Description

Essay Question:

As discussed in class, Le Fanu’s novella Carmilla presents the potential theme of repression. We have discussed how this theme manifests into the physical, through the horrendous attacks of the vampire, which often are described through descriptors often associated with illness, specifically symptoms of female hysteria. Furthermore, we have related the structure of Carmilla through the written retelling by our narrator Laura, as a kind of “transference” of the story, in other words, an act done in order to self-analyze. We have discussed the importance of dreams in the text and Laura’s related experiences as a child in relation to her experiences with Carmilla as an adult. Such modes and tools of storytelling were of particular interest to the study of the brain, specifically in the emerging field of psychology and psychoanalysis.

Write a short  analysis on Carmilla and the theme of repression discussing Laura’s relationship with Carmilla both before the discovery of her vampirism, as well as after. What does Laura, the narrator, reveal about Laura the character through this act of “transference”?