The Negative Effects Of Heedless Ambition In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

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Recommended: Essay on victor frankenstein's character

Justin Castillo
Mrs. Schroder
Period 5
12/7/17
The Negative Effects of Heedless Ambition People say that “through hard work and determination, dreams will come true” and this does not always seem to be the case. Hard work and determination, or ambition for short, does lead to the accomplishments of dreams, but sometimes ends up ruining relationships as seen in Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein. The novel, originally written in 1818, depicts a story about a young ambitious scientist-by the name of Victor Frankenstein-who attempts at creating life. Throughout the story, Victor works tirelessly to accomplish this feat---and finally does succeed in doing so. This creation, though, does not make Victor any happier than he previously was--in fact, it makes him more depressed. From his lab emerges a monster, a being “so hideous” that even he flees from it in disgust (Shelley, 140). Fierce ambition mixed with pride drives Victor to create the monster, and this ultimately makes him neglect the various aspects of his life. This ambitious quality does not just belong to Victor, but to many more. Because he represents a creator, Victor passes down this quality-not always resulting in good things-to his creation; in a sense, he reaps what he sows. Without this “heedless ambition”, there would have existed a lighter, …show more content…

Through ambition, the creation of the monster-which the story centers around-is made possible. While good ambition can lead to the success of one thing, it can ultimately result in the near-destruction of another. Ambition is a tool; if directed with the right intentions and in the right way, the ending results would be good or bad. As said by William Osler, “the travelers on the road to success live in the present, heedless of taking thought for the morrow” and “let each day’s work absorb your entire energies”; this truly describes ambition as seen in the

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