Alysia Garrison

Assistant professor of English, Dartmouth College

The year 1816 was known worldwide as 'The Year Without a Summer' because of its dark skies, record snowfalls, frozen rivers and failed crops.

Reading the novel in 2016 in the wake of the Paris climate accord...'Frankenstein' can be seen as the first offspring of climate change.

What 'Frankenstein' Can Tell Us About Climate Change

John Constable created his ominous oil painting, 'Weymouth Bay' in 1816. The dark skies were inspired by 'The Year Without a Summer,' the same meteorological change that influenced the novel 'Frankenstein.' (Courtesy Victoria and Albert Museum, London)