Reading Prometheus Bound and Frankenstein … Twice!

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Although Mary Shelley subtitled her most famous work “The Modern Prometheus,” few modern readers consider her novel in light of its ancient antecedent. This course will explore the full significance of Shelley’s Frankenstein by reading it closely in conjunction with a close reading of Aeschylus’ Prometheus Bound. We’ll use the strategy laid out in Mortimer Adler’s classic How to Read a Book of reading each work once quickly to get an overview and then again more slowly to figure out the details as we attempt to understand each work in its own right as well as the relationships between them.

Texts
  • Aeschylus, Prometheus Bound
  • Shelley, Frankenstein; Or, The Modern Prometheus
  • Adler and Van Doren, How to Read a Book: The Classic Guide
    to Intelligent Reading [OPTIONAL]
TAUGHT: WINTER 2024