The Development of the Gothic Genre in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein
Up until 1800, literature in general consisted of a spontaneous
expression of idyllic images of love - ultimately categorised as "The
Romantic Movement." From this sprouted Romanticism's antithesis -
literary Gothicism.
When it was first introduced in the late 18th century, Gothic
literature featured accounts of terrifying experiences set in
graveyards or ancient castles, and descriptive motifs such as
flickering lamps and ghostly figures. These have now become images of
stereotypical horror. As it developed, Gothic literature came to
designate everything to do with the macabre, mysterious and
supernatural in literature more generally.
Now one of the most recognisable forms of literature, Gothicism gained
its popularity due to the stark contrast from anything that preceded
it, and the surrounding controversy that shocked and intrigued its
audiences. New scientific discovery swept across 18th century
civilization, and the need for knowledge had overcome society. To the
less educated, Gothic literature, (with its strong themes of science,)
was seen as a way to further understand and involve themselves within
these interesting developments, while the experienced scientist would
be curious of the science mentioned in Gothicism.
Another major theme that Gothicism claimed was religion. The society
of mid 1800 looked upon God as an omnipotent figure; he was powerful,
judgmental and supreme. However, many opposing and previously
untouched views on God were infused in the theme of Gothic literature.
Even today, the difference between science and religion is a topi...
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...ect and his morals were dissolute, and
his eventual insanity, Frankenstein - and the reader - becomes fully
immersed in the twisted macabre and supernatural horror of the Gothic
novel. It dares to shock its audience with taboo subjects, leaving
them with the enduring feeling that they have been awoken to a darker
side of life. "Frankenstein", along with the rest of the gothic genre,
shattered the tight-knit and perhaps naive society of the 18th
century, causing some to shun it out of their lives, but in many
others it provoked the hidden fascination with all things to do with
the macabre, sinister side to life. As in 1800, this effect is still
prevalent in our modern, less bigoted society, and today many elements
of Gothicism are featured in stories, and interlaced within the plots
of horror films throughout the world.
Rousseau's ideology of education and nature laid the basic groundwork for many of the Gothic novels. Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, was able to forge a bridge of thought that was able to span the chasm formed by the age of reason between the supernatural and reason. As a predecessor of the romantic movement, the Gothic novel was a direct reaction against the age of reason. The predominate idea of the age being that the world which is governed by nature is rationally ordered and given man's ability to reason, analyze and understand nature, man possesses the innate ability to use nature to create a rational society based on nature's dominate principles. The Gothic novel allowed the reader to pass from reason and order of the day to a region born of the supernatural which inspired dread and abounds in death and decay as nature's only true end.
Frankenstein in a Historical Sense Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein was published in 1818 during the Romantic era. Romanticism describes the period of time from the late 18th century to the mid 19th century. This period was seen as a response to the Enlightenment; overall there was an increase in the desire to understand the world in an objective matter (lecture). Though Romanticism is commonly viewed as a literary and artistic movement, Mary Shelley gives evidence on the development of Europe in a historical sense through her novel, Frankenstein. Through the motifs and personal experiences of her characters, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein gives insight on scientific development, emerging roles of women, and how the individual is viewed as the lower class during the early 19th century.
self-centered. His life is the mirror of a Greed Tragedy. In his case, the flaw
In the examination of Northanger Abbey and Frankenstein one comes to very different conclusions as to why their authors used gothic elements. The two authors had very different purposes for their stories. Powerful emotions are often an element of gothic literature as it was a genre that took Romanticism to excessive extents. While Austen used this gothic element to satirize the gothic novel, Shelley used it to display a deeper point about the evils of ambition. Both authors exhibited characters severe emotions to show the importance of rationality instead of extremes, but ultimately had a different purpose in presenting this view.
Events of the time had led to a near breakthrough to bring the dead to
In the typical gothic reading, Frankenstein and his creation are simplified to the hero and the villain in Mary Shelley 's Frankenstein. However, this novel consists of characters whose actions and experiences elicit an array of responses and they can be viewed differently passed the reading of them as gothic characters. Frankenstein’s creature is usually seen as a definite gothic villain who mercilessly kills and destroys, but there is a complexity to the character when taking into consideration his words and experiences in the novel. Although Frankenstein’s creature possesses characteristics of a villain, the unusual compassion the reader feels towards the Creature challenges/complicates a gothic reading’s simplistic characterization of the
Gothic literature was developed during the eighteenth and nineteenth century of the Gothic era when war and controversy was too common. It received its name after the Gothic architecture that was becoming a popular trend in the construction of buildings. As the buildings of daunting castles and labyrinths began, so did the beginning foundation of Gothic literature. The construction of these buildings will later become an obsession with Gothic authors. For about 300 years before the Renaissance period, the construction of these castles and labyrinths continued, not only in England, but also in Gothic stories (Landau 2014). Many wars and controversies, such as the Industrial Revolution and Revolutionary War, were happening at this time, causing the Gothic literature to thrive (“Gothic Literature” 2011). People were looking for an escape from the real world and the thrill that Gothic literature offered was exactly what they needed. Gothic literature focuses on the horrors and the dark sides to the human brain, such as in Mary Shelley’s book Frankenstein. Gothic literature today, as well as in the past, has been able to separate itself apart from other types of literature with its unique literary devices used to create fear and terror within the reader.
Mary Shelley, with her brilliant tale of mankind's obsession with two opposing forces: creation and science, continues to draw readers with Frankenstein's many meanings and effect on society. Frankenstein has had a major influence across literature and pop culture and was one of the major contributors to a completely new genre of horror. Frankenstein is most famous for being arguably considered the first fully-realized science fiction novel. In Frankenstein, some of the main concepts behind the literary movement of Romanticism can be found. Mary Shelley was a colleague of many Romantic poets such as her husband Percy Shelley, and their friends William Wordsworth and Samuel Coleridge, even though the themes within Frankenstein are darker than their brighter subjects and poems. Still, she was very influenced by Romantics and the Romantic Period, and readers can find many examples of Romanticism in this book. Some people actually argue that Frankenstein “initiates a rethinking of romantic rhetoric”1, or is a more cultured novel than the writings of other Romantics. Shelley questions and interacts with the classic Romantic tropes, causing this rethink of a novel that goes deeper into societal history than it appears. For example, the introduction of Gothic ideas to Frankenstein challenges the typical stereotyped assumptions of Romanticism, giving new meaning and context to the novel. Mary Shelley challenges Romanticism by highlighting certain aspects of the movement while questioning and interacting with the Romantic movement through her writing.
How Does the Language in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein Reflect its Gothic Genre? The gothic genre was popular around the nineteenth century. It is often associated with dark, evil and death. This seemed appropriate at the time as there were no electric lights or televisions, so it was generally darker than it is in the present day. It brings to mind stories like Frankenstein, Dracula and Dr Jekyll.
Virtually all literature contain instinctive trends in the human consciousness to represent certain themes or motifs, these are defined as archetypes. Archetypes can be thought as blueprints or as bundles of psychic energy that influence the manner in which we understand and react to life. There are two different categories of archetypes, the plot archetype and the character archetype. The orphan, martyr, wanderer, warrior, magician, villain, wise child, temptress, rebel, underdog, fool, saint, virgin, wise, old man or woman are all considered to be character archetypes. Call to adventure, isolation, quest and monster that turns against its creator are all considered to be plot archetypes. The novel, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, contains archetypes.
The period during which Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein there were many scientific developments in the world, that contributed to the gothic genre of her novel as well as the author’s personal experiences. The main scientific development that possibly may have inspired the author to produce a gothic novel is similar to Luigi Galvani’s experiment, during which Galvani observed the relationship between electricity and life. In chapter four, Shelley has mentioned the scientific improvement that occurred during the 19th century: “when I considered the improvement which every day takes place in science and mechanics”.
Mary Shelley’s world renowned book, “Frankenstein”, is a narrative of how Victor Frankenstein, a brilliant chemist, succeeds in creating a living being. Although Frankenstein’s creation is benevolent to begin with, he soon turns murderous after being mistreated by humans. His anger turns towards Frankenstein, as he was the one who brought him into the world that shuns him. The Monster then spends the rest of the story trying to make his creator’s life as miserable as his own. This novel is an excellent example of the Gothic Romantic style of literature, as it features some core Gothic Romantic elements such as remote and desolate settings, a metonymy of gloom and horror, and women in distress.
The term ‘Gothic’ conjures a range of possible meanings, definitions and associations. It explicitly denotes certain historical and cultural phenomena. Gothicism was part of the Romantic Movement that started in the eighteenth century and lasted about three decades into the nineteenth century. For this essay, the definition of Gothic that is applicable is: An 18th century literary style characterized by gloom and the supernatural. In the Gothic novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, a wide range of issues are explored. Frankenstein represents an entirely new vision of the female Gothic, along with many other traditional themes such as religion, science, colonialism and myth.
Mary Shelleys Frankenstein ( 1818 ) is considered by many literary critics to be the quintessential gothic novel despite the fact that most of the more conventions of the genre are either absent or employed sparingly. As many of the literary techniques and themes of Mary Shelleys Frankenstein adhere to the conventions of the gothic genre it can be considered, primarily, a gothic novel with important links to the Romantic movement.
Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein is one of the greatest Gothic novels to come out during the Romantic Period. Frankenstein is a prime example of what a Gothic novel should present to its reader through the genre’s twisted themes. Even though it was written in the Romantic period, Mary Shelley still wrote Frankenstein to be a Gothic work of literature. Many characteristics of Gothic novel can be seen within this novel. Mary Shelley’s outstanding novel Frankenstein is a prime example of a Gothic novel because of the many characteristics of a Gothic novel that point it to being a Gothic work.