Book Review of Frankenstein

Review posted on Amazon.com

Many of the main ideas of Romanticism are seen in Mary Shelley's book Frankenstein. The romantic period is characterized by a movement and departure away from scientific and rational ideas, in literature, ideology, and art. The artwork from the romantic era strove to capture and represent the sublime, the experience of nature, and the personalization of these experiences. This particular work of Mary Shelley is a story that is not from her own personal experience nor written in her own voice. This work is about a quest to achieve the sublime. Through the use of emotionally stirring words and a creative, gothic mood, Mary Shelley creates a romantic piece of artwork that drives one towards personal discovery and romantic ideology. Frankenstein is about Dr. Victor Frankenstein's quest to create a living being out of raw materials in his laboratory. With an emphasis on a "new way of seeing things", Dr. Victor Frankenstein applied imagination and creative thinking in order to better understand the world, perfect the vision of human beings, and better characterize the society in which we live. Being the dreamer, who is preoccupied by the sublime, suggest Dr. Victor Frankenstein and this novel, as a wonderful romantic work.
The story begins with ship captain, Robert Walton, on the way to the North Pole. When the ship becomes entrapped in the ice, Walton meets Victor Frankenstein, who is traveling by a dog-drawn sledge across the ice. Walton welcomes Victor Frankenstein onto the ship, and nurses him back to health. Victor Frankenstein then recounts the story of the creation of a monster and his own quest in the North Pole.
Victor Frankenstein shares about his childhood in Geneva, the beautiful childhood he spent with Elizabeth Lavenza, his good friend Henry Clerval, and his studies at the university. There, Victor became intrigued by the creation of life.


"...my mind was filled with one thought, one conception, one purpose. So much has been done, exclaimed the soul of Frankenstein—more, far more, will I achieve; treading in the steps already marked, I will pioneer a new way, explore unknown powers, and unfold to the world the deepest mysteries of creation." 

Victor Frankenstein then spends months piecing together a creature from old body parts and brings his creation to life.


"It was already one in the morning; the rain pattered dismally against the panes, and my candle was nearly burnt out, when, by the glimmer of the half-extinguished light, I saw the dull yellow eye of the creature open..." 


He is horrified at his creation, however, and leaves his apartment. After a few years pass, Victor