Literature Teaching Sequence 4: Fiction (Frankenstein)

Three Day Course Sequence for Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

Day 1: Class will have read pp 1-60 (Dover thrift edition) and written a one-page response to the quote on p. 11 (see Assignment Sheet). I will ask people to read aloud from their responses and will write phrases from them on the blackboard, then start discussion by asking about connections between various responses. The idea is to get some of the major ideas and issues in the novel on the table immediately: questions of the role and importance of intellect and feeling, and of the stance the novel takes toward the impulse to master nature. Hopefully, this will segue into a consideration of Frankenstein's responsibility (or lack thereof) for Justine's death (of course, we will not know at this point whether the monster killed her, and so this will involve again the problem of whether reason or feeling takes precedence in the novel).

Day 2: Class will have read pp 61-108. Today we do the attached collaborative exercise. After listening to group reports, we will try to bring the two questions together to come to some conclusions about gender in the novel and its relationship to the issues we addressed in the previous class.

Day 3: Class will have read pp. 108-166. I'll start by asking: with whom do you sympathize more, Frankenstein or the monster? And why? Discussion of the differences and similarities between the two figures should lead us eventually to a consideration of the framing device. Why is the entire story told within the frame of Captain Walton's narrative? What does this device have to do with the conclusions we have reached so far?

Assignment Sheet - Frankenstein

Monday: On page 11 of Frankenstein, Captain Walton writes to his sister, Margaret, "one man's life or death were but a small price to pay for the acquirement of the knowledge which I sought for the dominion I should acquire and transmit over the elemental foes of our race." We learn immediately afterward that Frankenstein disagrees with this statement.

What do you think Captain Walton means in this sentence? What are "the elemental foes of our race?" Do you agree or disagree with him, and why? Write a short (one page) response in which you address these questions. Don't think that there are "right" answers that I am trying to elicit from you; write what you honestly think. I will collect these responses on Monday, they will form the basis for our class discussion.

Collaborative Exercise

Wednesday:: I will divide the class into four groups of five. Each group should appoint someone as spokesperson to report back to the class later. For twenty minutes, each group should discuss among themselves the questions below and try to arrive at a consensus. If there are disagreements within the group, then note what those disagreements are.

Groups One and Two: Why is the story of Felix and Safie in the novel? What does the monster learn from it? Think about how Felix and Safie interact with each other, and about Safie's history as you answer these questions.

Groups Three and Four: Is the monster's demand that Frankenstein create a female monster just or unjust? Why or why not? What does this demand tell you about how the monster thinks?

After twenty minutes, the class will reconvene as a whole The spokesperson from each group will report their group's findings, and we will proceed with our discussion on the basis of these findings.