Frankenstein' - a World-Recognized Horror Masterpiece
'Frankenstein', by Mary Shelley, is recognized as one of the most famous literary works of horror. In essay on 'Frankenstein' by Mary Shelley we see that Shelley created the story because of a contest between her husband Percy, a few fellow writer friends, and herself. They each would create horror stories, and after reading each of them, they would declare a winner. After waking from a vivid dream, Shelley wrote the tale of 'Frankenstein'. 'Frankenstein' tells the story of a brilliant scientist, Victor Frankenstein, who succeeds in giving life to his creation. However, it is a hideous creature who gets rejected by Victor and the people. Shelley did not get along with her stepmother and did not receive proper education, so she read books from her father's library. Gaining literary knowledge through the books supported her in creating stories with her creative imagination. Shelley experienced many deaths as if it were a disease, so she put some of her own life experiences into the novel she wrote.
She created the novel on a rainy afternoon in 1816 in Geneva. While staying with her husband and friends, they passed the time by telling and writing horror stories. They asked several times about her story but could not create one until she woke up from a vivid dream. Unfortunately, the book was not accepted by many during that era. In a way, there were some similarities between the life of Mary Shelley and the novel.
The novel 'Frankenstein' is about a scientist that brings his creation to life but becomes horrified by the monstrosity. After it becomes rejected by his creator, he kills Victor's brother and new bride, and after Victor died from an illness, the monster committed suicide. ''Frankenstein' is not simply a tale but also a connection to the author, Mary Shelley, life. Shelley's numerous themes effectively created a story about a horrific monster's life while relaying her fears of giving birth and not being a good mom, along with other uncertainties that she encounters. Other writers, her parents, and her own life experiences influenced the way she approached the story.
Shelley's life was not pleasing since her birth. It bore many misfortunes, which she could have kept private, but shared it with the people through the story of 'Frankenstein'. She used the people from her life as the characters and their background setting. She uses death a lot in the novel because, during the time she was alive, many people died from diseases or died from other ways. In a way, she was the monster in her novel, experiencing many misfortunes and mistreatment, but at the same time, she was similar to each character's bond with each other.
In conclusion, 'Frankenstein' by Mary Shelley is recognized as one of the most famous literary works of horror. She created the novel through a contest between her husband, a few friends, and herself on a rainy evening. In some ways, 'Frankenstein' was similar to her life, through the misfortune of death and neglect or mistreatment.
