If they did, would they see Victor as a monster? It is difficult to say. Families can overlook a great deal of things when found in a person that family loves. However, some things are simply too great to bear when it comes to what a person has done or what he or she might do in the future. Because of that, Victor avoids telling anyone about the monster until he is on his deathbed. There, he recounts his story to the captain of the ship that has rescued him. In telling the tale, it is possible that the monster is real and also possible that Victor is deluded and he is the monster. Once Victor dies, the monster appears one last time to grieve for his creator. All he ever wanted was to be loved by the one person who created him, and now that person is dead. The relationship he desired during his entire existence is not something that can ever come to pass. Because of that, the monster goes off to die alone. He is never seen again, and no more killings take place. The ship's captain is one of the few people who see the...
Still, though, he makes no effort to befriend Frankenstein's creation, even knowing the story. This is relatively fascinating, because it shows that - despite what Victor told him about the monster's inner self - the captain is still not willing to befriend something so hideous on the outside. Too often, this is seen to be true in the "real world," as well. Those who look different are shunned, teased, pushed aside, and ignored. Unless a person is "normal" by societal standards, that person is deemed to be unacceptable and not someone to befriend or get close to in any way. When people like Victor Frankenstein blatantly turn their backs on others and allow them to suffer and even to commit horrible acts because of their pain, it brings clarity to the idea that the monster in Frankenstein is not really the monster at all. The monster is Victor.
Frankenstein and Enlightenment The Danger of Unregulated Thought in Frankenstein Mary Shelley's Frankenstein; Or, the Modern Prometheus, considered by many to be one of the first science-fiction novels written, is rife with anti-Enlightenment undertones. Shelley's novel, first published in 1818 and republished in 1831, examines the roles of science and religion, and provides a commentary on the dangers of playing God. Considering that Mary Shelley was the daughter of two prominent Enlightenment
Frankenstein An Analysis of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley wrote in her 1831 introduction to the reprint of Frankenstein that "supremely frightful would be the effect of any human endeavour to mock the stupendous mechanism of the Creator of the world" (x). These words not only indicate the manner of her thought on the night she conceived the idea for her gothic novel, they also reflect, as she notes, the ideas
Her list includes the following: culture / Nature reason / Nature male/female mind/body ( Nature) master/slave reason/matter (physicality) rationality/animality ( Nature) human / Nature (non-human) civilised/primitive ( Nature) production/reproduction ( Nature) self/other At first glance, this list seems to capture the basic groupings and gender associations that are at work in Mary Shelley's novel. The Creature exemplifies animality, primitiveness, and physicality, whereas Victor represents the forces of civilization, rational production, and culture. Victor is part of a happy family
Frankenstein & Romanticism How Romanticism is Demonstrated in Frankenstein In less than six years, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein will be 200 years old. This novel, indicative of the romantic period, is a compelling narrative with numerous themes and vivid imagery to consider. In the context of romanticism, Frankenstein is a worthwhile piece of literature to examine. Literature and art of the romantic period is characterized with an emphasis on intense emotional reactions, specifically
Frankenstein's creation of the monster is rendered as a kind of horrific pregnancy; for example, where a pregnant woman expands with the child she is bearing and usually eats more, Frankenstein wastes away during his work, depriving himself "of rest and health" (Shelley 43). Rather than expressing any kind of paternal (or maternal) love for his creation, Frankenstein recoils, as "breathless horror and disgust filled [his] heart" (Shelley 43).
Frankenstein Geneticists are the modern-day versions of Victor Frankenstein, maverick scientists who, in pursuing their personal dreams and ambitions cross over ethical lines. Mary Shelley was deeply concerned about the potential of science to blur humanitarian issues. In her classic novel Frankenstein, Shelley depicts a driven scientist who, for the love of knowledge and power, creates life. The ramifications of what is commonly called "playing God" include an inhumane mistreatment of
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