Works Cited

Hustis, Harriet. "Responsible Creativity and the "Modernity" of Mary Shelley's Prometheus." SEL: Studies in English Literature, 1500–1900, 43, no. 4 (Autumn 2003): 845–858. Quoted as "Responsible Creativity and the "Modernity" of Mary Shelley's Prometheus" in Bloom, Harold, ed. Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, New Edition, Bloom's Modern Critical Views. New York: Chelsea House Publishing, 2009. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Fa

Snodgrass, Mary Ellen. "Victor Frankenstein." Encyclopedia of Gothic Literature. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2005. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= EGL137&SingleRecord=True (accessed May 8, 2011).cts On File, Inc.

Photos
http://people.brandeis.edu/~teuber/shelleybio.htm
http://frankensteinfilms.com/

Frankenstein- Modern Interpretations

There have been many modern interpretations of Frankenstein. They range from movies to cartoons to comic books. A common misconception if the Frankenstein is the name of the monster when he is actually just called monster in the original book. The first Frankenstein movie premiered in 1910 and Frankenstein has been featured in a dozen or more other movies since. Marvel also released a series of comic books called The Monster of Frankenstein. The bride of Frankenstein has actually been created in some of the films unlike in the novel where it was just considered.

Why?

I chose this topic because I was absolutely fascinated by the novel Frankenstein. I was drawn in by Mary Shelley's style of writing which I found beautiful and the raw emotions portrayed through her writing. It was very real, and carnal and alive. It was also not a fairy tale with a happy ending, it was life unedited. The only background I had was reading the novel. I was actually put off when I found out we were going to read it. It was completely not what I expected. It was a beautifully written and romantic.

Mary Shelley's Writing Style

Mary Shelley's writing style is beautiful, eloquent and articulate. It also carried strong notes of romaticisim and gothicicism. Her focus on creativity and raw human emotion is evident in her characters and the themes that follow them. The passion with which she writes and the depth of her characters show a deep personal relation and understanding to what plagues them. It is raw emotion and I am curious as to whether this was done intentionally or if the writing was a personal therapy for her in which she could express her emotions and feelings.

Mary Shelley's Bio

Mary Shelley was born in England in 1797 and died of a brain tumor in London in 1851. Shelley has over eighteen works published with the most well known being Frankenstein also called The Modern Prometheus. Frankenstein was published before Shelley was nineteen years old. She was born the daughter of two intellectuals and her mother Mary Wollstonecraft was a published author as well. Shelley’s mother died just days after her birth. Her father dealt with his grief by writing a highly criticized memoir of his late wife. This memoir hung over the family and damaged their reputation due to the risque nature of its contents. Shelley fell in love with the friend of the family’s disciple who was already married at the time. Their relationship was forbidden so the fled together to France. She lost four of their five children together during infancy and several members of her circle commited suicide. Numerous critics have pointed out this theme of creation, birth and death in her novel Frankenstein.

Victor Frankenstein

Victor is a very dynamic character that explores himself and life in an almost wreckless passion. His personal journey for understanding is ultimatley his demise. He was so busy looking for something he was missing, he lost the opportunity to have what he truly desired most. He realized the importance of his friends and family once they were lost. This caused him to go on a personal vendetta against the one who took them from him but slowly he realized he did it to himself and lost the will to live.