Finished up with my second reread of Frankenstein by Mary Shelley and it still holds up as one my favorite gothic horror works ever written. I know the talk of who the real monster is the most popular talking point, and it's a well-deserved point to focus on. But what gets my attention the most is just the way that Shelley uses such beautiful and dread filled language to describe the scenery of wide-reaching landscapes to decayed villages are both memorizing and haunting. And what gets me with the overall tone of the book is the way the monster is depicted as not just a horrid creature, but something that the narrative makes me feel pity for. Leaving me with varied thoughts that center on the philosophical, religious, and ethical questions of someone's obsession with creation and control.
In terms of horror, I'd say in my two reads I never felt scared, but it never took away the feeling of anxiety and dread that built up in the more intense scenes and encounters within the book. I did feel emotionally drained on the first read as the emotional weight littered throughout the book is quite a bit to take in when reading Frankenstein's spiral through grief and sadness. But this, I believe, is what the makes the book stand out from other gothic horror books I've read. Instead of just trying to be scary with one-dimensional characters, it's more complex, introspective, and philosophical than I originally expected on the first read and came to fully appreciate on the second.
Though it was written in the 1800s, it still holds up incredibly well for anyone looking to dive into more classical works in the horror genre. The writing and language, at times, can be a little tricky and dense to follow due to being an older style of English writing, but within twenty pages, I got used to it and ended up liking it quite a bit. And I ended up surprised at how modern the story is and the way it depicts humanity's follies still hold true in the present day. I didn't get a chance to watch the Guillermo Del Toro's film version of Frankenstein yet, but I'm real curious to see how Mary Shelley's literary vision translated to the big screen.
by TheDeadReader_