Who created Frankenstein? Mary Shelley's novel "Frankenstein, or the Modern Prometheus"

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

The novel "Frankenstein, or the modern Prometheus" was written over 200 years ago in 1816. This remarkable philosophical work was the first science fiction novel in the world. A girl managed to write such a story - Mary Shelley, nee Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin.

Who created Frankenstein - Mary Shelley or the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley?

The name of the young hero of the book is Victor. He is resolute, educated, wants to know the secret of life on earth at all costs. He creates a terrible monster, which, by the way, in the book the writer simply calls a creature.

It was already many years later, due to various adapted film productions and free interpretations, the monster itself began to be called Frankenstein, and many do not remember who created it. In the original book, Victor created the monster with the help of science, and he did it out of an insatiable curiosity that was not limited by moral precepts.

Who created Frankenstein? I came up with an image and wrote thisbook, in many ways profound and philosophical, by writer and translator Mary Shelley when she was only 19 years old. For a long time it was believed that the author was her husband Percy Bysshe Shelley, or their friend, the famous poet Byron.

Because the novel was published without an author, only with a dedication, there were conjectures. But later it became obvious that it was Mary. The girl's mother and father were both writers, and the girl had a passion for inventing stories from childhood.

The history of the creation of the novel Frankenstein

A novel in notes about a monster and its creator was written in the rainy summer of 1816. That summer, the young poet Percy, with his beloved Mary, who was about to become his wife, Lord Byron and two other people lived near the picturesque Lake Geneva. Since the weather did not favor swimming, Byron, or maybe Shelley himself, suggested that the company have fun telling scary stories in the evenings.

Mary also participated in this competition among writers. Some notes say that she had a strange dream, which she later described in her "Frankenstein". It was Mary Shelley of the usual scary story who created the whole novel and published it.

There are suggestions that in the role of Victor Frankenstein she saw her beloved Percy. The young man was outwardly young and handsome, but inside he turned out to be a hard-hearted traitor.

The main theme and idea of the Frankenstein monster book

The idea is that the uglythe creature created by Victor still had a kind human soul, capable of gratitude, good and evil deeds. He needed his creator's guidance, help, and training. But the creator was only a frightened young man who himself was frightened of his creation. The poetic experiment was carried out long ago, but its consequences are horrendous.

The theme is the ethics of science. Can a scientist arrogate to himself the right to become the creator of life on earth, can he control and develop what he has created? Mary Shelley claims that no, the person is not ready for this role, and never will be.

Summary of the work

So, what exactly is the novel about? The story describes the life of a young Genevan scientist, ambitious and we althy. His name is Victor Frankenstein. He is handsome and has an indomitable cheeky personality.

He leaves home to study at the university, leaves a young sweetheart, whom he will soon marry, and two younger brothers in the care of his father.

His interests are related to science and alchemy. Victor reads a lot, spends time in solitary pursuits and tries to recreate life, to become a creator. One day he succeeds. A large and terrifying-looking "beast" comes to life. And Victor becomes so frightened by the revived dead body that he runs away from the laboratory and is knocked down by a nervous fever.

The creature he created runs off into the forest, taking Victor's cloak with him. He lives in the forest, trying to learn how to get his own food on his own. Then he finds an abandoned outbuilding near the people's house, eavesdrops on their conversations.and learn from them. Gradually, he begins to understand speech, to understand that he was created by someone.

When he learned to read, he was able to read Victor's diary, which was left in the pocket of his white lab coat. He knew hatred for the one who created him without a purpose, created him to experience loneliness and hatred of people and then left him in the cold in the forest.

The creature was essentially good. It did not want to harm anyone, but seeing how it was feared and rejected by the villagers, it gradually became embittered. And when it finds out where Victor Frankenstein's family lives, he goes to Geneva and kills his younger brother, William. Then he kills Victor's bride immediately after the wedding. The father of William and Victor, after a series of deaths of loved ones, dies himself in the arms of a desperate and embittered eldest son.

Now Victor only dreams of revenge. He heads north in pursuit of the monster and dies on the ship that picked him up from frostbite and physical exhaustion.

Who created Frankenstein? Now it is clear that the main character is an ordinary person, no one created him. It is he himself who is the creator of the mythical creature, which has already become mythologized and has acquired the name of its creator.

Prototype Creature

It is believed that the prototype of a terrible creature was an unknown hermit and eccentric named Johann. He lived in a huge old castle called Frankenstein and performed strange experiments that frightened the common people.

This young man, frightening people, was the famous alchemist of those years - Johann Konrad Dippel, who disappeared for unknown reasons in1734 and did not return to the castle. Now this castle has a Frankenstein museum with many souvenir shops.

Popular film adaptations of our time

The novel about Frankenstein and the monster associated with him has been staged many times in theaters and scripted for films. Best Motion Picture is the 1931 adaptation directed by James Weil.

Many other movies and TV shows have also been made:

• The Evil of Frankenstein 1964
• "Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed" 1969
• "Dracula's House" 1945
• "Dracula vs. Frankenstein" 1972
• "I, Frankenstein!" 2013
• And one of the newest and most popular versions is Victor Frankenstein, starring James McAvoy and Daniel Radcliffe. Movie 2015.

And in the now popular series "Once Upon a Time" in season 2, the image of Frankenstein is also found. Filmed based on the novel and TV series - "Horror Boulevard".

Reviews of the book "Frankenstein, or the modern Prometheus"

Mary Shelley's book is still popular. It is bought and read by fans of science fiction. People love this piece. This is not just a "horror", the book is filled with meaning, reasoning. After reading it becomes clear who created Frankenstein. The doctor's name is Victor, and whoever read the original will never fall intothe trap of cinematography, which sometimes creates distortion. Many readers note that the original version is much more interesting than the re-shot counterparts.

The novel "Frankenstein" by Mary Shelley has become a classic of non-fiction literature. All the books that were written before that were based on reality or magical plots, where the main characters are wizards. But after this novel, science fiction writers began to try to use scientific facts to create a plot that differs from our reality. The writer continued to create short stories and novels, but none of them became as famous as her first work.

Mary Shelley's biography film

In 2017, a film was released about the writer Mary Shelley and how and under what conditions she wrote her novel. In Russian translation, the film is called "Beauty for the Beast".

Starring Elle Fanning (plays Mary) and Douglas Booth (he plays Percy). Film director Haifa Al-Mansor.

The film shows how difficult Mary's fate was and how such a terrible image of a monster created by her main character, a scientist, "settled" in the soul of a young person.

Conclusion

Who created Frankenstein? A young inexperienced girl who ran away from her native land. What could she say about the future of the country, or her own? Nothing. However, she said a lot about what would happen in our time. People mention it in reviews. Indeed, we are already on the verge of cloning, weWe also want to experiment with life. And, perhaps, a new Prometheus will be found in our time.