The Frankenstein Phenomena in Life and Education

The Frankenstein Phenomena in Life and Education

When we consider most traditional Hollywood Frankenstein films, the 'monster' is depicted as evil because he is 'malformed' but this is not always the case. The simple one-to-one relationship of ugly equals evil was not prominent in the Mary Shelley's original book or in more true-to-text films such as The Bride or more recently Kenneth Brannagh's attempt to make the authoritative film interpretation, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. In these versions, the monster was portrayed as more human in his endeavors to question his origins, find a father and be happy. However, his physical characteristics have become the most salient feature in popular culture, so much so, that he is generally viewed as unquestionably evil bec ause his appearance offends the eye. The signs in this case are the monster's scars, his stitches, the bolts that hold his head on, the hands of a murderer sewn on, his club feet, his staggering jerky walk, his strange and retarded speech. We often take t hese signs as being indexes and symbols of evil and malevolence that signify insidiousness and threat, even though these are characteristics of so many real conditions in our fellow humans. When we consider such people, we call these signs symptoms, infir mities, disabilities and medical problems. Are we so sure that we can separate how we view these signs depending on whether we are watching movies, such potent sources of how we regard our world, or when we deal with patients or students in the 'real' wor ld?

Looking at how people that are considered aberrant either physically or mentally are portrayed in movies gives a good view on how society as a whole may see them, in my opinion. In the film The Bride, the monster's only companion after his escap e is a dwarf who was a circus performer. Although, this movie is definitely a more positive and sympathetic portrayal of the monster's condition, it also highlights the assumption that anybody with a physical makeup that is unusual, is considered just as much a 'monster' by society. In this discussion, I will initially take the representation of dwarves in movies and myth, and how they are perceived by society as being prototypical for a range of other physical differences that are considered negatively i n this culture. I choose dwarves because I believe they have been one of the most pervasively stereotyped groups in movies and myth and whose negative depiction continues to persist even in the politically correct era because now they can be labeled as "w eird but cool.