Frankenstein in Pop Culture According to USA Today, since the first film in 1931, there have been over 20 direct film adaptations of Mary Shelley 's Frankenstein, ranging from horror films to science fiction comedies. Countless other movies, TV series, and short films have a version of Frankenstein’s Creature ranging from a friendly, animated Creature to a terrifying monster. One of the more recent movies to feature a character modeled after Victor Frankenstein’s Creature is Hotel Transylvania. Frank, the Frankenstein like character, is a major character and appears frequently throughout the movie. However, the Creature from Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and Frank from Hotel Transylvania lack resemblance because of their differences in appearance, …show more content…
In the movie, Frank is a large, bulky monster whose hands and feet are much larger than the rest of his body. His shoulders are very far back and neck a forward position giving him the look of a hunchback. Frank’s head is also skinny and long with the top being flat. In the novel, Victor Frankenstein describes his Creature by saying, “His limbs were in proportion” (Shelley 43). With no other descriptions about his body form, one can assume that Victor Frankenstein tried to model his Creature as closely as possible to a human. This means that Frankenstein’s Creature was probably a large, ugly humanoid, that would not have resembled Frank. Not only do Frank and the Creature’s proportions differ, the hue of their skins are also contrasting. The Creature has a tight yellow skin that …show more content…
Again the audience will see large discrepancies in the thought and behavior between the two characters. Frank is a friendly and easygoing who extremely kind to everyone he encounters. He often plays the voice of reason between he and his friends and is emphasised as very happy person. The Creature, as described by the Regional Library of Fredericksburg, Stafford, and Spotsylvania, is said to be, “A sensitive, intelligent being who becomes bitter, vindictive, and ultimately murderous because he was spurned by human society and his father-figure, Dr. Frankenstein” (“A History of Classic Monsters” 1). Again the target audience is a large factor in this disparity. Frank’s character is directed at predominantly children and his happy demeanor and simple emotions appeal much more to the younger audience than the Creatures complex feelings of abandonment, loneliness and revenge. Some of these elements, including the Creatures involvement in murders would be deemed to mature for a film rated PG. Not only do target audiences play a role, but time period in which these pieces of art were created. In 1800s the movements of both Gothic and Romantic literature most likely influenced Mary Shelley. Characteristics such as melancholy, loneliness, murder and mental instability are common themes of these movements that are present in the Creature’s character. In the 21st century, the Gothic and Romantic
“It was already one in the morning; the rain pattered dismally against the panes, and my candle nearly burnt out, when, by the glimmer of the half-extinguished light, I saw the dull yellow eye of the creature open…” (p. 58). Upon gazing at his creation, Frankenstein almost instantly regrets ever having the idea. “’I had desired it with an ardour that far exceeded moderation; but now that I had finished, the beauty of the dream vanished, and breathless horror and disgust
Merriam Webster’s Encyclopedia of Literature highlights Frankenstein as the work of Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, published in 1818, and it brought into the Western world one of its best known monsters. Elements of gothic romance and science fiction help in telling the story of young Swiss scientist Victor Frankenstein, as he creates a horrible monster by putting together limbs and veins, leading to destruction and his later regret. The creature is left alone in the world, even by his own creator, for his hideous appearance, and through watching humans he learns their ways of living. Haunting Victor due to his loneliness, he forcefully makes Victor agree to make him a female companion, but Victor’s regret and misery enables him to tear up his
The Creature, Victor Frankenstein’s creation, is shaped into a monster through its experiences, instead of the nature of itself, which is more expected. Victor Frankenstein, on the other hand, is shaped into a monster because of his mind’s power-hungry nature. Victor treats his creature poorly and he himself becomes wicked. While the Creature also becomes wicked in the end, its actions are more justified because multiple people treated it poorly, causing the Creature to lash out. Even though Victor Frankenstein and the Creature both turn into wicked monsters, to some extent, only one of
In addition to Victor’s horror we are given a glimpse of the monster while he is still constructing his masterpiece. Frankenstein describes his creation, with ardour unmatched by others, stating, “His limbs were in proportion, and I had selected his features as
Since the original novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, to the multiple movie adaptations, the monster is almost always predicted as the monster of the story. It may be his physical appearance, from his tall, broad frame, to the signature screws in his neck. It may also be his unnatural upbringing and interpreted evil characteristics. We have grown to fear the monster, which ultimately, has masked the true monster, Dr. Frankenstein. With each coming movie, the good side of the monster is brought to light, while the real monster shows his true colors.
Frankenstein’s monster was established as a frightful creature unnaturally created by reassembled body parts of dead people. Shelley described Frankenstein’s monster in her novel as a creature with yellow skin, watery eyes, a shriveled complexion and straight black lips. Created as a scientific experiment, Doctor Frankenstein, then realized the magnitude of his creation and openly rejected the monster. However, besides being rejected by its own creator, Frankenstein’s monster was also shunned by the town and its people for his origin,
In the novel Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, the main theme of the story was isolation. Both internal and external consequences were the cause of being isolated from society. Frankenstein began to feel depressed after the creation of the monster and decided to isolate himself from his friends and family. Frankenstein kept his creation a secret from everyone because he was afraid of the consequences. Ironically, Frankenstein was the main problem for all of his sufferings. He thought that he could keep everyone safe if he were to not tell them about the monster, however, everyone died because he wanted to keep everyone from the truth. The creature also suffered many consequences from being isolated. He wanted to be part of a family, and feel
These movies show how the original image of Dr. Frankenstein’s creation has changed over time, and how he can be altered into many different forms. Contrary to popular belief, Frankenstein’s creation is not a huge, green, evil monster with neck bolts. The monster is a very enduring character, and his different qualities are shown in Frankenweenie and Edward Scissorhands. Both of the following films dab in the Gothic style, and portray the different qualities from the novel Frankenstein. From dogs to humans with scissor hands, Frankenstein’s monster appears in so many things in pop culture today.
The literary critic Harold Bloom, in his Afterward in the Signet Edition of Frankenstein states that, “The monster is at once more intellectual and more emotional than his creator.” Bloom continues to say that the creature is more human, more lovable, and more to be pitied than Doctor Frankenstein (292). Throughout the novel Frankenstein, the monster portrays more human qualities than his creator Dr. Frankenstein. Dr. Frankenstein appears less human than his creation because he rejects his own creation and he fails to plan for the results of his experiment. As the monster wanders through the novel searching for companionship and acceptance, Dr. Frankenstein refuses to provide the support expected of a parent or creator. While the monster appears human in his attempts to socialize with his peers, Dr. Frankenstein represents the monstrosity that occurs when humans tamper with life.
In the film, Frankenstein's Monster befriended a young girl near a pond, both the girl and monster began to toss flowers at the pond. The Monster decided to toss the young girl, resulting in the death of the girl. The Monster didn’t have perception of a situation, he couldn’t deduce that tossing the young girl into the water would cause her to die, to him, it was like playing a game. Frankenstein's Monster was the first monster that parallels a monster, but wasn't a monster. Frankenstein's Monster is a sheep wearing the monster's clothing. The Frankenstein Monster is unfamiliar due to society deeming him to be evil because his appearance is terrifying, nevertheless, he doesn't have any qualities that make him villainous, his negative flaw is that he doesn't
In the novel Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, the main theme revolves around the internal and external consequences of being isolated from others. Being isolated from the world could result in a character losing his/her mental state and eventually causing harm to themselves or others. Because both Victor Frankenstein and the creature are isolated from family and society, they experienced depression, prejudice, and revenge.
Despite popular belief, Frankenstein is not the name of the monster but instead its creator. Victor Frankenstein created the “tremendous and abhorred” (page 76) creature that is known as the Monster after he discovers how to give
Another difference between the movie and the book Frankenstein is that, in the novel, we are told that, Frankenstein created the creature from scientific principles of building up human body parts. However, we are not told how he got t...
Mary Shelley in her book Frankenstein addresses numerous themes relevant to the current trends in society during that period. However, the novel has received criticism from numerous authors. This paper discusses Walter Scott’s critical analysis of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein in his Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine Review of Frankenstein (1818).
Frankenstein shows that what looks like a monster in appearance my not be and what looks normal on appearance may be a monster. While a scary ugly creature may look like a monster a true monster is formed from within and is scene through actions. Along with this knowledge is power and power has the ability to make monsters. The pursuit to know more is a never ending road that leads to lies, secretes, and monstrosity. “How much happier that man is who believes his native town to be the world, than he who aspires to become greater than his nature will allow,” while knowledge is boundless and beautiful an excess of anything can create a monster.