| According to Mary Shelley, what was the difference between her imagination and her writing when she was younger? | her dreams were more fantastic and agreeable than her writings |
| Where and with whom was she when she started writing the novel Frankenstein? | On vacation in Switzerland, with Lord Byron and Shelley (husband) |
| What challenge led her to the writing of the novel? | contest of who could write the best ghost story |
| Why was she having trouble coming up with an idea? | felt a lot of pressure |
| What discussions influenced the development of her idea? | between Lord Byron and Shelley, about philosophical doctrine |
| What mental vision inspired her? | the pale student of unhallowed arts kneeling beside the thing he had put together |
| Why does she have an affection for the story of Frankenstein? | “it was the offspring of happy days, when death and grief were but words, which found no true echo in my heart” |
| With what statement does she begin the Preface? | “the event on which this fiction is founded, has been supposed by Dr. Darwin and some of the physiological writers of Germany, as not of impossible occurrence” |
| What does she say she is trying to preserve? | the truth of the elementary principles of human nature |
| Who are the letters addressed to? | Margaret Saville in England |
| Who wrote the letters? | Robert Walton |
| What is the relationship between writer and recipient? | brother and sister |
| Where is Robert when he writes the first letter? | St. Petersburg, Russia |
| What is his destination? | in the North Pole/ Artic Region |
| What are his specific plans for his voyage? | discover a passage from the Pacific to the Atlantic |
| How much time passes between the 1st and 2nd letters? | 3 months |
| What is the one want that he has not been able to satisfy? | he has no friends |
| What is the allusion in letter #2? Explain. | Rime of the Ancient Mariner; he says he wont shoot a Albatross |
| What does he say influenced him to want to travel the ocean? | the books he read in his uncle’s library |
| How much time passes between letters 3 and 4? | 4 months |
| Describe the “strange incident” of letter 4 | he see a very large man on a sled, and the next day he sees another man on a sled with all but one dog dead. he is weak and starving, he boards the ship and is cared for |
| What does Robert feel he has finally found? | a friend |
| What does the wandered warn Robert against? | becoming obsessed with one goal |
| Why does the wanderer want to tell his story to Robert? | wants to be understood/ wants his story to serve as a lesson |
| Who is telling this part of the story? | Victor Frankenstein |
| How did Elizabeth come to live with the Frankenstein’s? | she was an orphan; Victors mother saw her and adopted her |
| What was Frankenstein’s relationship like with his parents? | he adored them; they adored him; perfect relationship |
| What was Frankenstein’s relationship like with Elizabeth? | he really liked her; thought of her as a possession |
| Who is Frankenstein’s closest friend? How are they different from each other? | Henry Clerval; victor wants to learn truths of the world while Henry wants to save the world |
| What was one of the themes of the writers who influenced Frankenstein? | ghosts and devils |
| What natural phenomena influenced Frankenstein? | saw a lightning storm crack a tree and wanted to learn about electricity and galvanism |
| What two major events happened to Frankenstein when he was 17? | -left home to attend University of Ingolstadt-his mother died of scarlet fever |
| What goal did Frankenstein decide to pursue? | -to renew life in a corpse -“bestow animation upon lifeless manner” |
| At one point Frankenstein says, “A new species would bless me…” What does he imagine himself to be? | a creator; “God” |
| What warning does Frankenstein give about being too passionate about something? | you should feel calm and peaceful, if not, it could be dangerous |
| How did Frankenstein feel when his experiment succeeded and the creature came to life? | horrified and disgusted |
| What words does Frankenstein use to describe his creation? Why? | demonical corpse, depraved, repulsive, horrible, miserable, disgust, monster, ugly |
| What allusion is used to describe Frankenstein’s feeling about his creation? How can we compare Frankenstein with the speaker in this poem/ what do they have in common? | The Rime of the Ancient Mariner; ran away and didn’t look back; sinned against nature |
| What happened to Frankenstein the day after he completed his creation? | he became ill with a fever and delirium for several months |
| Who took care of Frankenstein? | Henry Clerval |
| What did Clerval give Frankenstein when he was better? | letter from Elizabeth |
| How did Frankenstein and Clerval spend the next several months? | together “hanging out”, was calm and peaceful |
| What news did the letter from Frankenstein’s father bring? | his little brother William was killed |
| What did Frankenstein see just outside the gates of Geneva as he was returning home? What truth does he know immediately? | the monster he created; the monster killed William |
| How much time has passed since the night that the creature came to life? | 2 years |
| Who, other than Frankenstein, feels responsible for the murder? | Elizabeth |
| Who was accused of committing the murder, and why? | Justine because she has the locket that Elizabeth gave to William |
| What was Frankenstein’s reaction to this accusation? | feels guilty; tried to prove Justine innocent |
| What did Frankenstein do about his dilemma? | appeals to the court for Justine and tried to prove her innocent |
| What happened to the accused person? | Justine was convicted and hung |
| What was Frankenstein’s state of mind after the trial and its conclusion? | he was filled with remorse and thought his creature would continue to kill |
| Where did Frankenstein go to seek relief? | Alphine Valley and to the village of Chamounix |
| Whom did Frankenstein meet after he had ascended to the summit of Montanvert? | his creature |
| How did Frankenstein react to this meeting? | he is full of rage and horror, and wants to kill his creature |
| What did the creature want of Frankenstein? | for Frankenstein to listen to his story |
| How did the creature feel when he first felt life? | like a newborn, very confused because of all the new sensations |
| What was the reaction of the villagers the creature encountered? | horrified and scared; they threw rocks and drove him away from the city |
| Where did the creature take shelter? | a lean-to that was attached to a cottage |
| What observations did the creature make about the people in the cottage? | they were all poor, sad, and hungry; cared for each other and were respectful to the elders |
| What does the creature learn to do, and how does he learn this? | learns to talk and read by observing and listening to the De Lacey’s teaching |
| What was the elder De Lacey’s reaction when the creature entered the cottage and began speaking with him? | welcoming and friendly; invites creature in his home and listens to his story |
| What was the reaction of the De Lacey family when they saw the creature? | horrified and disgusted; Agatha fainted, Safie fled, and Felix hit him with a stick until he left |
| What did the creature do at the cottage when he returned and found that the De Lacey’s had moved out? | he burned it down in rage |
| What was the reaction of the man whose daughter was saved from drowning by the creature? | took the girl from the creatures arms and shot him when he pursued the pair |
| What discovery did the creature make when he approached another human? | it was William Frankenstein |
| What did the creature do to this person? | he strangled and killed him |
| How did the creature feel after his deed? | happy that he was able to create pain and sadness for his creator |
| What did the creature tell Frankenstein about the locket? | he put it in Justine’s pocket to frame her |
| What did the creature ask Frankenstein to do, and why? | create a mate so he wont be alone and he wouldn’t be bad anymore |
| How did Frankenstein react to this request? | refused at first, then attempted to create a female but destroyed it before it was finished |
| What threat did the creature make when he saw Frankenstein destroy his second creation? | “I will be with you on your wedding night” |
| What happened to Frankenstein when he landed his boat? | he was accused of murder |
| Who had been the creature’s most recent victim? | Henry Clerval |
| What happened at Frankenstein’s trial? | witnesses verified his location so he was acquitted and released |
| What event occurred next in Frankenstein’s life? | his marriage to Elizabeth |
| What happened on Frankenstein and Elizabeth’s wedding night? | the creature kills Elizabeth |
| What happened to Frankenstein’s father as a result of this latest tragedy? | died of grief |
| What was the magistrate’s response when Frankenstein told him the entire story of the creature? | he believed him but he didn’t think they could capture the creature |
| What did Frankenstein do after he left the magistrate? | started his search to find and kill the creature |
| What request does Frankenstein make of Robert Walton? | kill the creature if he ever has the chance to |
| What happened to Frankenstein at the end of the novel? | died of natural causes |
| What happened to the creature at the end of the novel? | kills himself after learning of his creators death; goes up north to die |
Frankenstein Questions
February 17, 2020