To Revive and Destroy: Nature’s Competing Visions
Since the beginning of civilization, nature has been an obstacle that life is forced to overcome. In areas of extreme adversity, life struggles to exist, while in calm and stable conditions, life flourishes. The environments of earth constantly vary between adverse and propitious; one allows for progress, the other allows for the indulgement of laziness. In her book Frankenstein, Mary Shelley depicts the Monstrous and Idyllic visions of nature, but in the way she writes them, the Monstrous acts as an anchor to reality while the Idyllic causes dissociation in the individual. Throughout the story, nature is a force that changes the emotions of the individual. In Idyllic settings, the individual
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becomes distracted, in Monstrous conditions, the individual is forced to focus on one goal. Victor Frankenstein was of an aristocratic family and made his home in the picturesque setting of Geneva, Switzerland.
It was not expected of him to have to endure the bleakness of poverty or extent of nature's wrath, however, his actions force him to go through more pain than he imagined. In Victor’s quest to destroy The Monster, he is goaded by his vengeful creation to enter the freezing, lifeless Arctic and endure the obstacles it possesses.
But now, when I seemed almost within grasp of my foe, my hopes were suddenly extinguished, and I lost all trace of him more utterly than I had ever done before. A ground sea was heard; the thunder of its progress, as the waters rolled and swelled beneath me, became every moment more ominous and terrific (Shelley
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211). The view of nature in romantic literature was that of a restorative entity, equalizer and escape from the growing industrial world. During the transition to gothic writing, Nature was given the power to destroy as well as create, Frankenstein as a founder of the gothic style portrayed it also as such, an overwhelming force, indifferent to the fate of humans. Frankenstein relentlessly pursues The Monster in futility, as his body succumbs to the cold of the north and the awesome force of nature obliterates the path to his goal. Throughout the novel, Victor is repeatedly thwarted in his attempts to destroy The Monster due to its heightened abilities and capacity for survival, and though he refuses to forfeit, this instance is the last time he comes in contact with The Monster in his life. It seemed that the all powerful will of nature quite wickedly kept what reprise and revenge he would have garnered from killing the cause of his torment just barely out of reach. This is just one instance where nature is depicted as indifferent Victor’s to the point of being sadistic. Evil isn’t the only role nature plays in Frankenstein, it is also the only true place where Victor and The Monster can experience peace. The Monster was left alone in the first days of his birth, rejected by his creator. He was without guidance until in the middle of the forest he gazed upon the moon. “I knew, and could distinguish, nothing; . . . Soon a gentle light stole over the heavens, and gave me a sensation of pleasure. I started up and beheld a radiant form rise among the trees . . . It moved slowly, but it enlightened my path, and I again went out in search of berries” (Shelley 106). The Monster dealt with it's confusing and painful creation through nature’s ability to comfort an individual. When he could feel nothing but pain from being alone, it was the gentle light of the moon that illuminated his surroundings. The moon was the one object that The Monster found comfort in, and when he set his eyes upon it, he not only experienced pleasure, but his senses were less differentiated and muddled. The moon is a symbol of life and death through its phases as well as a representation of femininity; this view of it makes sense considering the timing of The Monsters birth with the full moon as well as the way it calms him it, the same way a mother would calm her child. The moon is only one of the many instances that nature is used as a tool to calm emotions and clear the senses. Despite the restorative qualities of nature, its powers do have a limit; eventually, Frankenstein and The Monster must succumb to the will of the monstrous side of nature.
In the cold of the north seas, The Monster must come to terms with Frankenstein’s death from human fragility.
He is dead who called me into being; and when I shall be no more, the very remembrance of us both will speedily vanish. I shall no longer see the sun, or feel the winds play on my cheeks. Light, feeling and sense will pass away; and in this condition I must find happiness (Shelley 225).
By the end of the book, both Frankenstein and The Monster are are traumatized by the hardships they put each other through. Their minds are in such a state that settings or thoughts that used to give them peace are rendered useless; they're only focus on how they are able to destroy the other. At the end of their lives, when Idyllic nature can no longer deliver them from the turmoil inside, it is only the monstrous side which is able to ultimately relieve them from their pain through death. The relentless cold easily took the life from Frankenstein’s body, and with his creator dead, The Monster resolves to isolate himself in the most remote conditions to allow himself to perish without the knowledge of humans. Curiously, in this instance where nature’s perils would be considered detrimental to some such as Captain Walton who still has connections to the world, it seems to be the only saving grace to Victor and his creation,
the only escape from insanity due to the absence of the other. Gothic literature portrays nature as an unavoidable sublime power, near that of God; just as with God’s power, it can be used to restore or destroy an individual. In Frankenstein, the nature is able to dash Victor’s hopes in one detached chain of events despite all his ambitious pursuits, yet also provide comfort for what is described as the most wretched being in existence. Ultimately, it is up to the individual to decide whether nature is idyllic or monstrous, as seen in the deaths of Victor and The Monster: to them, the same ice which offers them sanctuary from their broken minds is the ice which threatens Captain Walton and his crew. Which of nature’s Idyllic and Monstrous sides are present in a situation depends on the perspective
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein concludes with a series of speeches from Victor Frankenstein and the Creature to Captain Walton, including one where Frankenstein expends his physical strength to persuade Walton’s crew to complete their mission. This speech is striking considering Frankenstein’s previous dangerously ambitious and irresponsible actions. His speech is one of heroics and sublimity, two major values of the Romantic poet. Reading Frankenstein as a reflection of the Romantic poets who surrounded Mary Shelley while she wrote the novel, Frankenstein’s speech is one of a failed Romantic poet – one who takes Shelley’s contemporaries’ ideals too far. Shelley highlights the irony of Frankenstein’s speech through his uncharacteristic use of
The monster tells Frankenstein of the wretchedness of the world and how it was not meant for a being such as himself. At the end of his insightful tale the creature demands a companion of the same hideous features but of the opposite gender to become his. Victor only has the choice to make the monster or suffer a lifetime of horror his creation would bring upon him. Which the creator ultimately agrees to make the female monster to save the lives of his family but gains a conscious that fills with guilt of all the destruction he has created and creating. When the monster comes to collect the female he tears her apart and the monster vows to destroy all Victor holds dear. The monster’s emotional sense is consumed with rage against Victor, murdering Frankenstein’s best friend. Though when the monster’s framing ways do not work to lead to Victor being executed, he then murders Frankenstein’s wife on their wedding night. This tragedy is the last for Victor’s father who becomes ill with grief and quickly passes within a few days, leaving Victor with nothing but his own regret. Shelley doesn’t give the audience the monsters side of the story but hints that the remainder of his journey consisted of being a shadow to that of his creator. It is at the graves of the Frankenstein family when the creature makes an appearance in the solemn and
...or was not thinking of others in his actions, but only of himself. He did not consider the tumult the abnormally large creature could cause in the world, nor what the feelings of the monster would be towards him if he abandoned him. Victor also did not contemplate the safety of his friends, as he had the chance to stop the creature’s misdoings but failed to do so, risking the life of his friends. Therefore, Victor was a selfish being, who only concerned himself with his wishes and never evaluated the situation of his loved ones, ultimately causing their demise. The misfortunate events that occurred through Victor’s life could have been prevented, and also discontinued when Victor had the chance. However, Victor’s irresponsibility overcame these opportunities and he in turn, caused misfortunes for himself as well as his loved ones.
Frankenstein is a horror movie that tells the story of Dr. Henry Frankenstein’s experiment. In search for the fame and glory of playing to be god, he reaches a point where he is able to revive dead people. In this version of Frankenstein’s monster we see a selfish and careless scientist that created a creature with his intelligence. The way the character is shown reflects how ambitious someone can be to reach to be known in the world. This movie makes the people who are watching to feel empathy on the poor creature. This poor creature that did not want to live in a life where everyone is going to hate him for having a horrible aspect and not following rules that he has no idea about.
After killing his younger brother, Elizabeth , and his best friend, Victor after having no family left wanted to put an end to it all so he ended up chasing his creation and dying before catching it. After bringing the creature into this world and leaving it behind to fend for itself the creature endured lots of agony and pain from society which drove its rage to Victor and his family and he ended up kill this younger brother and soon to be wife. Both were isolated from society, Victor brought isolation upon himself through locking himself up to create the creature and ignoring everything around him as stated in the article, “The summer months passed while I was thus engaged, heart and soul, in one pursuit. It was a most beautiful season; never did the fields bestow a more plentiful harvest, or the vines yield a more luxuriant vintage: but my eyes were insensible to the charms of nature. And the same feelings which made me neglect the scenes around me caused me also to forget those friends who were so many miles absent, and whom I had not seen for so long a time. I knew my silence disquieted them; and I well-remembered the words of my father: "I know that while you are pleased with yourself, you will think of us with affection, and we shall hear regularly from you. You must pardon me if I regard any interruption in your correspondence as a proof that your other duties are equally neglected.” As
James Whale's Frankenstein is a VERY loose adaptation of Mary Shelley's 1818 novel. The spirit of the film is preserved in its most basic sense, but the vast majority of the story has been entirely left out, which is unfortunate. The monster, for example, who possesses tremendous intellect in the novel and who goes on an epic quest seeking acceptance into the world in which he was created, has been reduced to little more than a lumbering klutz whose communication is limited to unearthly shrieks and grunts. Boris Karloff was understandably branded with the performance after the film was released, because it was undeniably a spectacular performance, but the monster's character was severely diminished from the novel.
With this passing thought, the monster leaps from the ship into the ice filled sea, and is never seen again. At first it is seen as a story about man and the evils he can do, yet. Frankenstein is actually about the friendship of the soul. Without this basic need, the body either withers away and dies or turns to another source, like murder or drink, to fill the hole. Both fatalities can be seen in the story, with Victor's friendship and the monster's anger.
The creator of the monster, Victor Frankenstein is a man full of knowledge and has a strong passion for science. He pushes the boundary of science and creates a monster. Knowledge can be a threat when used for evil purposes. Though Victor did not intend for the being to be evil, society’s judgement on the monster greatly affects him. As a result he develops hatred for his creator as well as all man-kind. Victor’s anguish for the loss of his family facilitates his plan for revenge to the monster whom is the murderer. While traveling on Robert Walton’s ship he and Victor continue their pursuit of the monster. As Victor’s death nears he says, “…or must I die, and he yet live? If I do, swear to me Walton, that he shall not escape, that you will seek him and satisfy my vengeance in his death…Yet, when I am dead if he should appear, if the ministers of vengeance should conduct him to you, swear that he shall not live-swear that he shall not triumph over my accumulated woes and survive to add to the list of his dark crimes” (pg.199). Victor grieves the death of William, Justine, Clerval, Elizabeth and his father. Throughout the novel he experiences the five stages of grief, denial/ isolation, anger, bargaining, depression and finally acceptance. Victor denies ...
As time goes on, many things tend to change, and then they begin to inherit completely different images. Over the years, the character, created by Dr. Victor Frankenstein in Mary Shelley’s famous novel, has changed dramatically. The monster, regularly called “Frankenstein,” has been featured in numerous films, such as Frankenweenie and Edward Scissorhands. Although, the characters in today’s pop culture and the monster in the well-known 1800’s novel have similarities, they are actually very different. The many similarities and differences range from the character’s physical traits and psychological traits, the character’s persona, and the character’s place in the Gothic style.
In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Victor Frankenstein and the monster that he creates are very similar. For example, Victor creates the monster to be like himself. Another similarity is that the anger of both Victor and the monster is brought about by society. One more parallel between Victor and the monster is that they both became recluses. These traits that Victor and the monster possess show that they are very similar.
The theme in a piece of literature is the main idea or insight on characters. Most pieces of literature do not limit itself to one but many other themes all collected into one. This is just like in Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. This horrifying story was produced in 1818 and has several themes that she portrays throughout. The theme of dangerous knowledge is unmistakably seen theme in Frankenstein. In Frankenstein we see this theme through three of the main characters, Victor Frankenstein, Robert Walton and the creature. We can see how their desire for knowledge can take them places and show them eventually what they are looking for. Sooner or later it will take them to dangerous and unwanted places. The desire for knowledge can eventually lead one to its grave. Victor Frankenstein’s scientific endeavor, Robert Walton’s search for the North Pole, and the creature’s kind heart but scary features creates this theme of dangerous knowledge.
In gothic novels tragic figures are symbols of pain to the characters. Victor Frankenstein brings misfortune to his loved ones, which concludes to his overall tragedy. Ironically the monster in this novel is Frankenstein the creator not the creature. He has seven victims including himself and his fall is due to his ambition to be superior.
Many people know that Mary Shelley, the author of Frankenstein, was part of a family of famed Romantic era writers. Her mother, Mary Wollstonecraft, was one of the first leaders of the feminist movement, her father, William Godwin, was a famous social philosopher, and her husband, Percy Shelley, was one of the leading Romantic poets of the time ("Frankenstein: Mary Shelley Biography."). What most people do not know, however, is that Mary Shelley dealt with issues of abandonment her whole life and fear of giving birth (Duncan, Greg. "Frankenstein: The Historical Context."). When she wrote Frankenstein, she revealed her hidden fears and desires through the story of Victor Frankenstein’s creation, putting him symbolically in her place (Murfin, Ross. "Psychoanalytic Criticism and Frankenstein.”). Her purpose, though possibly unconsciously, in writing the novel was to resolve both her feelings of abandonment by her parents, and fears of her own childbirth.
... may result in the imbalance of that which sustains us and our subsequent destruction. While Victor can control nature and bend it to his will in unnatural ways, once confronted with the natural elements, none of his science and ingenuity can save him. Throughout the novel Victor goes to nature for solace, expecting nothing but return, and expects the same throughout the novel, right to his own demise. This lesson is not only applicable to when Frankenstein was written, at an explosively progressive period during the Industrial Revolution, but also to all generations and their relationship with human progression and nature preservation.
Gender inequality will always affect the way women are portrayed in society, the weaker, unnecessary, and other sex. It is not just a subject of the past, but still holds a name in society, however in the olden eras the way women were treated and are looked at, in a much more harsh condition. In Shakespeare’s Othello and Shelley’s Frankenstein women’s roles in the books are solely based on the way they are treated in their time period. The way women are portrayed in these books, demonstrate that they can never be in the same standing as men, considered the second option, and therefore will never have the same respect as men. In both Othello and Frankenstein women are treated as property, used to better men’s social standards, and lack a voice,