7. Inductive Leap

Stoker, Bram. Dracula. Toronto, Ont.: Broadview Literary Texts, 1998. Print.

An inductive leap too far in the novel Dracula was when Jonathan assumes that the count must be evil, simply because he is a creepy old man in a castle. Of course, it was a true inductive leap, which led to his conclusion that Count Dracula was in fact a master vampire. His leap was due to him getting more and more evidence, but then jumping with a tiny bit of evidence, nearing his statement. As he takes in more and more proof, he learns about the Count's quirks, but then when he sees him climbing down the wall face first, he just had to make a leap in his studying of him that he must be a vampire, or demon, not just an old man that likes to climb down walls. Jonathan was in his room, and heard something outside. He turns to his window to witness the Count climbing down the outer wall of the castle, "like a lizard" (Stoker), with his robe seeming to defy gravity. Jonathan is horrified, and recoils after witnessing such supernatural oddity. Jonathan makes a jump that Dracula must be non-human. This effected how he viewed him, and he would look for signs all the time, nearing his final statement that he is in fact a demon, or vampire. He went from the top third of the inductive triangle, to very close to the bottom, which was quite a leap. This overall effected how the plot folded out, and how frightened of the Count Jonathan was.