| Interest in the common man | Romantics believed in the natural goodness of humans which is hindered by the urban life of civilization. |
| Interest in childhood | Romantics believed that the savage is noble, childhood is good, and the emotions inspired by both beliefs cause the heart to soar. |
| Strong senses, emotions, and feelings | Romantics believed that knowledge is gained through intution rather than detuction. |
| Awe of nature | Romantics stressed the awe of nature in art and language and the experience of sublimity through a connection with nature. Romantics rejected the rationalization of nature by the previous thinkers of the Enlightenment period. |
| Celebration of the individual | Romantics often elevated the achievements of the misunderstood, heroic individual outcast. |
| Importance of imagination | Romantics legitimized the individual imagination as a critical authority. |
| The first publication of this author’s text was listed “by anonymous” because the publisher didn’t think a book by this writer would sell. | Mary Shelley |
| First publication of Frankenstein | in 1818 |
| How old was the author when she wrote Frankenstein? | the author was 19 and published when she was 21 |
| When and where did Shelley write Frankenstein? | On a cold and rainy summer vacation in Geneva, Switzerland with soon-to-be husband, Percy Shelley and famous Romantic Poet, Lord Byron. |
| Who suggested the idea of writing ghost stories while on vacation with the author? | Lord Byron, famous Romantic Poet |
| How did the author get the idea for the novel Frankenstein? | – German ghost stories- Listening to the men in her group talk about scientific experiments (e.g., Darwin’s Theory of Evolution)- Dreamed about the moment the creature comes to life |
| In the introduction of the book, what central theme (main idea) does the author say she most wanted to address? | Man trying to play God |
| What is the book Frankenstein’s subtitle and why? | Frankenstein: The Modern PrometheusVictor Frankenstein is compared to the Greek Titan Prometheus who is credited with creating humans, giving them fire (after stealing it from Zeus), and being punished (chained to a rock, where a giant eagle pecked away at his liver each days). |
| Who is the explorer who rescues Victor at the beginning of the novel? | Robert Walton |
| Where does the story begin? | On Robert Walton’s ship in the Arctic |
| Who does Walton write to? | His sister, Margaret Saville, who lives in London with her husband and children. |
| What is Robert Walton obsessed with? | Reaching and studying the North Pole |
| Where do Victor Frankenstein and his family live? | Geneva, Switzerland |
| Who is Victor’s mother (not enough to say Mrs. Frankenstein)? | Caroline Beaufort |
| How does Victor Frankenstein’s mother die? | Scarlet Fever |
| Who is Victor Frankenstein’s close childhood friend? | Henry Clerval |
| Who is Victor Frankenstein’s father (not enough to say Mr. Frankenstein)? | Alphonse Frankenstein |
| What field of study does Victor Frankenstein become fascinated with at around 13 or 14? | Alchemy / Natural Philosophy |
| How does William die? | The creature/monster strangles him in the woods outside Geneva. |
| Who is falsely accused, convicted, and executed for William’s murder? | Justine Moritz |
| Where does Victor Frankenstein go to college? | The University of Ingolstadt in Germany |
| Why doesn’t Henry attend college with Victor? | His father wants him to work as a merchant in the family business |
| Who is the exiled and blind old man forced to live in poverty somewhere in Germany with his two children? | DeLacey |
| Who is the main narrator in Volume II of Frankenstein? | The creature/monster |
| How many people does the creature/monster murder? | Three (William, Elizabeth and Henry) |
| What does the creature/monster do to help the poor family living in the cottage? | Chops wood for them to cook and stay warm |
| What short and conceited university professor ridicules Victor Frankenstein’s previous, self-directed studies? | Krempe |
| What Chemistry professor supports Victor Frankenstein’s pursuit of Natural Philosophy and becomes his mentor? | Waldman |
| How does Victor’s father die? | He dies from grief after Elizabeth’s murder |
| When Victor first leaves for the university, what is his main objective/desire? | To study how to prevent death (probably due to his sorrow over his mother’s recent death) |
| As Victor rises to the top of his field at the university, what becomes his new/revised obsession? | To discover the secret of life and create a new and noble race |
| Where does Victor Frankenstein collect materials to create his creature/monster? | Graveyards, slaughterhouses, and disecting rooms |
| Why does Victor immediately run away from the creature/monster as soon as it is brought to life? | He is horrified by the creature’s hideous appearance |
| After William’s death, where does Victor see (but not speak to) the creature/monster? | In the woods outside Geneva where William was found murdered |
| After William is murdered, why doesn’t Victor immediately tell his family that he suspects the creature did it? | Victor is afraid no one will believe him and may think he is crazy |
| When the creature/monster finds Victor hiking alone in the Alps, he kindly asks Victor to do what? | Come to a remote cabin on the mountain and listen to his story |
| What bothers the creature most in the early days of his existence? | Similar to a newborn infant, his senses are overwhelmed with all the new sights (light), sounds (tries to imitate the birds), and feelings (cold and hungry). |
| What are the first two things the creature/monster learns about fire? | Brings warmth but also hurts him–later learns it makes some foods taste better |
| What happens to the creature/monster when he innocently enters a village in search of food? | The villagers scream and throw stones at him |
| Where does the creature/monster find shelter? | In a hovel/hut attached to a poor family’s cottage. (He peers at them through a whole in the wood.) |
| How does the creature/monster learn to SPEAK? | He listens to the DeLacey family interact. |
| How does the creature/monster learn to READ? | He listens as Felix teaches Safie to read–learns about the history of the human race. |
| After telling Victor his story, what does the creature/monster demand that Victor do for him? | Create a female companion for him |
| How does the creature/monster learn he is ugly? | Sees his reflection in a pool of water |
| How does the creature/monster learn about how he was created? | Finds Victor’s journal in the pocket of his cloak and reads it |
| Why does the creature/monster decide to reveal himself to the old blind man? | He is lonely and because the old man is blind, he thinks he won’t be prejudiced by his looks |
| What does the old man’s family do when they return and find the creature in their cottage? | Safie screams and runs away, Agatha faints, and Felix beats the creature with a stick |
| What does the creature do when the DeLacey family flees? | He burns down their cottage and vows revenge against his creator (Victor) |
| What injustice happens to the creature in the woods as he travels to Switzerland to find and confront Victor? | He saves a girl from drowning and is shot in the shoulder by her father |
| What does the creature want when he first sees and stops William? | He wants the boy to be his companion–thinks the boy is too young to fear his looks |
| Why does the creature/monster kill William? | William says his father is “the magistrate, Mr. Frankenstein” and the creature thinks he is talking about Victor, his creator and enemy |
| Who wrote “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner”? | Samuel Taylor Coleridge, who is the co-founder of the British Romanticism literary movement along with William Wordsworth, who wrote “Tintern Abbey” |
| What thoughtless act does the ancient mariner regret? | Shooting an albatross with his bow and arrow for no reason |
| What two similar themes are found in both Frankenstein and “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner”? | – Love all creatures (great and small)- Consequences of thoughtless behavior |
| Who is accused of murdering Henry Clerval? | Victor Frankenstein |
| What is the verdict at Victor’s hearing/trial in Ireland? | Not Guilty / Found Innocent |
| Where does Victor go to create a female monster? | The remote Orkney Islands in Scotland |
| What does the creature/monster say to Victor when he destroys the unfinished female creature? | “I will see you on your wedding night.” |
| What did the creature want most from humans? | Friendship / Companionship |
| Where does Robert Walton find Victor Frankenstein in the beginning of the novel? | Stranded on a block of ice in the Arctic |
| Who nurses Victor back to health when he falls sick with fever right after creating the monster? | Henry Clerval |
| What happens to Victor after he sees Henry’s dead body? | He falls into a long, feverish illness. |
| Who kills the creature/monster? | No one. Walton finds the creature/monster grieving over Victor’s corpse. With his creator dead, the monster’s revenge is complete, though unsatisfying. He exists the ship and plans to kill himself. |
| When Victor first gets sick, what does he ask Robert Walton to do for him? | Find and kill the creature/monster for him. When Victor is close to death however, he changes his mind and begs Walton to find joy and live a happy life with his loved ones. |
| What does Robert Walton do after Victor dies on his ship? | Walton heads back home to England |
| A reference to a well-known figure from the Bible, Greek Mythology, or a famous literary figure is called a literary ________. | allusion |
| Robert Walton’s voyage and letters to his sister are an example of a ________ story/narrative that sets the stage for another story. | frame story/narrative (a story within a story) |
| Who was Mary Shelley’s mother? | Mary Wollstonecraft (vindication of the rights of women) |
| What was the relationship between Percy Shelley and Mary Shelley? | Percy was already married, but fell in love with Mary in 1814 and eloped |
| What happens to Percy’s previous wife? | In Dec. 1816, she commits suicide |
| What do Percy and Mary do as a result of Harriet’s death? | Get married in order to get custody of Percy and Harriet’s children |
| What later happens to Percy? | He dies while sailing in Italy |
| What of Percy was not burned in the funeral pyre? | His heart; it was snatched and later burned in Rome |
| What was another popular novel of Mary’s? | The Lost Man |
Mary Shelley & Frankenstein
February 19, 2020