Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is a classic piece of literature that came to Shelley in a dream. John Polidori’s The Vampyre was also published at the same time as Frankenstein, and they both exhibit similar traits. Some of the concepts that the stories share are traveling, folklore and even sickness.
To compare the two novels it is a must to start with the two storylines. The Vampyre begins in London with, "A mysterious nobleman, Lord Ruthven, makes his entrance into high society,”(Mustafa 1) Ruthven is described by some as having a "dead grey eye and is said be self-absorbed.”(Foust 1) Ruthven meets Aubrey who is an orphan left with only a sister. The two become acquaintances and Aubrey joins Ruthven on a European tour. “While in Rome, Aubrey receives a letter from his guardians instructing him to leave Lord Ruthven.”(Mustafa 1) Aubrey’s guardians describe Ruthven as a vicious man that would seduce innocent women that Ruthven meets. “Aubrey departs from Italy and travels to Greece, where he meets a young woman, Ianthe,” (Mustafa …show more content…
Both of these stories consist of traveling, in The Vampyre Aubrey and Ruthven go on a European tour where the two end up in places such as Rome and Greece. In Frankenstein Victor born in Geneva goes to travel to Ingolstadt to continue studies in chemistry and alchemy. Throughout the rest of the book Victor goes to Ireland, the Swiss Alps, Orkney, and even to the North Pole. The traveling in both books could be a reference to the traveling that the authors did in the year 1815. Percy and Mary Shelley were travelling around Europe and ran into John Polidori and Lord Byron in Switzerland. The group became confined in a Villa near Lake Geneva due to “a period of cold and damp weather in mid-June.”(Foust 1) Lord Byron “suggested a ghost-story writing competition.”(Davis 1) This competition led to the creation of Frankenstein and the creation of The
To compare the two novels it is a must to start with the two storylines. The Vampyre begins in London with, "A mysterious nobleman, Lord Ruthven, makes his entrance into high society,”(Mustafa 1) Ruthven is described by some as having a "dead grey eye and is said be self-absorbed.”(Foust 1) Ruthven meets Aubrey who is an orphan left with only a sister. The two become acquaintances and Aubrey joins Ruthven on a European tour. “While in Rome, Aubrey receives a letter from his guardians instructing him to leave Lord Ruthven.”(Mustafa 1) Aubrey’s guardians describe Ruthven as a vicious man that would seduce innocent women that Ruthven meets. “Aubrey departs from Italy and travels to Greece, where he meets a young woman, Ianthe,” (Mustafa …show more content…
Both of these stories consist of traveling, in The Vampyre Aubrey and Ruthven go on a European tour where the two end up in places such as Rome and Greece. In Frankenstein Victor born in Geneva goes to travel to Ingolstadt to continue studies in chemistry and alchemy. Throughout the rest of the book Victor goes to Ireland, the Swiss Alps, Orkney, and even to the North Pole. The traveling in both books could be a reference to the traveling that the authors did in the year 1815. Percy and Mary Shelley were travelling around Europe and ran into John Polidori and Lord Byron in Switzerland. The group became confined in a Villa near Lake Geneva due to “a period of cold and damp weather in mid-June.”(Foust 1) Lord Byron “suggested a ghost-story writing competition.”(Davis 1) This competition led to the creation of Frankenstein and the creation of The