The Immortal Metaphor

Dracula endures because the metaphor is infinitely flexible and each generation discovers new fears that fit perfectly. The foreign predator maps onto anxieties about colonialism and immigration. The bite as infection vector reflects disease transmission fears from syphilis to HIV to COVID.

Control over women addressed Victorian terror about female sexuality escaping male authority. The aristocrat literally feeding on commoners is class exploitation made visceral and visible. The monster never dies because the fears he embodies never die — they simply change costumes.