Introduction

ENDURING LITERATURE ILLUMINATED

BY PRACTICAL SCHOLARSHIP

A timeless, terrifying tale of one man's obsession to create life -- and the monster that became his legacy.

EACH ENRICHED CLASSIC EDITION INCLUDES:

• A concise introduction that gives readers important background information

• A chronology of the author's life and work

• A timeline of significant events that provides the book's historical context

• An outline of key themes and plot points to help readers form their own interpretations

• Detailed explanatory notes

• Critical analysis, including contemporary and modern perspectives on the work

• Discussion questions to promote lively classroom and book group interaction

• A list of recommended related books and films to broaden the reader's experience

Enriched Classics offer readers affordable editions of great works of literature enhanced by helpful notes and insightful commentary. The scholarship provided in Enriched Classics enables readers to appreciate, understand, and enjoy the world's finest books to their full potential.

SERIES EDITED BY CYNTHIA BRANTLEY JOHNSON

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Excerpt

Chapter 1

I am by birth a Genevese; and my family is one of the most distinguished of that republic. My ancestors had been for many years counsellors and syndics; and my father had filled several public situations with honour and reputation. He was respected by all who knew him for his integrity and indefatigable attention to public business. He passed his younger days perpetually occupied by the affairs of his country; a variety of circumstances had prevented his marrying early, nor was it until the decline of life that he became a husband and the father of a family. ... view entire excerpt...

Discussion Questions

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS


1. Is Robert Walton's ambition similar to Frankenstein's, as Frankenstein believes?

2. Why is the fifteen-year-old Frankenstein so impressed with the oak tree destroyed by lightning in a thunderstorm?

3.Why does Frankenstein become obsessed with creating life?

4.Why is Frankenstein filled with disgust, calling the monster "my enemy," as soon as he has created him? (p. 62)

5.What does the monster think his creator owes him?

6. Why does Frankenstein agree to create a bride for the monster, then procrastinate and finally break his promise?

7. Why can't Frankenstein tell anyone—even his father or Elizabeth—why he blames himself for the deaths of William, Justine, and Henry Clerval?

8. Why doesn't Frankenstein realize that the monster's pledge "I shall be with you on your wedding-night" threatens Elizabeth as well as himself? (p. 173)

9. Why does Frankenstein find new purpose in life when he decides to seek revenge on the monster "until he or I shall perish in mortal conflict"? (p. 206)

10. Why are Frankenstein and his monster both ultimately miserable, bereft of human companionship, and obsessed with revenge? Are they in the same situation at the end of the novel?

11. Why doesn't Walton kill the monster when he has the chance?


For Further Reflection
Was it wrong for Frankenstein to inquire into the origins of life?

What makes the creature a monster rather than a human being?

Is the monster, who can be persuasive, always telling the truth?

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