Mary Shelley's deceptively simple story of Victor Frankenstein and the creature he brings to life, first published in 1818, is now more widely read—and more widely discussed by scholars—than any other work of the Romantic period. From the creature's creation to his wild lament over the dead body of his creator in the Arctic wastes, the story retains its narrative hold on the reader even as it spins off ideas in rich profusion.

Macdonald and Scherf's edition of Frankenstein has been widely acclaimed as an outstanding edition of the novel—for the general reader and the student as much as for the scholar. The editors use as their copy-text the original 1818 version, and detail in an appendix all of Shelley's later revisions. They also include a range of contemporary documents that shed light on the historical context from which this unique masterpiece emerged. Macdonald and Scherf have now revised and updated their introduction, notes and bibliography, and have added new documents (including a review of Frankenstein by Percy Shelley).

Comments:

"This is the best, the most thoughtful advanced school edition of Frankenstein ever done. The text is well-edited, the introduction is thorough, and the collection of contextual documents could hardly be improved." - Jerome McGann, University of Virginia

"Superb. The introduction and appendices are particularly valuable...accessible and illuminating." - Bernard Hirsch, University of Kansas

"Far better than any [other edition] on the market today" - Craig Keating, Langara College 

The late D.L. Macdonald was a professor in the Department of English at the University of Calgary. Kathleen Scherf is professor and Dean of General Studies at the University of Calgary; both have published widely, and they have also collaborated on an edition of Wollstonecraft's The Vindications for this series.

Table of Contents: [Back to Top]

Preface

Introduction 

Education of Mary Shelley    
Education of Victor Frankenstein  
Education of the Monster    
Evolution of the Novel    

Note on the Text    

Chronology of Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley    

Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus    

Volume I    
Volume II    
Volume III    

Appendix A: The Education of Mary Shelley    

1. Godwin    
2. Wollstonecraft    

Appendix B: The Education of Victor Frankenstein 264

1. Darwin     
2. Davy    

Appendix C: The Education of The Monster    

1. Volney    
2. Goethe    
3. Plutarch    
4. Milton    
5. Wollstonecraft     

Appendix D: Reviews of Frankenstein    

1. Scott, Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine    
2. The Edinburgh Magazine   
3. Croker, Quarterly Review  
4. P.B. Shelley, Athenaeum    

Appendix E: Presumption (excerpt)    

Appendix F: Substantive Variants in the 1831 Edition 

Appendix G: Introduction [1831]    

Works Cited / Recommended Reading