Comparing Capitalism In Frankenstein And Blade Runner
English Advanced: Module A (Texts Through Time) – Practice Essay
Whilst texts may be fabricated constructs of composers’ imaginations, they also investigate and direct the societal issues and standards of their period through the individuals they portray. This is clearly the case with Mary Shelley’s novel, “Frankenstein” (1818), which draws upon the rise of Galvanism and the Romantic Movement of the 1800s, as well as Ridley Scott’s film “Blade Runner” (1992), which considers the increase in the computing industry and the prevalence of capitalism within the late 20th Century. Both composers fundamentally warn us of the ominous outcomes of our desire for supremacy and uncontrolled technological development.
Written in an era of crucial …show more content…
technological progressions, Shelley’s “Frankenstein” uses the creative arrogance of the Romantic imagination to construct a gothic world in which the protagonist’s obsession with creation of a life has derailed the traditional lines of power and duty. Scott also draws upon components of his own context, including the development of capitalism, the hostile nature of uncontrolled technological progression and the disintegration of the natural world to position us to reassess the outcomes of overstepping our limits. Both texts were produced as reactions against the presiding ethical ways of thinking at the time, emphasizing the need to preserve our humanity in the face of uncontrolled scientific advance.
Shelley epitomizes the Romantic Movement as she warns her enlightened society of playing God. Her warning pervades through the individual character of Victor, whose self-aggrandizing speech “many excellent natures would owe their being to me,” represents a society obsessed with reanimation. Shelley challenges the ethics of her character’s quest for supremacy through his reflection “lost all soul or sensation but for this one pursuit,” as the juxtaposition of “all” and “one” underlines Victor’s extensive fixation on defeating death. Frequent mythical allusions to Prometheus: “How dangerous is the acquirement of knowledge” depicts Victor as an Aristotelian tragic hero whose blind ambition forebodes his own defeat and dehumanization. In addition, Victor’s impetuous rejection of his appalling creation, leads to the monster’s spiritual revolt: “vowed eternal hatred and vengeance to all mankind.” This, together with the Monster’s questioning of how Victor could “sport thus with life”, positions us to question the role of science in our society as Shelley underpins the dangers of humankind’s intrinsic longing to play the role of the Creator.
Despite their contextual discrepancies, such a warning also exists within Scott’s Blade Runner, where the director imitates the rise of capitalist principles through the symbolic ascendancy of the individual Tyrell’s towering pyramid, a reflection of both his desire for supremacy and commercial authority.
Tyrell’s selfish nature is embodied in his greeting of Roy which is clouded with insincere cliches: “the light that burns twice as bright burns half as long” and biblical praises “look at you, you’re the prodigal son, you’re quite a prize;” he uses a calm tone to ease Roy, however such symbols are unnervingly toppled through both the foreboding Chiaroscuro of the flickering candlelight and his brutal death at the hands of his own creation. Here, Tyrell's menacing scream as Roy ruptures his eyes, a metaphor of his blind ambition, creates an atmosphere of extreme terror as responders understand how Man’s hubristic desire to achieve supremacy results in his unavoidable destruction. Scott’s warning of the dangers of such a desire is also apparent within the expansive shots of 2019 Los Angeles, displaying a dismal and tenebrous world lit by the glow of corporate advertisements, a portrayal of a desolate future controlled by
consumerism.
In addition, both texts' warnings involve the dangers of rampant technological advances. “Frankenstein” further establishes the Romantic Movement’s influence on Shelley’s mindset, as her criticisms of the Industrial Revolution reflect their denigration of rationality. She claims that if we allow science and technology to continue at an unheeded rate, then humankind shall become controlled. She achieves this through the use of the character of the monster, particularly when he ironically says the word “slave” and the statement “You are my creator, but I am your master - obey!”, which both demonstrate the way consumerism has subjugated humankind entirely, an idea fully extrapolated in Blade Runner. She further stresses this warning through the use of authorial intrusion: “man, you shall repent of the injuries you inflict”, in which she states, through the character of the monster, that unheeded scientific advance shall result in disaster. The monster’s statement of values: “I cannot believe that I am the same creature whose thoughts were once filled with sublime and transcendent visions of the beauty and the majesty of goodness,” suggests that our artificial creations will ultimately lead to the dehumanising of all aspects of life, and the loss of all positive “human” values.
Similarly, Scott’s display of a desolate industrialised world is due to his intuition that scientific advance has already determined Man’s separation from Nature. Most noteworthy is the opening panoramic shot of burning smokestacks which, together with the evocative Vangelis soundtrack, initiates a septic stench of scientific overload. Indeed, this representation of a decomposing environment reflects the increasing ecological realization of the 1980s, which, whilst different to Shelley’s Romantic values, is similarly used to underline the demolition of humanity due to science. Moreover, Scott clarifies to us the dehumanizing effects of such advance, foregrounded through the individual, Deckard’s “retiring” of the Replicant Zhora. Here, the stylistic positioning of the transparent poncho places further stress on the brutality of this individual’s death, with the slow-motion low angle shot communicating her intensified sense of humanity within her last aching moments. In contrast, Deckard’s dispassionate features proposes that our artificial creations will ultimately lead to the dehumanizing of humanity, with both Scott and Shelley warning us of the grim results of unchecked technological advance.
Thus, we can see how both Shelley and Scott communicate their ideas in their texts, Frankenstein and Blade Runner, through their choice of characters, as they draw upon the societal anxieties of their times in order to warn us of the outcomes of overstepping our limits and unchecked scientific progression. Subsequently, it becomes apparent that despite their contextual differences, both texts are in fact linked through their use of individuals to challenge the way society thought in their respective eras.
1028 words
Whilst texts may be fabricated constructs of composers’ imaginations, they also investigate and direct the societal issues and standards of their period through the individuals they portray. This is clearly the case with Mary Shelley’s novel, “Frankenstein” (1818), which draws upon the rise of Galvanism and the Romantic Movement of the 1800s, as well as Ridley Scott’s film “Blade Runner” (1992), which considers the increase in the computing industry and the prevalence of capitalism within the late 20th Century. Both composers fundamentally warn us of the ominous outcomes of our desire for supremacy and uncontrolled technological development.
Written in an era of crucial …show more content…
technological progressions, Shelley’s “Frankenstein” uses the creative arrogance of the Romantic imagination to construct a gothic world in which the protagonist’s obsession with creation of a life has derailed the traditional lines of power and duty. Scott also draws upon components of his own context, including the development of capitalism, the hostile nature of uncontrolled technological progression and the disintegration of the natural world to position us to reassess the outcomes of overstepping our limits. Both texts were produced as reactions against the presiding ethical ways of thinking at the time, emphasizing the need to preserve our humanity in the face of uncontrolled scientific advance.
Shelley epitomizes the Romantic Movement as she warns her enlightened society of playing God. Her warning pervades through the individual character of Victor, whose self-aggrandizing speech “many excellent natures would owe their being to me,” represents a society obsessed with reanimation. Shelley challenges the ethics of her character’s quest for supremacy through his reflection “lost all soul or sensation but for this one pursuit,” as the juxtaposition of “all” and “one” underlines Victor’s extensive fixation on defeating death. Frequent mythical allusions to Prometheus: “How dangerous is the acquirement of knowledge” depicts Victor as an Aristotelian tragic hero whose blind ambition forebodes his own defeat and dehumanization. In addition, Victor’s impetuous rejection of his appalling creation, leads to the monster’s spiritual revolt: “vowed eternal hatred and vengeance to all mankind.” This, together with the Monster’s questioning of how Victor could “sport thus with life”, positions us to question the role of science in our society as Shelley underpins the dangers of humankind’s intrinsic longing to play the role of the Creator.
Despite their contextual discrepancies, such a warning also exists within Scott’s Blade Runner, where the director imitates the rise of capitalist principles through the symbolic ascendancy of the individual Tyrell’s towering pyramid, a reflection of both his desire for supremacy and commercial authority.
Tyrell’s selfish nature is embodied in his greeting of Roy which is clouded with insincere cliches: “the light that burns twice as bright burns half as long” and biblical praises “look at you, you’re the prodigal son, you’re quite a prize;” he uses a calm tone to ease Roy, however such symbols are unnervingly toppled through both the foreboding Chiaroscuro of the flickering candlelight and his brutal death at the hands of his own creation. Here, Tyrell's menacing scream as Roy ruptures his eyes, a metaphor of his blind ambition, creates an atmosphere of extreme terror as responders understand how Man’s hubristic desire to achieve supremacy results in his unavoidable destruction. Scott’s warning of the dangers of such a desire is also apparent within the expansive shots of 2019 Los Angeles, displaying a dismal and tenebrous world lit by the glow of corporate advertisements, a portrayal of a desolate future controlled by
consumerism.
In addition, both texts' warnings involve the dangers of rampant technological advances. “Frankenstein” further establishes the Romantic Movement’s influence on Shelley’s mindset, as her criticisms of the Industrial Revolution reflect their denigration of rationality. She claims that if we allow science and technology to continue at an unheeded rate, then humankind shall become controlled. She achieves this through the use of the character of the monster, particularly when he ironically says the word “slave” and the statement “You are my creator, but I am your master - obey!”, which both demonstrate the way consumerism has subjugated humankind entirely, an idea fully extrapolated in Blade Runner. She further stresses this warning through the use of authorial intrusion: “man, you shall repent of the injuries you inflict”, in which she states, through the character of the monster, that unheeded scientific advance shall result in disaster. The monster’s statement of values: “I cannot believe that I am the same creature whose thoughts were once filled with sublime and transcendent visions of the beauty and the majesty of goodness,” suggests that our artificial creations will ultimately lead to the dehumanising of all aspects of life, and the loss of all positive “human” values.
Similarly, Scott’s display of a desolate industrialised world is due to his intuition that scientific advance has already determined Man’s separation from Nature. Most noteworthy is the opening panoramic shot of burning smokestacks which, together with the evocative Vangelis soundtrack, initiates a septic stench of scientific overload. Indeed, this representation of a decomposing environment reflects the increasing ecological realization of the 1980s, which, whilst different to Shelley’s Romantic values, is similarly used to underline the demolition of humanity due to science. Moreover, Scott clarifies to us the dehumanizing effects of such advance, foregrounded through the individual, Deckard’s “retiring” of the Replicant Zhora. Here, the stylistic positioning of the transparent poncho places further stress on the brutality of this individual’s death, with the slow-motion low angle shot communicating her intensified sense of humanity within her last aching moments. In contrast, Deckard’s dispassionate features proposes that our artificial creations will ultimately lead to the dehumanizing of humanity, with both Scott and Shelley warning us of the grim results of unchecked technological advance.
Thus, we can see how both Shelley and Scott communicate their ideas in their texts, Frankenstein and Blade Runner, through their choice of characters, as they draw upon the societal anxieties of their times in order to warn us of the outcomes of overstepping our limits and unchecked scientific progression. Subsequently, it becomes apparent that despite their contextual differences, both texts are in fact linked through their use of individuals to challenge the way society thought in their respective eras.
1028 words