You CAN Call the Monster Frankenstein (Here's Why!)
I talk about no shortage of shocking or controversial topics between all of the horror, war, and Old Hollywood scandal I cover on my channel, but still no topic gets people quite so charged as when I call the Monster from Frankenstein “Frankenstein.” At this point in my Universal journey, this topic holds a special place as one of my most and least favorites because I love getting an opportunity to learn more and state my case, but no matter how many times I explain my point of view and back it up with sources, people come out of the woodwork to tell me I’m wrong and try to “educate” me as though I’m brand new here.
For the record, I don’t mean I have an issue with a well-thought out response by someone who happens to disagree. I just think some people are trolling or perhaps being so pedantic they’re intentionally missing the point. I love a good debate, and I’m happy my video got people engaging with each other about it!
Frankenstein: Or the Modern Promethius was a book by Mary Shelley released in 1818. She actually wrote it in 1816 during The Year Without a Summer, when a volcanic eruption in Indonesia caused weather disturbances all across Europe. As Mary was vacationing with Lord Byron and Percy Shelley in Switzerland, stuck inside with nothing to do, they decided to hold a little scary story competition…and Mary clearly won.
We all know the story, but as a refresher, it’s about a scientist, Dr. Frankenstein, who gives life to a creature he designed through science. And this sets up the first point as to the Frankenstein/Monster confusion. The scientist is named Dr. Frankenstein. The monster … well he never really gets a name.
The Monster is referred to in different ways throughout the book. The monster, the creature, fiend, demon, wretch…but never a name. And there’s the occasional argument his name could be Adam after a quote in the book, “I ought to by thy Adam,” referring to the Biblical Adam, but I don’t buy this interpretation. No name.
There’s been an ever-present struggle since the book’s release to figure out how to name the monster. The first known theatrical adaptation of Mary Shelley’s novel premiered in 1823 in London. Here again, we see the monster without a name. In the playbill, next to the actor T.P. Cooke’s name is just a line of dashes. Mary Shelley herself saw the play and loved that. In a letter to her husband, she said the playbill “amused her extremely” and she found “this nameless mode of naming the unnameable rather good.”
In newspapers and articles form the 1800s to the early 1900s, I most commonly see him referred to as “The Monster” and “The Creature.” I would say today, when I get corrected, that’s also what people usually say. In case you don’t already know where I stand…
I BELIEVE IT IS TOTALLY, ABSOLUTELY, COMPLETELY OKAY TO CALL THE MONSTER FRANKENSTEIN. I will now walk you through every argument and tell you why I’m right.
People have been calling the monster Frankenstein for centuries now. And precedent is important. Let’s take comedian Joseph Grimaldi as an example. In the 1810s, he was known for using found objects to create funny, crazy characters on stage. One character in particular used vegetables as different parts of his body - mushrooms for feet, cabbage as his torso, a pumpkin on his head. Following the release of Mary Shelley’s book, the character widely became referred to as Joseph Frankenstein.
Or take a newspaper article from 1910, when a Mexican chemist announced he created a human embryo by artificial means. The article states, “In other words, he has created a Frankenstein.” This reminds me a little of brand names that get “generecized.” When a brand creates something that becomes SO popular the brand name starts standing in for everything … like how we call all tissue Kleenex, all ice pops Popsicles, all searching Googling … well all cobbled-together creatures are now Frankenstein.
As a living creation of Dr. Frankenstein, the monster is basically his son. And sons are frequently named after their fathers…at least when it comes to their last names. I know this isn’t true 100% of the time - I don’t have my dad’s last name - I know there are exceptions, but it still stands to reason that the monster really would be a Frankenstein.
In the Son of Frankenstein, Baron Wolf von Frankenstein, the human son of Henry Frankenstein, makes reference to this twice. Once, he complains that the monster carries the same name and he’s getting the blame for the monster’s misdeeds. Another time, during a conversation with Ygor, Ygor says, “Your father made him! And he was your father too.” To which Wolf replies, “Do you mean to imply then that that’s my brother?” Sounds like the monster’s a Frankenstein to me!
Peggy Webling specifically and purposefully named the monster after the creator. Let’s talk about Peggy Webling for a second because she’s one of my strongest arguments for calling the monster Frankenstein. Peggy Webling was a British playwright, novelist, and poet. Her 1927 stage version of Frankenstein inspired the 1931 film for Universal. Hamilton Deane, who was a producer and actor, requested Peggy write the play, having recently finished a successful run of his own adaptation of Dracula. Though the play got mixed reviews, it’s notable for one very big reason: Peggy Webling named the monster Frankenstein (and then Universal ran with that!)
Universal absolutely, 100% called the monster Frankenstein. And of course I’m going to side with Universal on this. This is what is usually so wild to me when people try to split hairs. Most of the people who watch my videos aren’t big fans of the book itself, they’re big fans of the Universal Monster! And Universally called the monster Frankenstein! And how do I know that? First, I know because it’s my family and I just know.
But let’s look at their first sequel. The Bride of Frankenstein. It wasn't the Bride of Henry because - as the tagline says - “The Monster demands a mate!” How about Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman? How about Abbot and Costello Meet Frankenstein? Who’s meeting who in those movies? And today’s mercy, promotional materials, and everything else continues to refer to the monster as Frankenstein.
Language Evolves. After all this, I suspect some people might argue that I’ve acknowledged that the monster is the monster and Frankenstein is Frankenstein, so I must know I’m “wrong” and to that, I remind you that language evolves, meaning evolves, and context matters. The monster may not have been Frankenstein upon creation, but the monster is now Frankenstein. If you are an originalist who is speaking specifically of the 8 foot tall yellow-skinned monster with flowing black hair that appears in the book by Mary Shelley, and you shun the Universal Monster Universe…then sure, the monster is the monster and Frankenstein is Henry. But in any other context, catch up with the times!
To those of you out there who have made it your life mission to correct everyone who calls the monster Frankenstein, I’m giving you permission to stop now. I promise, nobody is going to be sad if you don’t correct them anymore. In fact, you may make some new friends.