FRANKENSTEIN, GOTHIC OR ROMANTIC?

Literary essay analyzing the romanticism and gothic aspects in the novel, Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

FEBRUARY 4, 2014
DANIELLA JACQUES Presented to Mrs. H

Outline: pages 2 to 4 1.5 spacing Introduction: - Thesis Statement: that Frankenstein is a Gothic novel rather than simply Romanticism Introduce the Romantic and Gothic Era

Detailed description/explanation of Romanticism: 17th and early 18th centurys arts controlled by Neoclassic (focused on simplicity, symmetry, restrained expression of emotion, - a protest against the Rococo period&style, artists/writers judged on elegance and compared to the classics of Greece & Rome) Late 18th century = Romanticism: Word: Romanticism derived from the Romances of the Middle Ages Went from faith in reason to believing in senses, feelings, and imagination Shift from having an interest in urban and posh society to rural and natural Change from public and impersonal poetry to subjective poetry From having a concern with scientific and mundane to having an interest in the mysterious and infinite Fascinated by the Medieval past, the supernatural, the mystical world, the exotic and the gothic Attracted to rebellion and revolution: embraced democracy = human rights, rights & dignity of the individual, freedom of oppression and expression (rebellions vs academics) (individualism vs system) (emotionalism vs intellectualism) emotional expression were more important than the general rules established by the Classics Often dealt with death, transience, and mankinds feelings and thoughts about these concepts How the individual(s) is able to cope with the world Violent struggles (emotional, physical and/or psychological) Responsibility of difficult decision making Fighting the oppression of society, family, image/status, and political God and Nature took on a greater importance than scientific reasoning Romantics idealised Nature; delighting in tis power & unpredictability Romantics saw Nature as a world of peace & tranquility or overwhelming power The English poet Wordsworth wrote that it is possible to learn more about human nature and good and evil from nature than from books or the teaching of schoolers. Faraway places seemed glamorous & mysterious Rediscovered Shakespeare One great theme of early Romantic novels is the conflict between the individual and society, or obsessive love. Romantics fascinated by the energy and sublimity of the natural world Nature was in itself a work of art: constructed by a divine imagination Romantics interested in the exotic: everyday life + the exotic world = paradoxical, divided by the natural & supernatural

Detailed description/explanation of Gothic: Subgenre of the Romantic Era Romantics didnt ignore the dark side of human nature, but embraced it = Gothic: fascinated with violence, fantasy, and nightmares = the supernatural was an important force (Frankenstein, Edgar Allan Poe, Brothers Grimm) Violent struggles (emotional, physical and/or psychological) The fact that it originated as a Catholic architectural style influences the presence of Catholicism within so much Gothic literature To call something Gothic is to indicate a paradox Terror is one of the strongest emotion the mind is capable of feeling the ideas for pain are much more powerful than those which enters on the part of pleasure. Without all doubt, the torments which we may be made to suffer are much greater in their effect on the body and mind, than any pleasure which the most learned voluptuary could suggest, or than the liveliest of imagination, and the most sound and exquisitely sensible body could enjoy. Gothic literature derives from its similarities to the Gothic medieval architecture Word Gothic derived from Goth the name of one of the Germanic tribes that invaded the Roman empire = associated with savagery & barbarism Term: Gothic Doppelganger humans burdened with a dual nature, soul forever divided twins, siblings, parent/child, husband/wife, hero/villain, creator/creature Forbidden Knowledge or Power = term: Faust Motif its often the Gothic protagonists goal, he/she tries to overcome the human limitations, questions the universes nature, tries to turn him/her self into GOD (Frankenstein quest for the secret of life) = Satanic Hero - 15 key references = Gothicism: notes

Compare the two writing styles; reiterate the most prominent differences and maybe similarities. Certify the thesis; that Frankensteins literature is more Gothic than Romantic. Examples/evidence: Conclusion; repeat the thesis statement as well as certain key examples/points of how its true Bibliography:

It was on a dreary night of November that I beheld the accomplishment of my toils. With an anxiety that almost amounted to agony, I collected the instruments of life around me, that I might infuse a spark of being into the lifeless thing that lay at my feet. It was already one in the morning; the rain pattered dismally against the panes, and my candle was nearly burnt out, when, by the glimmer of the half-extinguished light, I saw the dull yellow eye of the creature open; it breathed hard, and a convulsion motion agitated its limbs paragraph 1, page 43, Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. These few words amongst the thousands more, led to the creation of the renowned monster of the horror-novel, Frankenstein. Frankenstein, is a horror-novel written by one of the first, and few successful women authors, Mary Shelley. This classic novel is frequently regarded as suitable example of Romanticism literature, and though this is true if one were to simply take an overall perspective, Frankenstein is essentially a perfect example of a Gothic literary piece The Romantic era began towards the late 18th century, in the United States, Latin America, and almost all of Europe. Romanticism arose in protest of the Classical and Neoclassicism period, which focused on the simplicity, symmetry, and elegance of the artistic and literary pieces; which were often compared to the classics of Greece and Rome. Certain groups, particularly artistic, in the society rebelled against this style or approach of expression. They focused on elaborately expressing their emotions, and trusting more their senses, feelings, and imagination rather than in reason. This attracted a form of social rebellion and/or revolution. Societies split into rebellions (artists, writers, etc) versus academics. The rebellions advocated for individualism and emotionalism, as the academics fought for system and intellectualism. Although this rebellion began with few; more and more people, of all society classes, began to embrace democracy. This new system supported Romanticism, which caused a shift in mentality which brought the society a certain artistic and political freedom. The new mentality could be clearly depicted in the literature of many novels. For emotional expression was more important than the standard rules established by the Classics, and therefore the novels were usually overdramatically descriptive. In Frankenstein there are many moments or passages where this overdramatic reaction to particular events occurs. An example could be Dr. Frankensteins terrible sickness that left him for months, bed ridden, and in a fragile and crazed state for the rest of his life. Another example could possibly be the monsters gruesome and cruel reaction to Dr. Frankensteins refusal to the proposition of creating a female monster. In both situations, the characters reaction was evidently dramatically exaggerated. Novels written in Romanticism typically focused on an individuals ability to cope with the harsh reality of the world. The individual frequently finds him or herself violent struggling, emotionally, physically, and psychologically against the oppression of society, family, status, and political standards. Thus fighting the responsibility of difficult decision making.

This aspect can also be found in Frankenstein, as Dr. Frankenstein had difficulty accepting the laws of universe which could not be changed or challenged; and therefore created his monster. The creation of the monster lead to him having tremendous difficulty at mentally and emotionally accepting what he had done; consequently affecting him physically (paleness, dizziness, sweating, sickness, etc), and psychologically (guilt, horror, fear, etc). His newly state of fragility, as well as the knowledge of his monster was killing because of him; he internally and externally fought to keep a somewhat strong image for his loved ones. For the guilt and sadness which he felt was slowly eating away at him and his conscious. Therefore he struggled with the problematic decisions such as whether to tell the truth about his creation, as whether to destroy his monster, and whether to create the monster a partner. Essentially the monster caused a lot of grim and demanding problems for the Dr. Frankenstein. Although if one was to turn their attention to the monster, they would notice that he did not live an easy life either. He was an outcast the moment he opened his eyes. He was avoided and hurt due to his gruesome form. Due to his ghastly exterior he was cut off from any amicable social interaction. He had to cope with the injustice of societys appearance standards. Those were the general examples of how the romanticism concept of an individual battling against the harsh world. God and Nature also took on a greater importance than scientific reasoning during the Romantic period. Romantics idealised Nature for they relished its natural power and energy, as well as its sublimity and unpredictability. Nature was seen as a world of peace, tranquility, or overwhelming power. For most romantics nature was in itself a work of art, constructed by a divine imagination namely God. Wordsworth, an English poet, once wrote that one was most likely to learn more about human nature, good and evil, from nature itself rather than writings and/or schoolers. Nature nor God was idolized in Mary Shellys horror-novel. Even so, she included very descriptive passages of the nature surrounding her characters; such as when Dr. Frankenstein leaves his estate to hike along a trail in the mountains, just before he encounters his monster once again. Apart from the scenery descriptions, one could say Frankensteins monster was a violation of nature. That Dr. Frankenstein was defiling the role of God as he abused the laws of nature, and created his own monstrous Adam. Those would be the general aspects of Nature and/or God applicable to or found in Frankenstein. Another aspect of the new mentality which transpired into authors approach of writing was the fascination of the mysterious and infinite. The new society was enthralled by the exotic, the supernatural and mystical world. In terms of exoticism, people were interested in exploration of lands and cultures since faraway places seemed glamorous and mysterious. These places and their cultures were different, new, and thrilling compared to the monotonous society of the Classics. The romantics interest in anything supernatural and medieval were for horror purposes, which lead to the re-creation of Gothic literature.

Gothic literature is often considered as a literary subgenre of Romanticism. Romantics hugely focused on the emotional and spiritual aspect of an individual, but they could not, and did not ignore the dark side of human nature. Therefore they embraced it, and this mentality bred into the Gothic literature. It holds almost the same aspects of romanticism, but has more of an axis on violence and horror. That is why Frankenstein is a novel of Gothic literature rather than just Romanticism. Gothics were, similarly to the romantics, enticed with emotional, physical, and/or psychological struggles. However gothics had a twisted fascination with violence, fantasy, nightmares, and anything along the lines of horrific supernatural forces. In Gothic literature the goal was to often instigate terror, for terror could be considered amongst the strongest of emotions the mind is able of bearing. - the torments which we may be made to suffer are much greater in their effect on the body and mind, than any pleasure which the most learned voluptuary could suggest, or than the liveliest of imagination, and the most sound and exquisitely sensible body could enjoy. - ("Gothic Literature") In a Gothic novel there are some characteristics which indicate that it is Gothicism rather than Romanticism. Certain key ones other than the general trait of inducing horror, is that the novel will contain many unexplainable events, supernatural or monstrous beings, unrequited love, and a thirst for vengeance against the protagonist and/or his/her family. In Frankenstein, the biggest unexplainable event could most certainly be the fact that Dr. Frankenstein created a living being out of dead morsels. This living being could be considered the supernatural or monstrous being of the novel, unless one were to consider Dr. Frankenstein as being a monster for creating such a being. Given that the monster has such a revolting appearance he encounters unrequited love ever since he opened his eyes. Consequently this unrequited love has caused spite and a need for vengeance, against Dr. Frankenstein, form and accumulate within the creature. He relents to his need by torturing his creator through killing his loved ones. These are some of the distinctive characteristics of Gothicism found in Frankenstein, more follows. In Gothic literature there is a term, Gothic Doppelganger; is used to describe as humans burdened with a dual nature individuals who have a soul which is forever divided. In Gothic literature such a burden can be found in: twins, siblings, parent and child, husband and wife, hero and villain, creator and creature, and the list continues. In Frankenstein, one can easily determine that there could be two Gothic Doppelganger; a hero and villain, and/or a creator and his creature. For the hero and villain, one cant, or shouldnt, label Frankenstein or his monster specifically the hero or the villain, since they both committed horrific crimes, but also portrayed hero qualities. It is the same for the creator and creature. One may immediately assign Frankenstein as the creator and the monster as the creature, but one may argue that the monster is the

creator. One may argue this because the creature, in some sense, created Frankenstein to be who he is in the end. Another characteristic of Gothic literature which can be depicted in Frankenstein is: Faust Motif. This Gothic term mean forbidden knowledge or power. In Gothic literature it is often the Gothic protagonists goal that he/she attempts to overcome the human limitations the laws of the universe, by questioning the universes nature. Usually the Gothic hero can be considered the villain for such actions. For a search for such forbidden knowledge habitually leads to the heros downfall, such as Satans. The heros fall forces him into being isolated from his loved ones, and this can cause the individual to transform into a monster or confront his Gothic Doppelganger. Due to this transformation or confrontation the Gothic hero becomes what is known in Gothicism as a, Satanic hero. For if he is like Satan, he has numerously defied Gods rules of the universe while believing himself a God. In Frankenstein, the reason for Dr. Frankensteins monster is because he quested for the secret of life and created a monster; he questioned and defiled the laws of the universe. Therefore Frankenstein could be, and often is, considered to be a satanic hero, as well as villain. Those are some of the many characteristics which Frankenstein shares with Gothic literature. It is true that Frankenstein holds all qualities of Romanticism, but Gothicism is a subgenre of Romanticism. Thus Gothicism shares the characteristics of Romanticism, but also has very distinctive characteristics separating it from Romanticism. A key trait would be for the novel to stimulate horror. Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein for a friendly ghost story competition with Lord Byron. Thus she wrote her horror-novel with an intent of inducing fear into the reader. For the reader to have terrifying nightmares as Victor Frankenstein did about his monster. For the reader to debate if Frankenstein is the hero or villain, or if his creature is. For the reader to live the upsetting and agonizing struggles which both individuals suffer through. For the reader to enjoy Frankenstein; a classic horror-novel, which is frequently regarded as suitable example of Romanticism literature, and though this is true if one were to simply take an overall perspective, Frankenstein is essentially perfect example of a Gothic literary piece.

Bibliography:
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