Suggest-A-Read : Dracula by Bram Stoker

For those who love a good monster thriller and horror story, and if you have read "Frankenstein" by Mary Shelley, you will love the novel "Dracula" by the one and only Bram Stoker.
 "Dracula" explores the tale of a vampire who is isolated from society because of his identity. Even though he is a bloodthirsty (obviously) monster, he begins to have feelings of love and lust towards the wife of a young count who came to visit him about a business affair. In both "Dracula" and "Frankenstein", the main characters become alienated from society when they come in contact with human civilization. The 2 main characters are both perversions of nature - Dracula is a vampire, and Frankenstein's creature is a compilation of human body parts. The theme of bigotry is strong in "Dracula" as it is in "Frankenstein", because the people surrounding the main characters fail to look past the differences they perceive. All in all, these similar themes and plots make "Dracula" the ideal novel to read if you previously enjoyed reading "Frankenstein".

Have fun on your literary quest! :)

The Catcher in the Rye VS Frankenstein

  "The Catcher in the Rye" by J.D. Salinger and "Frankenstein" by Mary Shelley are both novels which I have read as part of my grade ten English curriculum. Both books are timeless classics, and they have many things in common in their story lines. One example of a similarity which the two stories share is the main characters Holden Caulfield, a teenage boy from New York, and Victor Frankenstein's creature, which he had created in Geneva, Austria. Despite the fact that these characters are very different at first, as you dive into their stories, you will realize that these two are not that different at all. A main trait that both of these characters share is their personalities - they isolate themselves from society in order to protect themselves. In Holden's case, he isolates himself by perceiving that other people are "phonies" in order to not try to get to know them, and therefore become attached. Attachment to people is something that he dreaded because he feared losing the people that he got to know, for example his brother Allie, who died at a young age. The creature's situation is very similar - it isolates itself from mankind because of fear of how they might react to the creature, and how they would interpret its actions. Both characters are very emotional, even though sometimes, they try to hide it (moreso in Holden's case). Also, they are willing to help other people even though they do not know them, like Frankenstein helped the poor family of cottagers tend to their daily chores, and when Holden donated money to the nuns which he had met on the street.

  

  Now, although the characters are very similar in their personalities, they think very differently about the consequences of their actions. When Holden was failing four out of five of his subjects at school, he knew that it would cause him to get the ax and for his parents to become mad and disappointed with him. Also, he knows that if he goes home right away, his parents might get suspicious of him and question his quick return from school. The creature, on the other hand, has very little rational thought to show. After it had seen the way the cottagers reacted to him, it became angry and upon meeting Dr. Frankenstein, demanded that he make him a female companion to share emotions with. When Dr.Frankesntein refused, though, the creature vowed to murder every single one of the doctor's closest companions, until he felt the way the creature felt. On Victor Frankenstein's deathbed, the creature was engulfed by feelings of remorse and regret, yet it felt that its actions were justified because it had felt anguish and loneliness since the day of its creation.

In short, it is evident that the two characters have a similar mindset, but it is how they choose to solve situations and take the consequences that sets these two intrigueing personas apart.

The Life of a Student of Literature

It all started when...Whatever, let's just get on with the story.
This girl, Anna, she's a trivial person who is interested in gaining knowledge from every single source available, danger or no danger. Ever since she was born, books were like a safe refuge for her when the world got a little bit turbulent. As you can imagine, in kindergarten, not much knowledge is dispersed throughout the fifteen page pop-up books, but in the first grade, things change quite rapidly. It was a rainy October afternoon in a small private school in Moscow, where in one classroom, a teacher was handing out Antoine de Saint-Exupery's "Little Prince" out to her students. From that point on, the seed of reading was planted in Anna's mind, and she was thirsty to find out more about what secrets books held inside them.       
  The year was 2004, and grade four had slowly, but surely commenced its progress. The pop-out books and alphabet handouts were long gone, replaced by novels and book reports. It was almost as if getting handed out a novel instead of a short story was a rite of passage for a young reader. To Anna, though, these novels did not present an impossible challenge, but instead, they were seen as an opportunity to learn more about the world, and her own imagination's power. One day, the teacher of Anna's grade four class announced to her students that they were going to have a "book of choice" day every single week, when the children could pick the material they wished to read for English class. Excited, after school was dismissed, Anna begged her mom to take her to the library to pick out a book to read. When she arrived at the children's section, she was transfixed by a magnificent book cover, that of "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone". She ran over to the shelf, and wrapped the book in her thin arms, as if she was protecting it. At first, her mom questioned the difficulty of that book, but finally gave in when Anna started arguing furiously, disturbing a small study group of high school students. It was this particular visit to the library which set off Anna's journey as a student of literature.

Quite a few years had past, and before we knew it, Anna was already in high school, enduring the lengthy adaptation process among new friends and classmates. The first few weeks of school were a turbulent blur, and getting lost in the numerous halls became a routine thing. Despite the many different turns the days took, a kind of serene stability was present at Anna's English lessons, almost like a refuge from the noisy world. Since Anna had enlisted in the gifted/enriched program, it was obvious that the material they were going to revise was advanced for the grade nine level. And so, the roller coaster of literature began. From documentaries, fiction, and biographies to plays and poetry. Some time had passed, and at the midpoint of the semester came the turning point of Anna's literary life. She felt it happen, the moment the Macbeth book was gently placed on her desk, beckoning her nimble hands to flip through the pages.

Mary Shelley 1797-1851

Reflect and Connect: Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

A timeless classic - that is something you can never go wrong with. I really enjoyed "Frankenstein" because it used old-style Victorian language, immense amounts of detail, and multitudes of other attention-grabbing factors. The setting was Geneva, Austria, surrounding regions, and at one point, London, England. I felt that the settings enhanced the story by casting a sort of 'gloomy aura' on the events which took place. This was a nice advantage since it helped me imagine the story, and feel like I was observing the different plots unfold.

Despite the conflicting opinions of some of my peers, the characters in the story seemed very real, and I could relate to their emotions, especially the isolation which Frankenstein's creature experienced when it realized that its existence was frowned upon by the human populace. The authenticity was heightened greatly by the language which the monster used, which seemed very humane and developed.

Although I felt that  I could relate to every character in some ways, the one which I share prominent personality traits with is Victor Frankenstein. Victor Frankenstein is young, and often dives straight into tasks without considering the possible consequences, or how to solve big mistakes, as do I. Also, Victor seemed to be quite a perfectionist, because he had spent years creating the creature, and I also seem to be quite the perfectionist when it comes to school work and other tasks.

I don't recall any part of the book making me particularly uncomfortable (story-wise), but at times the language seemed overwhelming, and I had to resort to looking a few words up in the dictionary.
Even though "Frankenstein" did not cause me to realize anything new about myself or my life, after finishing the novel, I felt satisfied to have read the actual story instead of going on thinking that the many different takes on the story are really what happened.