Talking History offers a distinctive exploration of pivotal political, social and cultural events that have shaped our world, examining the complex figures central to these historical moments. Hosted by Dr Patrick Geoghegan of Trinity College Dublin, this programme interrogates the multifaceted, often contested dimensions of our collective past, illuminating what these historical narratives reveal about contemporary society.

Dracula
‍Bram Stoker's Dracula represents a quintessential example of how literary works synthesise diverse mythological elements to create new cultural narratives with remarkable staying power. This Gothic masterpiece draws from multiple sources—historical, folkloric, and contemporary social anxieties—to create a composite figure whose symbolic resonance transcends its Victorian origins.

The layered influences behind Dracula reveal how modern mythmaking often operates through bricolage, combining elements from diverse traditions into coherent new narratives. Stoker's vampire amalgamates Eastern European folklore, the historical figure of Vlad the Impaler, and potential echoes of Irish cultural trauma from the Great Famine. This synthesis demonstrates how effective modern myths often function as cultural crossroads where multiple traditions converge and transform one another.

Particularly significant is the novel's context within British colonial dynamics. Stoker, an Irishman writing under British rule, created a narrative where the "civilised" West confronts a threatening Eastern Other—a structure that simultaneously reinforced and subtly subverted colonial perspectives. This ambiguity has contributed to the story's enduring relevance, allowing it to be continuously reinterpreted through changing cultural lenses.

The novel's afterlife through adaptations like F.W. Murnau's Nosferatu further demonstrates how powerful mythological narratives transcend their original medium, evolving through continuous reinterpretation. The copyright battle that paradoxically enhanced Dracula's cultural status exemplifies the unpredictable processes through which certain cultural narratives achieve mythological prominence while others fade into obscurity. Stoker's creation thus offers a case study in how modern literary works can attain mythological status, becoming flexible frameworks for exploring evolving cultural anxieties while maintaining recognisable core elements across diverse adaptations.