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Frankenstein by mary shelley critical analysis
How is the story of Prometheus reflected in Frankenstein
How is the story of Prometheus reflected in Frankenstein
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In Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein” there are numerous similarities to religious
stories; from Prometheus, to the story of Lucifer’s rise and fall as God’s
creation, “Frankenstein” and a few of its characters may easily be related to these
two religious figures. Furthermore, I believe that there are a few prominent events that
take place that are prone to relate to the events that are mentioned in specific scriptures
of the Bible. For instance, Victor may seem to represent God, the one who created
Lucifer, and therefore his monster may take up the role of Lucifer, otherwise known as
Satan. Additionally, it is seen that Victor seems to take a disliking to his creation,
seemingly regretting his decision of creating him, this is quite possibly
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another similarity to the story of both God and Lucifer. Lastly, Frankenstein’s monster develops the desire for revenge upon his creator. This too, is similar to Satan’s actions. Religion might be the last thing you thought about while reading this story, but if you were to think about it long enough, it would seem to naturally piece together. Victor Frankenstein created a creature whose very existence defied nature, and therefore seemed to unknowingly be playing God. However, what would it mean to an individual if Victor himself had even the slightest of similarities to God when creating something that would eventually seek out revenge upon him? The creature that Dr. Frankenstein created seemed to be a beautiful idea at first with no flaws, and would only bring about progression into the world, and a change for the betterment of human kind. In-fact, at one point Victor states “A new species would bless me as its creator and source; many happy and excellent natures would owe their being to me. I might in process of time (although I now found it impossible) renew life where death had apparently devoted the body to corruption.” (Mary Shelley’s ‘Frankenstein’ CH.4 PG.54) This single statement conveys Victor’s desire to cheat out death; creating a new species is almost god-like in itself, but to raise something from its grave is unthinkable. Additionally, God created angels just as he did Lucifer. (www.amazingfacts.org/media-library/study-guide/e/4979/t/did-god) When Victor says “A new species would bless me as its creator and source; many happy and excellent natures would owe their being to me,” it is almost as though he is making a direct reference to God’s position as a religious figure in his own person. After all, God created all living things, and from that manifested numerous religions that pray to and praise God for his blessings upon humanity. (http://biblehub.com/genesis/1-21.htm) Opposed to his creation, however, Victor is different in both few and many ways. The creature brought into existence by none other than Victor Frankenstein was seen at first as nothing more than an abomination that was never meant to be. Victor’s creation possesses a similar story and mindset as the religious figure called Lucifer, and more commonly known as Satan. There is plenty of evidence scattered throughout Mary Shelley’s novel to support my theory, such as when the creature states “I am thy creature. I ought to be thy Adam, but I am rather the fallen angel, whom thou drivest from joy for no misdeed.” (Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein CH.10 PG.114) Shown by this direct quote from the creature himself, he seems to show awareness towards his current position in being neglected by his own creator. In-fact when the creature states that he ‘ought to be thy Adam’, he seems to hint at the fact that he ‘ought to be’ one of God’s successful creations, who is Victor in this case, but he is rather ‘the fallen angel’ which refers to none other than Lucifer himself. (https://answersingenesis.org/who-is-god/creator-god/man-the-image-of-) Unknowingly, Dr.
Frankenstein created his virtual opposite.
The acquaintanceship between both Victor and his creation seems to be biblical;
both God and Satan’s numerous scriptures mentioned in the bible are apparent to
repeat themselves within this novel. It all started with Dr. Frankenstein’s idea to
reanimate the dead, and he thought that his creation would bring about the
improvement of humankind. However, that soon changes as the story line progresses.
Eventually, once Victor succeeded in reanimating the dead, therefore creating his new
‘species’ he is quickly repulsed by its appearance. Soon after, he shuns his creation
away just as God did to Lucifer. (http://www.gotquestions.org/Satan-fall.html) Soon, as
the creature begins to manifest a vengeful mindset towards Victor, he kills Elizabeth,
therefore destroying something he loved. The creature did this to in turn, show Victor
how it felt to be both isolated and lonely. Satan, has somewhat done the same thing that
the creature had done. Satan holds a grudge against humanity because God loves
them, and it is as simple as that, what God loves, Satan despises. (http://www.living-for-jesus-alone.org/why-does-satan-hates-humanity-so-much.html) The creature
himself vows revenge against humanity because he wants his creator, Victor, to endure the same pain that the creature endured every day. He wants Victor to experience the pain that it felt. Additionally, Satan wanted the same thing for God; he wanted him to experience both the loss of his creations, as well as the pain they felt. (http://www.charismamag.com/blogs/power-up/18521-3-reasons-why-the-devil-hates-you-and-how-to-respond) In conclusion, the novel put together by Mary Shelley reflects three things; God, Satan, and their rivalry. Victor, being the creator of the creature, and therefore being the one who gave life to a being who would one day vow revenge upon him and the ones he loves, his creation, being the one who will one day have Victor feel the same pain he felt daily, and the story between these two characters representing a bigger religious picture. Whether these similarities between both Satan and God were intended or not, it is certain that they are both recognizable, and able to be analyzed within the novel. As the creature once said to his own creator “Have a care; I will work at your destruction, nor finish until I desolate your heart, so that you shall curse the hour of your birth.” (Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein CH. 17 PG. 175) the actions of the devil will never cease to exist.
Victor said when he saw the monster before it was alive. Afterwards it was the
middle of paper ... ... Victor as creator condemns and rejects his creation. As with mankind if God rejected us. the creature would be damned.
...he creature which has also resulted in death, It could be argued that Victor himself is a monster as his ambition, secrecy and selfishness that alienated him from human society is what eventually consumed him.
Virtually all literature contain instinctive trends in the human consciousness to represent certain themes or motifs, these are defined as archetypes. Archetypes can be thought as blueprints or as bundles of psychic energy that influence the manner in which we understand and react to life. There are two different categories of archetypes, the plot archetype and the character archetype. The orphan, martyr, wanderer, warrior, magician, villain, wise child, temptress, rebel, underdog, fool, saint, virgin, wise, old man or woman are all considered to be character archetypes. Call to adventure, isolation, quest and monster that turns against its creator are all considered to be plot archetypes. The novel, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, contains archetypes.
Upon completion of this novel, a clearly prevalent and outstanding motif is that of religion and biblical reference. The frequent references to religion come in varied forms from that of biblical role-playing, to that of the fate of our current society. Another related argument that occurs can be the relationship of biblical role-playing and character domination. When all are combined appropriately, a very strong and prominent key motif in this novel is produced. Mary Shelley might have used religion reference as a method of showing us how something that happened during the creation of the earth can be related and brought to us via modern day fantasy creations. It is important for us to realize this connection because it will help us to understand an important deeper meaning of this work.
By the time of their death, both Victor and the creature has committed repugnant acts: Victor created a being out of corpses and then abandoned it and let it wreak havoc on the people he loved, the creature directly killed three people. But Victor tells Walton that, “During these last days I have been occupied in examining my past conduct; nor do I find it blamable […] nor do I know where this thirst for vengeance may end” (269). Victor is not able to see past the metaphorical clouds that seem to shroud his mind from seeing the truth. Furthermore, Victor is not able to let go of his hate for the creature. In contrast, the creature admits, “But it is true that I am a wretch. I have murdered the lovely and the helpless” (275). The creature is able to recognize that he has made mistakes and as a result he loathes himself. He tells Walton that, “You hate me, but your abhorrence cannot equal that with which I regard myself” (275). Although no amount of regret or sorrow can bring back the people that he has killed, the creature does acknowledge the evil of his actions, which in turn allow him to make come to peace. He is able to reconcile his vengeful feelings towards his creator and praises Victor by calling him, “worthy of love and admiration among men” (275). Both Victor and the creature have done committed actions against each
... Therefore, the qualities that cause people to detest the creation are all products of Victor’s hands, and out of the creation’s control. Before the creation comes to life, Victor is pleased with its physical appearance; "His limbs were in proportion, and I had selected his features as beautiful" (Shelley 34). Within hours after the creation is alive, Victor recalls a much different story in his mind, saying, "I had gazed on him when he was unfinished; he was ugly then" (Shelley 35). It is in this ignorant fashion that Victor and the other humans the creation meets destroy his identity by rashly inventing the identity of a murderous "wretch," rather than an unfortunate child, which the reader believes he was.
The Creature, after learning what it is to love, requests that Victor creates a companion for him. Victor rejects the creature’s proposition, as Victor now understands the consequences of animating what shouldn't be alive, the Creature wants nothing more than for Victor to suffer, to feel the pain that he, as a wretch, faces. The Creature does so by devoting his life to the destruction of Victor’s. In chapter 24, the Creature states “But it is even so; the fallen angel becomes the malignant devil.” The creature is viewed as entirely evil by the characters of the novel, despite the scenes in which his benevolent nature is shown. It is ironic that Victor and his creature are foils of one another, yet they suffer a similar fate: their desire to destroy one another led to their ultimate
Over two centuries ago, Mary Shelley created a gruesome tale of the horrific ramifications that result when man over steps his bounds and manipulates nature. In her classic tale, Frankenstein, Shelley weaves together the terrifying implications of a young scientist playing God and creating life, only to be haunted for the duration of his life by the monster of his own sordid creation. Reading Shelley in the context of present technologically advanced times, her tale of monstrous creation provides a very gruesome caution. For today, it is not merely a human being the sciences are lusting blindly to bring to life, as was the deranged quest of Victor Frankenstein, but rather to generate something potentially even more dangerous and horrifying with implications that could endanger the entire world and human population.
The Monster attempted to coexist with humanity, dealing with violence and abuse, only to be rejected and alone, much like how Satan is rejected by God. He is hoping that the wicked nature of the humans was not common between them all, until he meets the family which sways his opinions about the race. This fruit of hope soon turns rotten when he decides to befriend them only to be rejected again saying “from that moment on I declared everlasting war against the species” (Shelly 124) after their reaction. It was at this moment where he lost his innocence, seeing the truth that all humans are violent, only to make himself more lonely, which is seen in Paradise Lost from Satans rejection from God after they were defeated. Satan is a fallen angel,
For centauries, women have been forced to live life in the outskirts of a male dominated society. During the 1800’s, the opportunities for women were extremely limited and Mary Shelly does an excellent job in portraying this in her gothic novel, Frankenstein. Furthermore, in this novel, Mary Shelly shows how society considers women to be possessions rather than independent human beings. In addition, the female characters rely heavily on men for support and survival, thus proving their inability to do it on their own. Lastly, the female characters in this novel are in many ways victimized by the male characters. In conclusion, in Mary Shelly’s novel Frankenstein, the female characters always fulfill the limited and archetypical roles that are set for them by society.
"I felt as if I had committed some great crime, the consciousness of which haunted me. I was guiltless, but I had indeed drawn down a horrible curse upon my head, as mortal as that of crime" (Shelley 127). Victor knew that in his actions he had created wrong. He himself implies it that of a "mortal" sin, one in which completely cuts off the relationship that man has with God. The creation of man to the catholic faith is the essence of a mortal sin. God creates man and all that man does. It is God's job to create life and by Victor creating the monster, he completely disrespects that. This is what made the feat of creating man so appealing to Victor. "A new species would bless me as its creator and source; many happy and excellent natures would owe their being to me" (Shelley 39). Creation by man had yet to be explored and he was the first to cross into that impossible ...
Victor has a lack of respect for the natural world that leads him on the path to becoming a monster. In creating the monster Victor is trying to change the natural world. He is trying to play the role of god by creating life.
A monster according to the online dictionary is many things; it can be a creature so ugly or monstrous that it scares people, an animal that is not of a normal shape behaviour or character, an animal or human that is huge in size, or a person who excites horror by wickedness or cruelty. I would describe a monster as someone who commits evil deeds and whose general mindset is to cause suffering on other living creatures. By my definition of a monster this makes victors creation a monster but not Victor.
Ask anyone to draw Satan and you 'll get a red snake-like figure with horns and a pitchfork. Satan, as introduced in the Hebrew bible is an unworthy adversary of God. His longing to be like God is quickly recognized and dealt with. God banishes him from Heaven and sends him to Hell. That 's the last we see of him until he talks with God about his faithful servant Job. In each interaction we see Satan in, we get only a glimpse of who he really is. Satan 's motive is not developed and we assume he does evil simply because he is evil