There are many cases of the isolated protagonist, one being Victor Frankenstein who self imposed his isolation by becoming so obsessed with galvanism and shutting off the rest of the world to concentrate on bringing his monster to life. He lost contact with his friends and family while losing his enthusiasm for the outside world. Another isolated character is the monster that is not accepted by the average, local people because of his deformity. At one point in the novel, he was described as “the filthy daemon”; this quote is also typically gothic as daemons are thought of as scary, gruesome creatures. ‘Frankenstein’ illustrates the breakdown of boundaries and the exploration of what is forbidden. Victor Frankenstein’s ambition to create life is against the law and forbidden. The monster is a killer, which is also forbidden.
Mary Shelley has used numerous gruesome descriptions of the monster to create a gothic atmosphere. “I saw the dull yellow eye of the creature open; it breathed hard, and a convulsive motion agitated its limbs”, here, the creature is being described as an ugly, helpless monster. In chapter 7 Shelley uses the line “More hideous than belongs to humanity”, which is very gothic as they are saying the monster doesn’t deserve to be classed as a human due to its appearance and therefore it is a ghastly creature.
There are many elements in ‘Frankenstein’, which determine between good and evil. It is debatable whether the monster is good or evil as he murders William, Clerval and Elizabeth but this could be seen as a cry for help. He has a warm heart but no one will accept him, causing him to misbehave for attention from his creator, Frankenstein. The monster is indirectly referred to as Satan as they are both related to evil and death; however by performing galvanism, Frankenstein is compared to god due to creating life. God and Satan is the perfect example of good versus evil, making the monster and Frankenstein equally good and evil.
Mary Shelley uses emotive language throughout the novel; she chose adjectives and adverbs to intensify the characters’ feelings. In numerous occasions, Frankenstein says “Alas!” making certain things seem more dramatic, He also uses exaggerated phrases such as “ardently desired” and “frantic impulse”. Frankenstein cannot always express his feelings verbally but Mary Shelley finds a clever way of fitting it in through a dream, in which he thought he saw Elizabeth and so he embraced her and kissed her on the lips. Shelley reintroduces the gothic atmosphere writing “but as I imprinted the first kiss on her lips, they became livid with the hue of death”. This element is quite disturbing as Elizabeth changes into his mother’s corpse.
There are several instances of life and death occurring during the novel. The first is when the monster is brought to life. The characters that die, or are killed during the film are Frankenstein, William, Clerval, Elizabeth, Justine and Frankenstein’s parents. At the end of the novel we are left to presume that the monster is died as he is left standing, surrounded by fire in the middle of the water. An example of gothic literature is “I wandered like an evil spirit” shows that it is almost like Frankenstein is living death. Heaven and hell are obliquely referred to during the novel; there are references to Genesis which ties into the theory of God and Satan, mentioned previously. The monster, not only compared with Satan but Shelley also made a contrast between the monster and Adam from the Genesis as he was the first man created by Frankenstein (the monster’s “god”). One major setting is the sublime surroundings of the Alps. This could have been influenced by Shelley’s husband as he was a romantic poet and as most poets of this category inured to write about beautiful scenery rather than actual love stories. In the late 18th century, Gothicism was a segment of the Romantic Movement and although ‘Frankenstein’ is presumed primarily Gothic, it has significant links with the Romantic Movement. These poets also wrote about the idealisation of nature, which was experienced by Robert Walton, who was isolated to an extent because he was situated in the middle of the Alps where anything could happen. Shelley very cleverly used the pathetic fallacy in many scenes; for example when the monster comes to life, the weather is typically stormy, dull and dreary and when Frankenstein is anxious and scared, there is another bad storm. This is another typically gothic thing to find in and Shelley has used it to her advantage.
There are various points in the novel which build up suspense for the reader.
Storms typically represent quite a ghastly, daunting and gothic atmosphere which Shelley has introduced storms to create a sense of foreboding and chaos; for example when Frankenstein is at William’s grave and evidently when the monster is brought to life. The monster threatens Frankenstein that he will be at his wedding, “It is well. I go; but remember, I shall be with you on your wedding-night”, this echoes in the readers mind as they feel scared as Shelley has portrayed a sense of mystery and it shows the build up of suspense. There is no closure at the end of the story, “He was soon borne away by the waves and lost in distance and darkness”, which is a typically gothic ending as it ends in darkness with a cliff-hanger leaving the reader to fear the monster’s return.
‘Frankenstein’ is clearly typical of gothic literature due to the isolation of the characters, the differences between life and death, the emotive language, the weather and the setting as well as the general gothic, frightening atmosphere. Throughout the novel, ‘Frankenstein’, Mary Shelley was exploring her own background by using some of her mother’s ideas as well as the style of her father’s novels. She created a typically gothic atmosphere which helps the reader to experience the depth of the story. In my opinion, ‘Frankenstein’ creates a gothic genre which illustrates the importance of life and death as well as teaching the reader to take responsibility in their actions and to not leave anyone in isolation.
