Talk:Frankenstein

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During the snowy summer of 1816, the "Year Without A Summer," the world was locked in in a long cold volcanic winter responsible for the deaths of million, caused by the eruption of Tambora in 1815. In this terrible year, Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley and her husband Percy Bysshe Shelley visited Lord Byron in Switzerland. After reading an anthology of German ghost stories, Byron challenged the Shelleys and his personal physician John William Polidori to each compose a story of their own. Of the four, only Polidori completed a story. Mary conceived an idea, and this was the germ of Frankenstein.

I do not understand quite clearly why the terrible winter due to the volcanic eruption is mentionned here. What is the relationship, and how did it impact the birth of the book exactly ? SweetLittleFluffyThing

They were all stuck inside looking for something to do. Monopoly hadn't been invented yet so they decided to write stories instead. I'll see if I can find some references for this. -- Tim Starling 07:51, Jul 27, 2004 (UTC)

Contents

1 consistency? 2 Fictional Monsters category 3 suggested article name change 4 Arthur Belefant 5 Monster's Name

consistency?

Someone very much needs to revise and correct the plot summary: as it reads now, Justine is framed for murder twice, and Victor Frankenstein shows up at the beginning of the book to relate the entire tale, a tale that ends with his death, which begs the question of how he's telling it to Captain Walton. -- Antaeus Feldspar

Better now? -- Tim Starling 03:50, Jul 22, 2004 (UTC)

Much better. BTW, how do you get that timestamp after your username? -- Antaeus Feldspar

Four tildes ~~~~. Three for just the username. -- Tim Starling 07:47, Jul 27, 2004 (UTC)

Fictional Monsters category

I put back the Fictional Monsters category tag, which had been removed earlier. The rationale for removing it was sound: true, Frankenstein usually refers to the scientist, not the monster. However there have been many occasions in which the monster has been referred to directly as Frankenstein, most recently in Van Helsing. Plus, I've also seen the scientist referred to as a monster as well. Although it isn't strictly correct, I feel the name Frankenstein has become so synonymous with the creature that it becomes conspicuous by its absence in this category. If there is any way to make a "pipe change" so that the category listing says "Frankenstein's Monster" that would be great, though I am told this cannot be done. Having said all this, I just looked at the category and at present all that's listed there are characters like Elmo from Sesame Street and the cereal box monster Franken Berry. It's pretty useless as is, but I imagine someone will start adding Dracula and the like to it before long. Maybe. 23skidoo 04:52, 15 Dec 2004 (UTC)

suggested article name change

Recently, the wikipedia article The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was renamed Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, because that is the actual title of the published work.

With that in mind, the article Frankenstein should be renamed Frankenstein, or The Modern Prometheus.

Are there any objections to this move? Kingturtle 18:41, 27 Apr 2005 (UTC)

I'm uncertain as to whether such a move would work for this, since this article is more about Frankenstein the franchise than, per se, an article on the book by itself. There has already been a case of a duplicate article being recreated under Frankenstein Monster, and it's possible it might happen again even with a redirect. I'd wait to see if there's more of a consensus one way or the other on this before doing a movie. 23skidoo 05:12, 6 May 2005 (UTC)

I am against a name change -- The Modern Prometheus is clearly a subsidiary title and change would create an odd precedent (eg "Brideshead Revisited" would have to change to "Brideshead Revisited. The Sacred and Profane Memoirs of Captain Charles Ryder"). Also I think it is important that all Frankenstein links go direct to the book as the primary reference not via film or disambig pages. --mervyn 12:35, 7 May 2005 (UTC)

Arthur Belefant

I haven't read Belefant's little book, but I am very skeptical of his thesis simply because Victor's alibi for Clerval's murder is a key element of the plot. It enables him to leave Ireland completely vindicated. <>< tbc 06:59, 15 Jun 2005 (UTC)

Monster's Name

The Monster actually calls itself a wretch, so it does have a name (or at least a title) and was not ugly save in the sense of being sublime.

Phooey.

"Oh! no mortal could support the horror of that countenance. A mummy again endued with animation could not be so hideous as that wretch." "...its gigantic stature, and the deformity of its aspect, more hideous than belongs to humanity, instantly informed me that it was the wretch, the filthy daemon" -- Victor

"monster! ugly wretch! you wish to eat me, and tear me to pieces--You are an ogre" -- William, Victor's brother

"I was, besides, endowed with a figure hideously deformed and loathsome..." -- the monster

(emphasis mine) <>< tbc 06:59, 15 Jun 2005 (UTC)