Family Bonds The idea of ​​using a family-based theme in literature has been around for a long time. When an author writes a novel or even a play, it is very easy to include a strong family dynamic. Family is something that almost every person can relate to in one way or another. This comfort triggers emotions in the reader or viewer that make the story easier to follow. There are many examples of this in this course, but this article will focus on how three of them use family dynamics to connect with the reader: Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, Kafka's Metamorphoses, and Brecht's Mother Courage and Her Children. read Frankenstein carefully to get a feel for this idea. The beginning of the story is a series of letters between an explorer named Walton and his sister Margaret. The contents of these letters suggest that Walton was very close to his sister. The first letter simply goes into detail about his upcoming journey, but the second letter reveals that Walton is feeling very lonely without a true friend to share his visions for the great journey they are about to undertake. The fact that he shares this with his sister in his letters home will allow the reader to infer that Walton still wants to complete the expedition, but is also starting to long to return home to his family. In one of the letters Walton writes: "A youth spent in solitude, my best years spent under your kind and feminine tutelage, have so refined the foundations of my character, that I cannot overcome an intense disgust at the usual brutality exercised in board the ship. (Shelley)." By reading these letters, the reader can easily become emotionally attached to Walton, es...... middle of paper ......t to Mother Courage as she too is a single mother and is working for the survival of the family. . In everything you read that uses family dynamics as a theme, it is quite simple to be able to link at least one of their situations to your own family life. This further solidifies how important family is in almost everyone's life, whether in real life or in a piece of literature. Works Cited Komisaruk, Adam. "'Thus Guided by a Silk Cord': Frankenstein's Family Values." Romantic Studies 38.3 (1999): 409. Premier Academic Research. Network. April 25, 2014.Patterson, Joan. “Integrating Family Resilience and Literature.” Journal of Marriage and Family 68: 228-245. Network. April 24, 2014.Shelley, Maria. Frankenstein or the modern Prometheus. New York: New American Library, 1963. Print. April 24. 2014.