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The Endurance of the Frankenstein Myth:A History of Ideas University of Calgary PRISM: University of Calgary's Digital Repository Graduate Studies The Vault: Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2017 The Endurance of the Frankenstein Myth:A History of Ideas Prescod, Ronald Prescod, R. (2017). The Endurance of the Frankenstein Myth:A History of Ideas (Unpublished master's thesis). University of Calgary, Calgary, AB. doi:10.11575/PRISM/28126 http://hdl.handle.net/11023/3650 master thesis University of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission. Downloaded from PRISM: https://prism.ucalgary.ca UNIVERSITY OF CALGARY The Endurance of the Frankenstein Myth: A History of Ideas by Ronald Prescod A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS GRADUATE PROGRAM IN COMMUNICATIONS STUDIES CALGARY, ALBERTA FEBRUARY, 2017 © Ronald Prescod 2017 Abstract The term “Frankenstein foods” is an interesting and unique phenomenon. The term represents ideas and themes transported over two hundred years from the novel Frankenstein (Shelley, 1818) to contemporary critical discourse about biotechnology. Most studies of Frankenstein’s endurance have focused on the novel’s intrinsic literary form, that is, its reception history, adaptations, interpretations, its publication, or its canonical status as a classic. However, this thesis is a history of ideas that offers a unique examination of Frankenstein’s endurance in mythical form as the Frankenstein myth. A thematic network reveals a chain of ideologies that connects the original Frankenstein myth to contemporary discourse about biotechnology. ii Acknowledgements First, I would like to thank Dr. Tania Smith for her continuous support of my project, for her tireless dedication and guidance. Her encouragement and commitment to excellence propelled me through completion. I also would like to thank Dr. Lorry Felske and Dr. Stefania Forlini for serving on my committee. I am grateful for their insightful comments that improved the quality of this project. Finally, I would like to thank the Alberta Graduate Student Scholarship (AGSS)/the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC)/Queen Elizabeth II (QEII) Scholarship Committee, and the Faculty of Graduate Studies. iii Dedication I dedicate this work to my grandmother and guardian angel Phyllis; continue to watch over me from Heaven. To my mother Elsa, thank you for your love, wisdom, and support. To my beloved children Rhyce and Rhyan, and my brother Mikhail, thank you for your inspiration; continue to dream big. To my well-wisher Jacki, thank you. Your encouragement made all this possible. To Cammy, thank you for your love and kindness. iv Table of Contents Abstract ................................................................................................................... ii Dedication .............................................................................................................. iv Table of Contents .....................................................................................................v List of Figures and Illustrations ............................................................................. vi List of Symbols, Terms, and Abbreviations ......................................................... vii CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................1 1.1 Why Frankenstein? ....................................................................................................1 1.2 Research questions .....................................................................................................2 1.3 Theories .....................................................................................................................3 1.4 Methods .....................................................................................................................4 1.5 Contemporary Data ....................................................................................................5 1.6 Thesis chapters ...........................................................................................................6 1.7 Significance and relevance ........................................................................................7 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW ......................................................................8 2.1 Literary histories of Frankenstein’s reception and adaptation as a novel .................9 2.2 Literature about “Frankenstein foods” .....................................................................11 2.2.1 Literature analyzing “Frankenstein foods” as biotechnological uncertainty ...12 2.2.2 Literature analyzing “Frankenstein foods” as fact vs fiction ..........................18 2.3 Conclusion ...............................................................................................................24 CHAPTER THREE: THEORY .........................................................................................27 3.1 Theories deliberated .................................................................................................27 3.1.1 Rhetoric of Narrative .......................................................................................27 3.1.2 Literary Theories .............................................................................................29 3.1.3 Linguistic theory ..............................................................................................30 3.2 The Selection of Semiotic Theory ...........................................................................32 3.2.1 Semiotic theory according to Saussure ............................................................33 3.2.1.1 Saussure’s linguistic-semiotic system ...................................................34 3.2.2 Semiotic theory according to Barthes ..............................................................39 3.2.2.1 Barthes’ mythological-semiotic system .................................................40 3.2.3 Ferrell’s theory of myth ...................................................................................44 CHAPTER FOUR: METHODOLOGY ............................................................................48 4.1 Discussion of the methodology ................................................................................48 4.1.1 The “History of Ideas” Methodology ..............................................................48 4.1.1.1 Common criticism of the “History of Ideas” method ............................51 4.1.1.2 Skinner’s objection to the “History of Ideas” methodology ..................54 4.1.2 Thematic Network ...........................................................................................57 4.2 The Method ..............................................................................................................60 4.2.1 Paradigm assumptions .....................................................................................60 4.2.1.1 Databases ...............................................................................................62 4.2.1.2 Search terms and databases ....................................................................62 4.2.1.3 Issues of bias in text selection ................................................................66 v 4.2.1.4 Selection of Texts ..................................................................................66 4.2.2 Analysis of themes from texts .........................................................................72 4.2.2.1 Analysis of themes from texts: phase one .............................................73 4.2.2.2 Analysis of themes from texts: phase two .............................................75 4.2.3 Narrative Methods ...........................................................................................76 4.2.4 Validation ........................................................................................................80 CHAPTER FIVE: ANALYSIS..........................................................................................81 5.1 Overview ..................................................................................................................81 5.2 Before Frankenstein: The ghost of Prometheus .......................................................82 5.2.1 Before Frankenstein: Giving life to the dead ..................................................84 5.3 The formation of the “Frankenstein Monster” .........................................................89 5.3.1 The formation of the “Frankenstein Monster”: The Romantics ......................89 5.3.2 The Frankenstein Monster in the industrial period ..........................................94 5.3.3 The formation of the Frankenstein Monster: The literary critics ....................98 5.4 Frankenstein foods: A synthesis of the unnatural and the natural .........................100 5.5 Frankenstein Foods and GMFs—an unbreakable connection ...............................103 CHAPTER SIX: DISCUSSION/CONCLUSION ...........................................................111 6.1.1 Methodological and theoretical challenges ...................................................118 6.1.2 Future research ..............................................................................................121
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