English Year 7 - Frankenstein: Home

Frankenstein tells the story of gifted scientist Victor Frankenstein who succeeds in giving life to a being of his own creation. However, this is not the perfect specimen he imagines that it will be, but rather a hideous creature who is rejected by Victor and mankind in general. The Monster seeks its revenge through murder and terror.

What does social and historical context mean?
Social and historic context refers to information about the period, the place and the events that form the background of a story. 
 

Quotes from the play

Captain Walton:

"…a creature like a man, but huge and hideous beyond belief." (page 10).|
 

Clerval
"He’s a genius. He’s the greatest man of science the world has ever seen…" (page 47).
 

Elizabeth
"I’m worried. I have such dreams…I see Victor in them, and there’s something horrible pursuing him – or is he pursuing it?" (page 22).
 

Frankenstein:

"And I thought: the power that can do that is the power of life and death. I’ll harness it. I’ll study it and master it and make it work for mankind." (page 16).

"But you’re not what I thought you’d be…I thought I was making an angel…I thought I was making something better than human!" (page 26).

"Monster! I didn’t create you to do evil – why have you betrayed me?" (page 41).

The Monster:

"Evil? Evil – you want evil? – then I shall be evil! I shall be terror and hatred and revenge – revenge!" (page 36).

"I am exactly what you made me, Frankenstein." (page 39).

"…you turned away in horror and left me to find my own way through the world…" (page 41).

"Your God has nothing to do with me. You are my God. You made me, and you owe me happiness." (page 42).

"How can I love, when I am met with nothing but hatred and disgust?’ (page 44).

Victor Frankenstein
The doomed protagonist and narrator of the main portion of the story. Studying in Ingolstadt, Victor discovers the secret of life and creates an intelligent but grotesque monster, from whom he recoils in horror. Victor keeps his creation of the monster a secret, feeling increasingly guilty and ashamed as he realizes how helpless he is to prevent the monster from ruining his life and the lives of others.

The Monster
The eight-foot-tall, hideously ugly creation of Victor Frankenstein. Intelligent and sensitive, the Monster attempts to integrate himself into human social patterns, but all who see him shun him. His feeling of abandonment compels him to seek revenge against his creator.

Captain Walton
The Arctic seafarer whose letters open and close Frankenstein. Walton picks the bedraggled Victor Frankenstein up off the ice, helps nurse him back to health, and hears Victor’s story. He records the incredible tale in a series of letters addressed to his sister, Margaret Saville, in England.
 

Elizabeth
Elizabeth is Frankenstein’s adopted sister and his wife. She is also a mother-figure: when Frankenstein’s real mother is dying, she says that Elizabeth “must supply my place.” Elizabeth fills many roles in Frankenstein’s life, so when the Monster kills her, Frankenstein is deprived of almost every form of female companionship at once.
 

Clerval
Victor’s boyhood friend, who nurses Victor back to health in Ingolstadt. After working unhappily for his father, Henry begins to follow in Victor’s footsteps as a scientist. His cheerfulness counters Victor’s moroseness.

Glossary List

● Analyse: examine (something) methodically and in detail, typically in order to explain and interpret it

● Characterisation: how an actor uses body, voice, and thought to develop and portray a character

● Dialogue: spoken conversation used by two or more characters to express thoughts, feelings, and actions

● Dramatic features: these are essential elements of a play that can be changed to shape and enhance meaning

● Dramatic form: drama script

● Language Choices: the writer’s use of language, sentence structure, literary devices and more

● Playwright: a person who writes a play

● Prologue: a speech which introduces a play

● Movement: stage blocking or the movements of the actors onstage during performance; also refers to the action of the play as it moves from event to event

● Script: the written dialogue, description, and directions provided by the playwright

● Stage directions: instructions in the script that tell the actors what to do and where to move on stage; may also provide information about the setting