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Mary Shelley's Frankenstein - Hardcore Halloween Lecture (Patreon)

Published:
2021-10-27 18:00:31
Imported:
2026-06
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Content

Dear Book Club Readers ---

Happy Halloween from Hardcore Literature!

Many of you have decided to celebrate by tearing through Mary Shelley's gothic masterpiece, Frankenstein.

So, in this video lecture, we'll be penetrating into the dark cosmos of the tale with psychological, aesthetic, and mythological readings.

If you're coming to the story for the first time, bear in mind that this video contains spoilers. That aside, the discussion should prove an illuminating one whether you watch before, after, or lieu of reading. 

Please do share your personal response to Frankenstein below, along with any questions you would like me to answer, and I will read them out on a dedicated show.

Video Timestamps:

  • 0:00 Frankenstein in the collective imagination
  • 1:00 why Frankenstein has endured
  • 2:00 who was Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley?
  • 3:00 how the tale was born
  • 8:00 Shelley’s introduction to the 1831 edition
  • 11:00 the tapestry of Frankenstein
  • 11:30 how to read the Romantic Sublime
  • 12:00 what is Romanticism?
  • 12:30 the history of art criticism
  • 14:30 Pain, suffering, and the Sublime
  • 16:30 Mary Shelley’s pathetic fallacy
  • 17:00 Coleridge’s Rime of the Ancient Mariner
  • 19:50 Byron’s Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage
  • 20:30 Percy Bysshe Shelley’s Mont Blanc
  • 21:50 what is Romance?
  • 22:50 how did the Gothic develop?
  • 23:00 Jane Austen, and the year of 1818
  • 24:00 how to read the Gothic
  • 24:30 three characteristics of Gothic Literature
  • 25:00 Byronic heroes, and the vampire myth
  • 26:00 how the Gothic genre changed
  • 26:50 the doppelgänger in literature
  • 28:00 science, knowledge, and dodgy doctors
  • 29:00 surgeons during the 18th Century
  • 30:00 Dr. Frankenstein’s operating/dissection room
  • 33:00 the bride’s corpse
  • 33:30 “I shall be with you on your wedding night”
  • 34:00 The creation of man and woman in Genesis
  • 35:00 Frankenstein and Milton’s Satan
  • 38:45 Theory of Mind, and the “dot” test
  • 39:00 the psychology of self-awareness
  • 40:40 childhood and development of empathy
  • 41:50 Hobbes’ theory of nature
  • 42:00 who is the real monster?
  • 44:00 the two most affecting passages in the novel
  • 44:30 sympathy, suffering, and the cottagers
  • 46:00 how Frankenstein ends
  • 50:00 the monster teaching himself to love
  • 51:00 Wordsworth, Coleridge, Blake
  • 52:00 Theophrastus and character types
  • 53:45 the myth of Prometheus
  • 55:00 Nietzsche and eternal recurrence
  • 56:00 we are all that fallen creature
  • 56:40 the thing that haunts me about Frankenstein
  • 59:40 the future of Frankenstein
  • 1:00:00 a warning to those who read Frankenstein

Discussion

1) What feeling did Frankenstein leave you with? Pity? Fear? Sadness? A mixture, or other emotions?

2) What do you think Frankenstein is about today? What was Mary Shelley's message to future generations?

3) How would you persuade another reader to pick up the book?

Happy Halloween Season, everybody!

Files

Previews only

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein - Hardcore Halloween Lecture

0:00 Frankenstein in the collective imagination 1:00 why Frankenstein has endured 2:00 who was Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley? 3:00 how the tale was born 8:00 Shelley’s introduction to the 1831 edition 11:00 the tapestry of Frankenstein 11:30 how to read the Romantic Sublime 12:00 what is Romanticism? 12:30 the history of art criticism 14:30 Pain, suffering, and the Sublime 16:30 Mary Shelley’s pathetic fallacy 17:00 Coleridge’s Rime of the Ancient Mariner 19:50 Byron’s Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage 20:30 Percy Bysshe Shelley’s Mont Blanc 21:50 what is Romance? 22:50 how did the Gothic develop? 23:00 Jane Austen, and the year of 1818 24:00 how to read the Gothic 24:30 three characteristics of Gothic Literature 25:00 Byronic heroes, and the vampire myth 26:00 how the Gothic genre changed 26:50 the doppelgänger in literature 28:00 science, knowledge, and dodgy doctors 29:00 surgeons during the 18th Century 30:00 Dr. Frankenstein’s operating/dissection room 33:00 the bride’s corpse 33:30 “I shall be with you on your wedding night” 34:00 The creation of man and woman in Genesis 35:00 Frankenstein and Milton’s Satan 38:45 Theory of Mind, and the “dot” test 39:00 the psychology of self-awareness 40:40 childhood and development of empathy 41:50 Hobbes’ theory of nature 42:00 who is the real monster? 44:00 the two most affecting passages in the novel 44:30 sympathy, suffering, and the cottagers 46:00 how Frankenstein ends 50:00 the monster teaching himself to love 51:00 Wordsworth, Coleridge, Blake 52:00 Theophrastus and character types 53:45 the myth of Prometheus 55:00 Nietzsche and eternal recurrence 56:00 we are all that fallen creature 56:40 the thing that haunts me about Frankenstein 59:40 the future of Frankenstein 1:00:00 a warning to those who read Frankenstein

Comments

Emma Yap

I'm know it's blasphemous to say this, but I didn't really like this novel. I was left feeling very conflicted after finishing it. On the one hand, the sections told from the monster's point of view are incredibly moving. On the other hand, I really disliked Frankenstein - he's a pretty loathsome character, and I struggled with the fact that he essentially doesn't learn anything and doesn't change throughout the novel. He remains attached to his erroneous ideas and this eventually leads to his downfall. I thought the female characters (Elizabeth, Justine) in particular were quite drippy and in general, the characterisation was flat. The most compelling character by far was the monster. Although I initially liked the sublime descriptions of nature, after a while, I found them a bit irritating, especially given that they were usually written from the pov of Frankenstein. It irked me that he was able to appreciate the terror of a thunderstorm, but was incapable of showing similar sensitivity of feeling towards his monster. I'm not sure I've really got my head around Romanticism - I have purchased the Edmund Burke book to see whether I can gain some more insight. And finally, I disagreed with quite a bit of the narration, which made it difficult for me to engage with this novel. For example, there is a recurring theme that knowledge is bad, and that it was Frankenstein's search for knowledge which led him to his downfall. I believe the monster also says at some point that if he'd never gained knowledge of how vicious men are he would have remained happy. I disagree with this. I suppose it's ok to disagree with the narrator, but there comes a point at which one wonders whether the author really believes in the words that they are putting into their characters' mouths, or whether they actually want you to disagree with them - in which case, why?

AranBoston

Frankenstein had a profound impact on me. In fact, Mary Shelley's masterpiece may have informed my personal values, ethics, and morals to an extent that it has helped shape who I am today. I think it's one of the most important and prophetic novels in the English canon.