20 km farther east. See Klinger, 2008, p. 483, note 8. Makt Myrkranna shifts the action back to London itself—maybe based on Stoker’s original ideas.

  43 In Dracula, bats only appear in the Whitby, Hillingham and Purfleet scenes, representing the vampire Count in disguise. “The early bat catches the worm,” the author(s) of Makt Myrkranna must have thought.

  44 An Icelandic expression describing the scorn provoked by non-conformist behavior.

  45 Icelandic: “hefði verið ættfylgja,” lit.: “had been the ghost of the family.” In Old Norse mythology, “fylgja” is a spirit attached to a person or family, influencing their fate or fortune; it may appear in the form of an animal, mostly during sleep. A related concept is that of the “hamingja” (Old Norse: “luck”), which also personifies the luck or fate of a person or family.

  46 In Dracula, the Count lives with three women of ambiguous origin and status; here, he is said to have had three wives whom he has lost.

  47 Harker does not suspect that he is travelling during the Romanian St. George’s Eve. Because the Eastern Orthodox Church in Transylvania still used the Julian Calendar, its St. George’s Day (23 April) would coincide with the date of 5 May in England (Gregorian Calendar). Stoker took notes on these calendar differences. See Eighteen-Bisang & Miller, 2008, p. 25; p. 121; p. 93, footnote 200.

  48 Icelandic: “leika lausum hala,” lit.: “play with a free tail,” derived from the Poetic Edda, Lokasenna (Loki’s Wrangling), verse 49: “Lightly said, Loki! | But too long it won’t last | That your tail freely plays | As on this peak, with the guts | Of your own ice-cold son | The gods will bind you.” (my translation). Like the evil spirits the land-landy fears, the god Loki represents malice and deceit in Scandinavian mythology; in many aspects, he resembles the suave but spiteful Count Dracula in Makt Myrkranna.

  49 Icelandic: “rétttrúuðum,” lit.: “of the true creed,” which would translate to “orthodox.” To avoid confusion with the Roman-Orthodox religion practiced by the Vlachs in Transylvania, I have deferred to Stoker’s original term “English Churchman.”

  50 Like Dracula’s “Mina,” the name “Wilma” (Icelandic: “Vilma”), is derived from “Wilhelmina,” the full name of Harker’s fiancée. According to the 1891 census, “Minna” was the name of a governess living in the household of Bram’s brother George at 14 Hertford Street in London.

  51 An observation perhaps based on Icelandic daylight hours: On 5 May, twilight starts before 3:00 a.m. in Reykjavik (natural local time). In Bistritz, dawn would have come at 5:30 a.m.

  52 In Dracula, Stoker explains that the Transylvanian rulers would abstain from repairing the roads too quickly, to avoid suspicion that they were preparing for war.

  53 Stoker’s dramatic description of the Borgo Mountains was actually derived from the travel journal by Major E. C. Johnson, reporting on his trip through the much steeper Bicaz Pass, approx. 60 km south of the Borgo Pass.

  54 As carriages were rare in ancient Iceland, the word “vagn” covers all kinds of vehicles. In Dracula, Stoker uses “calèche,” a word borrowed from Wilkinson, 1820. I have re-introduced this term here, to distinguish the Count’s lighter vehicle from the heavy stagecoach or the transport carriages later used by the Slovaks.

  55 In Dracula, it is o
ne of Stoker’s fellow travellers who quotes Burger’s Lenore in German by saying: “Denn die Todten reiten schnell” (“For the dead travel fast”). The same quote is used in Dracula’s Guest, engraved on the tomb of Countess Dolingen-von Gratz.

  56 In Dracula, the coach driver tells his passengers that they had covered the distance to the agreed meeting point in “an hour less than the time”—obviously, he had been speeding in order to arrive well before the Count’s driver so as to offer the Englishman an excuse to continue to Bukovina.

  57 In the Icelandic text, Mr. Hawkins is mostly referred to as “Hawkins málaflutningsmaður.” Zoëga, 1922, lists “lawyer; solicitor, attorney; barrister.” As already described in Hrafnkels Saga (10th century), “mála-flutningur” pertains to the conduct of a suit, originally before the General Assembly at Þingvellir. After 1873, the title would thus more specifically translate to “Solicitor of the Supreme Court of England and Wales.” In the rest of the story, I have avoided repeating Mr. Hawkins’s title. According to Davies, 1997, p. 133, the name “Hawkins” was borrowed from Anthony Hope Hawkins, author of Prisoner of Zenda (1894).

  58 Icelandic: “aftakaveður,” mostly translated as “violent storm.” The literal meaning: “murder-weather.”

  59 Actually, the Borgo Pass region was very popular for bear hunting during Stoker’s time − see Tsérnatony, 1902, pp. 256ff, and the hunting statistics given by Boner, 1865, p. 155.

  60 A pile of stones used to indicate a border, a path or a certain spot. The Icelandic expression “hverfa út í” is mostly used when someone dissolves or vanishes into the night, into the fog, into the blue, etc. It is curious that Harker could still see clearly what the driver was doing in the forest.

  61 In Dracula, all characters driving to Castle Dracula from the Borgo Pass fall asleep during their trip, such that their route cannot be exactly reconstructed from their diaries. Perhaps, Stoker wished to obscure the castle’s true location, which I contend is on Mount Izvorul C limanului, ca. 25 km (beeline) southeast of the Borgo Pass (see my book The Ultimate Dracula, 2012). Makt Myrkranna omits the last part of Dracula, in which the vampire hunters pursue the Count through Moldavia back to his stronghold, so that decisive clues about the castle’s location are missing in the Icelandic version.