| Synopsis: |
Few novels can claim to have been as influential as Mary Shelley's primordial tale of scientific creation gone awry. The shadow of the monster (never named within the book) to this day casts itself over literature, film, popular culture and science, and phrases from the book have entered everyday language. Victor Frankenstein's giant, misshapen creature, animated by a method of imparting life to inert matter, is far removed from the scientist's idealistic vision. The narrative that unfolds once the creature is brought to life, involving rejection, suspicion and murderous violence, is still hugely appealing as a riveting story in its own right, and never more relevant as a parable of pride, scientific enquiry, the search for acceptance and the nature of humanity. |