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Frankenstein (Influences (The myth of Prometheus(titan who stole the fire…
Frankenstein
Mary Shelley
The daughter of Mary Wollstonecraft and William Godwin, both believers in the Enlightened power of reason.
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The writing of Frankenstein, or The Modern Prometheus took place at Villa Diodati on the banks of Lake Geneva.-> The initial inspiration burst into Mary's consciousness as a waking dream or a nightmare, as a result of the intellectual stimulus of Shelley and the Romantic poet Byron.
Plot
The story is introduced by a series of letters written by Walton, a young explorer on an expedition voyage to the North Pole, to his sister, Margaret Walton Saville.
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Frankenstein, a Swiss scientist, creates a human being by joining parts selected from corpses.
Influences
The myth of Prometheus(titan who stole the fire from the gods in order to give it to men): Frankenstein is an example of overreacher.
Rousseau: The Monster is a noble savage, not influenced by civilization. (However, he discovers the limitations both of the state of nature and of civilization)
S. T. Coleridge’s Rime of the Ancient Mariner: Both the novel and the poem are stories of a crime against nature.
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Science: The latest scientific theories of chemistry and electricity influenced Mary Shelle.->The protagonist of Frankenstein is the first embodiment of the theme of science and its responsibility to mankind.->He creates a human being through the use of electricity and chemistry
Gothic stories read by Mary and Percy B. Shelley.(Frankenstein differs from Gothic tradition, since it is not set in a dark castle and does not deal with supernatural event)
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Main characters
The Monster is complementary to his creator: they both suffer from isolation and they both
begin with a desire to be good.
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Themes
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The overcoming of natural and divine rules: the creation of a human being without the participation of a woman.
The quest for forbidden knowledge (Walton and Dr Frankenstein) is related to the theme of the overreacher.
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