Monstrous progeny: a history of the Frankenstein narratives

252 Pages·2016·4.288 MB·English

by  Frankenstein, Victor;Friedman, Lester D.;Kavey, Allison;Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft

Monstrous Progeny
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Monstrous Progeny
A History of the Frankenstein Narratives
LESTER D. FRIEDMAN
AND ALLISON B. KAVEY
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RUTGERS UNIVERSITY PRESS
NEW BRUNSWICK, NEW JERSEY, AND LONDON
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Friedman, Lester D., author. | Kavey, Allison, 1977–author.
Title: Monstrous progeny: a history of the Frankenstein narratives /
Lester D. Friedman, Allison B. Kavey.
Description: New Brusnwick, New Jersey: Rutgers University Press, 2016. |
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2015047575| ISBN 9780813564241 (hardback) |
ISBN 9780813564234 (pbk.) | ISBN 9780813564258 (e-book (web pdf))
Subjects: LCSH: Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft, 1797–1851. Frankenstein. | Shelley,
Mary Wollstonecraft, 1797–1851—Adapatations. | Frankenstein, Victor (Fictitious
character)—Miscellanea. | Frankenstein’s monster (Fictitious character)—
Miscellanea. | Monsters in mass media. | BISAC: PERFORMING ARTS / Film & Video /
History & Criticism. | LITERARY CRITICISM / Gothic & Romance. | SOCIAL SCIENCE /
Popular Culture. | LITERARY CRITICISM / European / English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh.
| LITERARY CRITICISM / Semiotics & Theory. | SOCIAL SCIENCE / Media Studies. |
LITERARY CRITICISM / Science Fiction & Fantasy.
Classification: LCC PR5397.F73 F785 2016 | DDC 823/.7—dc23
LC record available at http://lccn.loc.gov/2015047575
A British Cataloging-in-Publication record for this book is available
from the British Library.
Copyright © 2016 by Lester D. Friedman and Allison B. Kavey
All rights reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means,
electronic or mechanical, or by any information storage and retrieval system,
without written permission from the publisher. Please contact Rutgers University
Press, 106 Somerset Street, New Brunswick, NJ 08901. The only exception to this
prohibition is “fair use” as defined by U.S. copyright law.
Visit our website: http://rutgerspress.rutgers.edu
Manufactured in the United States of America
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For Bob Congemi, who inspired me to become a teacher
—LDF
For Kraken, my own monster though never my creation
—ABK
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Something was waiting for him in the darkness, a part of himself he
couldn’t deny.
— A lice Hoffman, The Museum of Extraordinary Things
The world will teach them about monsters soon enough. Let them
remember there’s always the poker.
— T erry Pratchett, Hogfather
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CONTENTS
Acknowledgments xi
Introduction: Singing the Body Electric 1
1 In a Country of Eternal Light: Frankenstein’s
Intellectual History 15
2 The Instruments of Life: Frankenstein’s Medical History 40
3 A More Horrid Contrast: From the Page to the Stage 71
4 It’s Still Alive: The Universal and Hammer Movie Cycles 92
5 Mary Shelley’s Stepchildren: Transitions, Translations,
and Transformations 146
6 Fifty Ways to Leave Your Monster 201
Notes 211
Select Bibliography 221
Index 229
ix
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