The Mirror's Reflection

1096 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Analysing chapter 5 frankenstein

Within Frankenstein is a world divided between the egotistical ideas of a mad man and the monster that is created through his insanity: in Lacanian terms, between the Symbolic and the Imaginary Orders. According to Lacan, “the Imaginary [is a] field of images and imagination, and deception” (Wikepedia.org ); Victor’s imagination being reflected solely on the monster that is created by his own guilty hands. To Victor, his creation reflects the idea and ego that cultivate through him, it is the spark that takes the ordinary and turns him into the “alienated.” While Victor imagines himself to be a part of society, he soon comes to realize how his work has instead done the opposite, sheltering him completely. “I shunned my fellow creatures as if I had been guilty of a crime (Shelley 60). By alienating himself, Victor is then able to feed his ego with only his thoughts, gradually building it (as he does his monster), until the mind is practically drowned out by the self. “A new species would bless me as its creator and source; many happy and excellent natures would owe their being to me” (Shelley 58). By grasping firmly to the idea of playing God, Victor lets his imagination, his deception free him into believing that the dead could inevitably be brought back to life without repercussions. With this he loses all moral graces and overlooks the rationality of his actions. The task overtakes him and gains enough control to have Frankenstein go the depths of grave-robbing. Of course this intention is fueled by the death of his mother, the representation taking on a meaning that comes to symbolize an awakening of the dead, a new beginning, and an immortality that in reality can never be given without a price. With Lacan in mind one cou... ... middle of paper ... ... another example to how powerful Lady Frankenstein was even in death. Mary Shelley takes the psychological and truly sinks her teeth in it in this novel. From the paranoia of her protagonist to the sense of empathy that readers seem to face when dealing with the monster; it is as if she is taking one on a ride of emotions and self reflection. Shelley, though perhaps a bit too modern for her time, produced a novel that truly took the mind and made one be able to dissect it like no other. Work Cited Collings, David. “The Monster and the Maternal Thing: Mary Shelley’s Critique of Ideology”. Frankenstein. Joanna Smith. Bedford/St. Martin’s: New York, 2000. 280-94. Print. Freud, Sigmund. “From the Interpretation of Dreams”. 913-956. Print. “Jaques Lacan”. Wikipedia. 9 Nov. 2009 Wikipedia.org. Web. 21 Nov. 2011 Shelley, Mary. “Frankenstein” Smith. 28-189.

Show More
Related

  • Frankenstein Romanticism Essay

    1864 Words  | 4 Pages

    He turns away the peace given to him by nature just to satisfy his desire for revenge, and becomes a broken being. Mary Shelley demonstrates in Frankenstein what happens if someone strays too far from nature. Shelley purposely shows the destructive nature of science in her novel, highlighting the strife that her society is going through. Her society, disillusioned by war and the devastation that new technologies caused, wanted to go back to their roots in nature, and her novel pushes at that idea. Shelley’s example of Victor’s and the Creature’s downfall warns us of the dangers and temptations of science.

    Read More

  • The Importance Of Human Connections In Frankenstein By Mary Shelley

    747 Words  | 2 Pages

    As he goes off to college, interested in the science behind life and death, he ends up going his own way and attempts to create a living being. Victor “had worked hard for nearly two years, for the sole purpose of infusing life into an inanimate body” (Shelley 43). The being Victor has created does not by any means sit well with him. As victor is away from his family and for six years, he is neglectful to them, which only adds to his sorrow and misery. Victor’s isolation is brought upon him because of himself, however his creation, or “the monster”, is isolated from any connections with humans against his will. To start out, the monster would have had Victor there with him, but Victor is ashamed of what he has created, and abandons the monster. The monster is a very hideous being, which sadly is a contributing factor to his isolation. With nobody to talk to at any time, naturally this will be condescending and frustrating. Although the monster is able to

    Read More

  • Diction In Frankenstein

    649 Words  | 2 Pages

    Only through words and literature can people truly build their thoughts, emotions, and perspectives on things they can’t control. Mary Shelley manipulates diction and syntax in a way that allows readers to develop their own unique perspective of the characters in her books. The monster in her book, be it Frankenstein or the reanimated corpse, is built on her words. It’s very important to pay attention to the smaller details for the authors ideas truly become a story that others can spectate vividly. Sculpting others’ perspective relies on wording and well-formed sentences to capture the attention and emotions of readers all

    Read More

  • Arrogance In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

    272 Words  | 1 Pages

    After bringing life to something seemingly horrible, Victor Frankenstein reveals his personality of avoidance and arrogance. Instead of facing the creature he created, he runs away from the problem. His motivations for the experiment vary, but there is one clear one that he even admits. "The world," he says, "was to me a secret which I desired to divine" (Shelley 18). Victor tells us that he's curious, and more importantly that he's always been this way. Victor has been raised in a very loving family. His father and mother were kind parents who loved all of their children, and even adopted some children. Victor, however, grows up a little indulged and perhaps because of this, he is selfish. He is stubborn and unyielding about many things. For

    Read More

  • Sympathy for the Monster in Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

    411 Words  | 1 Pages

    In this essay I am going to answer ‘how and why does Mary Shelley make the reader sympathise with the character of the monster in her novel Frankenstein’.

    Read More

  • Frankenstein: An Analysis Of Irony In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

    939 Words  | 2 Pages

    He toils endlessly in alchemy, spending years alone, tinkering. However, once the Creature is brought to life, Frankenstein is no longer proud of his creation. In fact, he’s appalled by what he’s made and as a result, Frankenstein lives in a perpetual state of unease as the Creature kills those that he loves and terrorizes him. Victor has realized the consequences of playing god. There is irony in Frankenstein’s development, as realized in Victor’s desire to destroy his creation. Frankenstein had spent so much effort to be above human, but his efforts caused him immediate regret and a lifetime of suffering. Victor, if he had known the consequences of what he’s done, would have likely not been driven by his desire to become better than

    Read More

  • Frankenstein: Victor, Suffering in Silence

    1106 Words  | 3 Pages

    Throughout the book of Frankenstein, the creator of the being Frankenstein, Victor, is experienced as a suffering being. He recalls from the very beginning a time during his childhood where he was happy and surrounded by love, a time when his mother lived. Victor’s downfall or the beginning of his disgrace, initiates with the death of his mother. Victor leaves his family to start a new stage in his life, he leaves on quest for answers a true quest for knowledge. Personal motivation will lead Victor to take on the challenge of overcoming death, or to be more specific, give life to a dead body.

    Read More

  • Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley

    1163 Words  | 3 Pages

    In Frankenstein, Victor’s monster suffers much loneliness and pain at the hands of every human he meets, as he tries to be human like them. First, he is abandoned by his creator, the one person that should have accepted, helped, and guided him through the confusing world he found himself in. Next, he is shunned wherever he goes, often attacked and injured. Still, throughout these trials, the creature remains hopeful that he can eventually be accepted, and entertains virtuous and moral thoughts. However, when the creature takes another crushing blow, as a family he had thought to be very noble and honorable abandons him as well, his hopes are dashed. The monster then takes revenge on Victor, killing many of his loved ones, and on the humans who have hurt him. While exacting his revenge, the monster often feels guilty for his actions and tries to be better, but is then angered and provoked into committing more wrongdoings, feeling self-pity all the while. Finally, after Victor’s death, the monster returns to mourn the death of his creator, a death he directly caused, and speaks about his misery and shame. During his soliloquy, the monster shows that he has become a human being because he suffers from an inner conflict, in his case, between guilt and a need for sympathy and pity, as all humans do.

    Read More

  • Nature vs. Nurture in Frankenstein

    707 Words  | 2 Pages

    Shelley addresses Victor’s nature, first. He writes being born “a Genevese” with a family that is “one of the most distinguished of that republic” (Shelly) Victor describes his family with very powerful words including, honor and integrity. Shelly writes more about their place in society and the ability to lead. The Frankenstein family had a very rich history background. Victor could not help but become of his nature. Being in a family such as his, he must uphold a certain standard. Victor had much envy for power. However, the power that he received was too much for him to handle. “I had worked…for the sole purpose of infusing life into an inanimate body… I had desired it with ardor that far exceeded moderation,”(Shelly) Victor states. Shelley portrays the idea that Victor is overwhelmed by his newly gained power. The creature woke up something in him that was from is influenc...

    Read More

  • Frankenstein

    1002 Words  | 3 Pages

    Upon first discovering how to make life, Victor is overwhelmed with excitement and pride, feeling as though he has unlocked the greatest power on earth. His imagination is “too much exalted” by this newfound ability, and thus determines there is no “animal as complex and wonderful as man” for him to attempt as his first creation (Shelley 43). Frankenstein does not contemplate how he will react to or interact with the human he gives life to, or that he has created an extremely twisted parent-child relationship by creating a human from dead bodies. His general lack of concern regarding the consequences of his remarkable yet dangerous power is the root of the rest of the conflict between him and his monster throughout the rest of the novel, and it exemplifies Shelley’s underlying theme that science should not be pushed past morally and psychologically safe boundaries.

    Read More

  • Loyalty And Irony In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

    362 Words  | 1 Pages

    Even though Frankenstein mainly seeks glory and gratitude from his creation in the novel, he is rather driven by his desire to reanimate the dead and to benefit mankind in the movie. Indeed, Shelley’s character endeavours to bestow life upon an inanimate being and desires to “pioneer a new way,” to be the first person to accomplish this feat (Shelley 28, 32). Victor’s motives therefore take root from his selfishness, as he contemplates the glory that his breakthroughs would bring him (Shelley 22). Moreover, this man evokes the gratitude that his creation would express to him, saying that “[a] new species would bless [him] as its creator and source” (Shelley 32). Nevertheless, Branagh changes the way the audience perceives this scientist since

    Read More

  • Frankenstein Vs. Bladerunner

    1815 Words  | 4 Pages

    In Shelley?s Frankenstein, Victor brings a monster to life, only to abandon it out of fear and horror. ? gThe beauty of the dream had vanished, and breathless horror and disgust filled my heart? (Shelley, 35). The reader must question the ethics of Victor. After all, he did bring this creature upon himself.

    Read More

  • Victor as the Monster in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein

    865 Words  | 2 Pages

    Because of Victor’s need for fame and desire for power leads to Victor becoming a monster. Victor begins his quest to bring life to a dead person because he does not want anyone to feel the pain of a loved ones death. At first he is not obsessed with his project. As he moves along in the project he thinks about what will happen to him. "Life and death appeared to me ideal bounds, which I should first break through, and pour a torrent of light into our dark world. A new species would bless me as its creator and source, many happy and excellent natures would owe their being to me." (Shelley 39) He realizes that he will become famous if he accomplishes the task of bringing a person back to life. The realization that he will become famous turns him into an obsessive monster. He wanted to be admired, and praised as a species creator. He isolates himself from his family and works on the creature. “I had worked hard for nearly two years, for the sole purpose of infusing life into an inanimate body. For this I deprived myself of rest and health. I had desired it with an ardour that far exceeded moderation, but now that I had finished, the beauty of the dream vanished, and breathless horror and disgust filled my heart.” (Shelley 156) By spending most of his time inside on his experiment, he has no time to write or contact his family. He puts fear within his family because they fear for him.

    Read More

  • Blind Ambition in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

    770 Words  | 2 Pages

    After Frankenstein discovered the source of human life, he became wholly absorbed in his experimental creation of a human being. Victor's unlimited ambition, his desire to succeed in his efforts to create life, led him to find devastation and misery. "...now that I have finished, the beauty of the dream had vanished..." (Shelley 51). Victor's ambition blinded him to see the real dangers of his project. This is because ambition is like a madness, which blinds one self to see the dangers of his actions. The monster after realizing what a horror he was demanded that victor create him a partner. "I now also began to collect the materials necessary for my new creation, and this was like torture..." (Shelley 169). Victor's raw ambition, his search for glory, has left him. His eyes have been opened to see his horrible actions, and what have and could become of his creations. As a result, Victor has realized that he is creating a monster, which could lead to the downfall of mankind. His choice is simple, save his own life or save man.

    Read More

  • Dangers of Technology Exposed in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

    1592 Words  | 4 Pages

    In Frankenstein, Shelley creates two very complex characters. They embody the moral dilemmas that arise from the corruption and disturbance of the natural order of the world. When Victor Frankenstein is attending school, he becomes infatuated with creating a living being and starts stealing body parts from morgues around the university. After many months of hard work, he finishes one stormy night bringing his creation to life. However, “now that [Victor] had finished, the beauty of the dream vanished, and breathless horror and disgust filled [his] heart” (Chambers). Right after Victor realizes what he has done, he falls into deep depression and must be nursed back to health by his friend. Victor spends the rest of the story facing consequences and moral problems from creating unnatural life. When he realizes that the ‘monster’ has killed his brother, even though no one believes him, he feels responsible for his brother’s murder because he was responsible for the existence of the ‘monster’. Also feeling responsible, Victor...

    Read More

More about The Mirror's Reflection

Open Document