Frankenstein by Mary Shelley was a novel more about the horrors of man rather than the horrors of the supernatural. The focus of the book isn't on the hideous creation, but the creator himself. Mary Shelly conveyed man to be their own destroyer. Man's obsession of power is corrupting concluding to irreversible catastrophe. Victor Frankenstein crave for knowledge is outstanding, but when out of hand and unchecked, his genius mind becomes twisted. Man's free will leads to mischievous actions and tragedies. When Frankenstein attends the university in Ingolstadt, he excels astonishingly. Victor Frankenstein engrossed himself in his studies and eventually became fixated with the unnatural. He collects lifeless body parts and brings animation to a creature, beautiful in the eyes of science, but appalling to society. Stunted from his own abilities, he goes into shock and illness. He leaves his monstrous creation, not even considering the terror it impose on other citizens. Frankenstein gave life thoughtless to dead matter. Humans act without considering the consequences. Not only does Victor turns away from his creation, he fails to take action when the monster takes away everyone dear to him. When you delay taking care of a problems or mistake, it comes back ten fold. Even though this book was written during early nineteenth century, humans are still the same. Different time, yet same behavior and problems. Moral of story be wise and not rash.
Like similar novels in the Classic Goth genre, the main character is usually from a stable and blissful family and then horrors are cast into there lives, usually inflicted by themselves when their curiosity ventures into deranged realms. Victor's family was joyous and thankful, but his obsession to create life caused him to lose his loved ones and ultimately his own. Another example is Bram Stoker's Dracula, Jonathan Harker is conflicted with the conservative sexuality in Victorian culture. He too has a satisfactory job and a devoted fiancee, essentially the good life. One curiosity Mary Shelly left me was the creation of the monster. I wish she went a little more in depth about Frankenstein's discovery, but I understand that wasn't the centerpiece of the novel. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this piece of literature. Don't mess around with mother nature.
In Class Exercise:
What elements make up Horror?
Monsters
Mad Scientists
Hunchbacks
Thunderstorms
Assistances
Dark Castle
Eerie
Moody
Freaks
The unusual
Death
Candles
Victims
Fires
Vampires
Bats
Blood
Wooden Stakes
Scary music
Electricity
Graves
Tombstones
Terror
