Mary Shelley's Frankenstein: Essay Topics, Questions, & Ideas | Literature Guides at IvyPanda® (2024)

by IvyPanda®

6 min

4,254

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein: Essay Topics, Questions, & Ideas | Literature Guides at IvyPanda® (1)

Welcome to the Frankenstein Essay Topics page prepared by our editorial team! Here, you’ll find a selection of top ideas, questions, and titles for any academic paper. We have topics about Frankenstein’s literary analysis, characters, themes, and more.

Table of contents

  1. 🔬 Literary Analysis

  2. 🎭 Characters

  3. 🌻 Themes

  4. ⌛ Context

  5. 🗺️ Navigation

  6. 🎓 References

Frankenstein is a famous novel, and students will often have to write papers about it. If you have received such an assignment, this article is for you! When writing a Frankenstein literary analysis essay, there are many areas you can consider, such as characters, themes, and context. Below, we have provided 99 outstanding ideas that you can use for your assignment or to find inspiration. Don’t forget to illustrate your arguments with quotes from text when writing your Frankenstein literary analysis.

🔬 Frankenstein Literary Analysis Essay Topics

  1. What are the literary devices used to create the image of Victor Frankenstein?

  2. What literary devices are used to create the image of the Monster?

  3. What is the importance of setting in Frankenstein?

  4. Romanticism in Frankenstein: the use of poetry in the novel’s narrative

  5. Who is the narrator of Frankenstein, and why is the narration important?

  6. Narrative technique in Frankenstein.

  7. Nature symbolism in Frankenstein.

  8. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein as a tragedy

  9. How does weather reflect the narrative of Frankenstein? Give examples.

  10. What does fire symbolize in Frankenstein?

  11. How is the power of nature depicted in Frankenstein?

  12. What is the purpose of letters in Frankenstein?

  13. Biblical symbolism in Frankenstein.

  14. Why is Frankenstein called Modern Prometheus?

  15. Point of view in Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

  16. Frankenstein: a deconstructive reading

  17. Analyze the romantic elements in Frankenstein.

  18. Is Frankenstein a gothic novel?

  19. What literary devices are used to create fear in Frankenstein?

  20. What is the writing style of Frankenstein?

  21. Examine the role of suspense and foreshadowing throughout Frankenstein. Do you think these devices are effective?

  22. How does foreshadowing differ among the three main narrators of Frankenstein (Walton, Victor, and the Monster)?

  23. What is the purpose of the ring composition of Frankenstein?

  24. How does Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein allude to the myth of Prometheus?

  25. How is Frankenstein a romantic and horror novel?

  26. What role do letters from Elizabeth play in Frankenstein‘s narrative?

  27. What would the novel be like if it was narrated by only Frankenstein or only the monster?

  28. What does the novel gain from having so many levels of narration? Why do you suppose it might have been structured with so many embedded narratives?

  29. In what ways and for what ends does Mary Shelley utilize the myth of Prometheus in her novel, Frankenstein?

  30. Three Separate Narratives within Shelley’s Frankenstein

  31. Frankenstein: Weather, Seasons, and Emotional Symbolism

Back to the Contents

🎭 Frankenstein Essay Topics: Characters

  1. How are women depicted in Frankenstein? How does Shelley make them look passive?

  2. Why isn’t Frankenstein’s monster given a name?

  3. Who is the real monster in Frankenstein?

  4. Is Frankenstein’s monster responsible for the characters’ deaths?

  5. What did the childhood of Victor Frankenstein look like? What role does it play in the narrative?

  6. Does the monster’s eloquence and persuasiveness make it easier for the reader to sympathize with him? Why do you think most film versions of the story present the monster as mute or inarticulate?

  7. Trace the similarities between Victor Frankenstein and the Monster. Consider their respective relationships with nature, desires for family, and any other important parallels you find.

  8. Do Victor and the Monster become more similar to Frankenstein‘s plot? How does their relationship with each other develop?

  9. Victor attributes his tragic fate to his relentless search for knowledge. Do you think that this is the true cause of his suffering?

  10. Why does Shelley describe all female characters in Frankenstein as self-sacrificing and passive?

  11. Who is more human, the Monster of Frankenstein?

  12. Analyze the motivations of the main characters in Frankenstein.

  13. Victor and the Monster feature radically different perspectives on the events of Frankenstein. Whose viewpoint do you support?

  14. Is the Creature’s demand for a female companion a valid request? Examine the pros and cons of Victor’s compliance.

  15. After watching the she-monster torn to pieces, the Creature vows that Victor will “repent of the injuries (he) inflicts. Is the Creature justified in his feelings? Why or why not?

  16. What role does Elizabeth play in Frankenstein?

  17. What is the motivation behind Victor’s vow to find and destroy his creature? Has he learned any lessons?

  18. Discuss the humanity of Frankenstein‘s Monster.

  19. What role does Justine Moritz play in the novel?

  20. What is the Monster’s experience of meeting people? How do they react? Why is it so?

  21. How does the Monster learn to read and speak? What is his motivation?

  22. What role does Safie play in Frankenstein? Look at her situation from the feminist perspective. She considers marrying a Christian as the only way to become a freer woman. What does this fact tell us about the society she lives in?

  23. Why does the Monster kill William Frankenstein?

  24. Examine the relationship between Victor Frankenstein and his monster. How do they interact and communicate with each other?

  25. How does the creature of Frankenstein form the archetypal monster/horror character?

  26. “Victor Frankenstein and the Monster share the same personality: like father, like son”. Defend or attack this statement.

  27. How does Walton’s narration affect the story? How does it affect your interpretation of characters and events?

  28. Do you think that the monster has free will? Provide textual examples in support of your claim.

Back to the Contents

🌻 Frankenstein Essay Topics: Themes

  1. How is the theme of loneliness depicted in Frankenstein by Mary Shelley?

  2. Discuss the role of sickness in the novel. Victor often seems to fall ill after traumatic events. Is this a means of escape, and, if so, is it effective?

  3. In what ways does Frankenstein present science and knowledge as dangerous and destructive?

  4. How is the idea of exploration revealed in Frankenstein?

  5. Responsibility as a Theme in Frankenstein

  6. How are the dangers of obsession shown in Frankenstein?

  7. What ethical concerns the use of animal and human bodies by Victor Frankenstein might raise?

  8. Analyze Frankenstein through the prism of feminist theory

  9. Describe the theme of kindness and compassion in Frankenstein

  10. Frankenstein: the theme of birth

  11. To what extent does Frankenstein support Mary Wollstonecraft’s claim that women were treated as inferior to men?

  12. hom*osexuality in Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

  13. Science is portrayed in a bad light in the novel Frankenstein. The author implies that the direction that civilization moves in is determined by what it understands about power. Analyze this statement in relation to the current society.

  14. Does Frankenstein present the value of the domestic circle?

  15. Describe how the theme of ambition is presented in Frankenstein.

  16. Throughout the novel, Victor Frankenstein states that he had no choice, that he was destined, that it was fate that he created the monster. Were his actions really a matter of fate? Or is he simply using fate as an excuse for his actions?

  17. Critical analysis of human Nature in Frankenstein, as it Connects to Freudian Psychology

  18. Scientific inquiry in Frankenstein

  19. Frankenstein as a feminist novel

  20. Desire and revenge in Frankenstein and Prometheus

  21. The theme of knowledge portrayed in Frankenstein

Back to the Contents

⌛ Frankenstein Essay Topics: Context

  1. Describe how Mary Shelley’s life experiences influenced the story of Frankenstein

  2. What is the historical relevance of Frankenstein by Mary Shelley? Find in the text the examples of reactions to the historical movements of the Enlightenment, industrial revolution, and romanticism.

  3. How are the ideas of Shelley’s parents presented in Frankenstein?

  4. How does Frankenstein rely on the ideas, beliefs, and issues presented in other texts?

  5. How might Frankenstein be read as a commentary on scientific progress?

  6. Historical Context in Frankenstein

  7. Frankenstein: the autobiography of Mary Shelley?

Back to the Contents

📊 Compare & Contrast Frankenstein Essay Questions

  1. Compare and contrast Frankenstein and The Last Man by Mary Shelley

  2. How is the theme of revenge shown in Frankenstein and Hamlet?

  3. Frankenstein: compare the novel with the movie of 1937

  4. Compare Frankenstein and The Picture of Dorian Gray

  5. Compare Frankenstein and Macbeth

  6. Make a comparison of The Handmaid’s Tale and Frankenstein

  7. Which Frankenstein movie is most like the book?

  8. Discuss the differences and similarities between Victor Frankenstein and Beowulf

  9. Compare and contrast Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and Robert Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

  10. How has Frankenweenie, a film by Tim Burton, transformed Frankenstein by Mary Shelley to appeal to modern audiences?

  11. From superhuman to posthuman: The gothic technological imaginary in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and Octavia Butler’s Xenogenesis

  12. Science, gender and otherness in Shelley’s Frankenstein and Kenneth Branagh’s film adaptation

  13. Compare and contrast the theme of appearances in Frankenstein to the same theme in other literary works.

  14. Monstrous characters in Frankenstein and Hedda Gabler

  15. Pity and revenge in Frankenstein and The Cry of the Children

  16. Technology’s effect on human relationships: comparing Station Eleven and Frankenstein

  17. Gender roles in Frankenstein and Fantomina

Back to the Contents

🎓 References

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein: Essay Topics, Questions, & Ideas | Literature Guides at IvyPanda® (2024)

References

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Article information

Author: Merrill Bechtelar CPA

Last Updated:

Views: 6284

Rating: 5 / 5 (50 voted)

Reviews: 89% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Merrill Bechtelar CPA

Birthday: 1996-05-19

Address: Apt. 114 873 White Lodge, Libbyfurt, CA 93006

Phone: +5983010455207

Job: Legacy Representative

Hobby: Blacksmithing, Urban exploration, Sudoku, Slacklining, Creative writing, Community, Letterboxing

Introduction: My name is Merrill Bechtelar CPA, I am a clean, agreeable, glorious, magnificent, witty, enchanting, comfortable person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.