Mary Shelly's Frankenstein is one of the greatest Gothic novels published during the Romantic period. Frankenstein is a great example of what a gothic novel should present to its reader through the twisted themes of the genre. Even though it was written in the Romantic era, Mary Shelley nevertheless wrote Frankenstein as a work of Gothic literature. Many characteristics of the Gothic novel can be seen in this novel. Mary Shelley's exceptional novel Frankenstein is a great example of a Gothic novel because of the many characteristics of a Gothic novel that make it a Gothic work. The Gothic genre, or otherwise known as Gothic romance, was a popular form of literature during the time that Mary Shelley was writing Frankenstein. Mary Shelley used the gothic genre of romantic literature to write the novel Frankenstein. She may even have been influenced by the Gothic structure of Castle Frankenstein to write the Gothic novel Frankenstein (Williams 3). Gothic novels were a type of fiction that became popular in England during the 1700s and early 1800s (Dunn 279). Gothic novels were mysteries that often involved the supernatural and were filled with horror(?). Mary Shelly's Frankenstein was one of the most influential Gothic novels of the Romantic (?) era. According to Frank J. Dunn, “In the 1800s, elements of the Gothic novel appeared in other forms of fiction that shared its interest in the terrible and the exotic (279). » Gothic novels follow a set of many characteristics and aspects that help define what they actually are. Gothic novels have many different characteristics: they evoke both physical and psychological terror, they have characters who maintain themselves isolated in time or space from the contemporary world...... middle of paper.. .... Shelley's Frankenstein truly displays the true essence of what a Gothic novel should represent through the many different characteristics of a Gothic novel. Mary Shelley takes these few basic characteristics and transforms them into a true representation of a gothic novel. The transformations of these fundamental Gothic characteristics allowed Mary Shelley to create her remarkable and important Gothic novel, Frankenstein. Works Cited “Gothic Novels.” The World Book Encyclopedia. Ed. . Flight. 22. 2012. Print. “Frankenstein.” The World Book Encyclopedia. Ed. . Flight. 22. 2012. Print. Williams, Kate. “Monster ink.” New Statesman 141.5088 (2012): 50. MAS Ultra - School edition. Internet. March 17, 2012Kestner, Joseph. “Narcissism as symptom and structure: the case of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein.” » Frankenstein, Botting, Fred, ed., pp.68-80. London: Macmillan, 1995.