...issue. Are you too fat? Too skinny? Or too short, too tall? The constant attention and focus on physical appearances are apparent not only in our society but in Mary Shelly’s novel, Frankenstein. Victor Frankenstein, a modern scientist unleashes a creature constructed of dead body parts. The creature’s social acceptance relies heavily on its hideous features, starting with his own creator, Victor Frankenstein. Throughout the novel Frankenstein, Victor Frankenstein’s lack of ethics spurs problematic situations which are the consequences of his...
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...As life ushered into existence through unnatural means, the Creature is questioned of whether he is able to relate to humanity or to hold humanity within him. Even though Frankenstein’s monster is technically human in a physical sense because he is entirely made up of human body parts, Frankenstein, as the creator himself, is unable to view the Creature as anything other than a “daemon.” In fact, Frankenstein’s refusal to call his creation a name that would connect him to “any shared community” symbolizes Frankenstein as a “representative of human community” while the Creature searches for “identity and social niche” (Bernatchez 207). However, in the first moments of the Creature’s life, the Creature sought out his creator while “a grin wrinkled...
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...ethically driven issues. The question over man’s right to push the boundaries of science in the creation of life has transcended time, growing increasingly relevant with recent advancements in technology. The contentious issue was predominant throughout the Enlightenment period, an era characterised by significant change where reason was valued over religious faith. This contextual significance is mirrored in Shelly’s condemnation of Frankenstein’s experiment through the loathing tone of “now that I had finished, the beauty of the dream vanished, and breathless horror and disgust filled my heart.” She furthers her argument through the monster’s description of Frankenstein as an “unfeeling, heartless creator!”, reflective of the Romantic Period as middle-class workers began to demand equality from their oppressive masters. Shelley creates a juxtaposition of Frankenstein’s arrogance against the character of Walton, similar in their pursuit for knowledge, and yet Walton’s compassion is evident in his rhetorical question “How can I see so noble a creature destroyed by misery, without feeling the moist...
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...When a person thinks of Frankenstein's monster, they most likely think the creation as being wretched, but in reality, Victor Frankenstein is the wretched one. Victor gave his creation life, but he found his being to be so horrid that he ran from his new responsibility without teaching morals. The murders of Victor's loved ones happened because Victor abandoned his being, causing his creation to find its own life's principles. Victor Frankenstein's mistakes caused him to be the person responsible for the deaths within Mary Shelley's novel. Initially, Victor Frankenstein desired unknown knowledge which was not thought about carefully. When Victor made the decision, bringing life to a being, he did not consider the consequences of creating a...
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...Throughout this passage, Frankenstein feels as though he has been separated from his fellow man due to his actions, this is revealed through Shelley's use of figurative language, most notably, the use of light and dark imagery. “They were my brethren, my fellow beings, and I felt attracted even to the most repulsive among them, as to creatures of an angelic nature and celestial mechanism.” Frankenstein’s desperation to be close to humanity is evidenced when he craves to be near ever the “most repulsive” men because men are “creatures of an angelic nature and celestial mechanism”; light and dark imagery make this comparison possible. “But I felt that I had no right to share their intercourse. I had unchained an enemy among them whose joy it was to shed their blood and to revel in their groans.” Light and dark imagery present in the line “joy it was to shed their blood and to revel in their groans.”, as joy and putrid bloodshed greatly contrast. This light and dark imagery is used to explain that the reason Frankenstein feels he is separated from his fellow man is due to the man-hunting monster he has created. “How they would, each and all, abhor me and hunt me from the world did they know my unhallowed acts and the crimes which had their source in me!” Frankenstein further laments his actions through the use of dark...
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...unprecedented scientific discoveries, which influenced her in writing of Frankenstein. The process of the creation of his creation was influenced by the Italian physician Luigi Galvani who discovered “animal electricity” which manifests with the twitching of nerves and muscles when an electric current is applied. Frankenstein seeks to find “the secrets of heaven and earth” to fulfil his quest. He calls them secrets; he is aware they are not to be known and should not be found. Frankenstein knows that acquiring such knowledge would not be easy as he states “how dangerous the acquirement of knowledge”. Frankenstein is aware of the uneasy task of seeking forbidden knowledge would be. The attainment of such knowledge would separate Frankenstein from humanity placing him “in the realm of God” as Professor Punter states in his ideas on forbidden knowledge. Frankenstein knows that his thirst for the “secrets of nature” is against human nature that it is “taboo” but still continues as he want to be “greater than his nature alone”. Like Prometheus,...
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...depiction of a dystopian future. Ultimately Frankenstein and Blade Runner are cautionary tales when explored individually, however when examined comparatively, values presented in each become more comprehensive for both contexts and enduring audiences. Shelley’s retrospective depiction of a milieu exploited by scientific egotism embodied by Frankenstein highlights the disruption of nature, and criticizes the 18th century enlightenment in relation to Frankenstein’s galvanistic approach to knowledge. The Declaration in the text “I will pioneer a new way, to explore unknown powers,” underscores victor’s ambition for knowledge, his egotistical desire to control nature and his unwavering conviction regardless of consequence. Furthermore the myriad of classical allusions, to paradise lost, concerned with “mans first disobedience.” Frankenstein, a man driven by insatiable desire for knowledge, in this sense, has become a metaphorical Prometheus, attempting to deliver this ‘spark of life’ to humanity, it is therefore Frankenstein’s rampant endeavor to penetrate the...
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...Frankenstein is the creator of the creature. Victor becomes obsessed with the idea of creating the human form and bringing it to life. Immediately after creating the creature, he is terrified because he doesn't truly understand what he has created. He returns home to his family, only to find tragedy there. Victor is not fully aware of the consequences of his actions and in a turn of events he spends his entire life trying to destroy the the one thing he spent his entire life creating. Much like a mother figure Victor Frankenstein brings a creature into the world but unlike most mothers Victor...
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...and fear of humans. As ‘creatures’ who have appeared as the antagonists in our books, movies, histories, and cultural imaginations in more general terms what truly defines a monster? Is it the abhorrent appearance or the inhumane characteristics that has caused them to be the object of nightmares and interest? If so, are they truly what should be feared? One of the most iconic monster novels of the early modern period, published at a time when technological innovation was becoming immensely prominent is Frankenstein. Contrary to popular belief, the titular character, Frankenstein, is the name of Victor Frankenstein, the doctor who...
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...In the novel, Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, the main character, Victor Frankenstein, constructs a creature with the purpose of discovering how to create life; however, he does not foresee all of the consequences that end up arising from the creation of his invention as great tumults develop in his life and in human society due to the creature’s formation. Unintended consequences are not limited to the creation of Victor Frankenstein’s monster because these consequences are also present in reality with actual human creations. One such example of a real life human creation that has developed unintended consequences is the invention and use of antibiotics. The intended effect of antibiotics is to kill bacteria that cause infections in order to...
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...Plot: Walton, an Arctic explorer, picks up Victor Frankenstein who is marooned on a floe. Frankenstein was a student of natural science: he stumbled on a means of sparking life into inanimate matter. His experiments grew wild; he spent leisure hours combing abattoirs, charnel houses and graveyards. From odds and ends he constructed an eight foot Creature who lacked sex appeal. The Creature learnt about humanity from three books: Goethe's The Sorrows of Werther (passion), Plutarch's Lives (morality) and Milton's Paradise Lost (religion). Unfortunately, despite this injection of culture, people still tended to run away: an Adam without an Eve, the Creature asked Frankenstein for a mate. Frankenstein gets cracking but, in a fit of conscience, aborted the experiment. The Creature went mad and murdered most of Frankenstein's family and friends. Frankenstein is in pursuit of the Creature when Walton discovers him. Frankenstein dies in a final struggle with the creature across the frozen waters. The Creature, who only wanted "happiness and affection'', wanders off hoping to perish of misery and cold. Walton is left to make sense of a story that lies outside the boundaries of interpretation. Theme: In the early version, Shelley is conducting a dialectical debate between strict materialists and their religious opponents. The 1831 revision seems a conservative reappraisal: the book is now a dire warning of the consequences that fall on Frankenstein for meddling in God's Business...
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...contextual difference could not create a barrier in exploring related issues. Despite Shelley’s Frankenstein being written in the early 19th century Romantic era, while Blade Runner was created in the period of late 20th century America influenced by Reaganomics, both texts delve into the concerns of the overpowering need for glory, the dichotomy between humanity and monstrosity, and the lack of parental responsibility. Through Frankenstein and Blade Runner, the desire for ultimate success is represented through the pursuit of knowledge and the application of science and technology. The underlying intention behind the project is of utmost importance as there will be dire consequences if the purpose of the creation is of a superficial motive. Through Victor, Shelley has portrayed humans as deeply ambitious yet also deeply flawed. Victor dreams of transforming society and bringing glory to his name through his scientific achievements yet his desire also makes him fallible. In writing Frankenstein, Shelley had challenged the Enlightenment ideal of knowledge, invention and discovery being the enabler of social progress. Frankenstein’s initial motive of producing the creation is of an arrogant nature as he only wishes to bring great glory to his name. In a sense, the formation of the monster is a punishment inflicted upon...
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...Of Monsters and Men: How Humanity Incites Monstrousness in Grendel and Frankenstein All too often on a daily basis do people judge others based on their physical appearance or other superficial criteria. Generally, close-minded individuals perceive anything foreign or a deviation from the norm as offensive or even as a threat. We would like to think that we are not prone to such a fault, but this foible is ingrained in human nature. Literature has examined this aspect of humanity on a magnified scale by using monsters as a metaphor for those we judge; the novels Grendel by John Gardner and Frankenstein by Mary Shelley are as much character studies on humanity as they are stories about monstrousness itself. The monsters in each novel certainly...
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...How does Shelley present the creation of the creature in chapter 5 of Frankenstein? Shelley presents the creation of the creature in chapter 5 through the use of setting. There is a lack of light in chapter 5 ‘my candle was nearly burnt out’ this is important as light comes with the connotations of good and darkness comes with the association of something bad or sinister. The fact that Frankenstein is bringing the creature to life in darkness suggests that Frankenstein has transgressed against nature. His attempts to become a creator are against natural laws and therefore the setting is dark foreshadowing perhaps the darkness to come. Also words such as ‘extinguished’ suggest light going out perhaps in the sense of a lack of life or a hint at death. Shelley in chapter 5 uses contrasts to present the creation of the creature. Initially Frankenstein is seen crafting carefully the body parts of the creature his vision was of beauty ‘selected his features as beautiful’ which is why he specifically selected ‘ lustrous black and flowing’ ‘ teeth of a pearly whiteness,’. But the reality is a stark contrast to his vision ‘ugly … such a thing that even Dante couldn’t have conceived,”. The shocking contrast of Frankenstein’s vision and dreams opposed to reality show the reader this disappointment that he is feeling and the disheartening situation that he is in having put so much time and effort into it. ‘The beauty of the dream vanished, and breathless horror and disgust filled my heart’...
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...In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, the character Victor plays a pivotal role in the novel as a morally ambiguous character. Victor Frankenstein’s actions are essentially responsible for all of the atrocities in the novel .He creates a monstrous creature which commits heinous, gruesome murders of Victor’s loved ones as a way of getting revenge. While many of Victor’s actions could leave him to be considered evil, there are many reasons why Victor is morally ambiguous, rather than purely evil. Victor became interested in natural science and biology at a young age, which led him to pursue the fields of study in college. He soon discovered how to create life from death essentially, and thus the creature was created. In creating the creature, however,...
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