Frankenstein is one of the world’s most famous horror stories. It’s about a doctor who creates a new man from the body parts of dead people and brings it to life. But the experiment goes wrong and the monster(怪獸) kills the doctor and many others. The story has been read by millions since it was first published and in the last hundred years it has been made into dozens of movies. Many people are surprised to learn its writer was a 19-year-old woman, called Mary Shelley.
Mary was born into a rich London family in August 1797. She was educated by her parents and when she was 13 decided to become a writer. In 1812, she met the famous writer Percy Shelley and they soon got married. Sadly for Mary, their first child died soon after birth in Italy. In her diary, Mary wrote about a dream: “I dreamt that my little baby came to life again—that it had only been cold and that we rubbed it before the fire and it lived.”
In 1816, Percy Shelley and 19-year-odl May visited the poet Lord Byron at his home in Switzerland. Because of the bad weather they stayed indoors reading horror stories. One night, Byron asked everyone to write their own story. Mary thought of her dream and wrote the story Frankenstein.
Frankenstein was published when Mary was 21, and became a huge success. Many people didn’t think a 19-year-old woman could write so well and believed her husband was the real writer.
Although famous, Shelley’s life was full of sadness. Only one of her four children lived and in 1822 her husband died in a swimming accident. Mary was broken-hearted and decided not to marry again. She devoted herself to her child and continued to write until her death in 1851.
【小題1】 What do we know about he story Frankenstein?
| A．It was really written by Mary Shelley’s husband. |
| B．It was been read by millions of people. |
| C．It was written to remember Shelley’s husband. |
| D．It is the most famous story in the world. |
【小題2】Where was Mary Shelley when she wrote the story Frankenstein?
| A．In England. | B．In Italy. | C．In Switzerland. | D．In France. |
【小題3】 In which order to the following take place?
a. Bad weather made everyone stay indoors reading horror stories.
b. The story Frankenstein was first published.
c. Mary wrote about a dream in her diary.
d. Mary met the famous writer Percy Shelley.
e. Movies based on the story of Frankenstein were made.
| A．a(chǎn), c, b, e, d | B．d, c, a, b, e | C．c, a, b, d, e | D．b, a, d, c, e |
【小題4】 How old was Mary Shelley when she died?
【小題5】What can we learn about Mary Shelley from this passage?
| A．She experienced a lot of sadness in her life. |
| B．She wasn’t considered a good writer during her life. |
| C．She was educated at her local school. |
| D．She became very rich because of the story Frankenstein. |
