Prometheus Vs Victor Frankenstein

The Modern Prometheus When Mary Shelley’ “Frankenstein” rose to fame, literary critics sparked fierce debates concerning whether the main character, Victor Frankenstein, was influenced by the Greek myth of Prometheus. While Victor and Prometheus both created their own version of humans, their methods and overall affection for their creation is startling different. Some critics argue that Victor is in fact the modern Prometheus because of the ways Victor went about creating the monster with his use of science. Other critics support this theory with the circumstances under which Mary wrote it, where she was heavily influenced by the Romantic philosophies of Lord Byron and her husband, Percy Shelley, and she even subtitled the novel as “The
When Mary first wrote “Frankenstein”, she originally wrote it for a short story competition between her and other authors. This competition was held by Lord Byron, who was a renowned Romantic author of the time who also wrote “Promethean poems” (Rider). At only nineteen years of age, Mary was a young and inexperienced author who most likely drew her ideas from “her father, William Godwyn, and those of her lover, Percy Bysshe Shelley” (James). Her father was famous novelist and political philosopher that help shaped Mary’s opinions and writing style that helped her to incorporate the ideas of her father into her own works. Her husband, Percy, also was a well renowned author who released his own novel, Prometheus Unbound, shortly after Mary completed Frankenstein. This title reflects the subtitle of Frankenstein, The Modern Prometheus, and helps to illustrate the major influence the Prometheus myth had on many of these
Prometheus “contended with the gods, stole fire from them to give to humans, and was punished by Zeus by being chained on Mount Caucasus to have vultures eat his liver” (Diane). Prometheus helped to shape all living animals on Earth and gave them many of their distinctive traits. When Mary was giving the determining qualities of Victor, she didn’t seem to be influenced by any of the traits of Prometheus. This is where many critics argue that Victor is not in fact The Modern Prometheus because he doesn’t share any of the qualities That Prometheus exemplifies with his treatment of his creation. Prometheus risks his life for the humans by standing up to Zeus and stealing “fire from the gods” (James) to give it to the humans. Victor on the other hand leaves his creation to survive on his own and discover that “fire gave light as well as heat” (Chap. 11). The monster had to learn from the humans and “discover the motives which influenced their actions” (Chap. 12) in order to lean about the world he was thrust into. Victor’s poor treatment of his creation may stem from Mary’s pessimistic perception of science and the dangers it could bring. Mary was a Romantic writer who rejected many of the scientific ideas of the Enlightenment and the dangers it could bring. Even though Victor doesn’t share many qualities with Prometheus, it