Is there a word that means to create life, similar to what Dr.Frankenstein did?
well, reanimate means to bring the dead back to life.
In an article on Mary Shelley, it says, "She was familiar with the ideas of using dead bodies for study, the newer theory of using electricity to animate the dead,..."
so, while animate is more often used figuratively to add life, it also can mean literally giving life to inert matter.