Fankenstein context Flashcards
What were Shelley’s inspirations for the monster?
- The bogey man
Object of fear
“Yellow skin” - African slaves
“Smooth work of muscles”
When was the transatlantic slave trade banned in Britain?
1807
Where does Frankenstein present a Manichean mindset?
“all that is light is orderly, tractable, rational, angelic and ultimately good; whereas all that is dark is degenerative, chaotic, transgressive, lunatic, satanic and hence evil”
When was Mary Shelley born and who were her parents
1797
Mary Wollstonecraft and William Godwin
Mary Wollstonecraft
A feminist writer + intellectual famous for her book “A Vindication of the Right of Woman”.
Mary Wollstonecraft:
“A Vindication of the Right of Woman”
It argued that women were not naturally inferior to men but it was due to their lack of education that they are were perceived this way.
William Godwin
Father to MS who was a radical political philosopher + novelist. Most famous for two books: An Enquiry concerning political justice- attacking political institutions + The adventures of Caleb Williams- attacks aristocratic privilege
Mary Shelley’s education?
He wanted her to have a more “masculine education”
How was Frankenstein originally published?
Shelley did not include her name
