Quiz on Frankenstein

Who wrote the original novel Frankenstein?

• Mary Shelley ✓ (Correct answer)
• Bram Stoker
• Edgar Allan Poe
• Jane Austen

Source: Mary Shelley wrote it as a teenager; Bram Stoker is the Dracula author people often confuse her with.

What genre is Frankenstein often called the first true example of?

• Science fiction ✓ (Correct answer)
• Romance
• Western
• Mystery

Source: Many scholars cite Frankenstein as the first science fiction novel, born from a creature-not-magic premise.

What classic image is most associated with the creature in pop culture?

• Neck bolts ✓ (Correct answer)
• A top hat
• A cape
• Fangs

Source: The neck bolts and flat head are pure Hollywood makeup, invented for Boris Karloff and absent from the novel.

In which mountainous country does Victor study and live?

• Switzerland ✓ (Correct answer)
• Italy
• Spain
• Greece

Source: Geneva is Victor's home; Shelley conceived the story during a stormy Swiss summer near Lake Geneva.

How does the creature feel toward Victor for most of the story?

• Vengeful and rejected ✓ (Correct answer)
• Loyal and grateful
• Indifferent
• Fearful and obedient

Source: Abandoned by his maker, the creature turns to revenge, making him a tragic figure rather than a mindless brute.

What does the creature demand that Victor create for him?

• A female companion ✓ (Correct answer)
• A weapon
• A new body
• A house

Source: He wants a mate to end his loneliness; Victor's refusal sets the deadly climax in motion.

In the novel, what is Victor Frankenstein's profession?

• Scientist ✓ (Correct answer)
• Doctor
• Lawyer
• Sailor

Source: Victor is a science student, not a medical doctor, despite the popular 'Dr. Frankenstein' nickname.

What is the name of the creature in the original novel?

• He is unnamed ✓ (Correct answer)
• Frankenstein
• Igor
• Adam

Source: The monster has no name in the book, which is why calling the creature 'Frankenstein' is technically a mistake.

In what frozen region does the novel's frame story take place?

• The Arctic ✓ (Correct answer)
• The Alps
• Antarctica
• Siberia

Source: An explorer chasing the North Pole rescues Victor on the ice, framing the whole tale as a letter home.

What does Victor use to bring his creature to life?

• Mysterious science ✓ (Correct answer)
• A magic spell
• A lightning rod machine
• Sunlight

Source: The novel is vague about the method; the famous lightning bolt comes from the 1931 movie, not the book.

Which actor's 1931 portrayal defined the monster's iconic look?

• Boris Karloff ✓ (Correct answer)
• Bela Lugosi
• Lon Chaney
• Vincent Price

Source: Karloff's flat-headed monster became the template; Lugosi famously turned the role down, choosing Dracula instead.

What is the novel's full original title?

• The Modern Prometheus ✓ (Correct answer)
• The New Adam
• The Living Corpse
• The Cursed Doctor

Source: 'Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus' ties Victor to the Greek titan punished for stealing fire from the gods.

What event inspired Mary Shelley to begin the story?

• A ghost-story contest ✓ (Correct answer)
• A nightmare illness
• A laboratory tour
• A funeral

Source: Lord Byron challenged his guests to each write a ghost story during a rainy 1816 holiday; Shelley's won history.

How old was Mary Shelley when she largely wrote the novel?

• Eighteen ✓ (Correct answer)
• Twenty-five
• Thirty
• Thirty-five

Source: She was just 18 when she conceived it and 20 at publication, making it one of literature's great teenage debuts.

In the novel, who is the creature's first murder victim?

• Victor's young brother ✓ (Correct answer)
• Victor's father
• Victor's best friend
• Victor's bride

Source: The child William is strangled first; an innocent servant is then wrongly executed for the crime.

How does the creature learn to speak and read?

• By secretly observing a family ✓ (Correct answer)
• From Victor's lessons
• From books alone
• He is born speaking

Source: Hidden in a hovel, he eavesdrops on a poor family, gaining eloquence that startles readers expecting a brute.

On what occasion does the creature kill Victor's wife?

• Their wedding night ✓ (Correct answer)
• Her birthday
• A dinner party
• A funeral

Source: The creature warned 'I will be with you on your wedding night,' and Victor fatally assumed the threat was aimed at himself.

Which poet was Mary Shelley married to?

• Percy Bysshe Shelley ✓ (Correct answer)
• Lord Byron
• John Keats
• William Wordsworth

Source: Percy edited her manuscript; Byron, present at the same gathering, was a friend rather than her husband.

In the 1931 film, what does the assistant accidentally give the monster?

• A criminal's brain ✓ (Correct answer)
• A child's heart
• A weak spine
• Bad eyesight

Source: The lab assistant drops the normal brain and grabs an 'abnormal' one, a plot twist found only in the movie.

What is the name of the Arctic explorer who narrates the frame story?

• Robert Walton ✓ (Correct answer)
• Henry Clerval
• Felix De Lacey
• Alphonse Frankenstein

Source: Captain Walton's letters to his sister open and close the book, making him the story's true narrator.