Elements of the genre

Rain, lightning, storms, darkness, suspense, hidden passageways, pretty girls, intelligent obsessed men, paintings that watch you, candles, firelight, monsters, fog, full moons, werewolfs, graveyards, swamps, unsuspecting characters, mansions, murders, mystery, mad scientists, film noir, hidden staircases, cobwebs, ugly sidekicks, bats, rats, unsuspecting townspeople.

Frankenstein

I have to say that I was completely shocked at the complexity of the set up of this novel. It all seemed like a giant telephone game; each event was translated and spoken through person to person, and I can't help but think about how intentional this was. This being a very dark and mysterious novel, I feel like the author used this form of storytelling to add validity to the mystery of the novel.
I almost start to wonder if it was her way of making something so obscure and impossible (the monster) and turning it into something completely possible, but this time only through the misunderstandings and twisting of words. In that day of age, there was no internet or mass communications, and the world was still somewhat of a mystery. Uncharted lands still existed, and along with that came wild imaginations of what could exist outside of the known. Though the author knew her creation was of her imagination, I feel the way this story was spoken through many beings gave it a sense of reality; each time it was spoken it became semi twisted, but only slight bits each time. Therefore the slow progression into the unrealistic horror was less noticeable, especially when mixed with each storytellers imagination.

I also was very interested at the softness of this monsters journey. Though he is a hideous meaningless creation of a man, his quest to find meaning in his own existence parallels the human struggles of wanting to be loved and be like everyone else. He becomes increasingly resourceful with his actions to learn about humanity, like watching humans interact to learn the language. Though he commits acts of violence against humans, it is all done for the simple act of trying to find himself, or someone he relates to. When he knows that this is no longer possible, he gives up.

Having learned of the turmoils that were in the authors life, you can start to see events she makes the nameless monster experience that were also in her (or related to her) own. It is a darker look into the human soul, one that was preexisting to the mass communications like the internet, where humans are easily influenced. An isolated brain is truly self reflective on itself; I admire its purity.