| Bride of Frankenstein's Monster | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| |||
| Naming | |||
| Others | The Monster's Mate Bride of Frankenstein Eva (The Bride) | ||
| Personal information | |||
| Species | Artificial Human | ||
| Gender | Female | ||
| Relations | Victor Frankenstein (creator) Frankenstein's Monster (intended suitor) | ||
| Current status | Varies | ||
| Biology | |||
| Body type | Humanoid | ||
| Sentience | Sentient | ||
| Sapience | Sapient | ||
| Behind the scenes | |||
| Universe | Frankenstein | ||
| Created by | Mary Shelley | ||
| Performed by | Elsa Lanchester Jennifer Beals | ||
In the original horror novel Frankenstein, or The Modern Prometheus, by Mary Shelley, the intended "bride" of Frankenstein's Monster was an unfinished creation of Victor Frankenstein, developed at the request of the Monster, but destroyed by Victor himself just as he's about to finish her, since he can't bear the thought of becoming responsible for a potential new race of such creatures.
This character was subsequently featured as an actual finished creation in a number of adaptations, starting with the influential 1935 film Bride of Frankenstein. Said adaptations diverge on whether and to what extent the Bride will indeed accept the Monster as her suitor.
Biography[]
In the 1935 Universal film, the idea of her creation comes from Henry Frankenstein's old mentor, Dr. Septimus Pretorius, who uses his own alchemy-like techniques to create an artificially-grown brain and enlists the Monster himself to assist him, promising him that the newly-created woman would be the Monster's friend. Pretorius orders the Monster to kidnap Frankenstein's wife, thus forcing him to help Pretorius complete the experiment. A megalomaniac, Pretorius hoped to create an entire new race to populate the Earth and thus elevate man to the same status as God.
Reluctantly, Frankenstein started working, placing the artificial brain in the body of a recently-deceased young woman (who, unknown to him, had been killed by Pretorius' own henchman, Karl) and using the same lighting-based techniques he had previously employed with the Monster to bring the new creature to life. The experiment was a success, and the Bride was presented to her suitor. As the Monster tried to approach her, he soon realized that his intended mate was as terrified of him as everybody else. He then allowed Frankenstein and his wife to escape the castle before deliberately overloading the machine, resulting in a huge explosion. The Monster, his intended Bride and Pretorius were all presumably killed.
Legacy[]
The Bride's appearance in the 1935 film, as played by Elsa Lanchester, has become ingrained in popular culture, to the point that her distinctive hairstyle is now practically synonymous with the character, even though it's obviously not present in the original book (in which she's not even finished).
Characters with a similar hair and fulfilling a similar role have appeared in The Munsters (Lily Munster, although she is actually the daughter of Count Dracula), The Flintstones (Frank Frankenstone's wife is named either Hidea or Oblivia, depending on different iterations of the show), Scooby-Doo and the Reluctant Werewolf (named Repulsa, and a somewhat rare instance of her being portrayed as ugly), Johnny Bravo (referred to as "Bride of F", but ended up marrying Johnny), and Duck Dodgers (referred to simply as the Monstress, she quickly rejected her suitor).
Additionally, Elsa Frankenteen's hairstyle in Scooby-Doo and the Ghoul School is very obviously an homage to Universal's version of the character, and she's named after actress Elsa Lanchester. The Bride of Frankenstein that appears in the Vampirina episode "Franken-Wedding" is also clearly designed after Lanchester's version.
Appearances[]
Literature[]
- Frankenstein, or The Modern Prometheus, by Mary Shelley (1818); as an unfinished creation.
Films[]
- Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
- The Bride (1985)
Notes[]
- In the 1935 movie Bride of Frankenstein, she is portrayed by Elsa Lanchester, who also plays Mary Shelley in the film's prologue.
- Just as the Monster himself is sometimes erroneously known as "Frankenstein" (the name of his creator), the Bride is often referred to as "Bride of Frankenstein", which can easily lead to confusion. In the 1985 film The Bride, she is named Eva.