Episode 8.4: ‘Frankenstein’ by Mary Shelley
Our dark academia adjacent title for season 8 takes us into the realms of science fiction and fantasy - the first science fiction novel, nonetheless - and one of both of our favourite classic novels: 'Frankenstein’ by Mary Shelley.
Mary Shelley's chilling Gothic tale was conceived when she was only eighteen, living with her lover Percy Shelley on Lake Geneva. The story of Victor Frankenstein who, obsessed with creating life itself, plunders graveyards for the material to fashion a new being, but whose botched creature sets out to destroy his maker, would become the world's most famous work of horror fiction, and remains a devastating exploration of the limits of human creativity.
Written under the company of some of the most famous Romantic writers and focusing on some of the most masterfully written settings and academic conflicts in my fiction, ‘Frankenstein’ is going to be a must read when we look at it as a base influence for dark academia.
In this episode we discuss:
The birth of genre fiction, specifically science fiction, and subsequent influences.
Philosophical, moral and ethical questions surrounding the text.
Victor Frankenstein and his (lack of) responsibility for his actions.
The Dark Academia tropes and how they match up to the text.
How much we love Mary Shelley.
You can listen to it here:
TEXTS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
‘Frankenstein’ by Mary Shelley (1818 text)
‘Frankenstein' by Mary Shelley (1831 text)
‘Dracula' by Bram Stoker
OTHER MEDIA AND POP CULTURE MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
‘Dracula' 1958 film (Christopher Lee et al.)
‘Frankenstein' 1994 film (Kenneth Branagh, Helena Bonham Carter et al.)
‘National Live Theatre: Frankenstein' 2011 (Benedict Cumberbatch et al.)
‘Victor Frankenstein' 2015 film (James McAvoy, Daniel Radcliffe et al.)
‘Young Frankenstein’ 1974 film (Mel Brooks) (and subsequen stage musical)
‘Lisa Frankenstein' 2024 film (Cole Sprouse et al.)
If you want to join us on a sublime journey through ‘Frankenstein’, we’d love it if you considered using our bookshop.org link below to purchase your copy of the book which helps us fund ‘The Dark Academicals’ and gives back to independent bookshops at no extra cost to you.
You can also sign up to The Dark Academicals Book Club mailer for exclusive book club content, extra episodes and author interviews!
