British Literature II: Revolution, Reaction, Reform examines British literature from the late eighteenth century to the present, a period that witnessed the American and French Revolutions, slave revolts such as the Haitian Revolution, a “revolution in female manners,” the Industrial Revolution, the twentieth-century revolutionary wave in Europe, as well as World War I and World War II, and, of course, artistic revolutions. We will consider how the authors and literary works of this period might be reacting to change, advocating for reform, or participating in literary revolutions—whether revolution is understood in the sense of “revolving” or of “revolting,” going full circle to return to a previous (more perfect?) time or experiencing/effecting a great alteration or rupture.
Access the works for annotations assignments in COVE Studio here: ENG 272, Spring 2025
The digital edition of Frankenstein for annotations and the map project can be found here: Mary Shelley, Frankenstein (1818)
"Constantinople and the Golden Horn, Turkey, ca. 1899" by trialsanderrors is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
Constantinople appears in Frankenstein a few times, but its relevance is nonetheless significant. It is the place where Safie and her father fled from; this we learn from the monster’s story. The ancient city of Constantinople, then the capital of the Ottoman Empire, is now known as Istanbul, the largest city in Turkey. First settled in the seventh...
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"Chambered Cairn on the Tarf, Swona, Orkney Islands - geograph.org.uk - 2970112" by Robert Beharie is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.
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“London Greenwich” by Albertistvan, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
Greenwich is an administrative division in England. Much of Greenwich is reserved for wide, open public areas and fields, but there are several places of interest in the area such as the Royal Greenwich Observatory or the Old Royal Naval College. The observatory is a place that is known for its age, and is regarded with respect in that right. In Frankenstein, Greenwich is mentioned in passing, as a place that Victor visits with Henry early on in book 3 during the two-year span in which Victor has allotted to construct the creature’s other. It’s only mentioned as a place he knows, but considering the areas connections with England’s military, it might be...
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“Portsmouth (28257922139)” by Mike McBey, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
Portsmouth is an area on Portsea Island, which despite its name, is actually a peninsula. The city itself is a major naval base today and is considered to be a very historical area for the United Kingdom. The city was started by a settlement created by King Richard I in 1194. In Frankenstein, Portsmouth is the place that Victor and his family pass through to get to Havre on their way back to England after Victor is freed from his imprisonment in Ireland. He takes this route because he wanted to avoid the places he saw with Henry before his unfortunate death. The decision to have a place connected strongly to boats and the water as a transitory environment may be linked to...
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“Tilbury Fort” by Mervyn Rands, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
Tilbury Fort is a fortress that was commissioned by King Charles II in 1667, following an earlier defeat. It has since been the site of much activity. During the time the novel was written, though, it wouldn’t be getting much use. Many of the fortress’ faculties are still standing to this day. In Frankenstein, Tilbury Fort is a place mentioned in passing. During the beginning of Victor’s two-year exile with the intention of creating a female companion for the creature, this is one of the places that he and Henry pass by. It makes Victor remember the Spanish armada, a naval force created during the discovery of the new world, which implicitly speaks to his ideas for pushing the boundaries of...
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“Chamounix Valley Panorama” by Paul Nash, CC BY-SA 3.0 <http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/>, via Wikimedia Commons
Chamounix is a mountainous resort in the French Alps and is connected to Mont Blanc. Today, there are cable cars running between Chamounix and Mount Blanc, which are the highest elevation cable cars in the world. Interestingly, although a bit unrelated, Chamounix was the place where the first Winter Olympic games were hosted. In Frankenstein, Chamounix is the place that Victor and his remaining family makes an excursion to in order to lift their spirits after the unfair execution of Justine for the death of William by the hands of the creature. It’s the central place for where most of book 2 takes place. It’s interesting that the idea...
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South America is a continent that is mostly in the southern hemisphere and completely in the western hemisphere. This continent is south of North America, and contains countries such as Brazil, Chile, Argentina, and many more. It is briefly mentioned in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein when the creature asks Victor Frankenstein to create a female counterpart of his species. In his proposal, the creature says that he and his counterpart will flee to South America where Frankenstein will never see or hear from them again. During the early 1800’s all Spanish territories in South America gained their independence from Spain and the power of the Catholic church was also decreasing. Because...
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Asia is the largest continent in the world; occupying the most people by almost 60% and nearly 30% of the land area of earth. Asia is extremely diverse geographically; it is full of mountains ranges, desserts, and rivers. It is also extremely diverse in a cultural aspect too, full of different religions, languages, and traditions. Asia appears twice in Mary Shelley's Frankenstien. The first time in Volume two, Chapter six. A charcter, Safie, is describing why she doesn't want to go back to Asia but rather stay, marry a christian man, and be able to have some say, even as a woman, because Asia culturally didn't accept women at the time. The second time Asia is mentioned is in Volume three, Chpater seven. It is simply an example of how far Victor Frankenstien would go to complete his...
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Greece is a beautiful city located in Europe; home to many philosiphers, Greece is mentioned in Mary Shelley's novel Frankenstien three times. The first time in the Volume one, Preface, and simply discussing tragic greek poetry, and the great works thereof. The second time Greece is mentioned is in Volume one, Chapter three. We're discussing the rightchessness of the human mind, and how if the human kind followed the calm and peacful mindset history might've played out different, specifically how Greece may have never been enslaved. The third and final time Greece is mentioned in the novel is talking about the plan of education, and what is going to be happening. There wasn't a lot in my research that I felt really added to the novel or the...
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![](<p class="attribution">"<a rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/40729380@N00/49748020227">The Scottish Highlands</a>" by <a rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/40729380@N00">Shiva Shenoy</a> is licensed under <a rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/?ref=openverse">CC BY 2.0 <img src="https://mirrors.creativecommons.org/presskit/icons/cc.svg" style="height: 1em; margin-right: 0.125em; display: inline;" /><img src="https://mirrors.creativecommons.org/presskit/icons/by.svg" style="height: 1em; margin-right: 0.125em; display: inline;" /></a>.</p>){kind=icon}
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