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cajesp's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
informative
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
ojazzy123's review against another edition
5.0
Insanely fucking good. Mary Shelley the woman that you are…
mybooksandimaginations's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Frankenstein: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The question that is at the heart of this tale is what is it that makes a monster? Faced with two characters Victor Frankenstein, and Frankenstein’s creature, which of these is the true monster? Frankenstein is selfish, vain, heedless of the feelings of others, determined, studious, brilliant, yet in his drive to greatness created a creature in the most abhorrent of ways. Frankenstein’s creature was created in the vilest of study, yet was abandoned by his creator, faced with the ugliness of his person was beaten, turned away, shot at, chased away, and utterly reviled. And at first, through the study of a gentle and loving family seemed destined to also be gentle, yet faced with utter rejection of those he had grown to love as well as remembrance of the rejection of his creator, turned to the murder of innocents. In the very words of the creature “the fallen angel becomes a malignant devil”. From the moment of the fulfillment of the work of Frankenstein in the creation of the creature, was just one monster born or two?
In terms of the writing, it is very flowery, long winded, and written in a style not at all common today. The male characters are all written through the eyes of a 19 year old woman in the early 1800s, so the characteristics and mannerisms are a little different that what we are used to and not at all close to our modern ways. The characters are all annoying, selfish, focused only on furthering their own desires regardless of the feelings and lives of those around them. However, the ideals and thoughts that are inspired by this work has lived on for hundreds of years. It was the beginning of the horror genre, and a cornerstone of science fiction. We have all heard of Frankenstein and the creature as they have spurned many movies, tv shows, and books. Yet as is usually the case with these classics, we only become familiar with them through tinted glasses, and not with fresh eyes.
The question that is at the heart of this tale is what is it that makes a monster? Faced with two characters Victor Frankenstein, and Frankenstein’s creature, which of these is the true monster? Frankenstein is selfish, vain, heedless of the feelings of others, determined, studious, brilliant, yet in his drive to greatness created a creature in the most abhorrent of ways. Frankenstein’s creature was created in the vilest of study, yet was abandoned by his creator, faced with the ugliness of his person was beaten, turned away, shot at, chased away, and utterly reviled. And at first, through the study of a gentle and loving family seemed destined to also be gentle, yet faced with utter rejection of those he had grown to love as well as remembrance of the rejection of his creator, turned to the murder of innocents. In the very words of the creature “the fallen angel becomes a malignant devil”. From the moment of the fulfillment of the work of Frankenstein in the creation of the creature, was just one monster born or two?
In terms of the writing, it is very flowery, long winded, and written in a style not at all common today. The male characters are all written through the eyes of a 19 year old woman in the early 1800s, so the characteristics and mannerisms are a little different that what we are used to and not at all close to our modern ways. The characters are all annoying, selfish, focused only on furthering their own desires regardless of the feelings and lives of those around them. However, the ideals and thoughts that are inspired by this work has lived on for hundreds of years. It was the beginning of the horror genre, and a cornerstone of science fiction. We have all heard of Frankenstein and the creature as they have spurned many movies, tv shows, and books. Yet as is usually the case with these classics, we only become familiar with them through tinted glasses, and not with fresh eyes.
fullnessofjoy's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
"She herself had no name of her own. Like the creature pierced together from cadavers collected by Victor Frankenstein, her name was an assemblage of parts: the name of her mother, the feminist Mary Wollstonecraft, stitched to that of her father, the philosopher William Godwin, grafted onto that of her husband, the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, as if Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin Shelley were the sum of her relations, bone of their bone and flesh of their flesh, if not the milk of her mother's milk, since her mother had died eleven days after giving birth to her, mainly too sick to give suck--Awoke and found no mother." - IT'S STILL ALIVE, Jill Lepore, New Yorker, 2018, vol. 94, issue 1.
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"Remember, that I am thy creature: I ought to be thy Adam; but I am rather the fallen angel, whom thou drivest from joy for no misdeed. Everywhere I see bliss, from which I alone am irrevocably excluded. I was benevolent and good; misery made me a fiend. Make me happy, and I shall again be virtuous." - Frankenstein, Mary Shelley, Norton Edition, 1818, vol II, chapter II
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Doing a bit of psychoanalytical reading into my reread of Frankenstein (this time the original 1818 edition!!), drawing on this fascinating article by Jill Lepore and reflecting on the origin story of the creation of the novel Frankenstein, the environments and ideas and life that birthed in Shelley's own words her profound, "hideous progeny" (Shelley). Goodness, rereading Frankenstein opened my eyes to this novel. So wonderful, so brilliant. 5 stars!
jekaluleka's review against another edition
5.0
One of my favorite books. It's not at all what I had expected. The philosophic parts have stuck with me for many years.
hhamlet's review against another edition
4.0
Probably about a 3.5 this time around—so what do you know, I did enjoy it more the second time!
emiliaz33's review against another edition
3.0
it was really hard to get into at first, but it was pretty good. It wasn't really my taste, sadly, probably because I was forced to read it for school. Will probably try to read it myself so maybe my opinion about it will change