Frankenstein, or the Modern Prometheus discussion

1. Thoughts on Victor Frankenstein so far?
2. What do you think of how this book is written? Do you find it hard to follow?
3. What do you think of how Victor feels about Elizabeth?
4. This story does not focus on Frankenstein’s monster, but rather, Dr. Frankenstein himself. In many film depictions, we mostly see how the monster interacts with people. Why do you think the story was altered so much for film?
5. Why do you think Justine confessed to the murders that she did not commit?
6. Who is to blame for the creature’s actions: the creature, or Victor Frankenstein?
7. Who is the real “monster” of this story?
8. Although there are several different adaptations of Frankenstein, the most famous adaptation is the film from the 1930s, where the monster can barely talk. However, in this novel, we see that the monster can speak, and is able to speak quite well. Why do you think they changed the monster so drastically for the film adaptation?
9. Do you feel sorry for the monster?
10. What do you think of this book? Do you enjoy the original story, or do you have a preference for one of the film adaptations?

6. It's not clear cut while Victor took a part in molding the creature and giving life as well as abandoning the monster but you have to take into account that Victor is just another deeply flawed human and in some ways I think many a human who become parents are flawed and in that way I think Frankenstein feels very tied to parenting

2. I found it pretty easy to follow, surprisingly. I was intimidated at first by it but adjusted pretty quickly.
3. It creeped me out a little. I know they're not blood related but the fact they were still raised together gave me the ick.
5. It's common for people to confess to crimes they didn't do under torture just to make it stop.
6. They both shoulder the responsibility. Victor brought in a life that was doomed from the start and then went on about his life trying to pretend it had never happened, leaving him to fend for himself in a world that hates him. But at the same time, if you decide to strangle someone for being scared, that's on you.
7. Victor. Of course. He could have stopped at any point in time and only does so once the creature is already a living breathing feeling person of his own and leaves him in a world that stomped the kindness he originally had out of him. Not that it was the world's fault either- who wouldn't be scared of a giant rotting corpse walking towards them?
10. I can't stand the adaptations anymore now lmao

2) I think its a bit ironic because I've found that the 1818 Frankenstein (romantic period) book was much easier to follow than some Victorian books. It might just be certain Victorian writers though since I had a great time reading Jane Eyre but a much more difficult time reading Dracula.

3) I've written an essay on my thoughts in regards to Victor and just the lack of genuine female relationships he has. Elizabeth is regarded in the beginning of the novel with him saying "I doted on her as I would a pet"..... which is not the best. I feel that Victor himself is just a detached person and his crossing of the gender binary lines is what makes him interesting. In my opinion, Elizabeth (and the other women in Victor's life) is punished for Victors symbolic sin of asexual reproduction via his creation. It makes the dynamic of their relationship all the more odd. She is passive and must act a certain way in order to be kept by the Frankenstein's, but Victor is then allowed to transgress societal lines because of his socio-economic and gender privilege's. Also did anyone else notice that he was more distraught at Clearval's death than Elizabeth's? A bit interesting if you ask me....

1. I think Victor is an incredibly interesting character but overall irresponsible; he spends years of obsession trying to animate life only to abandon it the moment he succeeds and it is his actions which ultimately lead to the tragedies of the narrative.

2. I really like the framed narrative and how Walton's letters introduce you to the story. It's particularly interesting because of the levels of bias which were sometimes hard to keep track of as you read about the Creature's experiences through Victor's retelling through Walton's letters, however I think this overall adds to the presentation of morality within the novel.

3. I think that Victor sees Elizabeth as an object, which Shelley established very early on when she wrote "in my Elizabeth I had found a treasure;" his feelings of possession clear even though he shows her little commitment. He expects her to be a perfect angel regardless of his behaviour towards her.

4. I think much of it will be a desire to explore Volume II in more depth - we hear the Creature's testimony through Victor's lens and I think it has been an interest of modern adaptors to explore to what extent both the Creature and Victor were telling the truth, as well as the accuracy to which Walton went on to describe it. Shelley's writing left many questions up to the reader and this will of course have been interpreted differently by filmmakers and writers alike.

5. I think Justine's character is very interesting as a gothic female; because she has been accused of murder she can no longer fit into the passive victim stereotype and has therefore transgressed, the punishment for this of course being death so often in the genre. Despite this new societal view of her, the reader of course knows the truth that she was "forced to pass several hours of the night in a barn;" her remaining passivity is clear here. Within both the gothic narrative and Shelley's early 19th century society, Justine would no longer 'fit' as a woman and transgressed now through her very existence.

6. Victor, having abandoned the Creature at birth, committed the first wrong and is responsible for the entire situation and existence of the Creature, who cannot be blamed for existing. The Creature does, however, go on to educate themselves and while their resentment of Victor is understandable, they had had the opportunity to understand what was morally acceptable and knew that murder was wrong so they must also hold some responsibility.

7. The idea of the 'monstrous' in the gothic is a very malleable thing, and this is no different in Frankenstein. There is perhaps no one monster: Frankenstein is monstrous in his abandonment of what is essentially his child, the Creature is monstrous in acts of murder, and society is also presented monstrously in its rejection of the Creature. Even "poor Justine" is not safe from perceived monstrosity as she stands accused of murder. The real monster of this story seems to lie in deep set societal values and practices; the book itself is a warning against human interference with nature, science and technology. Shelley depicts a rather pessimistic scene; if you are not monstrous, you will be killed by it and even then be consumed by your own monstrosity.

8. In taking away the Creature's ability to communicate they are further rejected from society. It also erases a large part of the Creature's 'good' characterisation - the part where they learned to speak and socialise peacefully. This adaption then perhaps aims to depict the Creature as more villainous as opposed to a child who genuinely tried to fit in with the world around them before giving up. Of course it could be interpreted on the contrary that this rejection of human communication is in response to the humans' rejection of the Creature; perhaps they did make an effort to be 'good' in accordance with society but no longer see any point.

9. I do feel sorry for the Creature to a point; they are rejected and attacked and dehumanised by a society they never asked to be a part of, and most of all by their creator. This being said, their murderous revenge path is inexcusable and their willingness to hurt and kill innocent people to get to Victor is not something that lends sympathy in the end.

10. I think adaptions are interesting because they have the ability to offer interpretations to many of the biases and questions that Shelley weaves into her work, but for me I don't think anything will beat the original.