Frankenstein’s 200th birthday is here (1818-2018)! He needs no introduction. He’s been in films, on cereal boxes, on TV, in cartoons, songs and advertisements. Quite an achievement for his author, 19-year-old Mary Shelley. This presentation is a reflection on themes in the novel, themes that do not always survive when the novel is adapted for stage or screen: trying to create life without women, friendship, family responsibilities, the importance of touch, ugliness/strangeness, fear of death. Raymond D. Boisvert, a Lewiston native, holds a philosophy PhD from Emory University and taught for 34 years at Siena College, outside Albany, NY.