Frankenstein
This photo story video was taken from Chapter Ten of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. As a gothic novel, Frankenstein is spattered with awesome images and I wanted to take advantage of this visual element. The pictures are of cold, barren, isolated mountains and the atmosphere shows an appreciation for the mysteries and power of nature. And of course, I wanted to demonstrate a photo story that was in keeping with the Gothic novel's theme of horror, fear, and mystery.
In order to get images and sounds, it was important that I closely read the text, so close that I probably accidently memorized a few lines. I realized that there were some words that were harder to demonstrate, like the emotions of anguish and disdain, than some of the other impressions, like the sea of ice and descending mountain peaks. I really enjoyed making the sound clip because the writing provided sign posts to how I should read aloud. Reading aloud reminded me how much Victor Frankenstein's character is enmeshed in the story. I knew exactly what Victor was feeling, thinking, and wanting and this is what I relied on in speaking. After the images were found, I changed the amount of time Photo Story designated for each picture. I felt that some images should remain on the screen longer because they presented a more powerful, overwhelming idea and/or position in the plot and characterization. I had to work on making the readings and the music correlate and when I listened to the first run-through, I noticed I needed to insert more images. Aligning the reading and the pictures with the correct amount of time was probably the most tedious and meticulous. I did not want all the pictures to look the same, especially with the abundance of mountains, so I had to force myself to think beyond what might have seemed obvious. This was a very fun activity and would be a great asset to the classroom. It makes the literature come alive! You can view the Photo Story here.
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