In her novel Frankenstein, Mary Shelley explores a wide range of themes concerning human nature through the thoughts and actions of two main characters and a host of others. Two themes are at the heart of the story, the most important being creation, but emphasis is also placed on alienation from society. These two themes are relevant even in today's society as technology brings us ever closer to Frankenstein's fictional achievement.…
Shelley’s belief of the corruption inherent in science is demonstrated through the allegory of Victor’s fall from grace as he loses his morality which is highlighted by his lack of empathy. Through his destructive quest for knowledge, Victor’s own sense of humanity is destroyed, as emphasised by the hyperbole within Victor’s statement, “I seem to have lost all soul or sensation, but for this one pursuit”. In contrast, the supposed “daemon” he creates is depicted as a sentient, passionate being, evident in his opening narration with its sensory imagery “innumerable sounds rang in my ears, and on all sides various scents saluted me” where the awareness and appreciation of nature reflects Shelley’s Romantic leanings. Shelley utilises this narrative voice of the creature to draw sympathy away from Victor to highlight the lack of empathy of Victor as he spurns his grotesque creation on superficial qualities, ignoring his responsibility to the thing he has created mirroring the chaos The creature alerts Victor of his moral failings through biblical allusions “I ought to be thy Adam... whom thou drivest from joy for no misdeed”. Shelley's powerful biblical allusion to Genesis provides an immediate juxtaposition between the self-interested relationship of Victor and his monster,…
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein was written in 1818. This was a period where romanticism was developing, a time which focused on the sublimity of nature and on the individual. This theme is evident throughout the novel and is used to emphasise the emotions of the characters and to suggest the power of nature for both beauty and destruction. Shelley often uses the sublimity of nature as an invigorating device for victor, “when happy, inanimate nature had the power of bestowing on me the most delightful sensations. A serene sky and verdant fields filled me with ecstasy. The present season was indeed divine; the flowers of spring bloomed in the hedges, while those of summer were already in bud.” Vivid imagery is used here to illuminate the peacefulness and contemplation of the sublime nature that is constantly surrounding victor. Shelley has also illustrated this notion further by the use of alliteration, “serene sky”, to capture how perfect the world is at that time, which reinforces the peacefulness of nature and how victor feels when he is surrounded by the natural world.…
Shelley’s novel enlightens the reader to the changing values and perspectives of her era following the concept of Galvanism. Shelley’s didactic approach forms themes of obsession and “dangerous knowledge” that exist as Victor attempts to surge beyond accepted human limits and access the secret of life in an attempt to create it. Victor recognises the power he holds with his knowledge, and considers the dangers, saying, "when I found so astonishing a power placed within my hands, I hesitated a long time concerning the manner in which I should employ it". This displays Victor's conscience and his willingness to disregard it, leading to the destruction of his morals and ethics for the utilitarian greater…
This passage is one in which Victor Frankenstein describes the birth of his creature. Frankenstein’s words and memories reflect his feelings towards his newborn child. This essay will examine Victor Frankenstein's words, feelings and attitude towards his new companion and also his creation.…
By questioning the attributes of a human being and how one becomes integrated into society, Shelley has explored the nature of humanity through the complex characters of Frankenstein. After Victor Frankenstein, a revolutionary scientist for his time, created life using an amalgamation of body parts he rejects his grotesque Creature who becomes scarred by experiences of rejection by society and suffers from estrangement and loneliness. The Creature challenges the Romantic values of Shelley’s time, as his tendency for violence is contrasted with his yearning for returned compassion. Writers in the Romantic period explored the qualities that defined the human experience, such as compassion. The juxtaposition of the Creature’s acts of extreme violence such as the murders of Elizabeth and Clerval (Frankenstein’s wife and good friend), with the acts of kindness he hoped would integrate him into society, such as the gathering of wood for the migrant family. By juxtaposing…
Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein and was published in 1818. The main character, Victor Frankenstein, he is the protagonist and also writes the main portion of the novel. He discovers the secret of life and creates an intelligent monster feeling increasingly guilty and ashamed. Victor realizes how helpless he is from preventing the monster from ruining his life and other people’s lives as well. The story takes place in Geneva in the 1800’s. Where most of it takes is in the frankenstein’s house in the town of Switzerland.There are a few different characters like Victor Frankenstein, the monster, Robert Walton, and Elizabeth Lavenza. Victor’s father is very sympathetic toward his son. There are three themes that is involved with the book is family,revenge,…
Shelley’s use of eloquent and elaborate language by the main characters could be construed as ironic, in that such well-spoken characters have sunken into committing the most terrible of sins, namely those of murder and hubris. It is this irony that makes the isolation and resentment that Victor and the Monster feel stand out in the reader’s mind; two characters that are so articulate in their speech are reviled…
Within Frankenstein, nature plays a key role as it serves as the focal point of both Walton's and Victor's endeavors. As it appears, nature offers the characters comfort and helps restore their peace of mind. Moreover, the "creative force" of nature seems to be the enticement for both Walton and Victor's actions. What's even more significant though, which is in some accord with Romantic ideals, is the message the story relays that nature is not something to be conquered, but rather something to embrace and harmonize with.…
Shelley’s novel portrays the natural world as a source of beneficence and morality which can offer solace to those in need. Shelley’s ideas on nature are influenced by Romantic elements, with its focus on nature as a source of morality but with sublime elements having the power to trigger feelings of awe but also spiritual inspiration. Victor removes himself voluntarily from nature’s moral influence during his time at the University of Ingolstadt when he spends every waking hour on his creation. He acknowledges that, immersed in his own obsessive pursuit, he becomes “insensible to the charms of nature” so that “winter, spring and summer passed away durin my labours…” In breaking his bond with the natural world, he breaks his ties with his family, his morality, and with good health. Shelley employs emotive language to portray Victor’s defilement of mature and its processes as he attempts to usurp its power and create new life. Words such as “horrors”, “tortured”, and “seized by remorse”, evoke his inner pain which results from his wrong doing, but also his ability to control in his manic…
In Mary Shelley’s book Frankenstein, many themes are presented throughout the story. However, through the impact of historical events during the 19th century, Victor’s relationship with the monster, and the influence of Victor’s mother, causes both Victor and his monster to grow hatred between each other. Therefore, the idea of revenge is the most prominent theme in the book.…
Composed during the Industrial Revolution and radical scientific experimentation, Shelley typifies the Romantic Movement as she forebodes her enlightened society of playing God. Her warning permeates through the character of Victor, whose self-aggrandising diction “many excellent natures would owe their being to me” represents a society engrossed with reanimation. Shelley moreover questions the morality her microcosm’s pursuit of omnipotence through Victor’s retrospection “lost all soul or sensation but for this one pursuit”, as the juxtaposition of “all” and “one” emphasises Victor’s cavernous obsession to conquer death; akin to scientists of her time such as Erasmus Darwin. Moreover, recurring mythical allusions to Prometheus, “how dangerous is the acquirement of knowledge” further portray Victor as an Aristotelian Tragic Hero; a noble character whose hamartia of blind ambition foreshadows his own downfall and dehumanisation, “swallowed up every habit of my nature”. In addition, Victor’s impulsive denunciation of his grotesque creation, leads to the Monster’s metaphysical rebellion “vowed eternal hated and vengeance to all mankind”.…
In the text Frankenstein, the author’s goal was to portray two key points. The first point is the flaws and evils that pollute humanity on a consistent basis. The second point is that people are willing to go very far and forsake their sense of right and wrong for the sake of their own personal gain and social status. When Doctor Victor Frankenstein created his beast, Frankenstein, he hardly considered the repercussions that may come with making the monster or how his neighbor villagers would react to the creation. Doctor Victor was obsessed with making strides and the medical field and gaining notoriety by making life, so much so that he forgot a basic law of science; every action has a reaction. He is eventually ridiculed for the monster…
Written in 1818 by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, Frankenstein is widely considered to be among the novels that fully exemplify Romantic-era literary achievement. The Romantic movement is a general term used to denote the intellectual evolution in literature and the arts, primarily in 19th century Europe. Substantial facets of literary Romanticism include belief in the innate virtue of humans, the bounds of nature, as well as the polarity of human emotion, all of which are embodied in Shelley’s Frankenstein. Through reading Shelley’s novel, some of the fundamental ideals of Romanticism genuinely become obvious.…
In the book Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, a book full of humanity. Humanity ivan be used or described in many way with many reason. Human are different from animals in some many ways, therefore humanity is all about Language and actions.…