Analyzing Victor Frankenstein's 'Connect Through Disconnection'

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Megan Madrigrano Mrs. Gill British Literature 26 February 2016 Connect Through Disconnection When you hear “romantic hero” you probably think of some hunk who swoops in to save the damsel in distress, they fall in love, and live happily ever after. Victor Frankenstein changes that archetype into something much more complex as he travels along this journey in discovering things beyond his time. Through Victor’s connect in nature and disconnect in society, he reigns as a romantic hero. He reveals his romantic heroism through his ambition in saving his corrupted childhood innocence and pursuing his passions. Victor has this deep appreciation of the rugged beauty of nature and finds both relief and inspiration in the scenery around him. Nature …show more content…

He has this yearning, considerably beyond the breadth of a normal human aspiration, to be Godlike but takes it to the next level when he mixes this passion for nature with his scientific experimentation. Victor identifies his connection with science and nature when he says “The world was to me a secret which I desired to divine. Curiosity, earnest research to learn the hidden laws of nature...are among the earliest sensations I can remember” (Shelley, Vol 1. Ch 1). The curiosity he shows is ultimately what drives him to uncover his childhood passion for nature and manipulate it to fit his adulthood passion for this dissension of science versus nature. When he uses the word “divine” he means that he wants to figure it out, figure out this secret; but as he searches for the way he can use science to create nature (life), he is also searching for a way to be divine and create life in the way God creates life; all things made in God’s image are beautiful and perfect and that is all Victor ever desires when he begins to make the monster. Victor represents himself as the force of physical nature (of the monster) and has this triumph over the restraints of theological and social conventions which is another attribute of our romantic …show more content…

One trait the monster carries out throughout the story is how he tries to go beyond the standards set by society and attempting to become accepted, despite his status: outcast. His efforts seem to make his defiance apparent which is a strong quality in a romantic hero. However, he seems to let his physical appearance become one of his weaknesses, instead of using it to his advantage. He desired for someone to accept him which ultimately led to his downfall; lashing out in violence and threats. A romantic hero is not suppose to have such an ominous downfall, sounds more like a victim (or even a

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