What interests of Mary Shelley does her novel reflect?
When she was just sixteen years old, Mary Shelley fell in love with the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, who was passionate about writing bold and innovative literature that reflected his somewhat radical ideals of creativity, freedom, and equality.
What were some of the historical influences on Mary Shelley’s writing of Frankenstein?
Lord Byron’s suggestion of a ghost story competition to while away their Swiss holiday not only inspired Shelley’s novel Frankenstein, but also Polidori’s short prose The Vampyre (1819) which later became a source of inspiration for Bram Stoker’s seminal work, Dracula (1897).
What was happening in the world when Frankenstein was written?
Mary wrote Frankenstein when she was only 18, as part of an informal contest among friends to see who could write the best horror story. She wrote the novel at a time when the eighteenth-century Age of Enlightenment was giving way to the nineteenth-century philosophy of Romanticism.
How is society presented in Frankenstein?
In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, society continually regards Victor’s creation as a monster, both physically and psychologically. Thus, society plays a large role in shaping the monster’s personality and behavior. Because society expects him to act like a monster, he inevitably becomes one.
Is Frankenstein a critique of society?
While some critics believe the novel urges ‘no lesson of conduct, manners or morality’, others suggest that Frankenstein is undoubtedly a critique of what is good and evil in man and therefore in society. ‘ This is the most prevalent illustration of Shelley’s condemnation of society.
How is injustice shown in Frankenstein?
In Shelley’s Frankenstein, injustice is revealed mostly in the character of Victor. He not only creates a monster and fails to take responsibility for him, but then acts as judge and jury, condemning him even after the “monster,” as Victor refers to him, tries to talk to him.
How is prejudice shown in Frankenstein?
Prejudice and its effects are traced by Shelley in the novel and are centred on the experiences of the Monster. Rejected by his creator and everyone else he encounters, the Monster soon finds itself despised and alone in the world.
How does Shelley present the creature?
In her novel, Shelley uses a frame narrative to present the Creature as a stereotypical gothic villain through the perspectives of Walton and Frankenstein. She does this by using adjectives with negative connotations to describe the Creature such as ‘demoniacal corpse.
Is prejudice a theme in Frankenstein?
Prejudice as a theme Prejudice is a recurring theme throughout Frankenstein and it is mainly shown through the man’s prejudice in relation to appearance, through the Monster, and of women through Justine. Thus Shelley highlights the shallowness of men, in judging the monster through his appearance.