Frankenstein is perceived as a horror story. Essay -- English Literatu

Frankenstein is perceived as a horror story. When we analyse the monster, however, the story becomes much more complex. Discuss this statement with close reference to Shelley’s presentation of the monster in the novel. Frankenstein is a novel with great hidden depths and a whole new outlook on life itself. Frankenstein was written in 1818 by Mary Shelley. The novel was a deep insight to a number of things, this including the gothic period. In her 1831 introduction to the novel, Shelley declared her desire to ‘curdle the blood, and quicken the beatings of the heart’ This was the first of many signals to the reader that Frankenstein should be placed in the genre of the gothic Frankenstein was written with a great ‘scare factor’ from Gothicism which is part of the Romantic Movement. At that period in time-Gothicism was extremely popular as it was exciting, dark and dramatically horrifying. The book had a tendency to tap into people’s fears. It made the impossible become reality and the absurd become believable. However, Frankenstein was much more than just a horror story and because of this, it was written to deal with more complex issues/themes. Frankenstein was written with such great detail and invisible links to more larger arguments. It deals with issues such as; is it right to play God? Is it right to judge on appearances? Also, HOW and WHY a physically hideous murderer is the most sympathetic character in the novel. The novel also contains elements of science fiction with victor and his ‘great experiment’. At that period in time, science and technology was just beginning to progress at such an alarming pace and inventors were extremely enthusiastic towards science. Victor Frankenstein ... ...nthusiasm for science and the French revolution meant she was used to seeing corpses. This was also incorporated within the novel when she made references to bringing the dead back to life. Mary Shelley’s presentation of the monster shows us that we should never judge on appearances and there is always more to a person than what meets the eye. So in an odd way then, Shelley leaves us to decide whether we think ‘the monster’ IS human or NOT and the ways our experiences shape us into the people we become. In addition to this-the story of Victor Frankenstein and his great creation is much more than a typical horror story. It is an insight to Mary Shelley’s life and a way of describing her pain and loneliness. So, to conclude Frankenstein is a ‘horror’ story which in fact is enormously realistic and covers everyday issues and a diverse amount of themes.