Major Works Data Sheet

Advanced Placement Literature and Composition

Title: Frankenstein
Author: Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley
Date of Publication: 1818
Genre: Romantic/Gothic novel / Biographical Information about the Author:
Mary Shelley was born on August 30, 1797, in London, England. She married poet Percy Bysshe Shelley in 1816. Two years later, she published her most famous novel,Frankenstein. Shelley died of brain cancer on February 1, 1851, in London, England. She experienced the death of three of her children. Born in 1819, their son, Percy Florence, was the only child to live to adulthood. She wrote Frankenstein as a response to a challenge by Lord Byron and her husband, Percy Shelley, to think of a horror story. Whoever wrote the best story would be declared the winner.
Historical Information:
Mary Shelley began Frankenstein at the request of friend Lord Byron. He devised a competition to see who could write the best horror story. Frankenstein eventually became a bestseller for Mary Shelley. Frankenstein still resonates with audiences today. Shelley’s text reflects the people from the time period of her day. Written during the Romantic period (1785-1830), Frankenstein conveys many of the ideas of the time, such as revolution and rebellion.
Characteristics of the Genre:
-Mary Shelley describes nature with great embroidering detail and highlights its influence on humanity through the esteemed Clerval and the uplifting of the depressed Victor.
-She expresses that humanity is generally good, but corrupted by society through the creature. He starts out with benevolence in his heart and helps the destitute French family, until rejection and being spurned by humanity causes him to despise their existence.
-She tells the story in a Gothic manner by surrounding negative events with storms, the night, and supernatural aspects which darken the atmosphere during these crucial events. Furthermore the Gothic element is scene in the torture of Victor and the creature through dread, hatred, and unobtainable desires; the unjust deaths of the pure Justine, Elizabeth, Clerval, William, and Victor’s parents; and the exile of the French family for nobly aiding the wrongfully imprisoned Turk, who rewarded them with trickery and deceit.
Plot Summary:
Victor describes his early life in Geneva, where he talks about his blissful childhood and his friendships between Henry Clerval and Elizabeth Lavenza. Victor then goes to a university in Ingolstadt to study natural philosophy and chemistry, where he instead spends years obsessed with these studies and his experiment with creation. He brings his creation to life one night in his dorm room and his horrified with his results and becomes ill. He then returns to Geneva but before he leaves he receives a letter from his father informing him of his brother William’s decease. On his way home he catches sight of the monster and becomes convicted that the monster is the murderer of his brother. Victor becomes despondent and isolated with guilt that his creation is the cause of his loved one’s deaths. Hoping to ease his grief, Victor takes a vacation to the mountains. He is approached by the monster and the monster admits to the murder but begs for understanding. The monster then begs for Victor to create a companion for him. Victor refuses at first, horrified at the thought of creating another monster, but the monster convinces Victor to do it. Victor then leaves Geneva and heads out for England with his friend Henry Clerval to gather information about a female monster. He leaves Henry in Scotland and secludes himself on a desolate island and works reluctantly at repeating his first success. One night, struck by doubt and the morality of his actions, Victor glances out the window to see the monster. Horrified by the consequences of his work, Victor aborts and destroys his experiment. The monster vows revenge and promises to be with Victor on his wedding night. Later that night, Victor takes a boat out onto the lake and dumps the remains of his second creature into the water. The wind picks up and prevents him from returning to the island. In the morning he finds himself in an unknown town and also finds himself being arrested and charged for the murder discovered the previous night. He denies any knowledge of the murder, but when he is shown the deceased body of his friend Henry Clerval with traces of the monsters fingers on his neck, he is shocked and falls ill and is kept in prison until his recovery, after which he is acquitted with his crime. After he returns to Geneva, he marries Elizabeth. He fears the warning of the monster and fears he will be murdered on his wedding night. To be cautious, he sends Elizabeth to wait for him and later finds that Elizabeth was murdered instead of himself. Victor then returns home to his father who dies of grief a short time later. Victor dedicates the rest of his life to vengeance of his deceased beloved. Victor tracks the monster ever northward into the ice. Victor almost catches up with the monster but the glacier parts and they are separated from one another. At this point, Walton encounters Victor who gives him the fourth letter from his sister. Walton tells the remainder of the story in a series of letters to his sister. Victor worsens and dies shortly thereafter. A few days later, he enters the room to see lifeless Victor and the monster weeping over his body. The monster tells Walton of his immense solitude, suffering, hatred, and remorse. He asserts now that his creator has died, and he departs to the northernmost ice to die.
Describe the Author’s Style:
While writing Frankenstein, Shelley combined the styles of Romantic and Gothic. Like many Romantic pieces, Shelley heavily portrayed elements of nature, freedom, emotion, rebellion, and compassion. Gothic literature focuses the mysterious and supernatural with dark surroundings. / Provide an example that demonstrates the style:
On pages 118, 119, and the last half of the finishing paragraph on 120 there is a great example of just how Shelley managed to combine the Romantic and Gothic styles in her own fancy.
Memorable Quotes
Quotes / Significance of each quote
“After days and nights of incredible labour and fatigue, I succeeded in discovering the cause of generation and life… I became myself capable of bestowing animation among lifeless matter.” (Back Cover, Shelley)
“I could not sustain the horror of my situation; and when I perceived that the popular voice, and the countenances of the judges, had already condemned my unhappy victim, I rushed out of the court in agony. The tortures of the accused did not equal mine she was sustained by innocence, but the fangs of remorse tore my boson, and would not forego their hold.” (Page 71, Shelley)
“I was moved. I shuddered when I thought of the possible consequences of my consent…” (Page 134, Shelley) / The importance of this quote is that it’s the origin of the obstacles in the novel. This quote of Victor Frankenstein bringing life to his creature highlights one of the most important events of the whole novel as well.
The significance of this is that Frankenstein is really selfish and that he – even though he is the guilty one – believes that he has it worse than Justine, who was convicted of a crime that he caused. This shows his selfishness and even more that he must not be very mature since he cannot take responsibility for any of his actions. Not only did he fail to take responsibility for the death of his brother, but he did not take responsibility in the first place when he just ran off and left his creature to escape.
This quote is very important because it shows that Victor is so scared of the judgment of his peers that he will not allow Justine to be found innocent of the death of his brother. Instead of actually confessing to the creation of his monster, he causes Justine to be killed for a crime she did not commit. (This related to the thematic idea of Judgment VS. Justice.)
Characters
Name / Role in Story / Significance / Adjectives
Victor Frankenstein
The Creature/Monster
Elizabeth Lavenza
Henry Clerval
Robert Walton
Alphonse Frankenstein
William Frankenstein
Justine Moritz
Caroline Beaufort-Frankenstein
M. Waldman
M. Krempe / Narrator at points
Creator of The Creature
Protagonist
Victor’s “cousin”.
The first and last narrator.
Victor’s brother.
Victor’s mother / He plays God and creates life, and it ends badly for him showing that creation is meant for God not man.
She symbolizes what a women is supposed to be at that time. She is passive as she waits for Victor. Victor’s mother also wants him and Elizabeth to marry.
Robert is the first person we meet he is a sailor who saves Victor. We learn about him and Victor through letters to his sister.
First to be killed by the monster. Justine is blamed for his death and sentenced to death.
She adopts Elizabeth and dies of scarlet fever. / Curious
Driven
Determined
Guilt-ridden
Passive
Innocent
Naïve
Supportive
Ignorant
Brave
Compassionate
Empathetic
Driven
Innocent
Young
Kind
Loving
Setting / Significance of Opening Scene
The setting in this novel plays a pretty significant role such as setting the mood and foreshadowing many events to come. In the beginning the weather started out clear but as it entered deeper into Robert Walton’s journey for knowledge the weather began getting colder. This is significant because cold and winter is associated with death and in the novel knowledge is associated with death which bound the two concepts together. As the book transitions to Victor’s story the setting goes from a warm affectionate home to a cold atmosphere in an isolated place where he completely shuts himself off to the world which foreshadows sadness to come. Also another tribute the setting brings to the meaning of the novel is through comparison. The only time the novel focuses on the beauty and wonder of nature is when there is something about to happen that completely takes away anything that was once enjoyable. For example, Victor used to enjoy the landscape of his homeland and on occasion throughout his misery it still brings joy, although when this happens some misfortune occurs directly after to take away any happiness present. The setting also illustrates the difference between the foil character, Henry, and victor in which Henry loves nature (which is all throughout the novel) and admires every aspect whereas Victor does not. / The Opening to the novel Frankenstein is a series of letters from Robert Walton to his sister Margaret. The Opening is incredibly significant, not only because it opens the story but because it gives an actual purpose to the tale, by giving us a young man, who could easily throw his life away chasing at nothing, in search of what may possibly never be found, and enters Frankenstein a man who knows all too well the consequences, and that though Walton may find what he looks for, it may be even more horrible than he could've ever imagined. It also puts the reader in an interesting predicament, as it is changing narratives between Walton's letters and Frankenstein. It tells the reader that they are hearing the words as Walton is as well, pulling the reader into the story, giving the reader as much of a warning as much as Walton. Frankenstein and his story are, in a way, incredibly similar to Walton's. The creature can be used to also signify Walton's desire, his pride to accomplish his mission, and Frankenstein can be Walton himself. Frankenstein and his never ending quest to accomplish the creation of life can be related to Walton and his almost endless spending to try to make his voyage possible. Even referencing ways it could go wrong like the mention of the Samuel Taylor Coleridge poem “The Rhyme of The Ancient Mariner.” The end is all that could change, and Frankenstein relays his story to ensure that Walton's tale has a much happier ending.
Significance of Ending or closing scene
The closing scene of Frankenstein, like the book, is symbolic. It can be said that in Victor’s death, the creature has no more reason to live, since his creator is gone and that is all he has ever known. It can also be seen from a biblical standpoint. In his suicide, the creature dies to fulfill the wish of Victor – and in the process, relieves Victor of his sins.
Symbols / Old AP Questions
1989
2000
2003
2006
2008
Look at question 3 from these exams (if available). Briefly summarize the content from the questions.
Possible Themes