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Frankenstein
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Buddy Read of Frankenstein October 2021 onwards with Tim, Connie, Lola and Angela
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Thank you Jean and welcome everyone to our October group read of Mary Shelly's Frankenstein! As mentioned in the buddy read section, while the novel is obviously not written by Dickens and is a bit before his work, it was one that at least inspired him to a degree (and is even referenced in one of his novels).Frankenstein has an interesting publication history having been published in 1818 and then heavily revised for re-publication in 1831. While both versions are available this group will be going with the 1831 version as it is the most commonly available and also the version that was published under Shelly's own name (the initial text was published anonymously).
The novel is fairly short (especially compared to many of the reads done by this group) containing 4 letters starting the book and then 24 official chapters. As we will be starting this group read on October first, the plan is to do two letters and then one chapter each day. That will take us to October 26th.
The book can be found for free at https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/84
While I do not wish to say much about the book here before we even begin the read, I would like to provide some interesting background that has become something of thing of horror legend.
The story's origins were from that of a trip Mary had with Percy Shelly, where the visited Lord Byron's Villa Diodati by Lake Geneva in Switzerland along with John Polidori. The weather was too cold and dreary that summer to enjoy the outdoor holiday activities they had planned, so the group retired indoors until dawn. The group entertained themselves by reading horror stories from the book Fantasmagoriana. One night Byron had the idea that each should come up with a ghost story, a competition to see who could scare the others.
This idea lead to Mary Shelly's contribution about a doctor trying to revive a corpse. Of the group she is the only one who fully completed the challenge, with Percy only writing what he called "A Fragment of a Ghost Story" and Byron writing "A Fragment of a Vampire Story". Pollidori ended up taking Byron's fragment and expanding it later into The Vampyre.
This story has endured not just in literature but in cinema as well with the first adaptation with the first film being made as a 1910 silent short film by Thomas Edison of all people (this can be found for free on https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-fM9... for those curious).
Though the most famous adaptation is no doubt the 1931 (yes, made on the 100th anniversary of the revised version of the book's release) James Whale adaptions staring Boris Karloff... who might have taken a few creative liberties with the Creature's (admittedly iconic) design.
The story has been told countless times and with versions of the characters found throughout pop-culture… but how do these compare to the original?
Well… as someone who has never read the original work, I can't say for sure, but I'm looking forward to finding out. Please join us for this group read, and see if the tale of this "good" doctor still has the power to terrify and delight.
That's a wonderful introduction, Tim! I'm looking forward to October.
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Thank you! I had fun writing it and I’m looking forward to the actual group discussion as well!
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I've seen the play, but this is the first time I'll be reading the book. There's a lot more to think about in this story than we might first imagine. Looking forward to Friday.
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It's now on our home page, so some others might join in too.
Happy October everyone! I’ll start reading this book on my lunch break and will post tonight. Hope everyone enjoys!
Before I move on to Chapter 1, I'll jot down a few things I noted about the start of the novel.Epigraph on Title Page:
This is from John Milton's "Paradise Lost." Percy had given Mary a copy of Milton's famous poem in 1815.
"Did I request thee, Maker, from my clay
To mould me man? Did I solicit thee
From darkness to promote me?"
Dedication:
The book was dedicated to Mary Shelley's father, William Godwin. He was a writer and philosopher with very little trust in any types of government.
1818 Preface:
The original preface was written by Percy Bysshe Shelley, Mary's husband, but signed Marlow. He is referencing the scientist Dr Darwin, Charles Darwin's grandfather, and other physiological writers of Germany as influences. He is also referring to great works of fiction about human feeling. He also writes about the night in Geneva when a group of friends told ghost stories, and each attempted to write their own story (as Tim explained in message 2).
1831 Preface:
This is Mary Shelley's charming version of the tale of the origin of the story. She wrote the story, but gives Percy credit for the original preface.
Letter 1:Robert Walton writes several letters to his sister, Margaret Saville.
Robert wants to make his mark on the world, and is the captain of a ship heading to the North Pole. He wants to discover a northern passage to the Pacific and the secret of the magnet (compasses point to the magnetic north).
He seems to have a very romantic attitude about the voyage, with dreams of glory, and thoughts about the beauty and light of the North Pole. He is not very concerned about the dangers of his voyage.
Letter 2:
Robert Walton writes that he is feeling lonely and would like a close friend to confide in. He also writes about his enjoyment of books of voyages and adventure.
Shelley seems to be foreshadowing later events of loneliness and isolation in the story. The wish for companionship is part of being human.
Letter 3:
Walton writes, "What can stop the determined heart and resolved will of men?" I hope he thought about Mother Nature in the harsh environment of the North Pole.
Letter 4:The ship is caught between sheets of ice, and cannot move. Walton and the crew spot a sledge drawn by dogs and driven by a man of gigantic stature.
The ice broke up and freed their ship. Later they come upon a different man on the brink of death. He is with a sledge, but only one of his dogs is alive. They bring the man on the ship where he slowly recovers. The stranger and Walton become friends, and the stranger says that he will tell Walton his harrowing story the next day.
The letters act as a framework for the stranger's story (which starts on Chapter 1). It gives a feeling of truthfulness since Walton is writing this information to his sister and in a journal.
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Great info Connie :)
Bionic Jean wrote: "I noted the 1831 Preface. I would never have imagined anyone describing this tale as "charming"! Poignant - even tragic - perhaps!Great info Connie :)"
LOL. I meant that the story in the 1831 Preface about the four friends having a contest was charming, not "Frankenstein" itself! I liked Mary Shelley's longer account about the interaction between the friends and her dream.
I agree that "Frankenstein" was tragic.
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I had thought it was an editor's comment on the tale, from 1831, not your words, Connie! Sorry - I didn't mean to be rude .... and yes, the circumstances of the tale's creation are well worth telling :)
I wonder if anyone has read any of the other offerings.
Sorry for the delay in my post. I unfortunately fell ill October 1st and literally slept through most of yesterday. That said, I am caught up and there is something fitting about reading Frankenstein while unable to rise from bed.Thank you Connie for the informative posts. I'm reading the Everyman Library edition of the book and it does not include Shelly's introduction.
The notes are an interesting way to start this work. Not only does it have a surprisingly modern feel taking a nonlinear approach to the telling (meeting Frankenstein after almost all of the story has past) it also is an interesting spin on the early gothics which almost all begin with a manuscript being found telling the story (often translated from Italian or Latin).
Bionic Jean wrote: "I wonder if anyone has read any of the other offerings."
I've read Byron's and Pollidori's. They are essentially the same tale, but are the original vampire stories. As such they take more from myths than Dracula's influence that most following would. Both are interesting, but even Pollidori's feels very incomplete to me (likely because he was expanding on Byron's and didn't really know how to finish it well)
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Thanks Connie for filling in so marvellously the first couple of days. It's all fascinating information, both :)
Tim, I hope you have a quick recovery from your illness.That's interesting that the early gothics almost all begin with a manuscript being found. It seems like historical fiction has gone that route recently with someone finding an old diary in an attic, or a box of letters dating back to the World Wars. It is a good way to present two timelines, but I almost always prefer the historical timeline.
It's interesting that Byron and Pollidori were writing about vampires since there is a theme of reanimation with the victim becoming a vampire after the first vampire sucks out all their blood. It has a similar idea to Frankenstein creating life from the dead in Mary Shelley's story. I imagine the four friends had some interesting discussions!
Thank you all. I'm feeling much better, though not quite 100% yet. It seems like the main reason for this was to try to convince the readers that it was a true story or at the least a legend documented by monks. Castle of Otranto (the first Gothic novel) was initially published anonymously and said to be a translation. Many others were done in a similar fashion or have an opening chapter in which the author finds the manuscript or is given it in order to "educate" their readers (I read The Monk earlier this year and was surprised it did not take this approach).
In this case though, I like that our "document" is finding Dr. Frankenstein as instead of the classic reading of notes, we are instead getting a first hand account. Given that Shelly was wanting to go a scientific approach, it feels like using a scientist's own words as a warning. It fits the theme of the book while also being a nice spin on the tradition already set up in the 1700s Gothics.
In Chapter 1 we are given an introduction not only to a young version of our narrator but also Elizabeth. This is one of the interesting changes from the 1818 text versus the 1831. In the original, Elizabeth, was his cousin (which makes his comment of her being like a cousin and referring to her as cousin, sound borderline like an author way of not having to revise some of the later dialogue). Relationships between such relatives was not uncommon for Shelley’s time, but it apparently did bother some readers. The change to making Elizabeth an adopted orphan was a nod to her trying to make the story more accessible, which many of the changes in these two versions seem to be.
Mary Shelley's 1831 preface is online for anyone that does not have it in their book. It's only a few pages, and is worth reading.https://romantic-circles.org/editions...
In my second Scrooge and Cratchit, Detectives novel, the Frankenstein book plays prominently. The book was made into a host of drama plays performed throughout major English cities. There is an interesting expose of Shelley and the book on either Netflix or Amazon prime. I can't remember which. Y'all have some great comments. Bravo
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The British Library has an interesting article about galvanism, resuscitation, and the investigation into the states of life and death. The Shelleys even tried reanimation when their son, William, tragically died.https://www.bl.uk/romantics-and-victo...
Frankenstein was working alone, secretly creating the creature, with no input or cautionary messages from other scientists. The book has lots of food for thought about the scientist's ethical responsibility for his creations, and the effect on the general public.
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Great background info here Connie and Tim (hope you're feeling better each day Tim).
Please all, feel free to discuss aspects of the plot, but just use spoilers when appropriate. Welcome Curt, and I hope you'll join in the discussion too :)
Connie wrote: "The British Library has an interesting article about galvanism, resuscitation, and the investigation into the states of life and death. The Shelleys even tried reanimation when their son, William, ..."That is a really interesting article Connie. Thank you for posting that.
One of the aspects I find most intriguing about the book is how very little details the doctor gives into the reanimation process. It just happens. The reason I find this so interesting is how pop-culture and film in general portray it with lightening strikes, large labs, digging up graves... whereas here it happens so fast and with so few details. Interesting how something discussed so little in the novel, has become one of the highlights of the films.
Another aspect that interests me is the doctor's repeated use of "fate" having driven him, whereas it seems mostly scientific curiosity. This is actually an addition to the revised text as originally it was the doctor alone without repeated references to fate driving him. I think this was done to make him more sympathetic, as if believed it means he has no choice but to continue... personally though it really just feels like he's trying to justify his actions and create a defense to me.
Really enjoying it thus far though.
I'm almost finished with the book. I was enjoying so much that I didn't want to stop reading!We have to suspend disbelief and just assume that Frankenstein has discovered the secret of life. I agree that scientific curiosity is driving Frankenstein. He also wants to do something important, something that has never been done before, but has not given any thoughts about his relationship with the creature after he is brought to life. The creature feels rejected by the person who is his father or his creator.
The author is showing how both Frankenstein and Captain Walton both have dreams of glory. As the book goes on, we see how each one handles their ambition.
Sorry to crash this party since I'm not actually reading the book with y'all (I read it a couple of years ago). I wanted to let Tim know John Sutherland has an entry about how Victor makes his monsters in Is Heathcliff a Murderer?: Great Puzzles in Nineteenth-Century Fiction (also in The Literary Detective: 100 Puzzles in Classic Fiction). I think it was kind of inconclusive, but it gave other related information. Jean might have a copy of the book if she wants to peek at it again for your discussion.
That looks like an interesting book, Jason.In Chapters 7 and 8, we learn more about the characters' personalities from the way they take or avoid blame for the deaths of William and Justine. Even though the creature is directly responsible, other characters indirectly take the blame or keep silent.
Elizabeth blames herself for loaning William the piece of jewelry. Elizabeth also takes a stand about Justine's innocence and tries to help her in court.
Justine falsely confesses to the crime so the priest will absolve her sins. It makes her feel sure that she'll go directly to heaven.
Victor feels some responsibility since he created the creature. But Victor makes no move to save Justine even though he knows the creature is responsible and Justine is innocent. So he's partly responsible for Justine's death through his silence. Victor may be a brilliant scientist, but he continues to do poorly from a moral/ethical point of view.
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I do indeed, but why don't you give the gist of it Jason and put anything under spoilers which needs it? I don't think I gave details in my review. There are just so many ideas in that book :)
Thanks for joining in - I'm sure Tim won't mind!
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It was a great choice for an October book, a horror story with lots of psychological depth.
Dickensians!
Books mentioned in this topic
Is Heathcliff a Murderer?: Great Puzzles in Nineteenth-Century Fiction (other topics)The Literary Detective: 100 Puzzles in Classic Fiction (other topics)
The Monk (other topics)
Frankenstein: The 1818 Text (other topics)
The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Henry Fielding (other topics)Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (other topics)
Charles Dickens (other topics)
Henry Fielding (other topics)
This Autumn is our time for reading a novel which Charles Dickens himself enjoyed, so this fits the bill to a "t", alongside our group read of The Adventures of Tom Jones by Henry Fielding. Just say here if you would like to join in with the buddies: Tim, Connie, Lola and Angela.
Tim is hosting this read, so please let him comment more about it first.