frankenstein context Flashcards
who was prometheus and how does this link to Frankenstein
Prometheus stole fire from the gods and gave it to humanity giving them knowledge and power, as a consequence he was chained to rock for eternity
This influenced Shelleys construction of victor through the parallel of boundaries that should not be crossed
Victor’s monster also resembles the modern Prometheus in that he signifies liberation from a creator.
Percy Shelley’s - Romantic Prometheus
His lyrical drama Prometheus unbound remained the plight of Prometheus contrasting the purity of the ancient world to modernity
What book did Shelley’s mother (Wollstonecraft) publish and in what year
The Vindication of Rights of Women 1792
Significance of AI
one of the first cautionary tales (AO4) about AI and terror born in a lab, the fear of oblivion
How many miscarriages did Shelley have and how is this a nuance in her novel
Four
The monster becomes a disfigured mirror of the natural cycle of life
What is the literary context of Frankenstein
- Romanticism
- Violent reaction towards Renaissance and the Enlightenment
What is the economic context of Frankenstein
The social upheaval of
- capitalism which lead to mechanisation and the slave trade
- government which lead to the reject of modes of power - rejection of the monarchy and the French Revolution
- religion which lead to secular thought and rejection of the religious orthodox and the French Revolution
How does the gothic/ horror genre influence Frankenstein
fear of the unknown
prejudice
xenophobia
the injustice of power dynamics
otherness
reverse colonisation
How does Frankenstein link to the slave trade contextually
Shelley was an abolitionist arguing against the slave trade therefore arguably Frankenstein is an allegory for slavery as the monster is considered as a demonised version of miscegenation. Shelley doesn’t name the creator power belongs to Dr Frankenstein - echoes slave master. V shaped narrative = Victor casting out the creature into Dante’s deepest pit of hell
Where and when was Frankenstein written
Geneva, Switzerland
Published in 1818
Because of poor weather, in June 1816 the group famously spent three days together inside the house creating stories to tell each other, two of which were developed into landmark works of the Gothic horror genre: Frankenstein by Mary Shelley and The Vampyre, the first modern vampire story, by Polidori.
What had passed after 1818, and what influence did this have on frankenstien
the Napoleonic war exposed the danger of boundary violations without moral or ethical oversight. Frankenstein, in responding to these events, leaves a pointed legacy that reflects on the dangers of ignoring the influence of political and cultural boundaries.
How does Frankenstein relate to Miltons paradise lost
- directly through the epigraph
Victor Frankenstein, playing God, resembles Satan from Milton’s Paradise Lost, in which Satan is an archangel punished for his vanity, arrogance, and thirst for forbidden knowledge. Like him, Victor attempts to take over God’s role as creator and master of the universe. This achievement, Victor imagines, will be a superior one, and the exuberant and admirable beings that he creates will worship and honor him like a most deserving father.
However, the romantics regarded Satan not as the embodiment of evil, but as a victim of the tyrannical power of the establishment.
How can modern scientific discovers compare to dr frankensteins work
- Oppenheimers atomic bomb the creation of mass destruction and power
- the perfect aryan race, aesthetics
- shock therapy, resuscitation and electric impulses link to galvanism
Influence of Shelley’s parents
both radical political thinkers
William Godwin - believe free will and moral conscience oppressed by orders of society
Mary Wollstonecraft - vindication for rights of women
what were William Godwins philosophies
Godwin responded to the philosophies and lifestyle of Rousseau, arguing that the ‘chains’ of ordered society not only relegate communities into controllable circles, but also oppress the mind from thinking freely.encapsulated a radical, political anarchism that illuminated the oppressive atmosphere of governments and the monarchy, particularly in response to the French Revolution
