The bride-maidens rejoice the eyes that wait the coming of the bride. But when the bride draweth nigh, then the maidens shine not to the eyes that are filled.
– Bram Stoker
Dracula, Chapter 8. Dr. Seward’s mentally ill patient Renfield makes this reply when asked why he has lost interest in his hobby of catching and counting spiders. Renfield is the diabolical version of John the Baptist, who prepares the way for Lord of Evil – Count Dracula, the bride referred to by Renfield. Renfield uses scripture in a profane sense, his quote being a transformation of John 3.29: "The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete."