Frankenstein : The 1818 Text

Had always wanted to read Frankenstein. This is the unedited edition as Mary Shelley wrote, not the censored version of 1830s. Brilliant

This print by Notion Press is not good. Please buy the original print by Penguin Classics and check the publisher/publishing house when buying.

Mary Shelley’s famous novel was first published in 1818 anonymously, and since then has always remained a hit with the reading public, although in the critical world there has always been a bit of a debate over how good it really is, which started on the initial publication. When it was discovered that it was written by a woman, so things became worse, with derisory comments galore in certain publications, and it being said that this was a cut-rate version of one of Mary’s father’s works. Despite this the vast majority of people have always enjoyed it though, and it is easy to see why.In this edition we have the 1818 text, which due to certain comments and arguments was then somewhat edited in 1823, and then later again in 1831, the last being the edition that probably most people are familiar with. To be honest to notice what changes have been made through all the editions you will really need to read them in parallel, or nowadays there are probably sites you can find online which will tell you of these textual alterations. At the end of the day it is down to the individual which version they personally prefer, and they do have certain aspects to recommend them in different ways.The tale here then is what we are all interested in and is something that can still make us think and raise awareness of various issues. Feminism has come to the forefront, although there is the aspect of Frankenstein’s creation which is not feeling comfortable and not belonging, which many can relate to, whether it is due to sexuality, being a teenager, an immigrant and so on. It is this multi-layered aspect to the tale that is of course something that appeals to so many, as well as runaway science and not foreseeing what damage you are about to create.Hearing from what is considered the monster as well as the other characters, so we can see a whole range of very human emotions coming to life, from inquisitiveness, through to compassion, anger, revenge and sadness and despair. This is thus something we are all drawn into and can feel the various emotions and arguments of both Frankenstein, and his creation, and what they have in common, and also what their differences are. Although there are flaws here, such as the creature learning language and other things really fast, and indeed when he talks his vocabulary is way above what it should be, so we overlook this due to the arguments that are raised and we find ourselves fully drawn into the tale. That this has stood the test of time is a testament to Mary Shelley, and although written so long ago this still has a modern feel and the power to make us all read and think about the world around us. Whether you choose this edition or another, at the end of the day Frankenstein is a book everyone should read at least once.

I purchased the Kindle version clearly stating everywhere that it is Frankenstein 1818 but Elizabeth is most definitely an orphaned child that they chose to take in which made me think that this could have not been the original text? Yet Victor and the deamon seem to very much express their free will throughout the text (which is what I found out to be the biggest differences in versions) which has left me baffled what I have read.. any help will be really appreciated ! :)

Do you know, I never actually knew the story it's so so much better than the horror movies you associate with it. Great narration

This is the third version of Frankenstein which I've read. This, the original, is the best of all 3. The background material brings out the alpine location the best (I have been privileged to visit near there). The book flows in the Anglo-German tradition best, making the book (in my opinion) the best of all 3 versions!

Frankenstein is a great work, though one that has consistently been underratedand misrepresented. Frankenstein is, in the words of Donald H. Reiman, "themost seminal literary work of the Romantic period". It is a work of profoundand radical ideas, written in poetically powerful prose. Frankenstein is notreally a gothic novel, although its author sometimes employs gothicconventions and language, and even spoofs them. Rather, Frankenstein is anenduring myth, a novel of ideas, and above all, a moral allegory about theevil effects of intolerance and prejudice, ostracism and alienation, both tothe victims of intolerance and to society at large.Since there are some good reviews here, I'll concentrate on thisparticular edition -- the Chicago edition edited by James Rieger.This is one of the two best editions of Frankenstein available (the otherbeing the Norton Critical edition). Most importantly, this isthe original 1818 edition, rather than the inferior, bowdlerized 1831edition -- which is the most common, and the only one that was available forwell over a century. James Rieger was the first editor to make the case for thesuperiority of the 1818 edition, and he did so convincingly enough that almost allscholars of English Romanticism now prefer the 1818 edition. Rieger took a lotof flak from feminist academics for asserting that Percy Bysshe Shelley was,at the very least, a minor collaborator. In my considered opinion, Shelley was the primary author, and Mary Shelley was merely his secretary.The appendices in this edition include the full text of John William Polidori'sstory, "The Vampyre: A Tale" and Byron's brief fragment of a vampire story.Rieger's comments on the 1831 Introduction (written ostensibly by Mary, but withmuch help from her father, William Godwin) are perceptive.Please check out my own book, The Man Who Wrote Frankenstein, whichmakes the case that Frankenstein was really written by Percy Bysshe Shelley,one of the greatest poets in the English language.