How Does Mary Shelley Create a Sense of Dread and Horror Up to Chapter 5 in the Novel ‘Frankenstein’?
How does Mary Shelley create a sense of dread and horror up to chapter 5 in the novel ‘Frankenstein’?
Mary Shelley wrote the novel Frankenstein. The novel is also known as the modern Prometheus. Mary Shelley, her husband Percy and Lord Byron went to Lake Geneva. Lord Byron challenged the group to a ghost story. After that Mary Shelley had a dream which then made her start writing her ghost story. Her dream was of a boy which made a machine, a man, which showed signs of life. Mary then had the basis of her story and went on to complete the novel in 1817 and published it in 1818, in London when she was 18 years old. Another thing which influenced Mary in writing Frankenstein was Jean Jacques Rousseau, a French philosopher, writer and composer in the 18th century. She was deeply motivated by his thoughts and dreams. Her description in Frankenstein closely resembles her documentations of Rousseau’s wanderings throughout his days of exile. This probably gave her an idea of making the monster alone after her idea of a man made human machine. Also Mary knew that Rousseau abandoned his children to an orphanage which Mary disapproved of, but I think this gave her the idea of Victor abandoning his creation, this also happened to Mary when she was young and it also happened to Rousseau when he was young. They were both dreamers, yet outcasts and both found inspiration in loneliness and isolation.
The novel Frankenstein is also called the modern Prometheus. The reason why the novels subtitle is called the modern Prometheus is because in Greek mythology, Prometheus was the titan who stole fire from god and gave it to man. Victor stole the secret of creation of life from god in a way because he created a being in the likeness of a man. He stole this ‘fire’ or power and bought it to man just like Prometheus did.
Mary Shelley evokes a sense of horror when Victor Frankenstein says in (chapter 5): “It was on a dreary night of November that I beheld the accomplishment of
Mary Shelley wrote the novel Frankenstein. The novel is also known as the modern Prometheus. Mary Shelley, her husband Percy and Lord Byron went to Lake Geneva. Lord Byron challenged the group to a ghost story. After that Mary Shelley had a dream which then made her start writing her ghost story. Her dream was of a boy which made a machine, a man, which showed signs of life. Mary then had the basis of her story and went on to complete the novel in 1817 and published it in 1818, in London when she was 18 years old. Another thing which influenced Mary in writing Frankenstein was Jean Jacques Rousseau, a French philosopher, writer and composer in the 18th century. She was deeply motivated by his thoughts and dreams. Her description in Frankenstein closely resembles her documentations of Rousseau’s wanderings throughout his days of exile. This probably gave her an idea of making the monster alone after her idea of a man made human machine. Also Mary knew that Rousseau abandoned his children to an orphanage which Mary disapproved of, but I think this gave her the idea of Victor abandoning his creation, this also happened to Mary when she was young and it also happened to Rousseau when he was young. They were both dreamers, yet outcasts and both found inspiration in loneliness and isolation.
The novel Frankenstein is also called the modern Prometheus. The reason why the novels subtitle is called the modern Prometheus is because in Greek mythology, Prometheus was the titan who stole fire from god and gave it to man. Victor stole the secret of creation of life from god in a way because he created a being in the likeness of a man. He stole this ‘fire’ or power and bought it to man just like Prometheus did.
Mary Shelley evokes a sense of horror when Victor Frankenstein says in (chapter 5): “It was on a dreary night of November that I beheld the accomplishment of