ALPHONSE FRANKENSTEIN
Real Name: Alphonse Frankenstein
Identity/Class: Human;
citizen of the Holy Roman Empire (but close enough to be included under Germans in my book);
18th century and possibly early 19th century A.D.
Occupation: Unspecified respected role as a public official for the Swiss government
Group Membership: The von Frankenstein Family (not a team, but a grouping);
Affiliations: Mr. Beaufort, Henry Clerval;
formerly Justine Moritz
Enemies: The Frankenstein monster (although he did not know of its existence);
(via misunderstanding) Justine Moritz
Known Relatives: Caroline Frankenstein (nee Beaufort, wife, deceased);
Anna Eleonora Munchmeyer (paternal grandmother, deceased), Johann Philip Dippel
(paternal grandfather, deceased);
Konrad Dippel (aka Baron von Frankenstein; father, deceased); Anna Catharina Muller (mother, deceased);
two paternal uncles (all presumably deceased), five paternal aunts (all presumably deceased) - see Konrad Dippel's profile for possible identifications of these relatives;
Ernst von Frankenstein, Victor von Frankenstein, William von Frankenstein (sons, deceased); Elizabeth Lavenza (daughter by adoption, deceased);
Vincent von Frankenstein (great-great-grandson, deceased), Lenore von Frankenstein (great-great-granddaughter-in-law), Victoria von Frankenstein (apparent great-great-granddaughter; see comments in her profile)
Basil Frankenstein (great-great-great-grandson, deceased);
Ludwig von Frankenstein (great-great-great-great-grandson);
Veronica von Frankenstein (great-great-great-great-great-granddaughter);
Jason von Frankenstein (uncertain relationship, deceased);
Maximilian Frankenstein (Maximilian von Katzenelnbogen, distant relative);
other Frankensteins
Aliases: None known
Base of Operations: Unrevealed;
formerly Geneva, Switzerland;
formerly the (apparently) original Castle Frankenstein, on
the northern edge of the Magnet mountain on the banks of the river
Rhine, in the territory of Hesse/Hessengau (now apparently Darmstadt, Germany);
First Appearance: Frankenstein; or, the Modern Prometheus (1818);
(Marvel) (The Monster of) Frankenstein#1 (January, 1973);
(name Alphonse confirmed) Doctor Strange, Sorcerer Supreme#37 (January, 1992)
Powers/Abilities: Alphonse had no superhuman power or special abilities.
He wore glasses, at least later in life, although his specific deficiency and prescription is undefined.
He
was a strong moral center for his family and a strong believer in
helping other and pursuing proper science and studies; he disdained
alchemy and its users. He was also a respected man in Geneva due to
past political work. He presumably had skill in politics.
History:
(Doctor Strange, Sorcerer Supreme#37 (fb) - BTS)
- Fearing the fabled curse of the Rock of the Franks following the
death of Konrad Dippel (aka Baron von Frankenstein) in 1734, Konrad's
family of
two brothers and five sisters (see comments) fled to Switzerland, taking with them Konrad's infant son, Alphonse. In Geneva, they
began a new life.
(Frankenstein; or, the Modern Prometheus) - Alphonse spent his youth working in public positions.
(Doctor Strange, Sorcerer Supreme#37 (fb) - BTS) - Alphonse Frankenstein grew-up to become a respected bourgeois, a member of the German middle class.Comments: Created by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley.
adapted by Gary Friedrich and Mike Ploog.
This regular test is mostly
limited to that which has been included in Marvel stories. As I have
not read the Frankenstein novel, I have supplemented the Marvel
information from the original stories in italics, based on checking a
few websites, suchas study.com, the Mary Shelley Wiki and Wikipedia.
If you have read the novel and can provide any corrections or supplemental information, please share.
It is important to note that if it was not included in the Marvel stories, it is not confirmed as having happened in Reality-616.
Alphonse Frankenstein, who is only named once in the novel yet appears throughout, ends up being one of the Creature's final victims. His death is the one that finally pushes Victor to confess his crimes and seek help in finding and capturing the Creature.
You can get more detail from the ...and from reading the original novel
The cover of comics says "The Monster of Frankenstein," but the indicia says only "Frankenstein," so that is the actual title of the comic.
Profile by Snood.
CLARIFICATIONS:
Alphonse Frankenstein should be distinguished from:
(Doctor Strange, Sorcerer Supreme#37 (fb) - BTS) - In 1760, during a journey to Naples, Alphonse's wife
gave birth to Victor, the first of their three children. Looking into
the smiling face of his newborn son, Alphonse believed that at last the
curse of the Frankensteins was truly ended. --Frankenstein; or, the Modern Prometheus; Doctor Strange, Sorcerer Supreme#37 Note: Caroline was not pictured or identified in the (Monster of) Frankenstein series. She is pictured in a distant shot and identied as Alphonse's wife in Doctor Strange, Sorcerer Supreme#37 Per the Mary Shelley Wiki: Caroline characterizes the ideal woman in the 18th century. She is described to be the ideal daughter, wife, and mother. Victor describes his mother as possessing “a mind of uncommon mould." Her whole life revolved around taking care of her family. She is a selfless nurturer. Before marrying Alphonse, once her father became financially unfortunate, she attempted to take care of her father by taking on "plain work." When his health left him, she nursed him until his death. When he died, she committed herself to taking care of Alphonse and became his wife. Then, she committed herself to their children, encouraged the adoption of Elizabeth, and took in Justine Moritz to live with them. When Elizabeth gets scarlet fever, Caroline cannot stay away from checking on her, which ends in her contraction of the fever and to her demise (when Victor was 17, just before he left for the university). However, even on her deathbed, “the fortitude and benignity of this admirable woman did not desert her” Caroline's picture, given to her youngest son, William, was deposited in Justine's pocket by the monster after slaying William. This led Justine to be executed for William's death. |
Appearances:
Frankenstein; or, the Modern Prometheus (1818) - Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (writer)
(The Monster of) Frankenstein#1 (January, 1973) - Gary Friedrich (writer), Mike Ploog (artist), Roy Thomas (editor)
(The Monster of) Frankenstein#3 (May, 1973) - Gary Friedrich (writer), Mike Ploog (artist), Roy Thomas (editor)
Doctor Strange, Sorcerer Supreme#37 (January, 1992) - Jean-Marc Lofficier,
Roy & Dan Thomas (writers), Geof Isherwood (artist), Mike Rockwitz
(editor)
First posted: 11/01/2023
Last updated: 11/01/2023
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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