Frankenstein is a fictional story written by Mary Shelly. It was later adapted into a movie version directed by James Whales. There are more differences than similarities between the book and the movie. This is because, the movie is mainly based on the 1920’s play, other than the original Mary Shelly’s book Frankenstein. A text has to be altered in one way or the other while making a movie due to a number of obvious factors. A lot of details from the book were missing in the movie, but the changes made by Whales were effective as they made the movie interesting, and successful.
There are a number of differences between the book and movie adaptation of Frankenstein. The first evident difference is that, in the book, the novel gets some books and learns on his own to read and write from them .Comparably, in the movie adaptation, the monster learned from watching the De Lacy family and how they communicated to each other. The book goes in great detain to explain the monsters education and how the books helped whereas, in the movie, little is shared of how fast the monster acquired education. The monsters education is reflected best in the book compared to the movie. In addition to this, the monsters appearance is very different in the movie compared to how he is described in the book. In the book, the creature taught himself how to read and write from the classic literature the Prometheus and Milton’s Paradise Lost, where he learnt to speak very clearly. In the movie, the creature is inarticulate.
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...
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...e of his appearance that is different from humans. He was race of his own and needed a companion of his own race and appearance.
In conclusion, there are notable differences and similarities between the book, and movie Frankenstein. The differences start with the education of the monster, the plot, the ending of the story, and the characteristics of the monster. The similarities dealing with the creation of the monster, and the turning point of the story. The differences and similarities preserve the genre themes, and the main points in both the story and the movie.
Works Cited
Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein. New York: Dover Publications Inc., 1994. Print.
Young Frankenstein. Dir. Mel Brooks. Twentieth Century Fox, 2006. Film.
Baldick, Chris. In Frankenstein's Shadow: Myth, Monstrosity, and Nineteenth-Century Writing. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1990. Print.
Later on, the creature without having knowledge of what is life and what is dead, he goes on rampage but he feels the hate and eventually wants to kill his creator. In Frankenstein we see the scientist in a small sympathetic way since he wants to redeem his actions and destroy what he made. That is not the scientist we see in Hammer’s version. In Hammer’s version we see how Frankenstein is deeply obsessed on his experiments. Frankenstein’s monster shows to be in the sympathetic part, even if he had less participation that in 1931 Frankenstein, he shows darkly comedic way how he is brought to life and suddenly dies just to be resurrected again. The spectator has a sympathetic perception of this character whose goal in life is no more than
Both characters were similar in how they were ‘resurrected’ in each of their books. Frankenstein performed an experiment through a process involving galvanism to produce the Creature, and
The greater detail provided by the book about the monster’s experiences allows the reader to sympathize with the monster more so than an audience member. When the Frankenstein monster is retelling the story of the hardships he has endured, he mentions events that were overlooked in the play. One example of this is when the monster saved a girl’s life. Such an act would normally be considered very heroic and receive much praise under any circumstances, but instead the monster is rewarded by being shot, receiving only “the miserable pain of a wound which shattered the flesh and bone.” (Shelley 135) The book also examines the months of hard work the creature put into learning about human nature and language in order to be fully accepted when he chose to reveal himself. The monster hid by the cottage for around a year, listening and learning during t...
in Frankenstein: Contexts, nineteenth century responses, criticism. By Mary Shelley. Ed. J. Paul Hunter. Norton Critical Edition.
He was at one point motivated by many good things like as virtue and honor, so much so that he wanted a companion to share in his happy life. “When I first sought it [sympathy], it was the love of virtue, the feelings of happiness and affec...
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.
In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Victor Frankenstein and the monster that he creates are very similar. For example, Victor creates the monster to be like himself. Another similarity is that the anger of both Victor and the monster is brought about by society. One more parallel between Victor and the monster is that they both became recluses. These traits that Victor and the monster possess show that they are very similar.
Many similarities can be found between Mary Shelley's 1816 novel, Frankenstein and the 1982 movie Bladerunner . The number of similarities between these two works, created more than two hundred years apart, is staggering. A cursory look at both works reveals these similarities:
Imagine an eight-foot-tall, misshapen human child. You might complain that this is contradictory - but do it anyway. Imagine some sort of humanoid being with the mind of a human child in an eight-foot body, green with a nail in its head if you want. This is what Frankenstein's creature is. Frankenstein's creature is mentally a child, and we see its evolution through traditional child development in the course of its narrative. But the creature is the only member of its species, and therefore its narrative can be taken to represent the history of an entire species - the creature's first experiences can be viewed as an amalgam of creation myths.
The most recent film which reflects the novel, was directed by Kenneth Branagh in 1994, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. The character remains one of most recognized icons in horror fiction today. Written almost 200 years ago about a man obsessed with creating artificial life continues to be a topic in the 21st century. Such as today’s controversy in stem cell research or human cloning which reflects the basic theme of Mary Shelley’s novel.
Many people consider The Bride of Frankenstein to be better than the original Frankenstein. This is because the sequel to Frankenstein had a musical score whereas the original Frankenstein never had one. The fact that the original lacked background music and the sequel had a wonderful music score is the biggest difference between the two movies when it came to sound. In The Bride of Frankenstein, music was used as a way of hinting things to the audience. Music would become faster and louder right before something big was about to happen and it would slow down and sound sweet in parts that were supposed to show the good, gentle side of the monster. The music also filled space in between scenes and made the film flow better.
The book goes into greater detail regarding the monster’s hardships, has a more eloquent and persuasive monster and has a more heartbreaking ending. As a result a reader feels greater sympathy towards the monster in the novel rather than in the play. The monster begins his journey a purely innocent and kind being, but because he has to suffer the misfortune of having such a monstrous appearance he is condemned by society. Frankenstein tells the story of a benevolent being persecuted by man, and has the reader questioning who the real monster is.
Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein: A Norton Critical Edition. Ed. J. Paul Hunter. New York: W. W.
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.
Baldick, C. "Making Monstrous - 'Frankenstein', Criticism, Theory - Botting,F." Review Of English Studies 45 (1994): 90-99.