My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Frankenstein was an instant classic when published in 1818 and still holds a hallowed place in world literature. You can't have a serious discussion about scientific advancement in any field today without someone asking, "Are we making a Frankenstein's monster?" It's taken me awhile to get to this book myself, but after finally reading it, I must say that it lives up to the hype.
The novel, which follows the life of Victor Frankenstein and the monster he creates, is good. The basic plot, which you already know, is gripping and Mary Shelley really knew how to write a good sentence. Unlike many other books of 19th century literature, there isn't a whole lot of wasted space and this book is just as quick a read today as any other book of contemporary literature. Indeed, this may be one of the most readable books of classic literature you are likely to find and, I dare say, will still be readable 100 years from now.
That is not to say that this book is completely free of the 19th century tropes that have bogged down other classic literature. There is still the obligatory retelling of the main character's life from their birth to their very death, like with Jean Valjean in Les Misérables, and there is a lot of exposition, particularly when the monster begins to relate his own story. While the language is still very readable, it is still very flowery, with the same long-winded flourishes that you will find in other classic 19th century literature. In spite of that, this is still an incredibly tight story, mostly because of the overall story's shortness. I could imagine this book getting tedious were it 100 or 200 pages longer.
Frankenstein has survived and thrived in our cultural landscape not just because of the thematic elements that still haunt contemporary debates about nature, humanity, and science, but also because it is a darn good book. This is a book that will appeal to science fiction and horror fans, but is also a great seating point for classic literature.
No comments:
Post a Comment