Mary ShelleyMary Shelley andand

frankensteinfrankenstein

Mary ShelleyMary Shelley

• Daughter of William Godwin and Mary Wollonstonecroft–Father champion of

poor

–Mother champion of women’s rights

Mary ShelleyMary Shelley

• Married Percy Shelley when she was only seventeen

• Percy was already married at the time.

• Had to get remarried legally after first wife committed suicide

Mary ShelleyMary Shelley• Close friends with Lord Byron• Swapped “ghost stories” at Byron’s

summer home in Switzerland. Led to Frankenstein.

• Dr. John Polidori wrote “The Vampyre.”– Led to Bram Stoker’s Dracula

• Frankenstein was written when she was only nineteen.

Mary ShelleyMary Shelley

• Percy drowned 1822.– Mary carried his heart (not a

metaphor) with her for the rest of her days.

• She died at age 54.

• Frankenstein has become a classic work of Romantic fiction.

Archetype• An image, descriptive detail, plot

pattern or character type that occurs frequently in literature, myth, religion or folklore

• Believed to evoke profound emotions• Touches subconscious memory & calls

up illogical but strong responses• First used by Carl Jung

Myth• A story involving archetypes

• Presents supernatural episodes as a means of interpreting events

• Seeks to explain a special perception of human beings or a cosmic view

Alchemy• Medieval “science” and

philosophy• Convert base metals into gold• Universal cure for disease• Means of prolonging life.

Doppelgänger• “Double-Goer” in German

• A mysterious double

• Highlight character flaws or weakness in twin

• Similar in purpose to a dramatic foil

Gothic Novel

• Magic, mystery, and chivalry are the chief characteristics

• Dark, foreboding settings & brooding, mysterious characters

• Quasi-medieval feel

• horrific