Starter:

Access SENECA and join class using this code: i5j9pdyc51

You need to complete the quizzes on the context of Frankenstein: Shelley’s parents; loss & maternal
anxiety, and literary tradition.

This should take between 10-15 minutes to complete.

For each of these contextual points, how can you make links to the text itself?

1) Mary Wollestonecraft

Mary Wollstonecraft (Shelley’s mother) first found fame with her essay ‘A Vindication
of the Rights of Men’ (1790). In this essay, she conveyed her sympathy towards the
working poor: she experienced difficult financial circumstances herself due to the
fecklessness of her drunken father, resulting in her having a string of jobs as a young
woman. Therefore, she could empathise with working class people who were
oppressed and disadvantaged by the elite upper classes who governed the country.

See below Miss Bird’s WAGOLL (what a good one looks like) link to the text. You must include
quotations and linguistic analysis:

Shelley clearly admired her late mother, even allegedly taught to write by tracing ‘Mary’ (the name
they shared) on her mother’s gravestone. As a young woman, Mary Wollestonecraft dealt stoically
with her family’s financial difficulties – working a string of jobs as a young woman to support her
family - mirroring Victor’s mother in ‘Frankenstein’. In Chapter 1, Shelley describes the financial plight
of the Beaufort family, but whilst the father lay on his deathbed – unable to cope with the grief of
poverty – his daughter, Caroline, “procured plain work; she plaited straw; and by various means
contrived to earn a pittance scarcely sufficient to support life.” The stative verb “contrived” connotes
the great difficulty with which she worked; as a woman in this era, options for work and subsequent
payments were limited and Shelley strives to emphasise her strife. The high frequency of plosives used
here might also reinforce the harsh conditions in which she found herself. However, Shelley clearly
esteems this quality, using the metaphor “mind of uncommon mould” to elevate Caroline’s character
and present her as unconventionally resilient, painting her as an image of perfection. One might argue
that the character of Caroline Beaufort was inspired by Mary Wollestonecraft: both working hard to
overcome financial difficulty and both passing away too young.
2) William Godwin (Shelley’s father) initially welcomed the French
Revolution (which we will discuss later) but it became more difficult
to do so: Tom Paine (a radical spokesperson) was outlawed from
Britain and his book banned. Godwin believed in liberty, rejecting
any form of government or human institution as corrupt. He also
believed that it was possible to perfect humanity through revolution. However, he did not agree
with violent acts of revolution. He believed in a peaceful, gradual decay of government.

Now link this context to the text. You must include quotations and linguistic analysis.

The complex relationship of Shelley and Godwin is intertwined through the novel as a subtle, personal
motif. The emotionally distant character of Godwin is paralleled through Victor- he rejects and
neglects his ‘child’- the creature. Perhaps Godwins emotional distance is shown through Victors fear of
intimacy- shown physically through his choice to travel away from Elizabeth, and also his choice to
usurp the role of the woman and unnaturally creating the monster.

Shelley directly acknowledges galvanism as part of the inspiration for her novel, writing of her
discussions with Lord Byron, "Perhaps a corpse would be re-animated; galvanism had given token of
such things: perhaps the component parts of a creature might be manufactured, brought together,
and endued with vital warmth."

3) Mary married poet Percy Shelley, but their relationship was not smooth-sailing. They suffered
financial difficulties; Mary was often snubbed in polite society because of her sexual history as
Percy’s mistress, and there were even rumours that Claire (Mary’s stepsister) had an affair with
Percy and conceived a child. Most notably, Percy and Mary suffered heavily with the deaths of their
children. Mary was first pregnant at just 16, but lost the child who was born prematurely. Another
daughter died in infancy, and one son died of cholera aged just 3, which led Mary into a great
depression. In fact, only one of their children, Percy Florence, lived into adulthood.

Now link this context to the text. You must include quotations and linguistic analysis.
4) At the beginning of Mary Shelley’s life (1797), the fin-de-siècle of the eighteenth century,
revolution was fresh in memory due to the French Revolution (1789) and the American Revolution
(1775). The French Revolution began in 1789. Due to the corruption of the French monarchy (King
Louis XVI’s treasonous dealings with foreign powers and his refusal to include common people in
political decisions), the people revolted. This resulted in King Louis’s execution, the rise of a French
empire and Napoleon becoming emperor in 1804. The Napoleonic wars (1803 – 1815) between
France and European powers including Britain caused social turmoil and a fear of invasion
throughout Britain.

Now link this context to the text. You must include quotations and linguistic analysis.

5) Scientific development was rife as the time of Shelley’s writing. Traditional metaphysical and
theological investigations into the meaning of life were being displaced by secular and materialist
explorations of its origins and nature.

One example was Luigi Galvini, whose theories came to

be known as Galvanism.
Galvini was an Italian scientist who performed experiments on frogs in the 1780s. He discovered that
an electric charge applied to the spinal cord of a frog could generate muscular spasms, even when
the frogs’ legs were not attached.

The novel’s focus on animating dead matter comes directly from galvanism, and the presence of
atmospheric electricity and lightning in the novel is significant. Much criticism of the time suggested
that if scientists extended from frogs to humans, they would become the devil’s disciples, as
suggested in this illustration.

Humphrey Davy and Erasmus Darwin (Charles Darwin’s grandfather) were also key influencers of
Mary Shelley’s novel. Davy was a chemist who believed that chemistry could contain the secret to
creating life, whilst Darwin (like his famous grandson) was an evolutionist, who believed that
creation was a slow process.

Percy Shelley also might have influenced Mary’s scientific interests. He has a lifelong interest in
science and particularly Dr Adam Walker who theorised that electricity could spark life. He
apparently executed many experiments which led to holes in his clothes and carpet, as well as
electrocuting the family cat.

Now link this context to the text. You must include quotations and linguistic analysis.

You should complete the question below in timed conditions (10 minutes planning – 50
minutes writing). Be sure to make lots of perceptive contextual links!
Read the extract printed below. This is from the section of the novel where William is
discovered to have been murdered by the monster. This is part of a letter written by
Alphonse Frankenstein.

Explore the significance of crime and violence in the novel.

You should consider:

• the presentation of crime and violence in the extract below and at different points in the
novel

• the use of fantasy elements in constructing a fictional world.

[35 marks]

We returned again, with torches; for I could not rest, when I thought that my sweet boy
had lost himself, and was exposed to all the damps and dews of night; Elizabeth also
suffered extreme anguish. About five in the morning I discovered my lovely boy, whom the
night before I had seen blooming and active in health, stretched on the grass livid and
motionless; the print of the murder’s finger was on his neck.
“He was conveyed home, and the anguish that was visible in my countenance betrayed
the secret to Elizabeth. She was very earnest to see the corpse. At first I attempted to
prevent her but she persisted, and entering the room where it lay, hastily examined the
neck of the victim, and clasping her hands exclaimed, ‘O God! I have murdered my darling
child!’
“She fainted, and was restored with extreme difficulty. When she again lived, it was only
to weep and sigh. She told me, that that same evening William had teased her to let him
wear a very valuable miniature that she possessed of your mother. This picture is gone, and
was doubtless the temptation which urged the murderer to the deed. We have no trace of
him at present, although our exertions to discover him are unremitted; but they will not
restore my beloved William!
“Come, dearest Victor; you alone can console Elizabeth. She weeps continually, and
accuses herself unjustly as the cause of his death; her words pierce my heart. We are all
unhappy; but will not that be an additional motive for you, my son, to return and be our
comforter? Your dear mother! Alas, Victor! I now say, Thank God she did not live to witness
the cruel, miserable death of her youngest darling!

What is the significance? What is Shelley’s message? Any links to

Intro context or genre
 First point: links to the text, language features, context and genre

Second point: links to the text, language features, context and genre

Third point: links to the text, language features, context and genre

Fourth point: links to the text, language features, context and genre

What is the significance? What is Shelley’s message? Any links to

Conclusio context or genre
n
 Mark Scheme

Introduction
You need to introduce your thesis – your big idea or argument that will run
through the entire essay
Try to mention the FANTASY GENRE and CONTEXT

In Shelley’s ‘Frankenstein’, __________ is significance because…

In Shelley’s ‘Frankenstein’, the significance of __________ is evident because…
In Shelley’s fantastical novel ‘Frankenstein’…

Gothic trope / Gothic conventions / fantastical trope / fantasy conventions / high

fantasy / low fantasy
Enlightenment / Romantics / Industrial Revolution / French Revolution /
Feminism / Psychoanalytical / Body snatching / Galvanism

Main Body
Write analytical paragraphs, each of which might have a different point relating to
the question
Ensure you refer to GENRE and CONTEXT
Also ensure you include LANGUAGE ANALYSIS and especially PATTERNS

Make clear points in the opening sentence of each paragraph

Use a range of well-chosen quotation
Analyse the language levels – grammar, phonetics, prosodics, semantics,
discourse
Analyse patterns in language, not just isolated quotations
Link to context and genre

Conclusion
Refer back to your thesis and summarise your main ideas without making any new
points
1. Reader 2. Peeling away the
response layers of
characterisation
The reader is
caught between… On the exterior…, yet
on the interior we can
The reader is caught infer….
between empathy for
Lennie and disgust at
On the exterior, Shylock
the cruel world he lives
appears desperate for revenge
in.
against the Christians who
have wronged him, yet on the
interior we can infer that he is
he feels a deep sense of
injustice for the wrongs he
has suffered.
5. Reader 6. First impressions
positioning
Our first impressions
(The writer) of…
positions the
reader/audience in Our first impressions of the
favour of /against Birling family are that they
are rich, arrogant and ‘pleased
_____ by… with themselves’.
Priestley positions the
audience against Mr
Birling by revealing his
buffoonery in the early
scenes.
9. Identifying a 10. Identifying the
common thread main thing
Throughout the The most important
novel/poem/play… word/sentence/idea/cha
pter/moment is ____
Throughout the poem, because….
the poet explores the
pain of unrequited love
The most important word
in a variety of ways
from this line is ‘top’ because
it emphasises the superiority
of the bird.
13. Contrast 14. Noting  subtleties
Although both Here, the writer
writers/characters cleverly….
… , they...
Here, Ted Hughes cleverly
Although both writers employs the gruesome image
explore the idea of of a dying hare to remind the
love, they express their reader once again of the way
ideas in very different war targets the innocent.
ways.
3. Character motives
________is motivated
not only by… but also
by…
Macbeth is motivated not
only by his ambition to
become king, but also by his
desire to please Lady
Macbeth.
7. Weighing up the
importance
Even though/although
…,…
Even though Curley’s Wife
behaves at times like a cruel
temptress, by the end of the
novel we realise that she is a
victim of a harsh, misogynist
world.
11. Close language
analysis
Here, ________employs
the word/phrase
‘__________’ to
suggest/imply/reinforce
….
Here, the Inspector employs
the phrase ‘millions and
millions’ to reinforce the idea
that Eva Smith represents
many other working-class
Edwardian girls.
15. Proposing a
tentative idea
Perhaps, (writer’s
name) was hinting that
… readers, however, might
Perhaps Steinbeck was
hinting that human beings are
no different from the rest of
the animal kingdom.
4. Character
development
By the close of the
play/poem/novel the
once … has developed
into...
By the close of the poem, the
once fearsome terrorist has
developed into a polite and
humble child who is willing to
remove his shoes.
8. Deepening analysis
At first glance…;
however, on closer
inspection….
At first glance the family
appear to be respectable
members of society; however,
on closer inspection, we can
already sense the rift between
father and son.
12. Exemplifying an
idea through a
character/setting/event
__________ reveals
her/his belief in
_____through her/his
description of…
Stevie Smith reveals her belief
in the cyclical nature of war
through her description of the
‘ebbing tide of battle’.
16. Contrasting
alternative viewpoints
Some readers might
propose that…; other
argue…
Some readers might propose
that Shakespeare’s portrayal of
Shylock was cruel and unfair;
other readers, however, might
argue that Shakespeare was
simply reflecting the views of
the society he lived in.