Frankenstein Ambition Essay

Authored against the backdrop of the emerging Enlightenment movement, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein shows how having ambition is a strong asset to have. At first glance, Shelley contends the benefits of having something to strive towards, and the joy it can have when a desired accomplishment becomes reality. Despite this, Shelley uses the development of Victor Frankenstein to show how ambition comes with the added sense of responsibility. Essentially, she warns of the dangers inherent to fanatically pursuing scientific endeavours, at the expense of living in harmony. She additionally reinforces how ambition contributes to his downfall to the extent that it affects his connection with family and his own self. Ultimately, Shelley uses Victor’s

progress to foretell how losing connection with family and one’s self can occur.
Moreover, Shelley’s Frankenstein displays Victor possessing a great desire to succeed and achieve glory like no other person before him.

By this, Shelley foreshadows a link to potential destruction occurring as a result, and forces the reader to understand how science can push humanity in the wrong direction. Expectantly, this potential scientific destruction can jeopardize the “cosmic harmony” between humans and nature working together. As the text progresses, Victor finds strength in pushing the limits of not only science and natural philosophy, but humanity through an “ardent curiosity” of the natural world. Resultantly, he creates life himself, and his creation is evidently known as a “wretched” Creature to the reader. By Shelley describing his creation in this way, she further informs the reader of the Enlightenment era, and how it motivated individuals to push the boundaries of life notwithstanding the consequence. Despite this, Shelley displays the Creature requiring responsibility that Victor neglects. Through this, Victor lacks the responsibility needed for nurturing his creation, therefore sparking his spiralling ruin. Essentially, Shelley warns the pushing of scientific boundaries can wreak “terrible destruction” upon humanity and can cause one’s own

downfall.
Meanwhile, by Victor turning into a God like figure by creating the monster, he is unaware of the complexity regarding the responsibility he has committed to undertake. He is sadly displayed to be oblivious of how to employ the manner in which he has placed “astonishing power within his own hands.” Hence, Shelley hints Victor’s fallibility emerging through his downfall of emotions, as she reflects of the Enlightenment era and the dangers associated with scientific advancement. She also suggests to the reader that Victor has already achieved the unsurpassed discovery of life by “pioneering a new way”, but highlights his downfall by challenging the notion of whether he is capable of taking full ownership over his ambitious determination. Nevertheless, nothing can be done, as he has already immersed himself too far in his own misery to the point he is unable to be “restored to some degree of tranquillity.” Thus, the wretched Monster is seen to receive a lack of care from Victor, soon becoming enraged and significantly embittered at his treatment. Thereby, the Monster has sheer “delight through inflicting carnage and misery” upon others. Effectively, Shelley forces the reader to sense the dangers of pursuing forbidden knowledge, and how scientific advancement can be very destructive and beyond one’s capabilities.
Reflectively, Victor’s desperate zeal for human science sees him sadly lose connection with his family who he loves unconditionally. By Victor “obtaining from his father in a respite of some weeks”, he openly feels a sense of sorrow, but it does not alarm him, as he proves how great diligence for his studies quickly obtains his “undivided attention”. Accordingly, Shelley refers just how much family can suffer from a distinct passion, by telling the reader of how Victor engages in “ardent works so full of genius.” Ultimately, Shelley makes known of how these “ardent works” can curse the beauty of humanity through having tragic consequences. Ultimately, she makes the reader sense Victor turning a blind eye to what his creation can be capable of in the natural world. To this point, the dangers of challenging life itself are reinforced through the exhibited behaviour of Victor, and his exploration into these boundaries of life. He clearly states how much happier man is who “believes his native town to be the world”, and someone who accepts their life as it is. In the same way, as Victor searches for the hidden truth, his downfall is seen to be greatly influenced. Intently, Shelley demonstrates to the reader of how human existence is far stronger than one’s own aspiration.
Similarly, by Victor having a potent self-desire for knowledge, he never quite believes he is responsible for his actions.

Thereupon, Victor is unaware of how his actions have sparked the feeling of helplessness in a world which to him is “replete with wretchedness”. Further to the point, Victor is seen blaming his creation by letting the Monster “drink of his pain” and feel the “despair that torments him.” Through this, Shelley positons the reader so they can know the implications regarding what a lack of initial responsibility can lead to. Furthermore, this viewpoint outlines Mary Shelley’s dominant message throughout Frankenstein: the obligation to one’s own creation and how one’s downfall can be embarked from a compelling

self-desire.
Finally, just as Mary Shelley presents Victor Frankenstein to be a man of powerful ambition through a strong self-desire, she evidently reminds the reader, when one dwells on knowledge out of their immediate control, they are bound to lose control of their own self. Sequentially, as Victor possesses a great desire to succeed, he doesn’t fully know the extent and complexity of what he has chosen to pursue, or how it might be detrimental to his family. This in turn allows Victor to never entirely understand the liability he should take for his actions. Therefore, Victor’s ambition greatly impacts those closest to him and brings about his downfall to a very large extent. For this reason, “he who aspires to become greater than his nature will allow”, should be very careful!