Preview

Frankenstein and Blade Runner Essay Example

Better Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1128 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Frankenstein and Blade Runner Essay Example
Frankenstein and blade runner essay
Which text do you feel better represents the values of the composer? You must refer to both texts in detail
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner are two texts from different centuries, but they both share the same values, themes and issues including; the natural world, scientific advancement, morality of humans and responsibility. Both texts use a variety of techniques to represent their values, themes and issues. The techniques used in both texts are reflective of their context and are able to strongly represent the values of both Frankenstein and Blade Runner.
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.
Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner is set in a corrupted 21st century world. Similarly to Frankenstein, the natural world is evident but in Blade Runner it is seen as the unnatural world. In the first panoramic shot, the audience sees a destroyed world, a dark industrial urban wasteland

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    In comparing the treatment of the myriad of enduring issues and concepts explored in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein (1818) and Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner (1982), the influence of their vastly different contexts is impossible to overlook.…

    • 480 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Frankenstein, Mary Shelley’s cautionary tale of science vs. religion was first published in 1818, in an increasingly secular, but still patriarchal British society, amongst the aftermath of the French and Industrial revolutions and a burgeoning scientific research scene. Upon the second release in 1831, the novel was greeted with enthusiasm and praise for the young, female, somewhat controversial Shelley, with the values and issues raised in the storyline striking a chord in the minds of the still predominantly Christian audience, suggesting the consequences of usurping God’s role of Creator and warning about science without ethical boundaries. Over a century later, in a context that could not be more opposite to Shelley’s 19th Century circumstances, director Ridley Scott released Blade Runner, a future-noir-detective- action-science fiction-thriller, which not only crossed generic borders, but raised concerns not dissimilar to those raised by Shelley one hundred and fifty years before. The film, set in 2019, presents the Cold War influenced capitalism combined with the economic boom resulting in rampant consumerism, the potential impacts of the environmentally harmful activities of super-conglomerate corporations, uncontrollable scientific developments in the areas of cloning and stem cell research, and other issues relevant to the 1982 audience by portraying a possible dystopian reality, plagued by worst case scenario outcomes of these universal concerns. Both of these texts deal with thematic concerns of science, religion, the environment and pursuit of knowledge, and consider the romantic ideals of humanity and the sublime, but also address the same values within wildly different contexts, suggesting that Mary Shelley’s values are still relevant to society today and that values are…

    • 1400 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Composed during the Industrial Revolution at a time of increased scientific experimentation, Shelley warns and forebodes her enlightened society of the consequences which come about from playing god. She uses Victor Frankenstein as her platform, whose self-exalting line “many excellent natures would owe their being to me” represents a society engrossed with reanimation. Recurring mythical allusions to Prometheus, “how dangerous is the acquirement of knowledge” portray Victor as a tragic hero; a noble character whose “fatal flaw” of blind ambition ultimately results in his own downfall and dehumanization, “swallowed up every habit of my nature”. In addition, Victor’s impulsive rejection of his grotesque creation, leads to the Monster’s rebellion (“vowed eternal hated and vengeance to all mankind”).…

    • 626 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Though composed at different times, the themes portrayed in both Frankenstein and Blade Runner are evidently influenced by their own respective contexts – the early 19th century and late 20th century. These texts put forward an exploration of humanity and morality, the value of nature as well as individualism as these themes and values are perceived in each context.…

    • 778 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner are texts that explore the same underlying anxieties and values in humanity. Even though they are constructed nearly 200 years apart, the same feelings exist. At the time of composition, and, through their literary work, the authors examine their place in the world. With the proliferation of scientific technology, economic and sociological concerns, these texts reconsider and teach in their didactic styles about man’s preoccupation with advancement, without respecting nature.…

    • 3115 Words
    • 13 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    When exploring the texts Frankenstein and Blade Runner, the most dominant similarity between the texts is the questioning of unchecked scientific progress and the limits of these advancements before human nature is threatened. In Frankenstein Shelley presents us with a protagonist who, from a very early age is curious to the basis of life, “The world was to me a secret which I desired to divine.” Upon…

    • 1645 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    Mary Shelley’s science fiction novel “Frankenstein” written in 1818 and “Bladerunner”, Ridley Scott’s 1982 cult classic film have nearly two hundred years separating them, yet they raise similar societal concerns.. Both raise the question of what it is to be human and explore the pursuit of eternal life which can be examined using the literary and cinematic techniques prevalent in the texts.…

    • 1190 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    The 1818 Gothic Novel 'Frankenstein' written by Mary Shelley and the 1982 science fiction film 'Blade Runner' by Ridley Scott both challenge the values of the societies in which they have been set, expressing the composers' critique of the advancement in science and technology, the consequences of irresponsible creation and the hubris of an individual to overcome nature's power. It is through these common themes that the texts have the ability to represent and evoke fear, anxiety and…

    • 1099 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Shelley’s Gothic novel, Frankenstein, explores the complex nature of mankind by considering the consequences of an unrestricted pursuit of science. A rise in scientific experimentation with Galvanism during Shelley’s time is reflected through the protagonist Victor as he uses it to bestow life. Shelley portrays Victor and the Creature as complex beings, demonstrating both inhuman and human qualities. Despite this, the subsequent rejection by his creator and the De Lacy family drives the Creature to ‘eternal rejection and vengeance of mankind’. Victor’s initial response when meeting the creature, demonstrates his savage, cruel treatment and lack of responsibility towards his creation.…

    • 1034 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    To what extent does your comparative study of Frankenstein and Blade Runner suggest that the relationship between science and nature is an important universal concern?…

    • 1488 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    * Prometheus represents on who has defied and challenged the natural order; one who has transgressed on forbidden territory. His actions are not couched in connotations of courage or heroism but recognised as reckless and without any thought to the possible consequences.…

    • 935 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Mary Shelley’s nineteenth century epistolary novel, Frankenstein (1818), and Ridley Scott’s late twentieth century post-modern film, Blade Runner (1992), bear striking similarities when studied as texts in time, as they both aim to warn humanity about attempting to usurp of the role of God in creating life. However, their respective contexts mean that the way in which they present notions about humanity differs. Shelley and Scott have extrapolated their various concerns born from their respective contexts regarding the confusion and anxiety that results when mankind pursues their knowledge without regard for their responsibilities. Shelley presents us with humanity’s flaws, which are evident in the way they have neglected what they have created. Scott portrays a futuristic world that has become horrifically debased and inhumane, as mankind has failed to maintain the natural order after overstepping scientific and technological boundaries. Both composers conceptually focus on the parental duties of creators toward their creation and the consequences of abandoning them. Through their different styles and techniques relative to their respective audience, each composer is extremely successful in presenting the changing values and attitudes respective of their eras.…

    • 1116 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    How has the context of each of the composers affected the representation of their respective worlds an the place of nature in these world?…

    • 1003 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The idea of ‘disruption’ is explored within Blade Runner and Frankenstein through the interference of the natural environment due to scientific progress. Such a conflict between nature and science within Frankenstein, stems from the contextual backdrop of the 1800 Romanticism movement, a backlash against the age of Enlightenment and its rationality through scientific experimentation. In an attempt to warn her audience of the horrifying consequences of disrupting nature, Shelley utilises a Gothic-Romanticist style, and motifs such as the sublime and soothing nature versus monstrosity as shown in the lines, “the valley that is more wonderful than the sublime”, juxtaposed with the appearance of the monster as “yellow skinned, black eyed”. Whilst Victor warns Walton to, “avoid ambition...in science and discovery”, his character development, alluded to as the ‘ancient mariner’, whose hubris of overreaching the boundaries leading to his downfall is contrasted against his perfect childhood, again reiterating Shelley’s warnings about the consequences of disrupting nature. Likewise Scott…

    • 1036 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    By examining Mary Shelley’s life we can see many of the key themes of her time reflected in Frankenstein. The novel Frankenstein was written in 1818 and follows the story of a scientist, Victor Frankenstein and his quest for creating life. However his experiment goes wrong as his creature goes on a rampage after he has been rejected. One theme from this novel that is part of Shelley’s life is the natural world.…

    • 844 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays