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A review by queer_bookwyrm
Frankenstein: The 1818 Text by Mary Shelley
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
3.5 ⭐ CW: death of a child, death of dogs, thoughts of suicide
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley is a classic and Shelley is the mother of modern horror. I actually enjoyed this one more than Dracula, despite my prejudice against classics.
We get a man vs. his creation kind of story here. Frankenstein is obsessed with the natural sciences and endeavors create life out of remnant of body parts. He chooses to make something monsterous looking and then abandons it to fend for itself.
Spurned by his creator and unable to properly perceive his senses, the creature wonders around blindly and stupidly until he figures out his new sensations and begins to learn. Having not read this before, I assumed the creature would be mindless, but he is inquisitive and a quick learner. He learns language from hiding himself in a hovel attached to a family's shack and becomes quite proficient. The creature only longs for kindness and friendship, but is cursed and chased away by any who lay on eyes on his unfortunate face.
I'm not receiving kindness or compassion, the creatures sets to revenge against Frankenstein for carelessly bringing him to life and denying him a companion. A little compassion from Frankenstein could have gone a long way.
To me, this was a story about how important it is to show all creatures (ugly or beautiful) compassion and kindness. The creature became the demon people accused him of being. I think there is also some commentary here about the trials ugly or deformed people or disabled people encounter, as these themes often come up to denote morality of a character. Another case of "don't judge a book by its cover."
Shelley also quotes her husband's works throughout the book, which I found adorable. I can see why this story has endured as long as it has, and we can see echos of this in modern storytelling as well (Data from TNG, any alien or robot trying to be more human, any misunderstood being because of how they look).
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley is a classic and Shelley is the mother of modern horror. I actually enjoyed this one more than Dracula, despite my prejudice against classics.
We get a man vs. his creation kind of story here. Frankenstein is obsessed with the natural sciences and endeavors create life out of remnant of body parts. He chooses to make something monsterous looking and then abandons it to fend for itself.
Spurned by his creator and unable to properly perceive his senses, the creature wonders around blindly and stupidly until he figures out his new sensations and begins to learn. Having not read this before, I assumed the creature would be mindless, but he is inquisitive and a quick learner. He learns language from hiding himself in a hovel attached to a family's shack and becomes quite proficient. The creature only longs for kindness and friendship, but is cursed and chased away by any who lay on eyes on his unfortunate face.
I'm not receiving kindness or compassion, the creatures sets to revenge against Frankenstein for carelessly bringing him to life and denying him a companion. A little compassion from Frankenstein could have gone a long way.
To me, this was a story about how important it is to show all creatures (ugly or beautiful) compassion and kindness. The creature became the demon people accused him of being. I think there is also some commentary here about the trials ugly or deformed people or disabled people encounter, as these themes often come up to denote morality of a character. Another case of "don't judge a book by its cover."
Shelley also quotes her husband's works throughout the book, which I found adorable. I can see why this story has endured as long as it has, and we can see echos of this in modern storytelling as well (Data from TNG, any alien or robot trying to be more human, any misunderstood being because of how they look).
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death and Child death
Minor: Suicidal thoughts