Ambitious, knowledge-hungry student Victor Frankenstein lights upon the secret of breathing life into inanimate objects. After gathering a collection of body parts, he embarks on a macabre construction exercise, endowing the fruits of his labours with the life force, Having succeeded in his aim, Frankenstein recoils in horror at the "demoniacal corpse" he has created. He abandons the monster, who inspires fear in those he meets. Craving acceptance and affection but facing unrelenting rejection, the monster wreaks his revenge on his creator, who finds that playing God is a dangerous game; that with power comes responsibility. Frankenstein, an instant bestseller and an important ancestor of both the horror and science fiction genres, not only tells a terrifying story, but also raises profound, disturbing questions about the very nature of life and the place of humankind within the cosmos: What does it mean to be human? What responsibilities do we have to each other? How far can we go in tampering with Nature? In our age, filled with news of organ donation genetic engineering, and bio-terrorism, these questions are more relevant than ever.