Henry Fuseli’s Nightmare(s) in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein (1818)
Résumé
This paper analyses the influence of Henry Fuseli's various versions of The Nightmare (1781, 1791, 1793) on Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (1818, 1831). While critics have already found echoes, literary influences, like the bedside scenes in Gothic literature, have been overlooked, as well as political caricatures inspired by Fuseli. The Swiss painter's influence must therefore be reassessed or complemented by other sources.