Evolution of the Frankenstein myth in adaptation: From progenitor to popular culture

Abstract

The Frankenstein Myth began with Mary Shelley’s publication in 1818 which is believed to be the birth of speculative fiction. In Shelley’s Frankenstein, homoerotic subtexts such as the “Homosexual Panic Trope” can be perceived between the creature and creator. The sexual revolution of the 1970s brought with it greater representation for queer and disabled bodies in science fiction through the appropriation of Frankenstein Myth to represent 2SLGBTQA+ individuals. Early movie examples of queer characters include The Bride of Frankenstein, with modern examples including The Rocky Horror Picture Show and Flesh for Frankenstein. These queer monsters challenged dominant heteronormative relationships during the twentieth century and has continued to gain momentum with historically inspired films and TV shows such Gods and Monsters and Penny Dreadful. Science fiction films such as Splice continue to reexamine gender and sexuality through the Frankenstein Myth that expands upon the role of monstrosity and disability in relation to transgender and queer theory. The Frankenstein Myth is profoundly influential, though the queer nature of its development is often overlooked. Frankenstein represents a biopunk post human condition where gender can be changed, a reflection of medical science’s ability to reassign one’s physical gender expression, as explored by transgender and queer theorists. This paper will explore the development of the Frankenstein Myth and its impact on transgender representation. Queer characters challenge gendered and sexual oppression, highlighting the importance of 2SLGBTQA+ inclusion in fantasy, speculative fiction and horror genres dealing with the trans human subject.

Keywords: Frankenstein Myth, queer and transgender theory, transhumanism, biopunk