Frankenstein by Mary Shelly: A Review

Hiya! Sorry for the missed post a couple of weeks back. I was off on holiday and found no time to write!

Anyways...

...I'm back with a different kind of novel than my usual fantasy and romance taste. I chose a classic that I have heard about but never read and thought that I might enjoy. This is not the kind of novel I find myself reading quickly, but a lot more slow-paced and calm. The old English language used in the novel can sometimes be a tad confusing, making it harder to read through the text smoothly. If I'm being honest, I didn't expect to enjoy the novel as much as I did and I found the tale of the scientist and his monster rather gripping.

The old classic tells the story of Victor Frankenstein who is a scientist and student, at a university, who learns how to give life to a man-made monster and intentionally causes lots of issues for himself. I think that this novel makes you question your morality, and I can now see that many modern sci-fi and artificial intelligence-based novels all have nods toward Mary Shelly. I also liked that, although Frankenstein sees his creation as evil, we get to see the monster's perspective. It is easy to sympathize with his loneliness and that feeling of not belonging. In my opinion, ultimately, Frankenstein has to answer for the actions of his creation.

In my research, the novel is generally considered a horror novel, which I disagree with. I see it more as a novel that questions and challenges emotional restrictions. Had the monster not experienced that loneliness what may have happened? I think that the writing perfectly depicts the emotions that each character is experiencing and I find it amazing that the story came from the imagination of a young 19-year-old girl in 1818.

Happy Reading, 

- Mei