The Millions

‘Frankenstein’ and the Science of Transitioning

Victor Frankenstein stands listening to his creation, the creature who he brought to life from the sewed-together remnants of the dead, who he abandoned at the height of his success, and who now asks his father to remedy his rejection buy building him a companion like himself. The creature says:

I demand a creature of another sex, but as hideous as myself: the gratification is small, but it is all that I can receive, and it shall content me. It is true, we shall be monsters, cut off from all the world; but on that account we shall be more attached to one another. Our lives will not be happy, but they will be harmless, and free from the misery I now feel.

Among other things, ’s is an exploration of how one creates a monster. It is clear throughout the novel that he is not a monster because he was sewn together from the desiccated scraps of

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from The Millions

The Millions4 min read
Why Write Memoir? Two Debut Authors Weigh In
"It was hard on many levels, and I had to keep going back to why I was writing in the first place." The post Why Write Memoir? Two Debut Authors Weigh In appeared first on The Millions.
The Millions19 min read
Several Attempts at Understanding Percival Everett
I knew from the dozens of other interviews I had read with him that Everett doesn’t love doing press. “I wonder why?” he joked to me. The post Several Attempts at Understanding Percival Everett appeared first on The Millions.
The Millions6 min read
Against ‘Latin American Literature’
The classification of “Latin American literature” puts both Anglophone and Hispanophone writers in a double bind. The post Against ‘Latin American Literature’ appeared first on The Millions.

Related Books & Audiobooks