From: iroderic@alfred.carleton.ca (Ian Roderick)
Subject: Re: Question: Frankenstein, the true story?
Organization: Carleton University
Date: Mon, 17 Aug 1992 21:32:24 GMT

In <1992Aug17.142337.1819@bvc.edu> frantz@bvc.edu writes:

>In article <kuehnel.713696426@Physik.TU-Muenchen.DE>, kuehnel@Physik.TU-Muenchen.DE (Hans Kuehnel) writes:
>> Hello everybody, 
>> 
>> please excuse my ingnorance, but: What is the name of the novel/tale
>> behind the Frankenstein movies? And is there a true story behind this
>> novel? Where did the real Frankenstein live, where did he die?
>> Was he german? What was his profession?
>> Any help is appreciated (mail it to kuehnel@physik.tu-muenchen.de) 
>> I'll summarize answers to the list 
>>  
>> Regards, 
>>  
>> --Hans (K"uhnel, +49-89-3209-3766) 


>The original Frankenstein (yes, that was the name of the novel) was written 
>by Mary Shelley.  She established herself as one of the first significant 
>female gothic writers of the 19th century with it.  The fiction behind the 
>fiction, as it were, is stuff of fable.  There was no Dr. Frankenstein (as 
>far as anyone knows, of course), but many people who have studied feminist 
>literature have several theories about the origin of the story.  Mary 
>Shelley's brother was Percy Shelley--a somewhat famous poet of the time.  
>His best friend (and later, Mary's husband--I think) was Lord Byron, also 
>another famous and popular poet of the time.  Mary's mother was Mary 
>Wollstonecraft, also a famous feminist and writer far ahead of her time.  
>Anyway, with a family of famous and artistic geniouses around her, Mary 
>felt somewhat overshadowed and did not ever attempt to write anything of 
>significance before this story.

>During a particualrly bleak, stormy week when they couldn't venture out of 
>doors, Percy, Byron and Mary began to tell eachother ghost stories.  On 
>night Mary had "a dream" which led her to write Frankenstein.  Some 
>feminist theories suggest that the story is about the havoc one wreaks when 
>one messes with nature.  Dr. Frankenstein attempts to thwart nature by 
>being the first man to "give birth."  What he creates is not physically 
>glorious as he imagined it would be and he therefore shuns it.  This is 
>actually quite different from the Hollywood films which came after.  Mary 
>Shelley had herself lost an infant child and experienced a great deal of 
>physical and emotional strain during that time.  Many theorists believe 
>that Frankenstein is Shelley's need to examine the trauma of birth and 
>creation, but could only do it through a man's voice because it was the 
>only voice that a larger audience would listen to during the 19th century.

>Andrea @ BVC


Close, but I believe you've made a couple of errors.

Re: Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus

The proto-feminist you speak of is not Mary's mother but Mary herself.
She (1797-1851) is known as Mary Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley
and Mary Wollstonecraft depending upon who you talk to.  I don't know
anything about her mother, I must admit.  Percy Bysshe Shelley
(1792-1822) was her husband and not her brother.  It is still not
completely certain as to which, if not both, of the Shelley's Lord
Byron was having an affair with.  

                                                  Ian