The
question of Frankenstein’s origin is one which has puzzled many. The thought
that a woman could come up with such a horrid idea was unnerving at the time
which is why many sought to find a logical explanation. In her introduction,
which she wrote as the result of the insistence of many who wished to unravel
this mystery, Mary Shelley attempts to explain how the idea of such a monster
came to her. However, she wrote this
introduction over a decade after her book was published, not wanting to cause any
personal intrusion in her novel. She gives a very general and brief report of
the summer in which Frankenstein was created and addresses the fact that this
idea in no way was sparked by past experiences or pain she had felt herself. She
states that she knew no measure of true pain back in those days, for her loss
came much after. The reader can infer that this lost companion whom she speaks
of was her husband, yet she makes it a point to not mention his name, keeping
her personal life locked away and to herself.
Shelley’s
attempt to satisfy the reader without giving any personal information and
keeping it as general as possible makes one wonder if it was simply a ploy to
keep people from speculating and dabbling more into her life. The fact that she
stated she had known no pain back when the story was created wasn’t entirely
true. She had experienced a miscarriage before that summer and had to cope with
the fact that she was seeing a married man and that the child she was carrying
would have been a bastard child in society’s eyes. Although what Mary Shelley
stated may be true, that there were no personal implications within the story, the
fact that the idea came to her in a dream brings in the subconscious. She may
not have thought more of the dream, or she may have simply not wanted to share
her fears with the public, yet the dream clearly has some underlying
resemblance to her life, embodying certain fears which could have arisen in her
mind.
In
the dream she had that summer, which she describes in her introduction, she saw
a creature being rejected by his creator. With this she may subconsciously be
channeling two different fears within her: the first being the rejection of any
child she had in the past or would have in the future, not only from Percy himself,
but from society as well; and the second being that the creation of life would
be accompanied by death once again. The fact that Victor leaves the creature on
its own and that society rejected him, perpetually remaining outside of society
marked the creature’s fate, and it’s this very fate which may have subconsciously
sparked this terror, for she didn’t want her child to grow up without a father
and being ostracized by society. These of course are mere speculations, which
string together Mary Shelley’s subconscious to her vivid imagination, which in no way lead us to a concluding thought.
Discussion Questions:
In your opinion, are Mary Shelley’s
fears entwined in her novel? Does she remove herself from the text as she
states?
What significance does that dream
have in your opinion?
