During the fin de siècle, fears of degeneration of the human species pervaded society, science, and literature, including Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Previous scholarship has pointed out the influence of contemporary degeneration and criminological theory on the vampire characters, specifically Dracula. This paper looks at how these same theories are shown in the character R.M. Renfield, a patient in Dr. Seward’s mental asylum. Previous scholars have established that the novel uses the language of degeneration for Renfield. However, by comparing Renfield to both the humans and the vampire characters, I argue that Renfield is neither totally degenerated to the level of vampires nor as fully evolved to the level of humans, instead holding a stepping stone spot between these two species. Because of Renfield’s liminal position, his character is often complex and shifting. I argue that towards the end of the novel, Renfield actively regenerates back to humanity as evidenced by his return to sanity, embodying hope in the face of the crisis of degeneration which is mirrored in Mina’s later salvation from devolving into a vampire.
","abstract_html":"<p>During the <em>fin de siècle, </em>fears of degeneration of the human species pervaded society, science, and literature, including Bram Stoker’s <em>Dracula. </em>Previous scholarship has pointed out the influence of contemporary degeneration and criminological theory on the vampire characters, specifically Dracula. This paper looks at how these same theories are shown in the character R.M. Renfield, a patient in Dr. Seward’s mental asylum. Previous scholars have established that the novel uses the language of degeneration for Renfield. However, by comparing Renfield to both the humans and the vampire characters, I argue that Renfield is neither totally degenerated to the level of vampires nor as fully evolved to the level of humans, instead holding a stepping stone spot between these two species. Because of Renfield’s liminal position, his character is often complex and shifting. I argue that towards the end of the novel, Renfield actively regenerates back to humanity as evidenced by his return to sanity, embodying hope in the face of the crisis of degeneration which is mirrored in Mina’s later salvation from devolving into a vampire.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Frey, Holly"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Arts (MA)","degree_level":"Masters Thesis","degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Alexandra Valint","Ery Shin","Nicolle Jordan"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2026,"date_issued":"2026-05-01T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2026-05-01T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T05:45:55Z","subjects":["degeneration","vampires","evolution","insanity","Literature in English, British Isles"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://aquila.usm.edu/masters_theses/1183","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Alexandra Valint","Ery Shin","Nicolle Jordan"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Frey, Holly"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2275-05-14T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Masters Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Arts (MA)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["degeneration","vampires","evolution","insanity","Literature in English, British Isles"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://aquila.usm.edu/masters_theses/1183"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["During the fin de siècle, fears of degeneration of the human species pervaded society, science, and literature, including Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Previous scholarship has pointed out the influence of contemporary degeneration and criminological theory on the vampire characters, specifically Dracula. This paper looks at how these same theories are shown in the character R.M. Renfield, a patient in Dr. Seward’s mental asylum. Previous scholars have established that the novel uses the language of degeneration for Renfield. However, by comparing Renfield to both the humans and the vampire characters, I argue that Renfield is neither totally degenerated to the level of vampires nor as fully evolved to the level of humans, instead holding a stepping stone spot between these two species. Because of Renfield’s liminal position, his character is often complex and shifting. I argue that towards the end of the novel, Renfield actively regenerates back to humanity as evidenced by his return to sanity, embodying hope in the face of the crisis of degeneration which is mirrored in Mina’s later salvation from devolving into a vampire.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["R.M. Renfield: The Missing Link in the Degeneration of Humans into Vampires in Bram Stoker's Dracula"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Alexandra Valint","Ery Shin","Nicolle Jordan"],"dc:creator":["Frey, Holly"],"dc:date.available":["2275-05-14T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["During the fin de siècle, fears of degeneration of the human species pervaded society, science, and literature, including Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Previous scholarship has pointed out the influence of contemporary degeneration and criminological theory on the vampire characters, specifically Dracula. This paper looks at how these same theories are shown in the character R.M. Renfield, a patient in Dr. Seward’s mental asylum. Previous scholars have established that the novel uses the language of degeneration for Renfield. However, by comparing Renfield to both the humans and the vampire characters, I argue that Renfield is neither totally degenerated to the level of vampires nor as fully evolved to the level of humans, instead holding a stepping stone spot between these two species. Because of Renfield’s liminal position, his character is often complex and shifting. I argue that towards the end of the novel, Renfield actively regenerates back to humanity as evidenced by his return to sanity, embodying hope in the face of the crisis of degeneration which is mirrored in Mina’s later salvation from devolving into a vampire.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://aquila.usm.edu/masters_theses/1183"],"dc:subject":["degeneration","vampires","evolution","insanity","Literature in English, British Isles"],"dc:title":["R.M. Renfield: The Missing Link in the Degeneration of Humans into Vampires in Bram Stoker's Dracula"],"thesis:degree_level":["Masters Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Arts (MA)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T05:45:55Z"}