1. Frankenstein – Word Changes
Matthew Do, Jaime Luong, Poonum Mehta, Hannah Michael

2. Topic and Literal Meaning
Word Changes – what words were used in the novel, what were their meanings during Shelly's time and how have they changed today? Within this presentation, we hope to illuminate the significance of word choice within Mary Shelleys' Frankenstein. The topic of this presentation focuses on analyzing the word choice used, explaining the literal meaning of the words Shelley used, and interpreting the meaning of the word(s) in context. This topic allows us to better understand the environment and society in which Shelleys' Frankenstesin was produced. By understanding the context of this work, we are able to gain insight into the development of themes, characters, and the setting of the novel.

3. Examples From Text
"A flash of lightning illuminated the object, and discovered its shape plainly to me; 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, to whom I had given life." Victor uses the word "daemon" throughout the novel to refer to the creature. The word "daemon" communicates the existence of an evil passion or influence. In context, it seems as if Shelley wishes to portray Victor as convinced the creature is evil but not so far as to outright refer to it as a demon. "Before this I was not unacquainted with the more obvious laws of electricity. On this occasion a man of great research in natural philosophy was with us, and excited by this catastrophe, he entered on the explanation of a theory which he had formed on the subject of electricity and galvanism, which was at once new and astonishing to me" Victor refers to his field of study as "natural philosophy". Natural philosophy consisted of applying reason in an attempt to explain nature. This description of the field of scientific studies emphasizes the uncertainty and lack of concrete knowledge concerning scientific thought exhibited throughout Mary Shelley's life and detailed throughout the duration of Victors studies.

4. Literary Devices – Diction
"I saw how the fine form of man was degraded and wasted; I beheld the corruption of death succeed to the blooming cheek of life" (Shelley 30). 
In this excerpt, Victor Frankenstein is doing research to help him begin the creation of his monster. Shelley's use of dark and destructive diction such as "degraded" and "corruption" cause the connotation of death to contrast effectively with life. These two words are also meant to be interpreted as the literal decomposition of the body, but in today's society, both words are usually used to describe a negative, mental change in someone's character and actions. Mary Shelley could have done this to insinuate the corrupt nature of Victor's actions. Another conclusion could be that the word itself was originally interpreted with a physical meaning and changed over time.
This relates back to word change because the words "degraded" and "corruption" both changed connotative meanings from the 18th century to now. 

5. Literary Devices – POV (Major Character)
"I trembled, and my heart failed within me, when, on looking up, I saw, by the light of the moon, the daemon at the casement" (Shelley 121).
In this excerpt, Victor is about to create the monster's companion and sees the monster watching him. Having this sentence come from Victor, a major character in the novel, shows the monster through his eyes instead of from an innocent bystander. Thus the description is very much centered around Victor's fear of the monster's power and fear of creating another being with the same structure.
The word "daemon" in general is interpreted as a divine being of nature between god and human. Shelley's use of this word, as opposed to "demon", insinuates that she didn't want the monster to appear devilish or demonic, and instead more superhuman. So although Victor ultimately sees him as a demon, Shelley writes the word as daemon to emphasize the good within the monster, even through Victor's point of view. 

6. Literary Devices – Tone
From this day natural philosophy...became nearly my sole occupation. I read without ardour those works, so full of genius and discrimination, which modern enquirers have written on these subjects...and I found even in M. Krempe a great deal of sound sense and real information, combined, it is true, with a repulsive physiognomy and manners, but not on that count the less valuable" (Shelley 29). 
In this excerpt, Victor is preparing to create the monster and gains some incite from his professors and from his books. However, the use of the term "natural philosophy" as opposed to science or chemistry makes the study appear less scientific and concrete and more spiritual and abstract. Similarly, "repulsive physiognomy" tells us that Krempe felt uncertain about Victor's questions and concerned for his intentions with the information he gave him. These words and Victor's description of the science that he is studying creates a tone of uncertainty; It makes the work he is completing seem more mysterious and less understood, which pairs with Mary Shelley's refusal to tell the reader exactly how the monster was created.
The words "natural philosophy" and "physiognomy" aren't used as often in present day literature. Natural philosophy has almost entirely been replaced by the general concept of science, or more specifically chemistry. Physiognomy means a person's facial expression, which is also a word that is not regularly used today. My conclusion is that Mary Shelley used natural philosophy because it aligned with her time period better, and she used physiognomy because it fits with the scientific tone that dominated the chapters leading up to the monster's creation.

7. Points of View – Creature
The creature begins life under an infantile point of view, seeing the world in terms of the most basic senses. When the novel switches to his point of view, descriptions of his feelings and observations, like of the forest and sound around him or the first villager he scared off, are initially basic and lacking until he learns French language, becomes literate, and knowledgeable of humanity and culture through spying on de Lacey's family. After his newfound knowledge, his emotional and scholarly intelligence increases; his reasons for his anger and motivation to kill humans are clarified and his final remorse after Victor's death is much more complex than anything he felt after being made.
Several word changes occur in the creature's thoughts; at first he can only interpret "light, and hunger, and thirst, and darkness; innumerable sounds" (71) like a newborn wild animal would perceive.  Later, after Victor's death, he intelligently states "Blasted as thou wert, my agony was still superior to thine; for the bitter sting of remorse will not cease to rankle in my wounds until death" (166).

8. Points of View – Victor Frankenstein
Victor's confidence, optimism, and self-imposed superiority, being the prodigal university student who could spark life without needing women or God, disappeared after creating the monster. Through the monster's murders of his close friends and family, Victor's point of view morphs into a pessimistic one, evident from his constant sickness caused by mental clout, and feelings of extreme guilt for his friends' deaths. The creature becomes his one unhealthy fixation that eventually drives him to his death. He thinks about the monster every second of his life, showing how unhealthy he became.
Word changes occur in how Victor describes the creature throughout the novel; at first his "limbs were in proportion, and [he] had selected his features as beautiful" (35).
"work of muscles and arteries beneath"
"hair was of lustrous black, and flowing"
"his teeth of pearly whiteness"
By the time of reanimation, Victor now calls the creature "horror", "mummy", "hideous", "ugly", "a thing such has even Dante could not have concieved" (36). By William's murder, he is a "wretch" and "filthy daemon" (50).

9. Points of View – Mary Shelley
Mary Shelley is principally a feminist that utilizes the points of view of Victor and the monster as a metaphor for how women were treated at the time: as domestic, silenced house-women living under male oppression. Her writing of Victor's suffering after his God-like act of creating life shows her opinion of how those men who act in a superior fashion, as they did in the Victorian times, should be punished. The creature, as an outcast to society only after he dared to engage in human affairs, possibly symbolized feminists who attempted to speak out against double standards and discrimination.
If men and women were capable of equal intelligence, as Mary was, why couldn't they enjoy the same privileges?
Why were women excluded from the Age of Enlightenment, where every man has the ability of being born good and changing his destiny?
Shelley doesn't directly use word changes but, in using each of Victor's and the creature's, she's able to convey her feelings toward gender differences in society.

10. Significant Moments – moment 1
"His jaws opened, and he muttered some inarticulate sounds, while a grin wrinkled his cheeks. He might have spoken, but I did not hear; one hand was stretched out, seemingly to detain me, but I escaped, and rushed downstairs. I took refuge in the courtyard belonging to the house which I inhibited; where I remained...fearing each sound as if it were to announce the approach of the demonical corpse to which I had so miserably given life" (Shelly 35-36).
In the creation of the opposing force, Shelly comments on several of humankind's flaws such as its tendency to blindly rush into situations and its desire for control. Furthermore, even as Victor realizes the full nature of his actions, he tries to run away from the consequences, which he does not face until he thinks that he is in danger.
Despite just before calling the monster a beautiful being, even commenting on how perfectly glowing the hair and teeth he had selected for it just moments ago, once Victor observes the life that he has artificially bestowed, Victor immediately switches to calling the monster demonical. Later he would go on to regard the monster as a devil then a daemon.

11. Significant Moments – moment 2
"I shall commit my thoughts to paper, it is true; but that is a poor medium for the communication of feeling. I desire the company of a man who could sympathize with me; whose eyes would reply to mine. You may deem me romantic, my dear sister, but I bitterly feel the want of a friend. I have no one near me gentle yet courageous...to approve or amend my plans" (Shelly 4).
While also foreshadowing the ideals of Victor's creation, Shelly also leaves the reader with insight into the pains of the monster. Shelly affirms the innocent, human personality that the monster began with, yet his desire for friendship is clearly differing from Walton's.
The idea of companionship has its meaning changed throughout the novel. At the novel's introduction, the desire of friendship begins as a more juvenile want for a perfect companion. However, through the experiences of the monster's suffering despite his desire for acceptance, the innocence of this idea transitions into more an idea of passion.

12. AP Prompt
2015. How does cruelty function in the novel and what does the cruelty reveal about the perpetrator and/or victim?
"When the man saw me draw near, he aimed a gun, which he carried at my body and fired...this was then the reward of my benevolence! I had saved a human being from destruction, and as a recompense I now writhed under the miserable pain of a wound which shattered flesh and bone" (Shelly 101).
The change in this instance is how the monster defines humanity. Humanity changes from a source of companionship to a detestable source of injustice.

13. Works Cited http://spongebob.wikia.com/wiki/Frankendoodle
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
Dictionary.com