“Frankenstein or the Modern Prometheus” by Mary Shelly

 

Frankenstein (1818) or the Modern Prometheus is a novel written by a British author Mary Wollstonecraft Shelly. She was born on August 30th, 1797 in London, England. Shelly wrote this novel when she was only 18years old. She died in 1851 at the age of fifty three. The first edition came out anonymously in London in 1818. The novel contains two major genres of literature: the gothic and the science fiction. The novel is infused with some qualities of the Gothic novel and some from the Romantic Movement too. The subtitle The Modern Prometheus refers to a figure in the Greek mythology wherein he was responsible for a conflict between mankind and Gods. To save the people Prometheus stole Zeus’s fire from sun for which he was severely punished. Victor Frankenstein can be seen as the modern Prometheus.


It also points to have a warning note to it in the sub title against the over ambition of the modern man and the impacts of Industrial Revolution and French Revolution containing both enormous assurance and potentially recognized horrors. At the time this novel was written a debate between scientific discoveries and traditional religious and metaphysical beliefs was starting to bud and the ethics on how far should men pursue to fulfill their desire of knowledge which was possibly in Shelly’s mind too while writing this science fiction.

Frankenstein is a Gothic novel with a lot of mysterious disappearances and supernatural occurrences. For example, the main protagonist is shown to be a solitary character with egocentric nature. This solitary character of Frankenstein can be applied to both Victor, the doctor and his creation as they both prefer isolation. The title of the novel refers to a scientist, Victor Frankenstein, who learns how to create life and creates a being larger than average and more powerful in likeness to a man. In modern popular culture, especially in films since 1931, this creature is mistakenly referred to as Frankenstein, despite this being the name of the scientist