Fascinated
Fascinated
Victor Frankenstein’s demise stemmed from his infatuation with the balance of nature and science. Even as a child, Frankenstein longed for answers that no one could give, “ I confess that neither the structure of languages, nor the code of governments, nor the politics of various states possessed attractions for me. It was the secrets of heaven and earth that I desired to learn” (28). From that moment Victor’s fate was determined, and his pursuit for these answers soon became an obsession with playing God. However, moments after the birth of his creation, his entire deanor shifts; he suffers remorse, “breathless horror and disgust filled [his] heart” (51). This horror only worsens with his later encounters with the monster and the knowledge of the several murders of his most beloved. Victor Frankenstein gave life and now longed for…
Composed during the Industrial Revolution at a time of increased scientific experimentation, Shelley warns and forebodes her enlightened society of the consequences which come about from playing god. She uses Victor Frankenstein as her platform, whose self-exalting line “many excellent natures would owe their being to me” represents a society engrossed with reanimation. Recurring mythical allusions to Prometheus, “how dangerous is the acquirement of knowledge” portray Victor as a tragic hero; a noble character whose “fatal flaw” of blind ambition ultimately results in his own downfall and dehumanization, “swallowed up every habit of my nature”. In addition, Victor’s impulsive rejection of his grotesque creation, leads to the Monster’s rebellion (“vowed eternal hated and vengeance to all mankind”).…
But, it is these processes that clearly show flaws in their own philosophy. As an Enlightenment Era scientist, Victor has all of nature at his disposal, to experiment and conduct tests on however he likes. His deeds show this; the torture of animals in order to discover the “inner workings of the natural world”, without remorse he digs up countless corpses in the night in search of ‘perfect’ body parts to put together and form his creature. The problems in this approach to science are evident in the cruelty and horrific acts that its moral code condones. These acts have been committed without emotional or human attachment, values that are fundamental in Romantic ideals. In describing these events and directly attributing them to Enlightenment ways, Shelly describes the realisation society is coming to that its values must change. In staying true to the scientific values of the time, Frankenstein exposes their flaws and as a result unwittingly challenges…
Shelley’s Gothic novel, Frankenstein, explores the complex nature of mankind by considering the consequences of an unrestricted pursuit of science. A rise in scientific experimentation with Galvanism during Shelley’s time is reflected through the protagonist Victor as he uses it to bestow life. Shelley portrays Victor and the Creature as complex beings, demonstrating both inhuman and human qualities. Despite this, the subsequent rejection by his creator and the De Lacy family drives the Creature to ‘eternal rejection and vengeance of mankind’. Victor’s initial response when meeting the creature, demonstrates his savage, cruel treatment and lack of responsibility towards his creation.…
Cultural, religious and scientific influences are deeply intertwined in Frankenstein. The novel’s cultural aspect is introduced at the beginning of the novel when Victor’s drive for knowledge is introduced, which leads to the introduction of the science aspect, in which Victor animates lifeless matter. The birth of his monster establishes the religious aspect the nature of evil becomes questionable. In this essay, Shelley’s manipulation of the religion, scientific, and cultural aspects of the novel will be analyzed. Throughout the novel Frankenstein, Shelley manipulates…
Frankenstein is a novel book in which the mistake of Victor leads to the death of his loved ones. A scientist decides to interfere in the plans of nature and nature represented by the creature severely punishes him for that. Only “God” should take responsibility of creating a human form of life. Victor and the monster both die.…
Shelley uses aspects of Romanticism in the novel by having the Creature live in the heath. Romanticism is also displayed on Victor’s retreat to the mountains. Shelley displays an enormous amount of emotion in the novel which assists the reader to understand the feelings of alienation and neglect that the Creature is experiencing. With all of these aspects, the reader may begin to question whether Shelley had an extreme personal connection to one of the characters, whether it be the Creature or Victor.…
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein novel is about man trying to conquer the knowledge of the world and nature. This endeavor ultimately leads to his failure. In this novel there are references to a work by John Milton called Paradise Lost. In Paradise Lost God creates a man Adam and a woman Eve; Satan later tempts them to eat the forbidden fruit of knowledge and they do (Dudczak). Once they eat the fruit they are cast from Paradise forever (Dudczak). Mary Shelley uses this allusion in her novel to show her opinion of Enlightenment as she herself was a Gothic Romantic. Shelley believed that trying to conquer nature would only lead to failure.…
With the future progress of scientific technology, there is a concern of whether or not individuals or businesses are attempting to play God and obtain the power to give or take away life. Progress in science causes people to question if scientific advances really do help the common man or can it harm them. The main character of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Victor Frankenstein, wants to defy the laws of life and science by attempting to bring back the dead. The book follows Victor’s progress on creating the creature to show that using science to play God can lead to horrible consequences.…
Knowledge is power, but it can be for the extreme benefit or detriment to society. Having too of it is a hidden danger and a menace to the public good when unaware of its capabilities. Dr.Frankenstein knew not of his monster's hidden malignity upon creation. His knowledge of human and nature sciences worked, but to the detriment of him and his loved ones. A natural phenomenon that defied the laws of life and nature was born through the misuse of Dr.Frankenstein's knowledge in thr classic, gothic novel,"Frankenstein" by Mary Shelley.…
3a. This book cover does not correlate with my preconceived notions about Frankenstein because there is a naked man instead of the stereotypical green and blockhead monster.…
Knowledge has the ability to promote the evolution of society, but if it prevails in uncovering the irreparable despair of one’s existence, or devours the entirety of ones purpose and ambition, it becomes the fruit of the poison tree. In Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley’s prolific novel Frankenstein, both Victor Frankenstein and his creature suffer severely from the knowledge plaguing them. Victor possessively seeks the knowledge necessary to bring his creature to life, blocking out all consciousness of negative implications, all the while his creature anguishes over the knowledge of his monstrosity of a reality. Knowledge in their case, is poison, disallowing them to live life freely, and revealing the potential danger when pursuit or discovery of it is all encompassing and corrupting.…
Written in 1818 by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, Frankenstein is widely considered to be among the novels that fully exemplify Romantic-era literary achievement. The Romantic movement is a general term used to denote the intellectual evolution in literature and the arts, primarily in 19th century Europe. Substantial facets of literary Romanticism include belief in the innate virtue of humans, the bounds of nature, as well as the polarity of human emotion, all of which are embodied in Shelley’s Frankenstein. Through reading Shelley’s novel, some of the fundamental ideals of Romanticism genuinely become obvious.…
Fear and pain are sources of pleasure that Shelley in ‘Frankenstein’ employs, especially within the character of Victor. The painful description of the monstrous birth is one example of this- having the element of disturbance to shock the reader, yet to Victor (the creator) his response is pleasure and he seems to enjoy the terrifying sounds made of the birth; ‘’I might infuse a spark… into the lifeless thing’’, Here Shelley emphasises the gothic by playing with the dead and ‘infusing’ life- making the dead a scientific experiment for Victor to ‘play’ with.…
In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Doctor Frankenstein continues to use and implement his knowledge, which seems to go against nature and is called ‘dangerous’. This knowledge, when used to create his hideous monster, deeply affects his mental and physical state of mind. Shelley showcases this in chapter four of Frankenstein. In the novel, Frankenstein acquires knowledge, then causes detrimental harm to his mental and physical health.…