Booklet containing Context about Frankenstein (written by Mary Shelley )and Quotes from the play with analysis .
Contains analysis of quotes about :
nature vs nurture
setting
fate
women
victor
the creature
Elizabeth
1-genre
-genre of the book has been the cause of a lot of debate
- non supernatural horror-aims to scare readers through a plot rooted close to reality
-based on prevalent fears in society at the time
-can also be classes as a work of gothic fiction -adds elements of romanticism and fiction but
also elements of realism.
-science fiction – sense that it is based on a realistic progression of current scientific
development.
2-Title
Subtitle of the novel is modern Prometheus
-Prometheus is a character from Greek mythology who created mankind from clay
-creates a parallel with Frankenstein in the notion of someone creating life
- Prometheus got in trouble for gifting humans fire which allowed human civilization to
develop
- Prometheus was punished ( his liver was eaten by an eagle before it grew back and
happened again every day )
-in ancient Greece the liver was thought to be connected to emotions so the metaphorical
punishment is the daily torture of punishments which is similar to Frankenstein’s
punishments as he is subjected to repeated emotional torment .
3-context
-galvanism
Experiment on dead animals with electricity – he found that animal limbs could be caused to
spasm if touched with an electric current therefore readers worried that what happened in
the novel would happen In real life .
-Nature vs Nurture
Are people born this way or are they the way they are as a result of personal experiences in
their life .
-the creature has a horrible life and and is treated badly by almost everyone he has come in
contact with
-the torment has left a mark on him and evidence of nurture can be seen when the creature
becomes hesitant and distant because of the way he is treated when trying to join the da
lacey family .
- the creature himself feels that nurture has made him a the evil monster he is and that
positive experiences would have made him good ( “ my heart was fashioned to be
susceptible of love and sympathy and when wrenched by misery to vice and hatred , it did
not endure the violence of the change without torture such as you cannot even imagine “)
EVIDANCE FOR NURTURE
-“he held up the curtain”
, “he muttered some inarticulate sounds “
“one hand stretched out , seemingly to detain me “
-these are actions of a child to a parent therefore proving that the creature was not acting in
an evil way and that the poor treatment is what caused him to become evil
- it is almost like Mary Shelley is trying to critique society
-The author: Mary Shelley
-death was a regular event in Mary Shelly life
-Mary’s mother died a few days after giving birth to Mary – the guilt that she could have felt
over her mothers death is reflected throughout the novel through the character of Elizabeth
as Frankenstein’s mother dies after catching Scarlett fever from Elizabeth .
-1815 one of her children died – then novel could be interpreted as a text that deals with
the guilt of a failed parent – Frankenstein fails to care and nurture the life he created
Romanticism vs enlightenment
-romanticism was a literary movement which began in the early 1800
- romantic writers often used nature to explore emotions , they sought to learn from nature
and to live in harmony with it
-they fought against the enlightenment scientists who attempted to control nature (seen in
the novel – the aggressive actions of Frankenstein lead to chaos and misery )
-Frankenstein contains two contrasting ideas about the source of happiness in life –
academic and scientific pursuit don’t seem to give any sense of contentment or happiness .
-there is suggestions that happiness comes from connecting with nature ( when
Frankenstein experiment goes wrong he goes to the mountains to find peace )
4-setting
- “a dreary night of November “November is a time of dark evening and bleak relentless
weather
- “one in the morning “the late-night setting conjures up images in the readers head of
isolation and danger – no one is there to help Frankenstein – we cannot see so clearly and
our mind plays tricks on us as we imagine thing that aren’t really there – our sense of sight
diminishes so our other senses are heighten so we can hear strange noises
-“the rain pattered dismally against the panes “ pathetic fallacy is used , giving human
characteristics to the weather – the bad weather foreshadows the bad events in the future -
the word dismally comes from the Latin word dies Mali which means evil days
5-structure
Gustav Freytag proposed that all Greek tragedy’s have plots that can be divided into a 5 part
structure
-exposition – introducing the main character’s
-rising action – a series of events
-climax – problems
-falling action – the problem unravels
-Denouement -the fallout from the way the characters deal with the climax
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