An Interview with Mary Shelley

1. What events in your early life made you get interested in the arts?

In my early life? Well, I know that my mother Mary Wollstonecraft was a feminist—a supporter of women’s rights. My father, William Godwin, was a political writer and novelist! I suppose that the talent of writing was passed down to me by my father. Unfortunately, I never got to know my mother….she died ten days after my birth, so I’m told.

For most of my early life, I read my mother’s books to keep myself from going mad, as my father had married my next door neighbor. (Dunn 1978) “I was nursed and fed with a love of glory.” (Sunstein 1991 1991) I thought of my mother’s work as a beacon of hope. I usually sat by her grave to read and write. “As a child, I scribbled; and my favorite pastime, during the hours given me of recreation, was to ‘write stories’. (Wollstonecraft) Oh, I remember that I met a very interesting person there, Percy Shelley, my future companion.

2. What role did mentors play in helping you develop the interests and talents you have as an artist?

              I was encouraged by my mother’s books and the occasional visit by Mr. Samuel Taylor Coleridge. (Smith 1996) He was a poet. Although he was not always at our house, I consider him an influence to my art. I also met Percy Shelley, who was a great admirer of my father’s books!

Later in my life, I acquired a large group of friends like Lord Byron and Leigh Hunt. They were poets and writers, respectively. They inspired my work greatly. At the time that I met them, I was enduring a deep depression. Even so, Lord Byron and Leigh Hunt were kind enough to respect me in whatever state I was in. I appreciated their friendship greatly.

3. What was the world of art like in your particular art field when you entered it?          

       In about 1815, I was eighteen and writing my composition Frankenstein: The Modern Prometheus. I was extremely influenced by Romantic ideology and the poetry of Percy Shelley and Lord Byron. (Kostelanetz Mellor) I must say, I considered myself to be relatively young when I began this book! Most writers didn’t start until they were quite a bit older. There were several writers that were creating work around this age, such as Jane Austen, William Wordsworth, Sir Walter Scott, and Elizabeth Thomas. It was splendid to see that so many other writers were making their mark on history at that time!

I recall that Schubert created many pieces of music when I was writing Frankenstein.Symphony No. 2 and 3 as well as Mass No. 2. It was excellent to hear about those pieces. Beethoven created two cello sonatas at that time as well. It was quite daunting, though, to see so many writers creating many pieces—but I had a feeling that I would make it somehow. And sure enough, I did.

I was extremely influenced by Romantic ideology and the poetry of Percy Shelley and Lord Byron. (Kostelanetz Mellor)

4. How did the major cultural, economic and political situations of the time impact your work?

At the time that I was working on my book, I was not particularly interested in politics, but later in my life, I was enthused by them. I followed foreign affairs closely. I recall that by 1815, the British population had totaled about 12 million people! Over the years, we had amassed quite a huge amount of people!

Britain’s empire was glorious, to say the least; we had a lot of land and wealth. However, my work was not simply created by the culture at the time—I had a horrible vision one night of a “hideous phantasm of a man stretched out, and then, on the working of some powerful engine, show signs of life, and stir with a uneasy, half vital motion." (Wollstonecraft- Shelley 1823)

5. What were your major accomplishments and the methods you used in your art?

I would have to say that my most major accomplishment in my life was the creation of Frankenstein. I was a pioneer of my time. I now am considered one of the first female horror writers. I was influenced greatly by the ideology of creative, bold new ideology and writing (Williams 2009 2009). I wrote a number of other works as well as Frankenstein.

Although Frankenstein was my most well known works, I dabbled in quite a lot of other genres. I had created travel-writing, novels, and journalism pieces throughout my life. I wrote six novels besides Frankenstein: Matilda, Valperga, The Last Man, Perkin Warbeck, Lodore andFalkner. I also wrote for various magazines and journals (including the Westminster Review and the London Magazine). I wrote two works of travel-writing-- History of a Six Weeks' Tour andRambles in Germany and Italy. (Crook 2011 2011)

6. What were the key opportunities you had that led to turning points in your life and art?

                The key opportunities that I had were very important in my life. Being born to a writing father and a feminist mother who also wrote helped a lot in my upbringing. Even after my mother died, I was quite influenced by her. I read her books quite a lot. I was educated at home, learning languages, poetry and reviewing my parents’ works.
              When I met Percy, his father came to my father’s house and discussed politics, which is how I learned the ways of such things. I traveled a lot which gave me inspiration to write two pieces of travel literature. Percy and I were matched in intellect, and we definitely learned a lot from each other. When he and I participated in the ghost story competition, it actually stemmed from a discussion on direct-current electricity and the application of static shock to tissue to temporarily bring things back to life! Even though I didn’t believe in the ideals of true love that Percy longed for, we were a nice couple. (Merriman 2006)

7. What personal choices did you make to become successful?

              I read many books when I was younger. I looked at my mother’s books constantly. They were guides to my future career. When I was older, I made friends that specialized in writing such as Lord Byron and Percy Shelley, who became my husband. When I was with Percy, I traveled a lot.

              This traveling led to my writing being lush and full of detail. I wrote two pieces of writing based on my experiences. I named them History of a Six Weeks' Tour and Rambles in Germany and Italy. (Crook 2011) The trips were quite enlightening. I enjoyed seeing the rich cultures of Germany and Italy.

8. What hardships or roadblocks did you have to overcome in order to be an artist?

     In the writing world, not many women were esteemed at their time. I had to overcome that obstacle. After I published Frankenstein in England, most did not believe I wrote it, as I said in the answer above. As I wrote, I viewed science not as a solution to ordinary problems or a discipline, than a way to "afford a point of view to the imagination for the delineating of human passions more comprehensive and commanding than any which the ordinary relations of existing events can yield,” (Wollstonecraft-Shelley) Many were shocked at my opinions on science and technology as my work became public.

              Personally, I have suffered a large amount of crises. My half sister Fanny Imlay committed suicide due to the problems in her life. Percy Shelley, my husband, had a first wife, Harriet, who drowned herself before Percy and I wed. However, our wedding did not stop the sadness. Instead of me following my mother’s path and dying in childbirth, all but one of my children died during our life time. (Patterson 1996)

9. What kind of limitations did you run into as both an artist and a person?

      I had to overcome my faults to become an artist. Although I didn’t overcome them entirely, I was able to put them behind me in order to work. I had to put aside my quick temper, selfishness and my bitterness—in order to go on in my life. I remember my father saying that my talents were extraordinary (Seymour 2000). Unfortunately, that wasn’t enough to keep me going for a lifetime.

              As I was a woman, I was definitely looked down upon. When my book was finally published, no one believed that I wrote it. (Beywood) People believed that Percy Shelley wrote it. Not one person thought that a woman such as me could write such a horrifying yet entertaining book. It was sad, but I was able to overcome this fact.

10. What personal stories (anecdotes) best illustrate how you became successful in the arts?

                   I have an extremely special account of how I came up with the story of Frankenstein! I was vacationing at Lake Geneva in Switzerland when it happened. I had joined Percy Shelley, my husband at the time, Lord Byron and John Polidari. Lord Byron brought up the idea of having a ‘ghost story’ competition. Whoever had the best story would win! I complied and began to write. 

              Unfortunately I had a rather slow start to the competition. It took me a while to come up with an idea. I was finally able to get one as a waking nightmare hit me! "I saw the pale student of unhallowed arts kneeling beside the thing he had put together. I saw the hideous phantasm of a man stretched out, then on the working of some powerful engine, show signs of life...his success would terrify the artist; he would rush away...hope that...this thing...would subside into dead matter...he opens his eyes; behold the horrid thing stands back at this beside opening his curtains..." (Sunstein 1991) However, after nearly two years, I finally was able to publish Frankenstein! When I wrote Frankenstein, I was inspired by some experiments on frogs that used electric shocks that made their legs move after death. (Beywood)

Reference List

Wollstonecraft, Mary. Frankenstein: or, The Modern Prometheus. 1823. Print.

Smith, Joanna M. Mary Shelley. New York: Twayne Publishers, 1996.

Dunn, Jane. Moon in Eclipse: A Life of Mary Shelley. New York: St. Martin's, 1978.

Seymour, Miranda. Mary Shelley. London, England: John Murray Publishers Ltd., 2000. Print.

Kostelanetz Mellor, Anne. Mary Shelley: Her Life, Her Fiction. London, England: Routledge, Print.

Williams, John. Mary Shelley: Literary Lives. Houndmills: Macmillan Press, 2009. Print.

Voller, Jack G.   "Mary Shelley."  The Literary Gothic.  23 Feb. 2011. Web. 23 Feb. 2011.

Crook, Nora "The Novels and Selected Works of Mary Shelley / Major Works." Pickering and Chatto Publishers - Shop Site. Ed. Clemit, Pamela. Pickering and Chatto Publishers. Web. 23 Feb. 2011. <http://www.pickeringchatto.com/major_works/the_novels_and_selected_works_of_mary_shelley>.

Bookshop, Apple. "Mary Shelley Biography." Mary Shelley. 24 February 2011. 24 February 2011. <http://www.applebookshop.co.uk/author/shelley.htm>.

Sunstein, Emily W. Mary Shelley: romance and reality. 1991. Print.

Hayward Beywood. "The Girl Who Wrote "Frankenstein"." Mary Shelley. 24 February 2011.  24 February 2011.

Patterson, Arthur Paul. "Literature: Marriage and Mary Shelley." Marriage and Mary Shelley. 1996. 25 February 2011.

Merriman, C.D. "Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley - Biography and Works." Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley. 2006.  Jalic Inc.. 2 February 2011. <http://www.online-literature.com/shelley_mary/>.