Title: Pride and Prometheus
Author: John Kessel
Date of First Publication: 2018
Place of Publication: Saga Press
Type: Novel
Characters: Victor Frankenstein; The Creature
Themes: ANDROID; BYRONIC HERO; MAD SCIENTIST/MONSTER; SYMPATHETIC MONSTER; RETRO SF; RACE/POLITICS
Critical Summary: John Kessel’s Pride and Prometheus is a novel that combines Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein with Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. The concept of the novel is that Mary Bennet becomes entangled in the lives of Victor Frankenstein and The Creature after she meets Victor at a ball.
During their first brief meeting, Victor and Mary talk about science and the death of William Frankenstein. They have a memorable and unforgettable connection. The next time Victor and Mary meet, Victor reveals his unfortunate tale and the existence of The Creature. At this point in the book, Victor is on his quest to create the creature’s bride. Fortunately for him, and unfortunately for Mary, Kitty Bennet, Mary’s sister, falls ill and dies. Victor steals Kitty’s body to use for the bride of The Creature. Mary, heartbroken, pursues him. On her journey to search for Victor, Mary’s coach gets robbed by highwaymen. Fortunately for her, she is saved by The Creature who teams up with her as they both search for Victor. They find him after a few months of searching and then decide to help Victor complete his task. Kitty Bennet is resurrected as a female creature named ‘Eve’ and is then killed by Victor after a short existence. Like in the original book, The Creature kills Henry Clerval and Victor is imprisoned for the crime. There is a time gap and six years later, Mary is told of Victor and The Creature’s fate by Robert Walton who met Victor and The Creature on a journey to the North Pole.
Kessel’s work expands greatly on the events of Frankenstein with the addition of new perspectives. The story is told in first person by The Creature and Victor Frankenstein and in the third person with a focus on Mary Bennet. Sometimes the same event is retold three times by each perspective.
Kessel’s novel throws Mary Bennet into Victor’s world as someone who becomes a medium between Victor and The Creature. Like in Frankenstein, the Victor of Pride and Prometheus typifies the Byronic Hero. The events of Frankenstein remain largely unchanged, though the addition of Mary allows her to raise thought-provoking questions, accusations, and ponderings in regards to Victor and the Creature.
Kessel makes The Creature a sympathetic monster with the dialogue and actions he chooses to write between Mary and the Creature. The two characters share moments that bring humanity to The Creature, framing him as a being who was never taught human morals and is struggling to understand right from wrong.
Administrative Notes: Hannah Portillo, CSUF; Alexis Shanley (editing)