1. Mary Shelley 1797-1851 -Mary Wollstoncraft Godwin William Godwin-Progressive; against organized religion, gov’t, etc. ; friends w/Coleridge (“Rime of Mariner”) Mary Wollstoncraft: Rights of women; dies giving birth -Spent her teens writing in Scotland until she returned to London at 15 (1812) & eloped with Percy Shelley (1814) -Pregnant & death of baby (1815)—dreamt of return -Married after his wife committed suicide (Dec 1816) -3 of her 4 children die -Percy drowns (Gulf of Spezia-Italy) in 1822 -At 24, she’s a poor widow supporting herself w/writing -Frankenstein published in 1818. (Shelley-21 yrs. old) -Feminist feat-written by the female child of a world- renowned early feminist

2. History 1789-French revolution begins (rid of absolute monarchy); British liberals excited common people standing up to oppressors-quickly became disillusioned (revolution became bloody & its leaders became tyrants too)—supposed to be the triumph of reason over superstition and privilege 1793-1794-French Reign of Terror (British liberals lost all hope for justice & equality) 1804-Napolean crowned Emperor *Romantic writers-focus on nature to escape harsh reality

3. Romantic Movement (1780-1850) Disheartened liberals (for the most part)- Reacted AGAINST the Enlightenment Key to emotional healing is nature (most predominant feature of Romantic literature) Idea of disenfranchised man was also common. These men, unable to live in society, were often revered and/or sympathized with (Frankenstein & his monster fit into this category)

4. Gothic Literature Offshoot of Romantic literature Predecessor of modern horror movies in both theme & style Takes Romantic ideas of nature and, along with having the power to heal, they give it the power to destroy. (Frankenstein is this harsh reality of nature. Notice many storms particularly at pivotal points of the novel. This is typical of a Gothic novel. Storms=bad things

5. Frankenstein Prior to 18 th century, what we now know as science and philosophy were essentially the same thing Natural philosophy-study of nature & desire to know how it functions (Victor is a student—know this due to Shelley naming some of his early influences) While Victor admits many of these men’s theories were discredited he gives them “credit” for influencing him & his “accomplishment”

6. Cornelius Agrippa Renaissance philosopher & scientist Works reflect strong interest in the occult & ancient, mystical “sciences” of near East Wrote a collection of thoughts on Renaissance magic including astrology & effect of planetary motion on human events, natural tendency of certain “elements” to work harmoniously together while others oppose one another, spells, methods of predicting the future, numerology, the divine Trinity, and the orders of evil spirits

7. Paracelsus Renaissance philosopher & scientist Introduced concept of disease & use of chemicals rather than herbs for treatment Alchemy became the means by which chemical remedies were prepared. Changed the emphasis from chasing mythological “Elixir of Life” or “Philosopher’s Stone” to making medicines *Some of his idea’s bordered on the occult. Said to have tutors such as gypsies and sorcerers, and affected miraculous cures of several maladies.

8. Albertus Magnus Renaissance philosopher & scientist Advocated for search into the natural causes of things. DIFFERENT from church’s position that God was cause of all effects Investigating causes was radical for this time -- most believed scriptures were sole source of all knowledge. He called for investigation in a way that was accepted by the Church. (Largest critic faulted him for this.)

9. Character Development Round characters-fully developed & multi- dimensional Flat characters-based solely on 1 trait or characteristic Dynamic characters-develop as the story progresses Static characters-do NOT develop in the story Foil-opposite of another character; used to shed light on the other character Catalyst-(character or event) starts a chain of events. (1 st domino to fall & hit the other dominoes)