Main character: Victor Frankenstein, an ambitious young scientist who discovers the secret of life, only to create a murderous monster.
Mary Shelley was 18 years old when she started to write Frankenstein. She was 21 when Frankenstein was first published, on January 1, 1818. Shelley's story of ambition, ignorance, and the futile quest for immortality was an overnight best-seller. Shelley became an overnight legend.
Nearly two centuries later, Mary Shelley's creation continues to loom over the culture's landscape. Frankenstein has been adapted hundreds — perhaps thousands — of times on stage and screen. It continues to be a Halloween staple the world over. Why? Because there's more to Frankenstein than ghoulishness and gore. Shelley's masterpiece warns us that knowledge has its limits, and that wisdom is the most precious of possessions. In other words, Frankenstein offers a message that never grows old.