Frankenstein is one of the most famous books in humanity, which presents a diversity of topics, from finding meaning in life to finishing with feministic movements. The story is about a village man, Victor Frankenstein, who developed a living creature and tried to make it like a real human through language and actions. “I began a creation of human beings,” says Victor, but the result has shown that the scientific development was more like a living being rather than a human (Shelley 54). The author addresses the topic of human growth well by showing the changes in different aspects of life, like science, communication, and feminism. In these areas, people express sympathy or anger, while the creature of Frankenstein does not show emotional changes.
The main characters of Frankenstein are Victor and Robert, who constantly seek adventures and want to discover the unique parts of the world. Robert Walton is an explorer, and their long-lasting journeys are the key meanings of his life. Victor Frankenstein is obsessed with achieving his goals and making scientific breakthroughs (Shelley 31). In the novel, he is a risky character who is prepared for unexpected journeys. Victor and Robert do not have similar personalities, but both of them want to become famous. Walton’s idea to travel to the north became interesting for Frankenstein, but their aims were different. Shelley believed that the northern part of the world was magical, and both characters could find what they were looking for (Spencer 7). While Robert wanted to see the lands which are not populated, Victor tried to observe others to give a scientific explanation to the death.
This drive for traveling continues today and can be transferred to the readers. Since Shelley elaborated on different topics, people of different ages can find relevant ideas to their personal lives and discover new ideas. The characters’ motives can be related to the modern world as many scientists are trying to study the human being and the mentality of people from a scientific point of view. Moreover, the drive for risk did not change over time, and individuals continued traveling to gain more world experience.
The topic of unknown geographical locations is actively discussed in Frankenstein, people throughout the times might find more places to be added to the world’s map. According to Gregory, with the invention of Geographical Information Systems, every location of the part was located on the global map (1). However, the geography of distant locations can be studied in more depth. New technologies can capture the lands from the air, but weather conditions might be unpredictable over time, and such phenomena as Bermuda Triangle make the studies of lands in this territory more unclear. Technological development should not stop, and the lands of the ocean can be studied more accurately.
Science continues studying the meaning of life and how people build their relationships with death. Frankenstein and Walton started discovering this topic several centuries ago, and nowadays, progress can be seen. The most common finding of the sense of life in the scientific interpretation is the need to eat, sleep, and rest. Based on the Ward and King study, work is an additional component that meets people’s meaning of life, allowing them to earn money and maintain communication (62). In the past, many individuals tried to understand how death could be avoided. However, these days with the development of medicine, people can live longer, and immortality rarely stays the main aspect of the sense of life. More methods like observations and brain studies are used to find the scientific explanation for life’s meaning.
During the times of Frankenstein and Walton, the discovery of new and unknown locations was one of the greatest achievements, and they tried to use all possible resources to explore new horizons. By traveling, they could spend a lot of time staying alone and thinking about the sense of life. During these periods, the characters could make more breakthroughs in this area. Nowadays, experts can use innovations and complete their studies more advanced. Consequently, due to the fact that all resources are used properly throughout time, no better way could be adjusted to accomplish the goal of character and modern scientists.
Today’s motivations for the discoveries of new lands and the sense of life are the ability to make the lives of the planet’s population more convenient. The education of new lands may help to find the dwindling resources like oil and coal, which are needed for the further development of innovations. Moreover, communication with strangers who do not live according to global standards may boost the observation process to find the sense of people’s daily actions.
In conclusion, Mary Shelley managed to show the reality of many generations through the novel Frankenstein. The spirit of adventure, risk, and goal achievement is close to people nowadays. Consequently, scientists worldwide take the experience of characters like Victor and Robert to find the meaning of life and adjust their techniques to modern ways of studying. The experience of ancestors helps to observe their living conditions and boost medicine based on previous studies.
Works Cited
Ian, Gregory. The Virtual Representation of the Past. Routledge, 2017.
Childhood is characterized by learning and the need to be guided on society’s rights and wrongs. Many times, children’s upbringings are affected by the happenings around them. For example, Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein depicts some childhood behaviors through Victor. These behaviors include understanding love and care, the role of parents, and fears of sharing affection.
Children like to feel the love and care their parents give to them. Frankenstein describes Victor’s life as blessed and delightful since he had his parent’s love and care. He felt fortunate when they mingled with other families, and he felt gratitude for filial love (Shelley 23). However, the experience was short-lived when his mother died when he was 17. He describes his childhood afterward as unpleasant. Therefore, this statement asserts the importance of parents’ existence to a child.
Children reflect what their parents most of the time. Victor believes that he should reflect his parents’ love for him to the creature. He feels unloved for not even laying his eyes on the creature (Shelley 45). Further, Laura Claridge explains that the creature experienced an unloving environment during his childhood. According to her, Victor felt out of place and dissatisfied with the way he did not reciprocate the love he got (8). Hence, children always learn from their parents and reflect on their behaviors.
Fears of sharing affection in a child are seen when another person enters the picture. Victor feels excluded and given less appreciation when a little sister is adopted. He started being a participant rather than an object of his parent’s love. Victor feels like he should be his parent’s plaything and their idol (Shelley 33). Elizabeth’s addition to the family felt like a competition for affection. However, Marshall Brown disagrees as he feels it affected nothing but complete joy since there is no mention of sibling friction (16). He describes Victor and Elizabeth as strangers to any species of disunion.
In conclusion, Shelley uses Victor’s childhood to describe some behaviors. These behaviors include parents’ roles in a child, affection sharing, and love and care. Additionally, Elizabeth plays a role in amplifying these behaviors through her adoption. Therefore, one needs to understand children’s behaviors and characters in their childhood and later adult lives.
Works Cited
Brown, Marshall. “Frankenstein”: A Child’s Tale.” Novel: A Forum on Fiction, vol. 36, no. 2, 2003.
Claridge, Laura P. “Parent-Child Tensions in Frankenstein: The Search for Communion.” Studies in the Novel, vol. 17, no. 1, 1985, pp. 14-26.
The ghostly tales of Mr. Hyde and Frankenstein are symbols of horrors in real life that haunt our daily hours. The interest of this research is the definition of the monster’s identity and how it is translated. The research introduces the authors’ symbolic concepts of strangeness which address alienation and desire and, which happen in the unconscious state of the creator’s Victor and Dr. Jekyll.
These texts present the perfect example of fiction which is the best type of writing that combines terror, romance, and horror with the character’s repressed thoughts, desires, and spilled personality. The authors Robert Stevenson Louis and Mary Shelly have adequately dealt with the concept of mad scientists, their split personalities, and destructive creations. First, the characters victor and Dr. Jekyll are scientists highly respected by their societies which leads them to create destructive creatures for themselves, to carry out unconventional passions. The other similarity lies in the fact that the mad scientists gave their creations a male gender like themselves.
Victor created Frankenstein from the desire to have a supreme being and to imitate God by exposing his creation. Victor therefore subconsciously puts his religion or spirituality in his creation, which is later reflected in Frankenstein’s spirituality. The creature’s spirituality is seen in his fascination with the sun and moon which corresponds with pagan adorations of the world and is depicted in expressions like ‘orb of the night’ and ‘gentle light’.
While Frankenstein was a separate entity only mirroring the personality of his creator, Mr. Hyde was the double of Dr. Jekyll. This important aspect is seen and is proven with Dr. Jekyll’s confession that he took the option of living a double life, ‘I made a choice possibly with unconscious reservation, since I never gave up my house in Soho, or destroyed Edward Hyde’s clothes’ (Stevenson 76). Therefore, Dr. Jekyll confesses that he is subconsciously aware that he was living a double life hence, Mr. Hyde can be said to be the alter-personality of this character. Whereas Jekyll represents a conscious state, Hyde is the representation of the unconscious state. This is a contrast to Frankenstein since both monster and creator appear at the same time.
This factor provides the basis for the research’s premise since if both monsters were reflections of their creators, then the scientists were evil. Therefore the creatures’ desires and intentions were the results of their creator’s personalities. For Victor this is depicted by his creation of his alter personality Frankenstein, to carry his unconscious desires and to encourage him to pursue suppressed desires. This desire is explained by victor as, ‘i thought, that by bestowing animation on lifeless matter, I would in time renew life which death had devoted to corruption’ (Shelley 43). In the process, the disconnection between appearance and inner senses made the creature evil like his creator. Victor’s corrupt desire gives Frankenstein its evil desires since the creature is the fruit of victor’s malice. On the other hand, Mr. Hyde reflects the doctor’s hypocrisy, in which he reflects unconscious impulses, as evident in Jekyll’s confessions ‘perennial war between my members’ (Stevenson 70) and ‘man is not one, other than truly two’ (Stevenson 71).
Both creatures are evil like their creators since they are the projections of the altered personality of the scientists. Mr. Hyde is the unconscious representation of Dr. Jekyll, an evil representation of his sub-consciousness as he explained, ‘more wicked, a tenfold wicked… a slave to original evil’ (Stevenson 72). On the other hand, Frankenstein’s evil arose from Victor’s rejection and the rejection of society as seen from the Lacys family. Whereas Jekyll was not repulsed by the sight of his reflection in the mirror, the victor was terrified of Frankenstein. This also shows that Jekyll accepted the alter evil in him, as ‘as I looked on the ugly image in the glass…. this too was me and it looked natural and human’ (Stevenson 73). Victor was the rejecting father, while Frankenstein was the rejected child, as depicted in ‘how do I describe my emotions of this catastrophe… my dream’s beauty has vanished… unable to bare the being I created, I rushed out’ (Shelley 45).
The altered personality of Dr. Jekyll also had his knowledge and skills, therefore, Mr. Hyde could commit acts of violence. However since these crimes were Dr. Jekyll’s desires put in place by the subconscious mind, the scientist, as well as his monster, ended up as evil scientists. Hyde was given knowledge and evil desires, which made him gain strength to free himself from Jekyll, by dominating the body which led to their destruction. Hyde’s evil urges arise from Jekyll’s desires of enjoying, ‘lower elements in his soul’ (Stevenson 72). Therefore, Jekyll was aware of his alter evil and was not put off by it. On the other hand, Victor’s rejected his creation since it was ugly and strange, this reaction coupled with the creature’s desire for knowledge and association made it evil. Frankenstein was created from stitched body parts, which created a difference with his creator. Unfortunately, there was a strange presence of human emotions like love and desire which pulled Frankenstein to desire association. Therefore, while Hyde sought freedom, Frankenstein sought association and acceptance. The evil side of Frankenstein is in his ugly physical appearance which shows an inhumane nature in victor. The knowledge Frankenstein gained from Victor was depicted in form of desires or sensations, which allowed him to seek association, love, develop hate and seek revenge, as he reminds Victor by saying, ‘remember, I am thine creature’ (Shelley 76) and ‘why did you create a monster so revolting that you too turn away in disgust. These sensations or desires for the world are described by the creature as, ‘strange multiplicity of sensations…’ (Shelley 79).
Whereas Hyde’s evil nature was from the subconscious evil in Dr. Jekyll, Frankenstein’s evil was from the rejection by society. Frankenstein decided to become angry and vengeful with his rejection by his creator and the world, as he explains, ‘from the instance I declared everlasting war in opposition to the species, and more so, him who created me… feelings of revenge and hate-filled me’ (Shelley 105-106). Therefore, while Hyde was pure evil from the beginning, Frankenstein’s violence was the product of the rejection of his desires and the failure of creating an identity. Hyde’s evil arose from inherent subconscious desires to do evil through scientific creations, based on the knowledge and skills of Dr. Hyde. However, for Frankenstein violence arose from his inability to receive acceptance from his creator and society.
Frankenstein’s work has been criticized by many scholars who have tried to come up with other ideas concerning the Novel. Her book contains critical information which cannot be underestimated in the current contemporary society. Her use of hypothetical questions and fiction in the setup of her ideas can be utilized in recent literary works. This essay discusses two critiques by Professor Naomi Hetherington’s and Walter Scott’s analysis of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein.
Walter Scotts Critique
Walter Scott, who was a British national, wrote the Romantic Circle Critiques. He was born in Edinburg and attended Edinburgh High School. He further went to Edinburgh University to study arts and law (Romantic Circles). He was involved in the Romantic Movement and participated in various occupational Walter was conducted, including poetry, historical novelist, clerk session, and advocate. His first poem was entitled Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border. Additionally, he published novels like Waverley, Guy Mannering, and Tales of My Land.
Mary’s novel is featured in the romantic fiction of nature which depicts family values and fundamental laws of nature. The author aims to explain the romantic nature by explaining unusual settings and nature components (Romantic Circles). The perceptions which drove Frankenstein, such as the change of species Belle Assemblee are explained. Furthermore, the difficulties and challenges Frankenstein and encounters with demons are illustrated. The changes that occur from life to death and death to stamina are explained. Themes of creation and revenge run across the novel in the urge of Frankenstein to avenge his originator for all the miseries.
Scoots’ analysis goes in hand with the settings and perceptions of Mary’s fiction. The element of imaginary setting and magical narration is the primary focus of the author’s critique. They bring about a better understanding of this novel in a relevant manner. The author supports Mary’s work and critically analysis the novel with matching arguments in a necessary way. He uses romance fiction and the element of vengeance and anger due to demons’ control which generally gives a good narration based on historical events. I agree with the critique since it uses Frankenstein’s ideas and themes which support his arguments. The similarity in the content and the settings are valid and authentic.
Naomi Hetherington’s Critique
Another critique is from Professor Naomi Hetherington, who has a Ph.D. from Southampton University. She has been a teacher in Birkbeck for almost five years at the University of London, where she earned a teaching and scholarship award for her incredible contribution to literature. Naomi’s thesis illustrates that Mary wanted to use myths through fiction, the meaning of being a human being in a universe full of troubles (Hetherington 42). Additionally, she suggests that Mary revised her work to deviate from Lawrence and compare it with Christian Orthodox etiology.
Naomi’s thesis statement is relevant since it illustrates a step-by-step analysis of the novel. The first section of her research relates Frankenstein to Milton’s Paradise Lost and Prometheus legend. On the other hand, the last section describes the book to the religious nature of Mary after her husband dies (Ozherelyev 63). The Miltonic illustrations seen throughout the novel are used to emphasize the origin of evil in the world. The presence of a deity who creates human beings is seen. I agree with Naomi’s Critique since it relates outside resources such as Frankenstein to Milton Paradise Lost and Prometheus legend to support her arguments. She further identifies other themes related to the main content making these resources valid.
Conclusion
In summary, the two critiques by Naomi and Scoot give a better review of the novel provide literature and comprehension of the past event. Factors that contribute to environmental changes are discussed. The themes of creation and vengeance are illustrated to give a clear perspective of Mary’s main aim in writing her book. After the death of her husband, Mary becomes religious and seeks Christian Orthodox etiology ideas. The existence of a deity who creates human beings indicates the origin of life, and its end is seen by death.
Works Cited
Hetherington, Naomi. “Creator And Created in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein.”Taylor & Francis, vol, 12, no. 5, 2022, pp. 32-85
Ozherelyev, Konstantin A. “Philosophical Contexts in Mary Shelley’S Novel «Frankenstein.» Herald Of Omsk University, vol 25, no. 3, 2020, pp. 61-66. Dostoevsky Omsk State University,
Romantic Circles. “Belle Assemblee Review of Frankenstein. March 1818, Romantic Circles”. Romantic-Circles.Org, 2022, Web.
Frankenstein, or the Modern Prometheus, is a book written by English writer Mary Shelley. The relationship and companionship play an essential role in the book for both Frankenstein and his creation. Mainly, their relationship sheds light on the human need for connection and affection towards one’s family and other people. Despite their differences, both Frankenstein and his monster are ultimately bound by the same goal – to find a kindred spirit.
Victor Frankenstein’s search for meaningful companionship is established through the reminiscence of his childhood. He describes it as “secluded and domestic” and sees himself as incapable of fitting in with strangers (Shelley 28). In order to be accepted and feel connected to people, he resolves to abnormal scientific experiments that he believes would lead to his dominance in the community (Shelley 107). While Victor’s social issues stem from phycology, the monster is unable to be incorporated into the social structure due to its very nature, with him being horribly deformed despite Victor’s efforts.
The desire to connect is evident in both characters. However, despite Frankenstein’s intentions of creating a companion, he is unable to face the consequences of his actions and connect with the one being that understands his position the most. He consistently refuses the monster’s prepositions of making another creation, ignoring the monster’s loneliness, although he does have the capacity to understand that feeling. Having escaped Victor’s confines, the monster is able to learn about love and compassion through another family’s life. Frankenstein, on the other hand, could not undergo the same development.
In conclusion, Mary Shelley’s novel depicts a human struggle for connection and the consequences brought by it. While both Frankenstein and his creation strive for companionship, they approach it from different perspectives. Frankenstein’s point is to establish his social life through the fulfillment of his ambition, and the monster seeks the unconditional love that a family can provide. Ultimately, Frankenstein is unable to understand the monster’s struggle despite their positions’ similarities.
Work Cited
Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein. Maple Press Limited, 2010.
“Frankenstein” is a science fiction novel written by Mary Shelley. It revolves around a young boy named Victor Frankenstein who had an obsession with death and through this obsession he was able to create life from nothing. After creating life he is however terrified and disgusted of how it looks and he decides to abandon it without giving it a name as its physical appearance is scary and nothing at all as he expected.
He therefore tries to live a normal life and makes an effort to forget his own creation. Due to the abandonment the monster is left perplexed, annoyed and frightened. After his tiring work of creating human life, Victor falls ill and it takes four months for his youth friend to nurse him back to health. The monster then travels to Geneva and meets a little boy called William in the woods, where he hopes that the young boy who is not yet corrupted by the views of older people and the world will accept him as he is.
The monster is however wrong and when the Frankenstein sees it; he hurls invectives infuriating the monster. The monster however tries its best to talk to the boy but falls on deaf ears, the monster then covers the boy mouth to keep him quiet but this ends in the boy suffocating. Frankenstein receives a letter from his father stating that his younger brother is dead and that he was murdered. Despite the fact that this act was not intended, the monster took this as the first act of revenge towards his creator.
He places a necklace the boy was wearing on a sleeping girl, the nanny to the boy. Justine the boys nanny was tried and found guilty fro the murder and executed. When Frankenstein arrives he saw the creature in the woods and knew that the monster had killed his brother and placed his mother’s locket on the sleeping nanny.
Frankenstein, troubled and heavily burdened by anguish and self reproach for creating the monster that caused so much devastation, he flees to the mountains to find peace. After a while alone, the monster approaches Frankenstein, who tries to kill it. But the monster being physically bigger, stronger and more alert than his creator gets away and gives Frankenstein some time to cool off and compose himself.
The monster tells Frankenstein of its encounters with humans and how terrified it was of them. He spend a year observing a family from a cabin he was living in, this gave him more knowledge and self conscience concluding that his physical appearance was very different from the humans he was observing.
On revealing himself however, the humans rejected him and were horror struck by his appearance and reacted ferociously, a reaction that made the monster angrier and he seeks vengeance on his creator.
The monster demanded that Frankenstein create a female companion for him as it had the right to be happy. The monster promises that they will vanish into the wilderness and not bother any more about humans. Frankenstein however does not create a companion for the monster and destroys all the work he was doing.
The monster witnesses Frankenstein destroying his creation and vows to revenge on it. The monster murders Clerval and implicates Frankenstein. Frankenstein is acquitted and he returns home to marry his cousin Elizabeth, who is murdered on their wedding night by the monster as part of the monsters revenge.
Frankenstein father dies after this tragedy as he could not handle the tremendous loss of William, Justine, Clerval, and Elizabeth. Frankenstein vows to go after the monster and destroy it. They chase each other for several months and they end up in the North Pole where Frankenstein dies form illness and the monster mourns for Frankenstein justifying its revenge and expressing remorse. Afterwards, the monster travels further towards the pole to destroy itself so that nobody never finds out of it existence.
Comparing Shelley’s portrayal of the natural sciences in “Frankenstein” to her portrayal of other types of knowledge in that novel
According to Shelley, Frankenstein believed more in science than he did in humanity. His obsession with death from the time he was a young boy made him believe that he could eliminate death through science. This passion led him to pursue chemistry which became almost his sole purpose in life to use chemistry to create life and eliminate death. In the university, Frankenstein attempts to create life from nothing and he surprisingly manages to do so.
The only thing is his creation turns out not differently than he expected, the creature if gigantic and it horrifies him to look at. He sees it as an eyesore, a disgrace and the creature escape into the society leaving it at the mercy of humanity. The point at which the creature escapes brings in the humanity aspect in the novel (55-56).
However, after escaping into the society the creature is met with human hostility and feels rejected. The rejection forces the creature to vow revenge on his creator by killing all his close and loved ones (97). The creature carries out its vengeance on Frankenstein by killing his brother William, his friend Clerval and his wife Elizabeth (116).
The creature also mourns for Frankenstein after his death showing that it has a sensitive human side and then it goes of to kill itself as it terms and takes responsibility for causing the death of its creator. This shows that science and humanity came together in the creation and shaping of the creature. Science was used to bring the creature to life while humanity was used to shape how the creature interacted with people and how it handled its feelings and emotions. (173)
In Shelley’s view, science and humanities are separated by how they are carried out and how one comes into contact with them. Humanities take root when the creature observes a family from the woods learning to speak and also develop emotionally. If the creature had not observed the family then nurturing of the creature may have not taken place.
Science is preserved and maintained in the laboratory to make life from scratch while the humanities come into play as soon as the creature comes to life. Humanities take centre stage when the creature is first of all rejected by its creator and all other people follow suit.
This makes the creature feel as if he is not good enough and that it is its destiny to be alone without any companionship for eternity. This humanity in the creature forces it to go back to his creator to demand that he creates a companion but this turns out badly as Frankenstein does not go through with it (114). Humanity in this novel is also seen when Frankenstein experiences death of his loved ones that eventually pushed him to the scientific notion of creating life.
Frankenstein’s mother’s death and his father’s professor rebuking him fro reading trash which was in essence lightning that had destroyed a tree, pushed him to learn more about science becoming obsessed with it. If these events had not taken place maybe the creation of the creature would not have taken place leaving a very different story in its place.
In reference to Shelley, sciences have an effect on the people who study them. This is simply because the book shows us how one person’s irresponsibility and ambition can harm other people who are not directly involved on eh science project. Science made Victor Frankenstein create a monster and on realizing that the creature did not turn out to be how he expected, he abandoned and rejected it (73).
This rejection made the creature go on a rampage and kill innocent people related to the creator. The innocent people did not have to die but they lost their lives because of one Victor Frankenstein’s obsession and ambition to create life. Life is scared and surely to attempt to create it from dead body parts of other human beings is most likely than not expected to bring havoc and misery on unsuspecting individuals.
The main point in this book is every person should take responsibility of their actions and not expect other people to pay for their shortcomings. Science is something that every person who practices it should be aware that there is a probability of an experiment going wrong and therefore amply and adequately prepare for the outcomes of the experiment whether good or bad.
Humanities on the other hand are portrayed as how one builds his own personal character among the people around him and the people he encounters. In this novel, humanity is depicted in the loss of loved ones that makes Victor Frankenstein to be obsessed with death and try to find a cure for it.
Humanity is also seen whereby Frankenstein is anguished by the death of his brother, friend, Justine and Elizabeth that he vows to kill or be killed by the monster (Shelley 86). This shows that however much Victor was obsessed with science he also had strong feelings for the people around him and it tore him apart when the creature he created killed them.
Humanity in the creature is shown when he feels dejected by his creator and very other human who sets eyes on him and when he observes a family from a distance learns how to speak and develops emotionally.
The fact that everyone showed a hostile human side to the creature made the creature vulnerable and it went on a rampage killing innocent people (Shelley 208). In this novel the creature displays humanity when he demands for a companion to be created so as he can have someone to share his life with and also when he mourns over the death of his creator and implicates himself as the cause of the death of his creator.
In her novel Shelley portrays the knowledge of humanity more as compared to the knowledge of science. This is seen when she portrays that young Victor Frankenstein got an interest in science after experiencing the trauma of losing his mother. This loss made Frankenstein obsessed with death and he tried to find a cure for death.
Through his quest and ambition to cure death he created the Frankenstein monster from dead decomposing body parts of other human beings that were sewn together and brought to life with the help of science (Shelley 73). Humanities is shown as more valuable and ethical as it forms the basis of how one will be portrayed by the society and how one will react to different things and people in society.
Humanity is portrayed as better than science in this novel as it shows different relationships between different people and how actions of one person adversely affect other people. For example, the decision by Victor Frankenstein to create life from dead body parts that brought for the creature termed as a monster brings serious effects and consequences to his family members not to mention the monster itself.
Humanity allowed the creature to develop emotionally and learn how to speak trough observation and experience kindness from a blind man and while saving a young girl form drowning, however in both instances the creature was reprimanded and driven off as people were not welcoming enough. Science only creates that creature but it is humanity that the creature has to deal with and understand why humans are so hostile towards him.
Similarities between science and humanities in this novel are brought out in that both concepts are interdependent and both of these concepts aim to bring improvements to the society as a whole and reduce human misery. The fact that humanity pushed Frankenstein to look for scientific ways to eliminate death from the society after his other loved ones died shows that these two concepts are correlated and work hand in hand with each other to make the society a better place to live in.
The differences on the other hand are that ethics or the pillars of humanities while blind innovation and creativity is the pillar of science. This is to say that scientists do not take into consideration the effects and consequences of their experiments that at times may have a negative effect in humanity.
This is seen when Frankenstein’s ambition makes him create a monster that is much bigger than the human race that caused havoc and misery among human kind. Humanity is seen when Frankenstein is haunted by his conscience after the monster goes on a rampage killing his loved ones. This shows that humanity has consequences and that people should take intro consideration the feelings of other people before they make decisions.
In conclusion, “Frankenstein” tells of a young boy named Frankenstein who attempted to create life, though he succeeded the experiment turned out to be scary and wrecked havoc.
The novel shows as much as science is innovative and interrelated with humanity, ethical issues should also be taken into consideration for most so that innocent people do not suffer. One man’s decision caused the death of three individuals this is not justified. If Victor Frankenstein had thought of the ethical issues of his creation a lot of suffering, misery and death would have been avoided.
Works Cited
Shelley, Marry. Frankenstein. New York: Norton, 1996. Print.
One of the most prominent literature works, Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, characterizes the idea that knowledge or intelligence can be both a curse and blessing. On the one hand, the book’s protagonist applies his knowledge to create a unique creature. On the other hand, he makes a creature that eventually becomes the source of his tragedy and the loss of close ones due to his invention. Through narrating the ironic course of events encountered by the protagonist, Frankenstein conveys the idea that knowledge can be a curse and a blessing, alluding the audience to be cautious of modern-day innovations.
Main body
The idea that knowledge can be a curse is portrayed because the creature that the protagonist, Victor Frankenstein, has created relying on his knowledge harms himself and his family. Victor was blessed enough to be innovative and made a creature that would “bless him as a creator” (Shelley 38). However, in taking revenge on Victor, the creature attacks his brother, William Frankenstein. This motive can be seen in lines where the monster says “Frankenstein! you belong then to my enemy-to him towards whom I have sworn eternal revenge; you shall be my first victim” (Shelley 122). The danger later escalates as the creature attacks Victor’s friend Henry Clerval and his wife, Elizabeth. The monster becomes more dangerous as Victor loses control over him. Hence, while knowledge provided Victor an opportunity to invent a creature, it also became the primary cause of Victor’s eventual despair and anger.
Conclusion
To conclude, the statement that knowledge can be both a blessing and a curse is valid, which Mary Shelley alludes to in Frankenstein. The much more subtle idea behind Frankenstein refers to the rise of contemporary innovations worldwide. While technological innovations currently allow people to live much better, enjoyable, accessible, and productive lives, they also brought significant detrimental effects on human relations, democracy, among other things. Hence, it is critical for innovators, policymakers, and the public to be cautious and conscious about the potential threats deriving from scientific inventions.
Frankenstein is considered one of the pivotal books employed in modern literature for its compelling and rousing story that spawns myriad renditions. It is a fascinating science-fiction tale that was written by Mary Shelley in 1818 but was initially published anonymously.
It was much later that the author was identified, and she took that opportunity to revise the book, incorporating a number of changes in 1831. Frankenstein’s kernel reveals Robert Walton, an explorer who is traveling towards the Arctic Ocean after departing from the northern coast of Russia.
Walton keeps an account of his journey by writing letters to his sister, who lives in London. In his letters, he describes how one day, he saw a hideous form take flight across the ice only to rescue Victor Frankenstein, the creator of the monster, from hypothermia and starvation. Frankenstein chronicles his life to Walton, and that account forms the foundation of the book, as Walton relays them to his sister in epistolary form, where a story is told through letters.
The book seems to make use of previous writings like Paradise Lost– one of the books that the monster reads, Shakespeare and Don Quixote– for instance, the Arabian lover and the sequence of the monster’s adoption. The author uses the book to satirize the concept of modern science and to reveal the converse perspective of experimentation.
Great Expectations by Charles Dickens is a story of a young orphan named Pip, who is the protagonist, as well as the narrator of the story. The book accounts for Pip’s life since he was seven years old until he is in his mid-thirties. The book itemizes the focal points of Pip’s life and identifies the lessons he learns from every encounter.
Pip lives with his sister, who is married to the blacksmith Joe, and one day, while he’s at the graveyard engrossed in thought, he is confronted by an escaped convict who places demands on Pip and threatens to kill him if he does not follow the convict’s instructions. Pip, though fearful, treats the convict well by bringing him food and follows his instructions to the latter.
Pip is offered an opportunity to work for Miss Havisham, a spiteful woman who detests men since her bridegroom failed to show up on her wedding day. Miss Havisham has an adopted daughter named Estella, whom she raises to break men’s hearts and be spiteful of all men.
Pip is attracted to Estella, but the young girl treats Pip cruelly with encouragement from her mother. Pip yearns to be a gentleman in order to impress Estella, and his ambition materializes when an anonymous person wills Pip a fortune. Pip assumes Miss Havisham is the benefactor and moves to London, where he learns the art of rich living and becomes a gentleman.
Narration in Great Expectations & Frankenstein
Frankenstein has three types of narrators due to the fact that the author uses different types of narrations to provide the reader with a multifaceted perspective. The first narrator is Robert Walton, who acts as a dispassionate party in order to give the reader an objective point of view to the narration. The author uses epistolary form, a device which is applied when Walton conveys the prevalent occurrences through the series of letter that he writes to his sister (Marilyn, 1994).
The second narrator is Victor Frankenstein, who gives the reader a subjective view of his background. Victor narrates on his own childhood, upbringing, ventures, and the unfortunate proceedings which culminated in his auspicious conception of the monster.
The third narrator is the monster and is introduced when the creature breaks off Victor’s narration. The monster gives an account of his existence before victor once more resumes continuing to illustrating what emerged from the creation of the monster to the very end. The narrative is once again taken by Walton, who provides an ending to the tale.
Walton’s letters are present at the introduction, and the conclusion of the narrative reinforcing the theme of nurturing, and a framing device by the author relatively allows for a story to be told within a story. Walton, therefore, allows for a parallel view of both victor and the monster so as for readers to make their own moral observations and conclusions in reference to the monster and its creator.
Great Expectations conversely has only one narrator, the adult version of Pip, who is the first-person narrator (Marilyn, 1994). Pip recounts the events of his younger life from memory and gives his account in his own voice, which articulately identifies his emotions as a young boy. Pip recalls intimate details about the voice tones and parlances from his past, including the deaf Aged Parent’s loud repetitions, the predictability of Jagger’s speech, and the bucolic accent of Magwitch and Orlick.
Discussion: Frankenstein And Great Expectations
Through identifying and relating to the narrators in Frankenstein and Great Expectations, readers are able to objectively discern the key arguments in order to support or contradict the narrator’s perspective (Chesterton, 1988). One of the key arguments in Frankenstein is the unpredictability of experimental science, which led to the creation of the monster.
Victor Frankenstein, while at university, devised a way to create a human being only to inadvertently create the monster (Marilyn, 1994). Victor believes that the application of science can bring new life, but the current consequence is not laudable.
The third narrator, who is the monster, brings forth another dimension to the argument by conveying human emotions such as loneliness for lacking friend and destitution for being rejected and hated, which leads to the destructive behavior seen in him (Hodges, 1983). Unlike Great Expectations, the reader is presented with three viewpoints, two of which are contradictory; hence the reader is provided with an open-ended understanding as a basis to derive an opinion.
Great Expectations is a reflective book of Pip, the first-person narrator, who gives the reader an insight into his past that consequently builds up to his current stature (Dunn, 1978). The narrator gives an account of his compassion to a convicted criminal and the mistreatment he received from those close to him while still young. Contrary to Frankenstein, this book identifies with the rewards that come from good deeds and compassion together with perseverance (Dunn, 1978).
In both, tales there is the eminence of the narrators’ struggle against the monsters spawned out of carelessly human ambition. People create monsters to satisfy their gluttonous ambitions. Owing to the power they bestowed upon the monsters, they become irrelevant in controlling or subduing the monsters; hence the monsters haunt them and destroy both the creators and the created in the process (Chesterton, 1988).
Frankenstein strives to tame the monster born out of his imagination, the massive creature created out of his scientific connotation and human skeletons; his experimentation brings forth what would not have entered his mind previously, and this throws a challenge on the creator as he is awed by his creation (Behrendt, 1995). His creativity becomes his enemy, for it renders him helpless in the face of what his imagination has spawned (Brennan, 1989).
Pip, on the other hand, faces another monster which is Estella. Notably, Estella is the monsters created by Miss Havisham as a tool through which she would destroy men; as Herbert observes, “Estella had been created to wreak revenge on all male sex” (Dickens, 1946). The monsters created in both tales harm themselves and their creators by becoming despicably uncontrollable (Brennan, 1989).
In myriad ways, Frankenstein illuminates narrators who ape the ideas and events of the author in diverse ways (Hodges, 1983). The knowledge of the author and her life experiences creates a standpoint through which the tale can be reviewed. Frankenstein is a story written in relation to the major occurrences which mired the life of the author (Marilyn, 1994).
Mary Shelley lost her mother at a tender age, after which her father remarried, and his attention was diverted to the new wife. Like the monster created by Doctor Victor Frankenstein, the author experienced the agonizing melancholy of lacking parental love, her own father, just like Victor became distant when her mother died (Behrendt, 1995).
Even in the time when Mary was in dire need of money, during her first pregnancy, her father could not bail her out. He refused to have anything to do with her. This is seen clearly as illuminated in Frankenstein, where the monster appeals for love and attention from its maker to no avail (Hodges, 1983). Though the monster avenges for its creator’s misdeeds, Mary does not avenge for whatever her father did to her. She only chose a distinct course of life distant form her father (Brennan, 1989).
When the two antagonizing narrators meet in Frankenstein where the monster confronts its creator victor on an icy glacier, it pours out its heart to the creator and blames him for its isolation and abandonment (Marilyn, 1994). Ironically, Frankenstein does not see the monster as his responsibility. He did not devote his time and resources to love it and care for it just as the parents do.
Even though Victor was well attuned to how the parents should love and care for their children and as evidenced in Frankenstein where he states that his parents expressed “The deep consciousness of what they owed towards the being to which they had given life.” (Dunn, 1978).
Great Expectations, on the other hand, does not have two opposing narrators, rather it takes on a single-sided perspective. One advantage Frankenstein has over Great Expectations is the three-dimension point of view perpetuated by the narrators, which gives the reader a chance to make an unbiased opinion of the narrators based on their personality, expression, and argument (Behrendt, 1995).
Great Expectations and Frankenstein illumine the narrators’ basic requirements of life and the relationship between the creator and the created beings. Moreover, the tales delve into establishing the collective need for love, affection, and acceptance from their homes and their society.
While Pip in Great Expectations aspires to win the love of Estella, the monster in Frankenstein yearns for love and acceptance from the society and its creator. Both the creators have selfish motives and are not willing to face up the repercussions accruing to the monsters of their creations (Chesterton, 1988).
The two epic tales bear a familiar resemblance where the narrators find themselves tethered in their own made confinement created by the monsters they devised for their own delight only to be thwarted at the end (Graham 1982). Explored are similar themes of love and despair, loss, and depression; all those elements make human life real.
Nevertheless, the Frankenstein tale comes out as a gothic tale; work of creative imagination whilst in itself it tackles matter which affects real human life (Marilyn 1994). On the other hand, Great Expectations is more real, and people can identify with it because there is nothing bizarre about its plot and characterization, as seen in Frankenstein (Graham, 1982).
Another argument strongly expressed in both books is the conquest of fear by the narrators (Dunn, 1978). Robert Walton is confronted by a frightful being, a monster whose mere sight petrifies the narrator. Walton, however, musters enough courage to allow him to chronicle the recount conveyed by the monster about its life, thoughts, and experiences (Chesterton, 1988). The narrator Pip in Great Expectations is confronted by a similar kind of fear when he encounters an escaped convict in the graveyard at night.
The convict threatens the younger Pip with death if he reveals the convict’s alcove, and even under tremendous dread, the narrator proceeds to cater to the felon bringing him food and water (Dickens, 1945). In both cases, it is evident that the narrators, even under trepidation, went ahead to perform what they felt was right, which is indicative of courage, the subjugation of fright, and the confidence of the narrators in their actions.
Both tales provide a detailed perspective of the narrators’ thoughts, emotions, and beliefs, which provide the basis of their actions. Frankenstein presents a three dimensional view of the tale through the expressions of the three narrators. The narrator Walton gives readers an unbiased outlook of the circumstances surrounding the monster’s existence to allow readers to draw their own conclusions.
Great Expectations, on the other hand, has the narrator as Pip, who gives an account of his childhood experiences that eventually lead to his current position. The narrators in both books reveal deep emotional undertones in their voices, which helps the reader better understand and contemplate their surroundings and hence deeper understanding of the books.
Reference List
Behrendt, S. (1995) Mary Shelley, Frankenstein, and the Woman Writer’s Fate. Hanover and London: University Press of New England.
Brennan, Matthew, C. (1989) The Landscape of Grief in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. Studies in the Humanities, 13:1 Vol 23.
Chesterton, G. K. (1988) Appreciations and criticisms of the works of Charles. University of Toronto: London.
Dickens, C. (1946) Great Expectations.1861. Ed. Margaret Cardwell. Oxford: Clarendon Press.
Dunn, Albert A. (1978) The Altered Endings of Great Expectations: Dickens Studies Newsletter 6:2
Graham, S. (1982) The Letters of Charles Dickens: The Pilgrim Edition. Oxford: Clarendon.
Hodges, D. (1983) Frankenstein and the Feminine Subversion of the Novel. Tulsa Studies in Women’s Literature, 14(23).
Marilyn Butler. (1994) Frankenstein 1818, ed. Oxford University Press
When reading Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein one notices the gender bias of the time a bit less, because the female characters in the novel, though traditional Victorian ladies, were strong and capable. In fact, one major plot point revolves around the idea that Frankenstein cannot create a female, nor does he dare even try. The female is the key to reproduction, and he cannot, in good conscience unleash a pair of such monsters like the one he created on the world, just in case they might reproduce. Many reviewers discuss the female characters of the story, but seem to pass over this small detail. There is even debate that comes back every now and then that Mary Shelly could not have written this complex story at the tender age of eighteen, and that her husband, Percy Shelly, must have done it.
Main text
However, according to O’Grady and Dobrovolsky (1992), there are linguistic devices that female writers use which can be used to identify the gender of the writer with a reasonable expectation of validity. They discuss gender-variable differentiation, citing more use of closely defined and named color, a higher incidence of “politeness formulas”, such as “would you” and “please” etc. and a higher incidence of verbal hedges, like “perhaps” and “maybe.” This characterizes the writing of Frankenstein, though it could be attributed to the more Victorian style of the time. However, it is widely agreed by now that this novel was, indeed, the work of the very precocious Mary. It is widely understood that Mary Shelley wrote for the female public, even though she originally wrote the novel on a wager among friends. “She fitted character and plot to the tastes of the public, especially the feminine public.
For this very reason her books mirror the conventions of the times.” (Nitchie xiii) In the novel, even nature was female, and certainly not weak. (Renfroe, Alicia 2008) Mary Wollstonecraft, as her daughter well knew, was killed by puerperal fever, contracted when she was unable to expel the placenta after Mary Shelley’s birth in 1797. (Hoeveler 46) So the ladies in her fiction were strong, in spite of the restraints put upon them by society. Shelley, herself, was an anomaly, since she wrote the book at eighteen. This is still argued among critics, as some believe she would not have been able to write this at eighteen. Shelley skirted the idea of incest at first with Elizabeth, who was raised as Victor’s sister, though only a distant cousin. Elizabeth Lavenza was his cousin in the 1818 edition, his adopted sister in the 1831 edition. She writes to her recalcitrant fiance/cousin/brother Victor to release him, if he wishes, from fulfilling their engagement; she notes, “as brother and sister often entertain a lively affection towards each other, without desiring a more intimate union, may not such also be our case?”(52) (Shaffer 67) Elizabeth is a strong character, and mostly responsible for Victor following his dream of discovering a new species.
The story of Frankenstein began one evening in 1816, when Mary was relaxing with Percy Shelley, Lord Byron and Claire Clairmont near Geneva. Lord Byron proposed a challenge for everyone to write a ghost story. her husband and Byron, who discussed galvanism Shelley used a recent nightmare to start the story, probably having dreamed after hearing completed the novel within a year. At Eton College Shelley had become interested in Luigi Calvani’s experiments on dead frogs’ muscles and electric current which made them twitch. It is possible James Lind, his teacher, had demonstrated the technique to Shelley. Byron and Shelley talked about Dr. Darwin’s experiments with a piece of vermicelli, and she could easily have listened in,
A major plot point develops when Dr. Frankenstein refuses to create a mate for his monster, and the monster then kills his new bride, Elizabeth Lavenza. It is sad, because the monster realizes too late that she had accepted him. “Frankenstein can be read as a means of writing woman back into her plot through a creative incursion into the masculine realm of production.” (Roberts 60) Not to continue with creating the female monster is something over which Victor agonized, and even after the death of his wife, Victor refuses to even try, knowing that even if he could make a female, he must never do so.
Elizabeth is constantly faithful to their betrothal, even though it requires years to consummate. She continuously writes to and provides emotional support to Victor. She sends someone to check on him or goes herself when she is able. She also cares for the others at home, without a thought to what should be required of her in her station. She transcends her class.
Justine Moritz, is the girl who cared for the Frankenstein young children and was going to be adopted into the family until she is accused, tried and convicted of the murder of the youngest boy. Justine might have been forgiven if she had confessed and then she might have been kept in prison for life. Ho9wever, she maintained her innocence throughout the entire ordeal. She was strong right up to her execution. Sadly, even after that, Victor cannot bring himself to tell what he knows, so he is responsible for her death and for the fact that she was not bought with honor on consecrated ground. This is a horrible burden of guilt for him.
The story of how Victor’s father met his mother shows her to be exceptionally strong and courageous. “Caroline Beaufort possessed a mind of an uncommon mold, and her courage rose to support her in her adversity. She procured plain work; she plaited straw and by various means contrived to earn a pittance scarcely sufficient to support life, (Shelley, Mary, p21 1816) Her support, and willingness to share with both Elizabeth and Justine, shows her to be the ideal mother of the Victorian era. However, she dies from scarlet fever, before Victor even begins his studies, so now he has no mother to guide him.
The women in this novel were all stronger, more forthright and more virtuous than the main character, Victor Frankenstein. The novel revolves around his frailty and folly. By contrast, all the women, even the poor woman in the woods who cared for the blind man are more honorable. Many papers and even books have been written about the feminist elements in the novel and some even believe it was a symbol of Mary Shelly’s repressed sexuality. (Not unusual for the time.) The novel could be called feminist, because it explores female consciousness from within a totally male-dominated culture. Sadly, most feminist critics only explored the sexual themes within the novel, some taking the stance that it is Mary Shelley’s exploration of her own awakening sexual identity.
This is somewhat doubtful, though, since she did have children and lost two that we know about. In the essay, “Horrors Twin: Mary Shelley’s Monstrous Eve,” Sandra Gilbert and Susan Gubar tell us about her “waking dream accompanied her precipitous entrance into teenage motherhood” (116) makes Frankenstein a feminist novel “because its author was caught up in a maelstrom of sexuality” (116) while writing it. (Patnaik, Sumeeta 2008) Referring to this kind of feminist criticism, Anne K. Mellor argues that Mary Shelley’s reason for writing Frankenstein was to provide her audience with ethical uses of language and to define her environment: “She wishes us to see that human beings typically interpret the unfamiliar, the abnormal and the unique as evil” (Mellor 134). I cannot see this as particularly feminist.
Summary
I believe there is ample evidence that Mary Shelly wrote this novel, and this is supported by the incorporation of feminist attitudes within the work. The linguistic style seems to point to a female author, as does the content. The strong female characters are atypical for a male author, and they certainly support the feminist stance of Mary Shelly. His attitude was, possibly, only in the initial developmental stages at the writing of Frankenstein, but she was not yet alone in Victorian culture to raise a child with no help from her late husband’s family. There are certainly many things in the story that suggest sexuality, repressed or not, such as the creation of a living creature. However, the strong female characters remain the most salient indication of Shelly’s attitude that women were at least as capable as men. I still believe that Mary Shelly wrote this book in an attempt to write a good story, but her feminine viewpoint could not help but be incorporated.
References
Gilbert, Sandra M. and Susan Gubar. “Horror’s Twin: Shelley’s Monstrous Eve.” Edited by Harold Bloom. Modern Critical Views: Mary Shelley. New York: Chelsea. (1985): 115-136.
Mellor, Anne K. Mary Shelley: Her Life, Her Fiction, Her Monsters. New York: Metheun, 1988.
O’Grady and Dobrovolsky, Eds.,1992,Contemporary Linguistic Analysis, Copp Clark Pitman Ltd. Missisauga , Ont.
Patnaik, Sumeeta, 2008, Bibliographic Studies on the Work of Mary Shelley. Web.
Renfroe, Alicia, 2008, Defining Romanticism: The Implications of Nature Personified as Female in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre, University of Tennessee. Web.
Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein, A Norton Critical Edition. Ed. J. Paul Hunter. New York: Norton, 1996.
Romanticism is a movement in literature unfolding from 1790 to 1850. It is characterized by a celebration of nature, individuality, and isolation. One of the classical representations of Romantic literature is Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. In the novel, there are at least two features of Romanticism that are not discussed in the overview: the illustration of grotesque and the theme of individual versus society.
Grotesque in Romanticism is illustrated through monstrous, unethical, and antisocial characteristics of literary characters created essentially by society (Forster and Steiner 54). Grotesque features in Romanticism are more terrible than in medieval times and focus on the sympathetic representation of the characters as victims of social influence (Forster and Steiner 56).
The theme of confrontation between an individual and society lies at the core of Romanticism. The topic explores the social independence and limitations of a person, as well as the positive and negative sides of social isolation (Honor 78).
Surprisingly, grotesque elements are not abundant in Frankenstein and create a profound contrast with its film adaptation. In the novel, Shelly focuses on providing a sense of mysterious and existential fear by illustrating immoral and unnatural events. Grotesque is embedded in the entire premise of the book, which is to insert life into a dead body. At the same time, grotesque is present in the monstrous features of the Creature, which creates contrast with its initially kind and altruistic personality.
Regarding the illustration of the confrontation between an individual and society, the novel provides a picture of the danger of both extreme individualism and social corruption. On the one hand, individualism is shown through Frankenstein himself as an isolated individual that desires to exceed social and moral norms and create life artificially. On the other hand, the theme is represented by social standards and expectations corrupting the altruistic personality of the Creature. The being is too different from the common, and people constantly reject it, which eventually leads to its character becoming what society expected from it.
Works Cited
Forster, Michael and Lina Steiner. Romanticism, Philosophy, and Literature. Springer Nature, 2020.