Frankenstein

1. Frankenstein “The Modern Prometheus”

2. Journal Write • What do you think of when you hear the word “Frankenstein”? What images, memories, or feelings arise in your mind? • Based off of what you know, who is Frankenstein?

3. Mary Shelley • Born in 1797 in London, England • Mother, Mary, was a feminist writer • Dies shortly after Mary (Jr.) was born • Father was a writer • Married Mary Clairmont after losing his first wife • Mary Shelley experienced bitter times growing up • Cruel stepmother and emotionally distant father

4. Continued… • Met her future husband, Percy, at the age of 16 • He was also a famous poet • Had a daughter, Clara, who died a few weeks after her birth • Soon after son, William, was born • All traveled through France, Germany, & Switzerland (the novel takes place in these places) • Married in 1816 in London

5. Tragic Life • Began writing Frankenstein in 1816 while in Switzerland • Inspired by sailing trips and telling ghost stories) • A second daughter, Clara, was born but died a year later • Percy Jr. was born in 1819 (the same year William died) • In 1822 Mary had a miscarriage which almost ended her life • In the same year, Percy Sr. was sailing and a storm sank the ship • His body washed ashore

6. The End of Her Life… • Devastated by her loss, Shelley returned back to England with her son, Percy • Worked on writing many novels • Died in 1851 (fifty-four years old) from a brain tumor

7. The Creation of Frankenstein • One night, when Mary was visiting the Swiss Alps with her husband and friends, they began telling ghost stories • Her friend, Byron, challenged her to come up with a ghost story • The next day she began writing Frankenstein and a year later she finished her book • It was published in 1818, when Shelley was 21 years old • Book was published anonymously originally • People criticized the book claiming it to be “a tissue of horrible and disgusting absurdity”.

8. The Romantic Movement • A movement in the late 18th century, which emphasizes emotion, imagination, intuition, freedom, personal experience, the beauty of nature, the exotic, and even the grotesque. • Often contained the idea of the disenfranchised man • Men who found themselves unable to live in society • Supernatural • Make ordinary and everyday things wonderful and inspiring

9. Continued.. • Began as a reaction against Enlightenment ideals (using reason and knowledge) • Writers were trying to create a new kind of poetry that emphasized intuition over reason and the nature over the urban

10. Thus, Romantic writing is a spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings (not necessarily love)

11. The Development of Science = FEAR for the Romantics • Prior to the 18th century science and philosophy were the same thing • Some science experiments that may have jump-stated Mary’s imagination • Luigi Galvani- made frog legs twitch by poking them with electrodes • Giovanni Aldini did the same but with human limbs • Johann Dippel robbed graves and did diabolical experiments on the corpses • The work of these scientists was important; led to eletro-shock therapy and cardiac defibrillation

13. Gothic Style1764-1820 • Offshoot of Romantic literature • Created the first horror movies • The Gothic creates feelings of gloom, mystery, and suspense and tends to the dramatic and the sensational • The most common feature of Gothic literature is the indication of mood through weather • When bad things are going to happen, a storm will occur before

14. Gothic Architecture • The tall spires and vaulting arches of medieval cathedrals likewise expressed the human ambition to transcend the natural world and touch the supernatural realm • Gothic literature derives its name from its similarities to the Gothic medieval cathedrals, which feature a majestic, architectural style with often savage or grotesque ornamentation

15. Gothic literature attempts to unmask the horrific aspects of human nature • Monsters such as vampires in Gothic works tend to externalize our own dangerous repressed desires • Gothic literature pictures the human condition as mixture of good and evil powers. Thus, the Gothic perspective conceives of the human condition as a paradox— humans are divided in the conflict between opposing forces in the world and in themselves • Gothic themes focus on the existence of unexplainable elements in humanity and the cosmos

16. Gothic Elements • Gothic horror genre or mode of literature that combines elements of both horror and romance • Writers in the Gothic Period utilized specific elements while writing to create the gothic and creepy mood. • Many famous authors like Shelley (Frankenstein), Stoker (Dracula), and Poe have used these elements and while reading their texts, you notice they all have a similar mood.