Fiction and the Fantastic: ‘Frankenstein’ by Mary Shelley
Born from grief, exile, intellectual ferment and the ‘year without a summer’, Frankenstein is a creation myth with its own creation myth. Mary Shelley’s novel is a foundational work of science fiction, horror and trauma narrative, and continues to spark reinvention and reinterpretation. In their fourth conversation together, Adam Thirlwell and Marina Warner explore Shelley’s treatment of birth, death, monstrosity and the limits of science. They discuss Frankenstein’s philosophical and personal undercurrents, and how the creature and his creator have broken free from the book. Non-subscribers will only hear an extract from this episode. To listen to the full episode, and all our other Close Readings series, subscribe: Directly in Apple Podcasts: https://lrb.me/applecrff In other podcast apps: https://lrb.me/closereadingsff Read more in the LRB: Claire Tomalin on Mary Shelley’s letters: https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v03/n03/claire-tomalin/scandal-s-hostages Caroline Gonda on the original Frankenstein: https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v32/n02/caroline-gonda/ink-blots-pin-holes Marilyn Butler on Frankenstein as myth: https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v10/n09/marilyn-butler/versatile-monster Anne Barton on Mary Shelley’s life: https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v23/n03/anne-barton/tousy-mousy Next episode: Chloe Aridjis on the short fiction of Jorge Luis Borges.