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GENERAL ENGLISH · ENGLISH IN VIDEO · ADVANCED (C1-C2)

THE BIRTH
OF DRACULA

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1 Warm up

In pairs, look at the pictures and discuss the questions below.

1. garlic 2. stake 3. wolf

4. fangs 5. Whitby, North Yorkshire 6. Vlad the Impaler

1. How are the photos connected to the story of Dracula?

2. Have you read Dracula or seen any of the films? What did you think of them? Is it a story that
interests you? Why/Why not?
3. Why do you think Dracula has been so successful as a story?

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2 Understanding the introduction

You are going to watch a video on the ’birth’ of Dracula. Put the following sentences from the
beginning of the video script in the correct order. The first one has been done for you.

Blood-sucking monsters had already been part of folklore for at least 800 years.

But that was far from the beginning of vampire myths.

But this Transylvanian noble, neither the first fictional vampire nor the most popular of his time, may
have remained buried in obscurity if not for a twist of fate.

Dracula’s first appearance was in Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel of the same name.

It was Slavic folklore that gave us the word vampire, or "upir" in Old Russian.

More than 100 years after his creator was laid to rest, Dracula lives on as the most famous vampire in
history. 1

The term’s first known written mention comes from the 11th century.

Vampire lore in the region predated Christianity’s arrival and persisted despite the church’s efforts to
eliminate pagan beliefs.

Watch the first part of the video (00:00 – 01:01) to check your answer.
Now find words or phrases in the introduction which mean the same as the following.

1. buried

2. continues to exist, often in a memory or in culture

3. a person with a high social ranking

4. a state of being unknown

5. a change of fortune

6. stories and information passed around by word of mouth within a certain group
of people

7. to keep going even when things are difficult

8. religious beliefs that are not part of any of the main religions

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THE BIRTH OF DRACULA

3 Focus on vocabulary

Part A: Match the following words to the definitions.

1. decomposition (n) a. a piece of writing giving the details of someone’s life after they
have died
2. ritual (n) b. a process of specific actions to achieve something, usually for a
religious or spiritual purpose
3. mutilate (v) c. a statement saying that something is incorrect

4. hysteria (n) d. a state of extreme excitement or fear

5. refutation (n) e. the process of a person, animal or plant being naturally destroyed
after death
6. subside (v) f. to create many other things

7. spawn (v) g. to damage something very severely, especially a body

8. obituary (n) h. to get less intense and calmer

Part B: Now put the words from Part A into the correct gap in the following sentences. You may have
to change the form of the word.

1. I only realised my old headteacher had died when I read his in the local newspaper.
2. The body was found in the river and had made it very difficult to identify.
3. It was a long time after Princess Diana’s death before the media attention .
4. Police released a statement saying they were looking for vandals who had broken into the graveyard
and one of the recently buried bodies.
5. The very first Friday 13th film was very successful and a string of sequels.
6. After her husband’s death, Gloria found the at her church very comforting.
7. Despite a number of scientific of his work, Andrew Wakefield still enjoys a great
deal of popularity within the anti-vaccine movement.
8. The rock band walking on stage caused a huge amount of amongst the crowd.

Now in pairs, answer the following questions.

1. When was the last time you, or someone you know, was in a state of hysteria?
2. Do you ever read the obituaries in a newspaper or online? Why/Why not?
3. What daily, weekly, or yearly rituals do you follow?
4. Which book you have read or film you have seen spawned several sequels? Were they as good as
the original? Why/Why not?

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4 Vocabulary in context

In pairs, discuss what the words in bold in the following sentences mean.

1. When Ray looked down at his leg, blood was oozing from a fresh wound.
2. She was quite horrified as it was the first time she had ever seen a corpse.
3. Although he never learned to read music, Sam and his guitar went on to become a worldwide
phenomenon.
4. When news of the earthquake reached the editor, he dispatched two of his best reporters to the
scene.
5. No, it wasn’t the best of weekends; I was bedridden the entire time.
6. Her first film was an incredible success and catapulted her to fame.
7. Although he wrote the song over twenty years ago, the company is still paying him royalties for
it.
8. I’m so happy for you and wish you eternal happiness.

Now in pairs, discuss the following questions.

1. What kind of substance, aside from blood, could be described as oozing?

2. Have you ever seen a corpse? How did it make you feel or if you haven’t, how do you think it
would make you feel?
3. Who or what could you describe as a phenomenon from your country?
4. Have you, or anyone you know, ever been bedridden? What was the cause?
5. Have you ever used a catapult? What was the situation where you used it?
6. What do you think is the best way to find eternal happiness?

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5 Comprehension

Watch the rest of the video (01:01 – 05:05) and decide on the correct answer for the following
questions.

1. The idea of an undead vampire feeding on the living partly came from ...

a. the way a body could decompose which caused it to bleed and swell.
b. ancient stories from Asia inspired by vampire bats.
c. Christian stories of evil demons living on Earth.

2. Due to fear of the dead coming back to life ...

a. bodies were often buried with stones on top of them to weigh them down.
b. they were often sent out to sea in small boats, well away from the land.
c. the corpses were disposed of with fire or cut into pieces.

3. In Austria, widespread hysteria about vampires was caused by ...

a. rumours about the Austrian Empress and her secret rituals.

b. wartime reports by Austrian soldiers about Serbian customs for burying their dead.
c. an Austrian doctor who was said to be feeding on the blood of his patients.

4. Before he was a well-known author, Bram Stoker ...

a. wrote a book called Carmilla which later made him a lot of money.
b. suffered from Cholera as a young adult.
c. was confined to his bed with an unidentified illness as a child.

5. When Dracula was published ...

a. it was an immediate hit and Bram Stoker instantly rose to fame.

b. it was largely ignored and wasn’t one of Bram Stoker’s most popular novels.
c. it increased the public interest in Bram Stoker’s work and he became quite wealthy after years
of struggle.

6. Dracula’s success was due to ...

a. the novel being a favourite of the British royal family which inspired others to read it.
b. the story being adapted for a TV series which became very popular.
c. a German film illegally copying the plot of Dracula without crediting it which created a legal
battle.

7. Bela Lugosi was ...

a. the actor who portrayed Dracula in the theatre production and later the Hollywood film.
b. the producer of the original theatre production of Dracula which went on to be a great success.
c. the director of the film which made Dracula a worldwide sensation.

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6 Talking point

In pairs, discuss the following questions.

1. Did the video tell you anything which you didn’t know before? What was it?
2. What horror stories are popular in your country? What do you think makes them popular?
3. Are there any scary folktales from your country that you know? Can you tell them?
4. Do you enjoy watching horror films? Why/Why not?

7 Extended activity/homework

Choose one of the following writing exercises.

• 1. Write your own obituary.

Think about what you have done so far in your life and what you think you will achieve before
you die. Write the obituary from the perspective of someone else talking about you looking
back on your life.

You should:
• Write at least 250 words
• Check your grammar, spelling and punctuation

• 2. Write about a scary story from your home country.

Take some time to think how best to tell it. Who are the main characters? What happens at
the beginning, the middle, and the end of the story? Is there any meaning behind this story?

You should:
• Write at least 250 words
• Check your grammar, spelling and punctuation

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