Romanticism In Frankenstein

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Mary Shelley’s classic novel, Frankenstein, is one that is surrounded by constant struggles of life and death and could be categorized as both Gothic and Romantic. However, I will focus on the Gothic horror side of the story. The novel has been very influential and nearly everyone, even five year old kids, know the story of Frankenstein. This amazing work has been turned into plays, movies, and even super-bowl commercials. As we all know, the wickedness, the scary characters, or just the medieval architecture, are integral parts to the wild and dark story. Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein with many Gothic conventions, whether it is the revengeful plot, the frightening characters, or the deep dark setting, and can be considered one of the greatest Gothic tales of all time. The term ‘Gothic’ goes back to the medieval period and can be found in architecture and many other forms. It can be applied to art, movies, and of course literature. Gothic horror stories were first written in the late eighteenth century and started to become popular in the nineteenth century. The first Gothic novel is said to be Horace Walpole’s, …show more content…
In Frankenstein, it is evident that this takes place. Although the plot changes three times, the consistency of the plot is still there. In the first plot, the letters from Robert Walton, it shows the desolate chase across the Arctic and empty, dangerous seas. Even though this does not create a dark image, it still creates that feeling of being alone. The second plot, which is told showed by Victor Frankenstein, obviously shows the greatest portion of Gothic conventions. This is where the scary monster is created and the dark isolate laboratory is shown. In the story, the monster shows this “Gothic” sense by saying, “It was dark when I awoke; I felt cold also, and half-frightened as it were instinctively, finding myself so desolate” (Malamud, 42). The monster showed that it was dark and cold, which supports Gothic