HOME

SENIOR HONORS

SENIOR CP

LA DEPARTMENT

PARKVIEW HS

LETTERS 1-4

BACKGROUND

The Arctic
When the novel opens, an explorer named Robert Walton is organizing an expedition through the Arctic, the area around and within the Arctic Circle and near the North Pole. The Arctic Ocean covers most of this region, and more than half of the ocean’s surface is frozen at all times. Travel by ship is extremely dangerous. Huge sheets of ice float through the frigid waters, threatening to crush the vessels that appear in their paths.

Did You Know?
In the letters, which set the stage for the novel, Robert Walton says he has been deeply affected by the narrative poem "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner," written by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, a leading poet of the Romantic era. In the poem, an old sailor, or mariner, tells the story of a horrific sea voyage that changed his life. Sailing in stormy seas near the South Pole, the mariner’s ship is surrounded by ice. When the crewmen spot an albatross, a huge seagull-like bird, flying through the fog, the ice splits open, freeing the ship. Then, unexpectedly, the mariner shoots the albatross. After this act of cruelty, the ship is cursed. Driven north, it becomes stranded in a hot, windless sea. All of the crew except the mariner die. Ever since, the remorseful mariner has traveled the world to tell his story and to teach others to revere God’s creatures.

Walton’s comments about “The Ancient Mariner” are examples of allusion. An allusion is a reference in a written work to something from history, art, religion, myth, or another work of literature. Writers use allusions to give readers additional insights about what is happening in the story and why. Shelley makes frequent use of literary allusions in Frankenstein.

VOCABULARY 1

•  ardent adj. passionate
•  countenance n. face; expression
•  dauntless adj. fearless
•  harrowing adj. extremely distressing
•  irrevocably adv. in a way impossible to change
•  mariner n. navigator of a ship
•  perseverance n. steady persistence

CHAPTERS 1-10

BACKGROUND

Two Well-Rounded Characters
In Chapters 1 through 10, Shelley develops the two main characters in the novel: Victor Frankenstein and his creature. She also introduces a number of minor characters. Both Frankenstein and the creature have complex and multifaceted personalities. In this regard, they stand out from the other characters in the novel. When a fictional character has individuality and depth, and experiences personal growth or change, he or she is called a round character. The opposite of a round character is a flat character. Round characters are life-like and three-dimensional, while flat characters seem more like cardboard figures or stereotypes, and are not as well developed.

Did You Know?
Victor Frankenstein develops an interest in science after reading about the “wild fancies” of several noted alchemists who lived 300 to 500 years before his lifetime. Alchemy was a field of philosophy that speculated about natural processes and often involved chemical experiments. Medieval alchemists believed they could find substances that would enable them to transform ordinary metals, such as lead, into gold or create a magical drink that would extend life and youth forever. While alchemy is not true science, the alchemists did make some scientific contributions. They discovered mineral acids and alcohol. They also invented types of laboratory equipment and procedures, which were later modified and used by scientists.

VOCABULARY 2

- benevolent adj. showing charity
- ommiserate v. to express sympathy
- consolation n. something that eases sorrow or  disappointment  
- discern v. to detect; to perceive
- fiend n. evil spirit; devil  
- hideous adj. extremely ugly
- omen n. a sign of future good or evil

CHAPTERS 11-16

BACKGROUND

Did You Know?
There are many definitions of tragedy. In literature, a tragedy is a story that ends in the downfall of its main
character and arouses pity or fear in the reader. In general, tragedy also expresses a tragic view of life—the idea that a noble person inevitably brings on his or her suffering or death through some failure or error. As you continue to read Frankenstein, think about whether the novel fits this definition of a tragedy.

A Fallen Angel
Do these words sound familiar? “Did I request thee, Maker, from my clay / To mold me man? Did I solicit thee / From darkness to promote me?” This quotation appears on the title page of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. It could have been spoken by Frankenstein’s creature. In fact, the words come from John Milton’s poem Paradise Lost (1667) and are spoken by the character of Adam. This book-length poem is a retelling of the story of Adam and Eve from the Bible. An equally prominent character in the poem is
Satan, the lord of evil. Milton depicts Satan as the chief angel of heaven who rebels against God and is
cast into hell. To avenge himself, he tempts Adam and Eve to disobey God in the Garden of Eden. Near the end of Chapter 10 of Frankenstein, the creature confronts his creator. He compares himself not only to Adam but to “the fallen angel, whom thou drivest from joy for no misdeed.” In Chapters 11 through 16, Shelley expands on this allusion to Paradise Lost, emphasizing the parallels between God and Satan in the poem, and Frankenstein and his creature in the novel.

VOCABULARY 3

•  conjecture v. to guess using the available evidence
•  disconsolate adj. unable to be cheered up
•  enigmatic adj. puzzling
•  flagrant adj. highly offensive
•  pensive adj. deeply or dreamily thoughtful
•  venerable adj. worthy of respect or reverence
•  vengeance n. punishment inflicted in return for a wrong
•  wantonly adv. maliciously; without restraint

CHAPTERS 17-21

BACKGROUND

The British Isles
The British Isles include two main islands, Great Britain and Ireland, as well as numerous smaller islands. They lie a relatively short distance off the coast of Europe and were once connected to the continent. Four groups of people call the islands home, the English, Scots, Welsh, and Irish. While the climate is uniformly maritime, consisting of mild winters, cool summers, and ample precipitation, the landforms vary from the mountains and rocky headlands of Scotland to the plains of Southeast England.

Did You Know?
Tales of horror create suspense by raising questions or uncertainties about the action in the reader’s mind. Sometimes we don’t know what will happen. As we read, we wonder who or what is responsible for the events that take place, or we wonder how the events came about. In other cases, the tragic outcome is known or strongly hinted at at the beginning of the story. As we read, the suspense comes from anticipating when the worst will occur or wondering if it can be prevented. Authors often increase the readers’ feeling of fear or dread through foreshadowing. They give hints that suggest or prepare the reader for a later event. Such hints, or foreshadowing, might take the form of a statement by a character, a mood established in the description of the setting, or the revelation of an important trait in one of the characters.

VOCABULARY 4

•  base adj. mean-spirited
•  inexorable adj. unyielding
•  insurmountable adj. impossible to overcome
•  irksome adj. annoying
•  listless adj. lacking energy
•  malicious adj. deliberately harmful
•  torpor n. state of inactivity or apathy
•  traverse v. to travel across

CHAPTERS 22-24

BACKGROUND

Did You Know?
Five years after Frankenstein was published, Mary Shelley saw the first dramatic production of her novel. She liked the actor’s portrayal of her creature. How well she might like the hundreds of interpretations since is interesting speculation. In the 1931 film Frankenstein, starring English actor Boris Karloff, the monster comes to life on an operating table after being zapped with electricity. Given a huge, squared-off skull and pale corpse-like skin, Karloff portrayed the monster as a gentle, almost childlike character. His interpretation struck a chord with audiences, especially young children, from whom he received much fan mail. In the 1995 film version of the novel, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Robert De Niro, an actor known for his violent tough-guy roles, was cast as the creature. The director, Kenneth Branagh, explained, “I wanted a wise and intelligent and multifaceted Creature who could be angry and even funny at times, and who would have a sense of humor, however darkly ironic.” To develop the physical appearance of the creature, make-up artists did research in books from the early 1800s on surgery, skin disorders, and embalming. They wanted to find out what Frankenstein would have been able to achieve using the techniques and knowledge available at the time. The result is a gray, scarred, hulking, patchwork sort of man.

Two Characters in One?
Many people who have not read Shelley’s novel think that Frankenstein is the name of the creature, not the scientist who brought him to life. Careful readers of the novel, however, point out that this mistake has a certain symbolic truth. They see the two characters as doubles of each other, or two parts of a divided self. The idea of the double comes from German folklore and is known as the doppelgänger (“double goer”). The concept was based on the ancient belief that each living creature has an exact double who exists as a spirit or ghost. Many writers of horror stories have employed the idea of the double. For example, in Robert Louis Stevenson’s novella of double identity, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, a respectable doctor becomes a murderous stalker by night.

VOCABULARY 5

•  adversary n. enemy; opponent
•  consternation n. state of confusion
•  illustrious adj. very distinguished
•  omnipotent adj. all-powerful
•  pilgrimage n. long journey for a spiritual purpose