Background for Mary Shelley’s
Frankenstein (or The Modern
Prometheus)
Mary Shelley

The “mother” of Frankenstein.

Inspiration for Frankenstein came from a
conversation with her future husband, Romantic
poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, and their poet friend
Lord Byron about the reanimation of a body.
Shelley dreamt/thought of the story that night.

Lord Byron fathered a child with Mary's stepsister,
Jane Clairmont.

Daughter of two famous writers, William Godwin, a
liberal, anarchist, political theorist and Mary
Wollstonecraft, a writer and early feminist thinker.

Met her husband at age 15. Later married him two
weeks after his first wife drowned. By then, she had
already given birth to two of his children.

She and her husband believed in “free love” after
the beliefs of her father. Percy wanted to “share”
her with his friend Thomas Hogg. Both were
vegetarians.

Published Frankenstein, her most famous work, in
1817.

Written during the "year without a summer", in
1816. Volcanic winter caused by the eruption of
Tambora in 1815.

Caught in a storm, Percy drowned at sea on July 8
,1822 . Percy left his last poem, a shadowy work
called "The Triumph Of Life", unfinished.

Continued publishing after the death of her
husband. Valperga, The Fortunes of Perkin
Warbeck ,and Falkner. Critics say these works do
not begin to approach the power and fame of
Frankenstein; The Last Man ,a pioneering science
fiction novel of the human apocalypse in the distant
future is, however, sometimes considered her best
work, as is Maria, a novel published posthumously.
The Nineteenth Century

Written during the early phase of the Industrial
Revolution, a time of dramatic change.

The Industrial Revolution was the major
technological, socioeconomic, and cultural change
in the late 18th and early 19th century resulting
from the replacement of an economy based on
manual labor to one dominated by industry and
machine manufacture.

Began in England with the introduction of steam
power (fueled primarily by coal) and powered
machinery (mainly in textile manufacturing ). The
development of all-metal machine tools in the first
two decades of the nineteenth century enabled the
manufacture of more production machines for
manufacturing in other industries.

It was a time when man seemed to be challenging
God's knowledge.

Alchemy was a very popular topic in Shelley's
world. In fact, it was becoming an acceptable idea
that humanity could infuse the spark of life into a
non-living thing (Luigi Galvani's experiments, for
example). This caused fear.

Galvani was an Italian physician that conducted
experiments by running electricity through animals
and noting the charge made the animal's muscles
jump. His work eventually led to the development
of the early battery by his rival, Alassandro Volta.

Alchemy contained elements of chemistry ,physics,
astrology, art, semiotics, metallurgy, medicine, and
mysticism. These practices were usually used
outside of what is now known as the scientific
method. However, alchemy can be regarded as the
precursor of the modern science of chemistry prior
to the formulation of the scientific method.
Influences, themes, ideas in Frankenstein

Promethean myth from Ovid- He tried to trick Zeus
(who knows all and sees all) with a false sacrifice.
Stole fire from Zeus and gave it to the primitive
mortals on the earth. Obvious parallels to The
Monster.

John Milton's Paradise Lost- The Monster is very
similar to Milton's portrayal of Satan. The Monster
even reads it.

Some, such as Brian Aldiss, claim that it is the very
first science fiction novel.

Widely hated by critics, achieved immediate
success and popularity.

Spawned its own seperate genre of Frankenstein
plays, books, movies, etc.

The creature has no name. It is called "The
Monster", "The Creature, "Frankenstein's Monster",
or "The Fiend".

Frankenstein and his utter disregard for the human
and animal remains gathered in his pursuit of power
can be taken as symbolic of the rampant forces of
laissez-faire capitalism extant at the time and their
basic disregard for human dignity.

The creation rebels against its creator: a clear
message that irresponsible uses of technologies can
have unconsidered consequences.

Behind Frankenstein's experiments is the search for
ultimate power or godhood: what greater power
could there be than the act of creation of life.

Popular feminist critique of the novel Frankenstein
views the tale as a journey of pregnancy and the
common fears of women in Shelley's day of
frequent stillborn births and maternal deaths due to
complications in delivery.
The Gothic Novel




English literary genre, which can be said to have been
born with The Castle of Otranto (1764)by Horace
Walpole.
Predecessor to modern horror fiction and it above all
has led to the common definition of gothic as being
connected to the dark and horrific.
Prominent features of gothic novels included terror,
mystery, the supernatural, doom, death, decay,
haunted buildings, ghosts, madness, hereditary curses
and so on.
'Gothic' was originally a disparaging term applied to a
style of medieval architecture (Gothic architecture)
and art (Gothic art).

Became linked with an appreciation of the joys of
extreme emotion, the thrill of fearfulness and awe
inherent in the sublime and a quest for atmosphere.

English Protestants were inclined to associate
medieval buildings with a dark and terrifying period,
envisioning the Catholic Church oppressing people
with harsh laws, torture and superstitious rituals.
'Gothic' came to be applied to the literary genre
precisely because the genre dealt with such emotional
extremes and dark themes, and because it found its
most natural settings in the buildings of this style:
Castles, mansions and monasteries, often remote,
crumbling and ruined.





1880s saw a revival of the gothic as a literary form.
This was the period of the gothic works of Robert
Louis Stevenson, Arthur Machen, and Oscar Wilde.
The most famous gothic villain ever appeared in Bram
Stoker's Dracula.
Many modern writers of horror or indeed other fiction
extend considerable gothic sensibilities: Anne Rice
being one example, as well as some of the less
sensationalist works of Stephen King.
The Romantic and the Gothic novel are closely
related; both imagined almost-supernatural forces
operating in nature or directing human fate.
.The gothic tradition has also expanded its boundaries
to films, music, as well as the new media forms of the
internet.
Modern, popular portrayals
The Universal films in which The Monster appears (and the actor who played him) are:
Frankenstein </wiki/Frankenstein_%281931_film%29> (1931 </wiki/1931> - Boris
Karloff)
Bride of Frankenstein </wiki/Bride_of_Frankenstein> (1935 </wiki/1935> - Karloff)
Son of Frankenstein </wiki/Son_of_Frankenstein> (1939 </wiki/1939> - Karloff)
Ghost of Frankenstein </w/index.php?title=Ghost_of_Frankenstein&action=edit>
(1942 </wiki/1942> - Lon Chaney Jr. </wiki/Lon_Chaney_Jr.>)
Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man (1943 </wiki/1943> - Bela Lugosi
</wiki/Bela_Lugosi> with stuntman Eddie Parker
</w/index.php?title=Eddie_Parker&action=edit> in some scenes including a
close-up)
House of Frankenstein
</w/index.php?title=House_of_Frankenstein_%281944_film%29&action=edit>
(1944 </wiki/1944> - Glenn Strange </wiki/Glenn_Strange>)
House of Dracula (1945 </wiki/1945> - Strange)
Bud Abbott Lou Costello Meet Frankenstein
</wiki/Abbott_and_Costello_Meet_Frankenstein> (1948 </wiki/1948> Strange). This film is usually referred to as Abbott and Costello Meet
Frankenstein but the title given above is its official title according to the Internet
Movie Database </wiki/Internet_Movie_Database>.
In 2004 </wiki/2004>, Universal released Van Helsing </wiki/Van_Helsing>. This film
was a reinvention and reinvigoration of the famous Universal stable of monsters of the
1930s and 1940s. Shuler Hensley </wiki/Shuler_Hensley> plays the Monster who,
contrary to usual practice, is directly referred to by the name Frankenstein. The portrayal
of the creature in this movie is somewhat close to the portrayal in the book.
In Great Britain </wiki/Great_Britain>, a long-running series by Hammer Films
</wiki/Hammer_Films> focused on the character of Dr. Frankenstein (usually played by
Peter Cushing </wiki/Peter_Cushing>) rather than his monsters. The Hammer Films
series (and the actor playing The Monster) consisted of:
The Curse of Frankenstein </wiki/The_Curse_of_Frankenstein> (1957 </wiki/1957>
- Christopher Lee </wiki/Christopher_Lee>)
The Revenge of Frankenstein
</w/index.php?title=The_Revenge_of_Frankenstein&action=edit> (1958
</wiki/1958> - two Monsters: Michael Gwynn </wiki/Michael_Gwynn> and
Peter Cushing </wiki/Peter_Cushing>)
The Evil of Frankenstein </wiki/The_Evil_of_Frankenstein> (1964 </wiki/1964> Kiwi Kingston </wiki/Kiwi_Kingston>)
Frankenstein Created Woman </wiki/Frankenstein_Created_Woman> (1967
</wiki/1967> - Susan Denberg
</w/index.php?title=Susan_Denberg&action=edit>)
Frankenstein Must be Destroyed
</w/index.php?title=Frankenstein_Must_be_Destroyed&action=edit> (1969
</wiki/1969> - Freddie Jones </wiki/Freddie_Jones>)
The Horror of Frankenstein
</w/index.php?title=The_Horror_of_Frankenstein&action=edit> (1970
</wiki/1970> - David Prowse </wiki/David_Prowse>)
Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell
</w/index.php?title=Frankenstein_and_the_Monster_from_Hell&action=edit>
(1974 </wiki/1974> - Prowse)
Peter Cushing </wiki/Peter_Cushing> played Dr. Frankenstein in all of the above films
except for Horror of Frankenstein in which the character was played by Ralph Bates
</wiki/Ralph_Bates>. Cushing also played a Frankenstein creation in Revenge of
Frankenstein. David Prowse </wiki/David_Prowse> played two different Monsters.
1985 </wiki/1985> saw the release of The Bride, an adaptation directed by Franc
Roddam. It stars Clancy Brown </wiki/Clancy_Brown> as the monster, with rocker Sting
</wiki/Sting> as Dr. Charles Frankenstein. The plot features the Monster wandering
about Europe with a tragic circus midget (David Rappaport
</wiki/David_Rappaport>)while the Doctor himself engages in a Pygmalion-inspired
relationship with a female creation, the eponymous monster's bride played by Jennifer
Beals. A love triangle between Doctor, Monster and Bride is the films pivotal conflict.
An extremely tangential adaptation is Ishiro Honda </wiki/Ishiro_Honda>'s 1965
</wiki/1965> tokusatsu </wiki/Tokusatsu> kaiju </wiki/Kaiju> film Frankenstein
Conquers the World </wiki/Frankenstein_Conquers_the_World> (Furankenshutain tai
Chitei Kaijû Baragon), produced by Toho Company Ltd </wiki/Toho>. The film's
prologue is set in World War II </wiki/World_War_II>, the monster's heart is stolen by
Nazis </wiki/Nazi> from the laboratory of Dr. Reisendorf in war-torn Frankfurt
</wiki/Frankfurt>, and taken to Imperial Japan </wiki/Japan>. Immortal, the heart
survives the atomic bombing of Hiroshima </wiki/Hiroshima> and is eaten by a savage
child survivor . . . and after discovered by scientists in Present Day Japan, he feeds on
protein, eventually growing into a giant humanoid monster that breaks loose and battles
the subterranean monster Baragon </wiki/Baragon>, which was destroying villages and
devouring people and animals.
The 1966 </wiki/1966> film War of the Gargantuas
</w/index.php?title=War_of_the_Gargantuas&action=edit> (Furankenshutain no
Kaijû: Sanda tai Gaira), also directed by Honda, is a sequel to said film (although this is
obscured in the US version), with the Frankenstein Monster's severed cells growing into
two giant humanoid brother monsters: Sanda
</w/index.php?title=Brown_Gargantua&action=edit> (the Brown Gargantua), the strong
and gentle monster raised by scientists in his youth, and Gaira
</w/index.php?title=Green_Gargantua&action=edit> (the Green Gargantua), the violent
and savage monster who devours humans. The two monsters eventually battle each other
in Tokyo </wiki/Tokyo>.
Another wildly differing adaptation is the 1958 film Frankenstein 1970
</w/index.php?title=Frankenstein_1970&action=edit>, which focuses on the themes of
nuclear power, impotence, and the film industry. Boris Karloff </wiki/Boris_Karloff>
stars as Dr. Frankenstein, who harvests the bodies of actors to create a clone of himself
using his nuclear-powered laboratory. His intention is to have this clone carry on his
genes into future generations.
A notable recent adaptation is Mary Shelley's Frankenstein
</wiki/Mary_Shelley%27s_Frankenstein> (1994 </wiki/1994>), directed by and starring
Kenneth Branagh </wiki/Kenneth_Branagh> as Victor Frankenstein and Robert De Niro
</wiki/Robert_De_Niro> as the Creature. The Universal version was itself reinterpreted
in the 2004 </wiki/2004> Stephen Sommers </wiki/Stephen_Sommers> film Van
Helsing.
Depictions of The Monster have varied widely, from mindless killing machines (as in
many of the Hammer films) to the depiction of The Monster as a kind of tragic hero
</wiki/Tragic_hero> (closest to the Shelley version in behavior) in Mary Shelley's
Frankenstein and Van Helsing.
Three films have depicted the genesis of the Frankenstein story in 1816: Gothic
</wiki/Gothic_%28film%29> directed by Ken Russell </wiki/Ken_Russell> (1986
</wiki/1986>), Haunted Summer directed by Ivan Passer (1988 </wiki/1988>) and
Remando al viento (English title: Rowing with the Wind) directed by Gonzalo Suárez
(1988).
Certainly among the goriest Frankenstein movies was Andy Warhol
</wiki/Andy_Warhol>'s Flesh for Frankenstein
</w/index.php?title=Flesh_for_Frankenstein&action=edit> from 1973 [1]
<http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0071508/>. This film was paired with Warhol's Blood for
Dracula </wiki/Blood_for_Dracula>. Both of these movies were satirical in the
overabundance of shock and gore.
[edit </w/index.php?title=Frankenstein&action=edit&section=7>]
Parodies and satires
The films have been parodied, as in Mel Brooks </wiki/Mel_Brooks>' comedy Young
Frankenstein </wiki/Young_Frankenstein> (1974 </wiki/1974>), which borrows heavily
from the first three Universal Frankenstein films, including the use of Whale's original
laboratory set pieces and the technical contributions of their original creator, Kenneth
Strickfaden </w/index.php?title=Kenneth_Strickfaden&action=edit>.
The Rocky Horror Picture Show </wiki/The_Rocky_Horror_Picture_Show> (1975
</wiki/1975>) was a musical parody of the story. In this twisted comedic tale, Dr. Frank
N. Furter, creates a creature for his own pleasure and finds he cannot control the creatures
lust.