Frankenstein Context Flashcards
why did Shelley begin writing Frankenstein?
Created because of a challenge to ‘write a ghost story’ set down by Lord Byron in 1816, whilst he and three friends were staying at the Vila Diodate by Lake Geneva
who was Mary Shelley’s mother?
Mary Wollstonecraft
who was Mary Wollstonecraft?
philosopher and proto-feminist
who was Mary Shelley’s father?
William Godwin
who was William Godwin?
political philosopher
when did Mary Shelley’s mother die?
less than a month after she was born
what kind of education did Mary Shelley receive?
Godwin provided Mary with a rich but informal education, encouraging her to adhere to his own liberal, political ideals
how would Shelley have been aware of current science?
Mary Shelley grew up listening to discussions of scientific experiments between Lord Byron and Percy Shelley: e.g. galvanism by Luigi Galvani
when did William Godwin marry Shelley’s step-mother?
when Shelley was 4
did Shelley get on with her step-mother?
they had a troubled relationship
when did Mary Shelley begin a romance with Percy Bysshe Shelley?
1814
who did Mary Shelley begin a romance with in 1814?
one of Godwin’s political followers, Percy Shelley, who was already married
where did Mary and Percy visit while they dated? who did they go with?
Mary, Percy, and her stepsister Claire Clairmont left for France and travelled around Europe.
what happened when Mary and Percy Shelley returned to England from Europe?
Mary was pregnant; Mary and Percy faced ostracism (even from Godwin), constant debt, and the death of their premature baby daughter
why might Shelley have felt like a disapppointment in her childhood?
her parents had hoped for a boy
why did William Godwin reject Mary Shelley?
because of her relationship to the already married Percy Shelley. He did not see her until she later married in 1816.
when did Mary and Percy Shelley marry?
1816
when was Mary Shelley’s first child born?
1815
who was Mary Shelley’s first child?
Clara
when did Mary Shelley’s first child die?
when she was just a few weeks old
what happened to Mary Shelley after her first child died?
Four days after Clara died, Mary dreamt she had revived her.
who is Prometheus in Greek myth?
a Titan, a trickster and the god of fire
what does Prometheus’ name mean?
Forethinker
why is it ironic that Victor represents Prometheus in Frankenstein?
‘Prometheus’ means ‘Forethinker’; Victor is so motivated by impulse and ambition that he fails to plan and see ahead, acting purely on impulse and selfishness
what did Prometheus do in Greek myth?
- He defied the Olympian gods by taking fire from them and giving it to humanity in the form of technology, knowledge and, more generally, civilisation
- In some versions, he is also credited with the creation of humanity from clay.
- Prometheus is known for his intelligence and for being a champion of mankind and is also generally seen as the author of the human arts and science
how does the myth of Prometheus parallel the story of Victor Frankenstein?
- sense of hubris and over-reachers
- both think they are enlightening mankind and are godlike superior figures.
- Both endure eternal punishment; neither reap the rewards they thought they were entitled to
when was the Rime of the Ancient Mariner written?
1798
who wrote the Rime of the Ancient Mariner?
Samuel Taylor Coleridge
what is the Rime of the Ancient Mariner about?
a sailor who, after becoming trapped in ice, shoots an albatross which causes his ship to become cursed
which characters link to the Rime of the Ancient Mariner?
Walton and Victor
what does Shelley suggest about Walton through the intertextual reference to the Rime of the Ancient Mariner?
Shelley suggests that, although Walton claims he ‘shall kill no albatross’ his hubris will inevitably lead him to attempt to usurp the natural world, like Coleridge’s sailor (foreshadowing)
who did the Romantics include?
people like Lord Byron, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Percy Shelley, and William Wordsworth
what were the Romantics’ beliefs?
they rejected a number of the ideas of the Enlightenment, focussing on personal experience rather than reason, the power and value of nature, and, to a degree, radical politics like feminism and ‘anarchistic’ ideas that would later lead to Marxism
what were the Romantics’ views on science?
they were not ‘anti-science’ but were against the rapid pursuit of scientific progression that came with the Enlightenment; also against the Industrial Revolution, mechanised and empowered by science, that caused so much damage to nature
what is ‘the sublime’?
an emotional subjective feeling connected to the awe-inspiring objectivity of the wonder of creation and the natural world
who wrote about the ‘sublime’?
the romantics
what did the romantics believe about the ‘sublime’?
- In opposition to reasoned thinking of the Enlightenment, the Romantics wrote significantly on the nature of the Sublime
- Romantics understood the world through emotion and intuition, rather than via rationality and scientific knowledge
what is Paradise Lost?
an epic poem written in blank verse, over 10 books, by John Milton in 1667
who wrote Paradise Lost?
John Milton
when was Paradise Lost written?
1667
how many books are contained in Paradise Lost?
10
what is the story of Paradise Lost?
The poem concerns the Fall of Man: the temptation of Adam and Eve by the fallen angel Satan and their expulsion from the Garden of Eden
what is Satan’s role in Paradise Lost?
In Paradise Lost, Satan is portrayed as having originally been an archangel of high rank before his rebellion; however, his pride and ambition lead him to challenge God’s authority, culminating in his banishment
what was Milton’s purpose in writing Paradise Lost?
Milton’s purpose, stated in Book 1, is to ‘justify the ways of God to men’
what was the Industrial Revolution?
the transition to new manufacturing processes in Europe and the United States, ~1760-1820/1840.
when was the Industrial Revolution?
~1760-1820/1840.
what did the transition to new manufacturing processes during the Industrial Revolution include?
going from hand production methods to machines, new chemical manufacturing and iron production processes, the increasing use of steam power and water power, the development of machine tools and the rise of the mechanized factory system.
what was grave robbing?
People stole bodies and sold them to the medical schools in Edinburgh and London
what can grave robbing be seen as an example of?
science going too far
when was the Murder Act passed in England?
1752
what was the 1752 Murder Act?
decreed that murderers would be hanged, and their bodies used for science.
why did the French Revolution begin?
- the status of working-class people in the late 1700s and early 1800s was incredibly poor; across Europe and in Britain, the poor were dying because of poor housing and sanitation, lack of food, disease and exploitation by the rich.
- 1789: French revolution began as a result of food shortages, exploitation and suffering.
when did the French Revolution begin?
1789
did the Romantics support or oppose the French Revolution?
The Romantics originally supported the French Revolution as they believed it would alleviate some of the suffering of the poor, but later abandoned the cause as it descended into violence and corruption.
what does William Godwin’s book, ‘An Enquiry Concerning Political Justice’, include?
did not deal with the French Revolution directly, it does talk about ‘human perfectibility’ being achieved without ‘government and related social practices such as property monopoly, marriage and monarchy’ as he believed that these social structures limited the progress of mankind.
which of William Godwin’s books talks about ‘human perfectibility’ being achieved without ‘government’?
‘An Enquiry Concerning Political Justice’
what did Luigi Galvani investigate?
the effect of electricity on dissected animals
when did Galvani experiment?
1780s and 1790s.
what did Galvani theorise?
- He believed that animals could be reanimated by electricity and originally attributed this to a vital fluid
- He later theorised that the action was caused by ‘animal electricity’; electricity generated biologically
who was Giovanni Aldini?
the nephew of Luigi Galvani
what was Aldini’s most famous experiment?
ran an electric current through deceased criminal, George Foster, in 1803
when did Aldini’s most famous experiment occur?
1803
when was the first blood transfusion performed?
1818
when was the Enlightenment?
Late Georgians (1811-1837)
what was the Enlightenment?
Late Georgians (1811-1837) were obsessed with science, exploration, and discovery, travelling across the world collecting plant and animal specimens and completing scientific experiemtns
what kind of inventions occured in the Enlightenment, which further pushed Enlightenment ideals?
the first clock to keep time exactly (1759) helped sailors and adventurers chart their positions and navigate accurately
what is the Northeast Passage?
a shipping route to the Pacific Ocean, running along the coasts of Norway and Russia
why did European explorers seek the Northeast Passage?
to establish a quicker and more profitable trade route to Asia
when was physiognomy popular?
early 19th century
what is physiognomy?
a form of pseudo-science that suggests a person’s character or personality can be determined by their outward appearance, usually their face
Which scientist championed physiognomy?
Lombroso
what did Lombroso, a physicicst, believe?
that ‘criminality was inherited and that criminals could be identified by physical attributes such as hawk-like noses and bloodshot eyes’
which other authors show evidence of the influence of physiognomy?
Other 19th century authors (Dickens, Hardy, Bronte, Wilde) in their detailed, physiognomic description of characters
what does Tabula Rasa translate to?
blank slate
what does Tabula Rasa argue?
that individuals are born without built-in mental content, and, therefore, all knowledge comes from experience or perception
which theory did tabula rasa challenge?
innatism
which author had a significant discussion of Tabula Rasa in his writings?
John Locke’s in his ‘Essay Concerning Human Understanding’ in 1689
in which Essay does Locke consider the theory of Tabula Rasa?
‘Essay Concerning Human Understanding?
when was Locke’s ‘Essay Concerning Human Understanding’ written?
1689
why may Mary Shelley have been aware of Locke’s theory of Tabula Rasa?
Although written over a century before Frankenstein, Locke had written a number of other papers that reveal similar political ideas to William Godwin; therefore, it it not ridiculous to think that Shelley may have been aware of him
why may shelley have written about the ‘other’?
- Shelley was ostracised and ‘othered’ by her father and her peers after deciding to be with Percy Shelley; perhaps inspired her decision to write about being ‘othered’ by a parental figure.
- The death of Mary’s mother and her distant relationship with her stepmother could have inspired her decision to have Victor neglect and ultimately abandon the Monster.
- Shelley’s parents were liberal political thinkers and therefore encouraged Shelley to hold similar values; she would have been aware of the struggles of the working class and women
- Shelley was a Romantic and fearful of the Enlightenment and effects of rapid scientific progression
why may the monster’s lack of an education be a plot point?
due to Shelley’s own education which was uncommon in the Georgian era
