Viktor Nation, How We Feeling?

The Spectacular Spider-Men #8 - "Triage" (2024)

Also Jonathan imitating Dracula brought to mind the concept of Gothic Doubling, personally.

Yes absolutely!! I love both these takes.

I actually considered putting "sacrificial calf" in the footnotes, and exploring it there, but it started getting really bloated 😅

The calf line always feels so specific, especially with the biblical/religious baggage that Jonathan is carrying around, even though he hasn't really mentioned it since contemplating the crucifix and how it makes him feel safe. Calves and young bulls were among the most common sacrificial animals in the Old Testament (apart from the more well-known lamb).

I think the main difference is that calves like that are raised for slaughter, whereas Jonathan is taking responsibility for risking his death. In the nineteenth century, much of theology, law, and literature devoted enormous attention to questions of intent, agency, and culpability, and suicide was almost unquestionably regarded as a sin, which would exclude them from heaven. Again, it's interesting that he's a Protestant Englishman whose survival has already depended on a Catholic religious aid given by a peasant woman. He's trusting in a God that looks beyond denominational divides and one that's more interested in the reality of his peril, intention, courage, and soul. He believes that God is capable of distinguishing a reckless escape undertaken in pursuit of life from the deliberate rejection of life itself, and that if death is in the cards for him, he will be judged fairly.

He's seen what's happened to people who are left at the mercy of Count Dracula, and recognises that even death by his own hand or recklessness is preferable to a fate where his soul would be undeniably in question.

I also absolutely second you on reading in the Gothic doubling.

To quote Jonathan directly: "Where his body has gone, why may not another body go?" He's consciously modelling himself on Dracula. As in many Gothic stories and Gothic Doubling specifically, the question is asked, "What must the hero become to defeat the monster? And were they in fact the same all along?"

Everything Jonathan knows about moving through the castle's exterior, he learned by watching Dracula. The Count shows off his "lizard fashion" with no thought to the consequences because he doesn't dream of Jonathan ever escaping. It's one of the classic situations where villains bring about their own downfall by being careless and proud. His underestimation of Jonathan's abilities in the end will do him far more harm than good.

The Doubling also fits into a larger pattern in Jonathan's arc. Throughout the castle chapters, he gradually becomes more like Dracula in many superficial ways. He's awake at night, isolated from humanity, moving through hidden passages, keeping dangerous secrets, and now even climbing castle walls.