Monstrous creatures reside behind closed eyelids. The stroke of a pencil on paper or the line glowing on a computer screen releases them, bringing them to life. Worlds and scenes put on pages, constantly changing and hardly set in stone. Inspiration comes from those around me, the people I talk to and the experiences I have- all of this develops what goes on in the depths of my computer or lingers in the memory of others I’ve spoken to. My bed is littered with the soft bodies of monsters in video games or movies, that others have shared and input their own ideas. Colored creatures from the past stand with them, codes attached to the string that had once been wrapped around the sometimes-neon animals now in a small bag on my desk. The screen
If someone had previous knowledge of a crime, are they just as guilty for not reporting that a crime was going to happen as the person(s) that actually perpetrated the crime? This question was a major point of discussion and the major driver of the plot in the book Monster by Walter Dean Myers. In this book, 16 year old Steve Harmon is being tried for felony murder for participating in a robbery perpetrated by James King, Bobo Evans, and Osvaldo Cruz that ended in the death a Alguinaldo Nesbitt. Although the jury found Harmon innocent in the end, the readers still learn that Steve knew that a robbery was going to happen. Also, scattered throughout the book were bits of evidence that alluded to Steve’s involvement in the robbery. Therefore,
Flawed, contemplative, and challenging are three descriptive words to describe equality, or the lack of it. The lack of equality is a “monster” according to Cohen’s fourth thesis “The Monster Dwells at the Gates of Difference.” Cohen’s fourth thesis explains how differences among people in regards to race, gender, culture, etc. create “monsters” in society, even when people do not want them to exist. According to “Monster Culture (Seven Theses)” by Jeffrey Jerome Cohen: “Monsters are our children. They can be pushed to the farthest margins of geography and discourse, hidden away at the edges of the world and in the forbidden recesses of our mind, but they always return.” This quote means that the monsters society creates
Asma, Stephen. On Monsters :An Unnatural History of Our Worst Fears. New York: Oxford University Press, 2009. Print.
In the novel The Invisible Man by H.G. Wells, and in the 1933 film adaptation of the same name, much attention is devoted to the question of the Invisible Man's humanity. Each work sees the the Invisible Man differently: as a monstrous being and a cynical, misunderstood man. H.G. Wells creates a sympathetic Griffin who is not a monster except in the imagination. The cinematic version, however, is a monstrous individual.
“Frankenstein” by Mary Shelly explores the concept of the body, life, ‘the self’ and most of importantly humanity, which is repeatedly questioned throughout the novel. The definition of humanity is the quality of being humane or in other words someone that can feel or possess compassion. Despite all the facts against the “monster” in “Frankenstein” he is indeed what one would consider being human. Humanity isn’t just about ones physical appearance but also includes intellect and emotion. Some people argue that the “monster” is not a human for he was not a creature that was born from “God” or from a human body. That being said, the “monster” is not only able to speak different languages, he can also show empathy - one of many distinct traits that set humans apart from the animals. Both the “monster” and his creator, Victor, hold anger and feel a sense of suffering throughout the novel. Victor is a good person with good intentions just like most individuals, but makes the mistake of getting swept up into his passion of science and without thinking of the consequences he creates a “monster”. After completing his science project, he attempts to move forward with his life, however his past – i.e., the “monster” continues to follow and someone haunt him. While one shouldn’t fault or place blame on Frankenstein for his mistakes, you also can’t help but feel somewhat sympathetic for the creature. Frankenstein just wants to feel accepted and loved, he can’t help the way he treats people for he’s only mimicking how people have treated him, which in most cases solely based on his appearance. Unlike most of the monsters we are exposed to in films past and present, the character of the “monster” ...
In the novel "Frankenstein" by Mary Shelley, the relationship of external apperence and internal feelings are directly related. The creature is created and he is innocent, though he is seaverly deformed. His nature is to be good and kind, but society only views his external appereance which is grotesque. Human nature is to judge by external apperence. He is automatically ostracized and labeled as a monster because of his external apperence. He finnaly realized that no matter how elequintly he speaks and how kind he is, people will never be able to see past his external deformities. Children are fearful of him, Adults think he is dangerous, and his own creator abandons him in disgust. The creature is treated as a monster, therefore he begins to internalize societies view of him and act the like a monster.
Sometimes, in novels like Frankenstein, the motives of the author are unclear. It is clear however, that one of the many themes Mary Shelley presents is the humanity of Victor Frankenstein's creation. Although she presents evidence in both support and opposition to the creation's humanity, it is apparent that this being is indeed human. His humanity is not only witnessed in his physical being, but in his intellectual and emotional thoughts as well. His humanity is argued by the fact that being human does not mean coming from a specific genetic chain and having family to relate to, but to embrace many of the distinct traits that set humans apart from other animals in this world. In fact, calling Victor's creation a `monster' doesn't support the argument that he is human, so for the sake of this case, his name shall be Phil.
Peter Brooks' essay "What Is a Monster" tackles many complex ideas within Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, and the main concept that is the title of the essay itself. What is the definition of a monster, or to be monstrous? Is a monster the classic representation we know, green skin, neck bolts, grunting and groaning? A cartoon wishing to deliver sugary cereal? or someone we dislike so greatly their qualities invade our language and affect our interpretation of their image and physical being? Brooks' essay approaches this question by using Shelley's narrative structure to examine how language, not nature, is mainly accountable for creating the idea of the monstrous body.
On the day May 19, 1870 in Washington D.C., into a family with respect but the family had a history of mental illness and alcoholism. Fish’s mom was a single mom, she could not able to support him. Went to a foster home and had a rough time in there and tried to escape but did not happen. Through the course of Albert Fish’s life, he demonstrates the qualities of a human monster through his murderous assaults on innocent children, thus proving that human monsters are more terrifying than the fictional monsters.
The literary critic Harold Bloom, in his Afterward in the Signet Edition of Frankenstein states that, “The monster is at once more intellectual and more emotional than his creator.” Bloom continues to say that the creature is more human, more lovable, and more to be pitied than Doctor Frankenstein (292). Throughout the novel Frankenstein, the monster portrays more human qualities than his creator Dr. Frankenstein. Dr. Frankenstein appears less human than his creation because he rejects his own creation and he fails to plan for the results of his experiment. As the monster wanders through the novel searching for companionship and acceptance, Dr. Frankenstein refuses to provide the support expected of a parent or creator. While the monster appears human in his attempts to socialize with his peers, Dr. Frankenstein represents the monstrosity that occurs when humans tamper with life.
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, or the Modern Prometheus, explores the monstrous and destructive affects of obsession, guilt, fate, and man’s attempt to control nature. Victor Frankenstein, the novel’s protagonist and antihero, attempts to transcend the barriers of scientific knowledge and application in creating a life. His determination in bringing to life a dead body consequently renders him ill, both mentally and physically. His endeavors alone consume all his time and effort until he becomes fixated on his success. The reason for his success is perhaps to be considered the greatest scientist ever known, but in his obsessive toil, he loses sight of the ethical motivation of science. His production would ultimately grieve him throughout his life, and the consequences of his undertaking would prove disastrous and deadly. Frankenstein illustrates the creation of a monster both literally and figuratively, and sheds light on the dangers of man’s desire to play God.
What are monsters? Who are monsters? Clawed brutes, winged terrors, and giant robots are examples that fill popular fiction. In Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Philip K. Dick focuses on monsters that are not so easily identified. These monsters have human appearances but lack human feelings; they are defined and ruled by the technology around them, reduced to little more than cogs in the machine. The technology featured in Dick’s post-apocalyptic world is dichotomous and extrapolates from current trends in technology. Technology acts as a medium for connection between people, yet simultaneously isolates them. It is intended as a tool for empowerment, but is used instead for pacification. Through the topic of technology in Androids, Dick echoes bioethicist Leon Kass, who believes that the “technical conquest of his own nature would almost certainly leave mankind utterly enfeebled” (qtd. in Bostrom). In this paper, I will discuss how Philip K. Dick uses technology in Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep?, to warn of the danger of such “androidization”, the instrumentation of humans and the loss of individual will and expression.
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein or; The Modern Prometheus, published in 1818, is a product of its time. Written in a world of social, political, scientific and economic upheaval it highlights human desire to uncover the scientific secrets of our universe, yet also confirms the importance of emotions and individual relationships that define us as human, in contrast to the monstrous. Here we question what is meant by the terms ‘human’ and ‘monstrous’ as defined by the novel. Yet to fully understand how Frankenstein defines these terms we must look to the etymology of them. The novel however, defines the terms through its main characters, through the themes of language, nature versus nurture, forbidden knowledge, and the doppelganger motif. Shelley also shows us, in Frankenstein, that although juxtaposing terms, the monstrous being everything human is not, they are also intertwined, in that you can not have one without the other. There is also an overwhelming desire to know the monstrous, if only temporarily and this calls into question the influence the monstrous has on the human definition.
Political philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau is often attributed to the discussion of the “noble savage,” and the existence of natural man. Throughout numerous works of literature, the theme of the “noble savage” is prevalent and enduring, providing indirect authors’ commentary through the actions and development of various characters. Two such novels are Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein, and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s The Sorrows of Young Werther. In both novels, Shelly and Goethe demonstrate strong Romantic ideals, while developing various characters using Rousseau’s myth.
In Frankenstein, Mary Shelley uses the motif of monstrosity to convey the theme that a person’s outward appearance is not what makes them a monster but rather their actions or inactions that classify true monstrosity. Despite the fact that the monster Victor Frankenstein creates is a literal example of monstrosity in the novel there are many parts that give meaning to monstrosity within character’s actions. Although Victor appears normal, since he is human his ambitions, secrets, selfishness, and inaction makes him a monster himself. Along with monstrous characters the pursuit of knowledge that is seen in Victor, his monster, and Walton in Frankenstein prove that knowledge can be a monstrosity. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is created using the life stories of different characters in the novel. The novel itself could be seen as a monster created similarly to Victor’s monster.