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Transcript

Frankenstein

or the modern Prometheus

The early years:

Mary Shelley

  • She was born on 30th August 1797, in London

  • Mary is the daughter of William Godwin (novelist), and of Mary Wollstonecraft (femminist)

  • Her mother died soon after her birth

  • She had: one half-sister (Fanny), one stepbrother (Charles) and one stepsister (Jane)

  • Mary did not have a formal education!

  • She grew up in an intellectually exiciting enviroment, and studied in her father's library

  • Her hobby growing up was writing stories

  • She met at a young age: Taylor Cloreridge and William Wordsworth

Mary and Love

  • Mary first met Percy Bysshe Shalley at 14 years of age

  • Mary started a love affair with Percy when she was 16

  • Unfortunately, at 22 years of age Percy married another woman

  • In July 1814 they run away to France, through Switzerland

  • Because of Percy's marriage, the couple didn't receive any financial support from their familys

  • They got married in 1816, after Percy's official wife committed suicide

Mary and Death

  • After coming back to England from France in 1815, Mary gave birth to a baby girl, who died after a few days

  • Only one to the five children she gave birth to survived, and became an adult (this made her depressed...)

  • In 1816 Mary’s half-sister Fenny and Percy’s real wife, both committed suicide

  • After moving to Italy, in 1822 Percy drowned on the Gulf of la Spezia

  • The last 11 years of her life Mary was very ill, she died in 1851 probably because of a brain tumor

When and how the Frankenstein novel was born?

The origin of the novel

  • In 1816 the Shelleys spent a year with the famous poet Lord Byron, (villa Diodati) in Geneva.

  • The year before Mount Tambora (Indonesia) errupted, causing extreme weather around the world!

  • Everybody was forced inside, so Byron challenged the "couple" to write a story

  • Mary won the competition with her story about a certain scientist (afterwards called Frankenstein) giving life to a monster

  • After the competition, Percy encouraged Mary to develop her short story

  • The first version of the book was published in 1818 anonymously

  • The second edition came out in 1823, and included Mary’s name

  • In 1831 the story was revised, and became one of the most recognisable Gothic stories in modern culture!

Brief summary of the story

Plot

Walton encounters at the North Pole Victor and writes down his sad story in the form of some letters. Frankenstein tells him about how, at Ingolstadt, he managed to give life to a lifeless material. The monster, after being abandoned, gets mistreated by many people, resulting in him hating the human race. After killing William, the monster asks Frankenstein for a female partner. Victor refuses to do so; the monster gets revenge by killing: his friend Clerval and his wife Elizabeth. Victor follows the monster to the North Pole to get his revenge, then he dies in Walton’s ship. After seeing his creator’s dead body, the monster states he will burn himself (suicide) and disappears in the distance.  

Settings

During the narration events are mostly set outside, but there are also some really important scenes that occur indoors. The locations presented really exist, and are accurately described. The story mainly takes place in Europe, some important places mentioned are:

-Geneva

-Ingolstadt

-The Lake Como

-The North Pole

Narrators and Point of view

Settings Narrators Point of View

There are three main narrators: captain Walton, Victor Frankenstein and the monster; thing are presented from their point of view. The author doesn't share his opinion about any of the events.

-the first grade narrator is captain Walton: he narrates through some letters he sends to his sister

-the second grade narrator is Victor Frankestein: he tells the captain his dramatic story

-the third grade narrator is the monster: he explains to his creator his disadventures

Who are the main characters?

Main

characters

-Victor Frankenstein (dynamic)

-the monster (dynamic)

-Robert Walton

What type of man is Victor?

Victor Frankenstein

-ambitious

-intelligent

-self-confident

-perseverant

-fearful

-obsessed

-selfish

-conflicted

-week

How the monster is created?

The creature was made by Victor with human parts taken from graveyards. He was an enormous being, with a yellow dry skin. Even though the parts selected by the doctor were the best one he could find, the final result was inhuman and horrible. The monster has an immense physical streght.

The monster is:

The monster

-comprehensive

-smart

-manipulative

-alone

-mistretated

-wicked

-furios

What type of man is Walton?

Robert Walton

-generous

-curious

-prepared

-Lonely

Secondary characters

-Caroline Beaufort

-Alphonse Frankenstein

-Henry Clerval

-Elizabeth Lavenza  

-Justine Moritz

-William Frankenstein

-The cottage family and Safie

                     

-Professor Krempe/Waldman

What themes are treated?

Themes

-Individualism

-Solitude

-Death

-Family

-Ambition

-Laws of Nature

-Prejudices

-Education

-Science

-Revenge

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