Let's Talk about Frankenstein

Frankenstein is an absolutely beautiful novel written by Mary Shelley in 1818. This Novel is still widely revered as a classic and is read far and wide by many for the first time every year. This novel provides so much educational content and pushes students to form their own opinions and use all of their critical thinking skills to look deeper into the story and themes and determine what they think is right and wrong, and decide for themselves if the monster was born, or created,

I am not writing to discuss these themes. I am writing to talk about the fascinating science within the science fiction of the book and movie alike.

While a lot of the anatomy if the book and movies is accurate, electricity cannot reanimate body tissues as depicted. However, this is a still a perfect example of how two different classes can work together. English and Science (and potentially psychology) classes can each discuss the novel from different view points.

Science

1. The pursuit of scientific knowledge.

   1. This a great time to discuss the importance of scientific advances and compare the impossibilities of the novel with actual scientific discoveries of the 19th and 20th centuries. There is a plethora of science and medical achievements for students to note. They could even do a mini project or report on a specific decade to present back to the class.

2. Use of the scientific method

   1. Victor Frankenstein spent years studying and researching to become a doctor for his experiment. There was many attempts and trial and error on his part to attempt to reanimate life. He did not give up, he tried and tried again until he succeeded.

3. Scientific ethics

   1. Just because we are able to do something, does that mean we should? There is a lot of ethical issues and scenarios to consider with his experiments.

   2. What is science fiction and what isn't? Students can go through the pieces of the novel and point out which pieces of material are fact and what is fiction. This is also an fun opportunity for a graphic organizer project or students to work in groups on a large chart to present or hang up.

4. They could also write a scientific paper about other ways we could try to reanimate dead bodies if electricity won't work. This gives them a chance to do scientific research and be creative. They could alternatively come up with their own science fiction and detail how they would make it work, such as time travel or intergalactic space travel.

   
   

Psychology

1. Ethics

   1. Once again we must ask ourselves, just because we can, should we? Victor Frankenstein puts up a good argument. He almost convinces you of what we should do, but the further you read, your opinion shifts in several directions, forcing you to make your decision by the end of the novel.

2. Madness or genius

   1. Is Dr. Frankenstein justified in his actions or are you slowly watching him descend into madness over his obsession? Throughout the story students are able to practice pulling evidence to support the conclusion they came to and learn to use critical thinking and inferring skills.

3. Nature vs. Nurture

   1. We all know he is referred to as "Frankenstein's Monster", but is he actually? Was he born a monster or was he made a monster by the surrounding situation. Another great example for students to pull out their own conclusions based on critical thinking skills.

4. You could also have them write a paper expressing their thoughts on reanimation and if they could reanimate a lost loved one, or even a pet, would they? Why or why not?

English

1. Appeal

   1. What's the appeal? How has a story over 200 years old survived this long? With movies and references being made within the last 10 years, the story is still going strong.

2. Themes

   1. There are so many themes to discuss throughout the novel. Womanhood vs. the patriarchy. Parenting, affection, fate vs. free will, isolation, revenge, love, the list goes on. There is so much to dive into regarding the overarching themes and analysis of the book

3. Symbolism

   1. Along with the several themes that run throughout the novel, there is also endless symbolism that can be found and interpreted. These can be interpreted in many ways and can even be different from student to student based on their own activities and life experiences.

4. Students could also take all that they have learned and interpreted from the novel to write a final paper detailing how the monster might be treated differently today if he were real, or how Dr. Frankenstein would be treated if he succeeded with his trials. Lastly, you could have them write out if they could reanimate any person, who would it be and why?