Pete, Alyssa2019-06-132019-06-13https://hdl.handle.net/1794/2461616 pagesA myriad of authors have examined gender roles and sexuality in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (1818), directing their attention to the homosexual undertones in the relationship between Victor Frankenstein and his creature, the incestuous connection between Victor and Elizabeth, and Victor's role as either male scientist or mother. While studies themes and relationships in The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975) are growing in number, they are still limited. Furthermore, there is little literature that directly compares the two works and when they are discussed simultaneously, the emphasis remains on thematic similarities and differences of The Rocky Horror Picture Show as a variant of the original 1818 text. This essay works to directly utilize the blatant representation of shifting gender roles and sexuality in The Rocky Horror Picture Show to illuminate or reevaluate our understanding of subliminal homosexual desires, negative coding of sexuality, and androgyny present in Frankenstein. By analyzing the characterization of and relationships between characters in both the novel and film, I will demonstrate the corresponding depictions of gender roles and sexuality in each text. This essay will also draw from the cultural context of the novel and film, the 19th century and the 1970s respectively, to understand the differences in the visibility and reception of shifting gender and sexuality norms in Frankenstein and The Rocky Horror Picture Show.Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 4.0-US