1.Read carefully M. Shelley’s “Author’s Introduction to the Standard Novels Edition” (1831). How does she present the origins of the story?

the Shelleys and their neighbors -28-year-old Lord Byron, his 23-year-old personal physician, and his 18-year-old lover- read German ghost stories aloud. They enjoyed it so much that one day, Byron announced, "We will each write a ghost story." Everyone agreed, but apparently the poets, unaccustomed to prose writing, couldn't come up with anything very scary.

Mary was determined to do better. "I busied myself to think of a story," she recalled, "One which would speak to the mysterious fears of our nature and awaken thrilling horror." Yet she couldn't come up with anything. Every morning, her companions asked: "Have you thought of a story?" "And each morning," she wrote later, "I was forced to reply with a mortifying negative."

One evening, Mary sat by the fireplace, listening to her husband and Byron discuss the possibility of reanimating a corpse with electricity, giving it what they called "vital warmth."

The discussion finally ended well after midnight, and Shelley retired. But Mary, "transfixed in speculation," couldn't sleep.

(She had a nightmare) jebutnie długi cytat

 Mary opened her eyes in terror -so frightened that she needed reassurance it had all just been her imagination. She gazed around the room, but just couldn't shake the image of "my hideous phantom." Finally, to take her mind off the creature, she went back to the ghost story she'd been trying to compose all week. "If only I could contrive one," she thought, "that would frighten people as I myself had been frightened that night!" Then she realized that her vision was, in fact, the story she'd been reaching for.

I znów jebutnie długi cytat

In what way does this influence our understanding of the text?

2.Who was Prometheus? Why is the novel subtitled "the Modern Prometheus"?

Prometheus was a titan of Greek mythology who both created Mankind and gave them fire and metallurgic capabilities. The novel is subtitled “The Modern Prometheus” because Victor Frankenstein creates human life, similarly to how Prometheus did in the myths.

3.Consider the significance of the epigraph “Did I request thee, Maker, from my clay/To mould me man? Did I solicit thee/ From darkness to promote me?” (Milton, Paradise Lost). Who is the new Adam and who is Satan in Shelley’s text?

He does not see himself as Adam, however, but as Satan: unlike Adam, he is alone, without a Creator to protect him or an Eve to sustain him. He is full of envy, wretched, and utterly an outcast.

The creature bitterly reflects that even Satan is more fortunate than he ­ at least Satan has fellow devils to console him

He feels himself to be forsaken, and cannot decide if he is most like Adam or most like Satan: he decides upon the latter because he is so much an outcast, completely without guidance or protection.

Victor Frankenstein’s creation of his creature puts him at a parallel to God, his dismissive abandonment of his “Adam” makes him the tyrannical God from Milton’s Paradise Lost while his over achieving ambition and apathetic lack of concern towards the pain and suffering of others puts him at par with Lucifer. His guilt over the genesis of the creature is blatant with his constant self reflection. By creating the monster, Victor has displaced God and usurped the role of the woman. His desire to create a living being was an act of transgression by which he assumed the role of the Christian God. Victor and his creature move from the assumed roles of God and Adam and then god and Satan.

What Satan and Adam have in common is primarily their secondary status to God and hence implying that they owe gratitude and obedience to their creator. The “monster” becomes the eternal embodiment of the creature in trying to absorb the characteristics of both Adam and Satan into himself. Frankenstein’s monster, like Lucifer, has no hope of redemption. That perdition, as developed in their respective mythic contexts, has more to do with Lucifer’s pride and the monster’s subhuman status than to any other resemblance (spiritual or metaphysical) between them. Lucifer is a monster because of his pride; the monster is a monster because he isn’t human. Lucifer has rejected God; the monster was rejected by his maker.In Lucifer’s revolt against heaven, he suborns a third of the Host to his purposes, turning them away from the face of God. The monster’s revolt against Dr Frankenstein has nothing to do with politics or a difference of opinions – it has instead everything to do with the animus of the monster.

Victor Frankenstein is shown as dismissive of philosophical arts, he is shown to prefer the empirical sciences over blind dogma, hence from his ambition to become the creator and outdo his own, it can be said that Victor Frankenstein assumes the role of Satan in Mary Shelley’s almost retelling of Milton’s Paradise Lost.

4. Note the various narrative "frames" Mary Shelley employs in her novel. What is the purpose of these various frames? What, specifically, does she wish to accomplish by employing these multiple frames?

The various frames found within the novel allow different perspectives on the story as a whole, as we have the segments of the story from the creature’s point of view, from Victor’s standpoint, and from the captain through his letters. The shifting perspectives allows for the sympathetic characters to shift as well, depending on the narrator at the time. Shelley actually creates different little discrepancies within the story by using different narrators, making some things more believable and, as aforementioned, shifting the reader’s feelings of sympathy to different characters. Also, as Shelley’s goal was to write a “ghost story,” the frame set up gives the impression of stories being told to another person, as Victor to Walton, Walton to his sister, etc, keeping with the oral tradition of the “ghost stories.”

5.What sort of man is Walton? Does he serve any thematic function in the novel, or is he included largely as a "storyteller"--that is, is he included simply as a mechanical narrative device?

Walton is a very compassionate person who attempts to save and console the weak and emancipated Frankenstein. His letters not only serve the purpose of telling the story but also his character has parallels to Victor Frankenstein. Like Victor, Walton is an explorer, chasing after that “country of eternal light”—unpossessed knowledge. Victor’s influence on him is paradoxical: one moment he exhorts Walton’s almost-mutinous men to stay the path courageously, regardless of danger; the next, he serves as an abject example of the dangers of heedless scientific ambition. In his ultimate decision to terminate his treacherous pursuit, Walton serves as a foil (someone whose traits or actions contrast with, and thereby highlight, those of another character) to Victor, either not obsessive enough to risk almost-certain death or not courageous enough to allow his passion to drive him.

6.In what ways do Walton's letters prepare us for the tale he recounts? What difference (if any) do these letters make in the way we react to the rest of the novel?

Walton’s letters prepare us by giving us a clue of what is to come. They work like a form of foreshadowing. It makes us see the similarities between him and victor. The effect is that it opens our mind to someone else’s view of things. Instead of just hearing the tale from victor’s perspective, we also get a glimpse of someone else’s

7.Work out a character sketch of Victor Frankenstein, concentrating on his values and psychological makeup. What does he value? What motivates him? What appear to be his "moral standards"?

Victor Frankenstein is motivated by the hope that he might one day learn the great secrets of nature. He is a man that was sadly driven by ambition and scientific curiosity. He is unable to deal with the consequences of his actions in "playing God.” He is an irresponsible, neglectful parent. He shows a natural human tendency to pursue the forbidden. Even though he is smart and well read he was ignorant of the consequences of his meddling with nature. Victor undergoes emotional and mental change from the start of the novel to the end. He suffers from feelings of remorse and guilt at seeing the unjust deaths of the people he cares about at the hands of his own creation. The burning ambition that drove him to his “playing God” has still not left him for he still believes he can avenge his family's death by killing the monster. He values his family above all else.

 Frankenstein values his family, and can get carried away when he concentrates too much on one vision that he sets his mind on. He definitely cares for what happens to his family and is worried about the welfare of their lives. His family along with exploration is his biggest motivators. His pursuit to create the monster was fueled by his ambition to bring back the dead, and the exploration of science; of being a god. His moral standards are those that don’t need to apply to him and whatever he needs to get done will get done.

Work out a character sketch of Victor Frankenstein, concentrating on his values and psychological makeup. What does he value? What motivates him? What appear to be his "moral standards"? 
Value: Most importantly I believe family is his highest value. He seeks advice from them and it is his family who was really behind his intelligential passion and desire for a higher understanding and education through there lassie-faire upbringing.
Motive: It is apparent the Victors desire to create and learn more of the secret of life stems for knowledge itself. As a boy he is an eager student and through college it is apparent that he had incredible drive that later enables him to achieve something so grand and horrific as the monster.
Moral standards: Victors lack of humanness is ultimately what dooms him and his monumentous achievement. His desire to attain the god like power to create life or his abandonment of the monster outlines his consequence decision thoughtout the book. He cuts himself off from the world and eventually commits himself entirely to an animalistic obsession with revenging himself upon the monster.

8.The first three chapters tell us about Victor Frankenstein's childhood and youth; the fourth, about his "discovery" of the principle of life. For movie fans these chapters may seem irrelevant: after all, we want to see the Creature being created and--amid bursts of smoke and flashes of lightning--"born." Why, then, does Mary Shelley devote so much space to Victor's childhood environment and his education?

Mary Shelley devotes so much time to Victor’s childhood so that the reader better understands how Victor came to be. If the novel jumped from the monsters creation then there would be lot of questions like, “why did he do it?” “What did he hope to accomplish?” It is not so easy since it is a pretty deep subject. There would be too many unanswered questions if that were the case. She wanted us to see step by step what led Victor on his path of doom.

Childhood and upbringing is a key feature of what happens in a story. It describes and shows how and why he did what he did in future events. Like many crimes can be “traced” to what happened to convicts as children. It is the background of what happened and why

 The beginning chapters are key in introducing the character of Victor. You see him on the ship ill and dieing, and when he recounts the story of his happy childhood, you know that something bad has to happen for him to be in the shape he is now. By discussing Victor’s interest with science the reader is given a reason why he would be interested in creating a monster he would later abandon. This beginning stuff sets up the whole novel and is there for the reader understands the actions that take place later on.

9.Pay close attention to the moment when the Creature comes to life (Chapter 5). Where is the focus in this section? On the process of creation? On the Creature? Somewhere else?

The focus is that there is no true focus. The author tries to encompass all that happens with what Frankenstein is thinking, what is happening to the monster, and how the environment is changing around them between the life forces of the doctor and the monster. The largest piece of the focus would have to be on Frankenstein though, just because it describes more of his thoughts and feelings as the monster is being brought to life.

 The focus of this section is not so much on the actual creation and animation of the creature as it is on the psychological state of Victor. He is becoming more and more detached from society as he delves deeper into his work, and upon animation, he reels from unexpected emotions, saying, “I felt the bitterness of disappointment; dreams that had been my food and pleasant rest for so long a space were now become a hell to me.” (Pg. 43, Ch. 5). The reader doesn’t even get a feeling for the true nature of the creature; the reader’s impression of the creation comes from the description of it by Frankenstein, whose mental state has already been challenged by the beginning of the chapter. 

10.Why does Victor work so diligently to bring the Creature to life and then become so abhorrent when he succeeds?

Victor was so obsessed to find the secret of life, that when he found it, all he could think of was testing it’s powers, no matter the ramifications. His creation – the creature – was supposed to be perfect…a kind of testament to the powers of science…but when awakened, Victor sees something terrible and ugly that cannot possibly have any good in it’s surrogate heart.

11.In chapters 10-17 the Creature tells his story. Notice the place Victor Frankenstein meets his Creature. Why is this setting particularly appropriate? Of what does the Creature accuse Victor?

This setting is appropriate because it is isolated and it’s a feeling they both share. Victor's escape into the mountains seems to be a deliberate attempt at escaping from his feelings, his memories and his past. He definitely feels more at ease in the mountains. The one place he feels any peace happens to be the place he comes across the monster. The creature accuses victor of not taking responsibility of his actions. He accuses him of being irresponsible for abandoning something he created because it was not to his liking. “…you had endowed me with perceptions and passions, and then cast me abroad an object for the scorn and horror of mankind (124).” He accused Victor of rejecting him even though he created him and was tied to him.

12.What do chapters 11-15 reveal about the Creature's "natural instincts"? What gives him pleasure? What does he value? (Consider, for instance, how he describes the DeLaceys and their cottage.) Of what does the Creature's education consist?

The Creature’s natural instinct it to help others. He helped the cottagers and the young woman that slipped into the river. He claims how he was kind and good but is forced to hate people because they despise him. Every time one of the humans was in trouble he was there to the rescue. “ I had been accustomed, during the night, to steal a part of their store for my own consumption; but when I found that in doing so this inflicted pain on the cottagers, I abstained…(102).”He is full of good intentions. He gets pleasure from knowledge and from helping other people. He values nature and books and an education. The Creature’s education consists of what little he was apple to pick up from the inhabitants of the cottagers when they were trying to teach Agatha.

13.Why does the Creature ask for a female companion? Are his arguments convincing?

he argues that he is responsible to take care of another creature. Another argument is that he felt as thought he was killing people because of his loneliness. Since there was no one that could talk to him, he did not know what to do with his emotions. If there was someone with him, the other creature can support him through the rough times. It is a reasonable argument because no one or creature can live alone. When there is a problem, it is good to talk to someone and hear their opinions as well. This way, the person or the creature can get some ideas of what to do when they are troubled.

14.Why does Victor Frankenstein decide to discontinue his efforts to create a "bride" for the Creature?

Victor decides to discontinue his work on the female creature because of the fear of what the future might bring. He thinks that the new creature will not go with the original creature to South America to hide from the people. Also, he thinks that they will have offspring that may cause trouble in the future.

15.Can Frankenstein's isolation from his fellow creatures be seen as a parallel to the Creature's own situation? In what other ways are Victor and the Creature beginning to be strikingly similar? Have you encountered this sort of "parallel-making" anywhere else in literature or the arts? If so, where? Does the device have a formal name?

First of all, as the creature kills Victor’s family and friends, he feels increasingly responsible for their murder, thus sharing responsibility and guilt for the deaths with the creature. Both are isolate from society because of things Victor has done; Victor is isolated because of his guilt and obsession with the creature, while the creature is isolated because of the appearance with which Victor created him as well as Victor’s abandonment of him immediately after creation. Victor vocalizes his feelings of isolation in saying, “I saw an insurmountable barrier placed between me and my fellow men; this barrier was sealed with the blood of William and Justine, and to reflect on the events connected with those names filled my soul with anguish” (pg 137). Though he feels these intense emotions, he still can’t go to the authorities with the information that could save them because of his own insecurity about the creature.

16.Note the surrealistic environment of the "chase" scenes. Are we getting into a different sort of novel than we were originally led to expect? If so, what is the nature of the difference?

The novel seemed to be one in which the main character gets through all the obstacles. It looked like Victor was going to triumph in the end, but that was not the case. Instead Victor died and the monster vowed to kill himself. Shelley leaves the book open-ended and this further brings to mind a sense of horror. It is unknown if the monster will come once again to haunt mankind.

17.What is the significance of Victor Frankenstein's final words? What about the Creature's final words?

In his final words, Victor argues the part of Brutus from “Julius Caesar” in discouraging ambition as the downfall of man, particularly when ambition leads to the edge of scientific thought. He tells Walton to steer clear of ambition, and, although science will never cease to push on with ambition and drive, that this drive will lead to discoveries that man cannot control (perfect example today is nuclear power and weaponry). The creature says practically the same thing, but not as directly and through his characteristic flowery language.

Victor’s last words seemed to have significance in the fact that his life has been a voyage of dangers. Yet, the last words of the monster are more significant because now that he has seen that his creator has died he decides to end all misery by dieing as well. “I shall die, and what I now feel be no longer felt. Soon these burning miseries will be extinct.” (Chapter 24)

Victor’s final words are to Walton’s crew when he tells them to not turn their backs on their enemies. He says this because it’s his enemy’s fault that he is so miserable and about to die. The Creature’s final words are that he’ll travel to the Northernmost part of the globe and commit suicide because he is sad because the only person he has ever know is dead.

18.Notice that in this novel, written by a woman, women characters seem to play a minor role. What is the significance, if any, of women characters in the novel?

19.In an influential essay, the Romantic scholar and critic Harold Bloom wrote that the reader's sympathy lies with the Creature, but in his book The Romantic Conflict (1963) Allan Rodway says the reader's sympathy lies with Victor Frankenstein. Who is right?

In my opinion the sympathy lies with the creature. He is not at fault for anything. He did not ask to be created he was a victim of someone’s dream. He was deserted instead of taken care of by his creator. He never asked to be created into a monstrosity. He did not deserve to be abandoned the way he was.