Mary Shelley Publishes Frankenstein
January 1, 1818 · 19th Century
Twenty-year-old Mary Shelley published Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus anonymously in London through Lackington and Co., with 500 copies printed. The novel originated during the summer of 1816 at Lake Geneva, when Lord Byron challenged his guests to each write a ghost story during volcanic-ash darkened skies caused by the Tambora eruption. Shelley drew on Luigi Galvani's electrical experiments and Erasmus Darwin's speculations about animating dead matter. The story of a scientist creating life and recoiling from his creation blended Gothic horror with questions about scientific responsibility.
Key Figures
Mary ShelleyLord Byron
Locations
Villa Diodati, Lake Geneva
Topics
scientific ethicsscience fiction originsGothic literatureRomantic eragalvanismanonymous publication
Connected Events — 6 Connections
Frankenstein became a foundational text for science fiction that later influenced film, including early cinema adaptations Lumiere Brothers Public Screening at Grand Cafe
Frankenstein became a foundational science fiction text that influenced early cinema, including multiple film adaptations beginning in 1910 Lumiere Brothers Public Screening at Grand Cafe
Hamlet's exploration of mortality and revenge established literary templates for Gothic psychology Hamlet First Performed
Tambora's eruption caused the cold dark summer of 1816 that confined Shelley's group indoors, prompting the ghost story challenge Mount Tambora Eruption Causes the Year Without a Summer
The Castle of Otranto established Gothic fiction conventions of supernatural terror and atmospheric settings that Mary Shelley drew upon when writing Frankenstein Horace Walpole Publishes The Castle of Otranto
Godwin daughter Mary Shelley drew on her father philosophical circle and themes of human ambition overreaching natural limits when writing Frankenstein Godwin Publishes An Enquiry Concerning Political Justice
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