Accepting the Extraordinary in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein

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My life, although not without surprises and unusual events, is dictated by predictable and ordinary elements. However, through fiction I am transported into a world of boundless imagination and extraordinary themes. One such example is evident in my response to Mary Shelley’s gothic novel Frankenstein. Through fiction, Shelley invites the reader to accept the extraordinary. Firstly, we are led to believe that Victor Frankenstein is able to create life by shocking it with electricity, and to this I responded with an imaginative curiosity. But it was the consequences of the creation provoked a stronger response from me. The element of horror Victor experiences and his reaction to the ‘god like’ qualities bestowed upon him as creator is truly extraordinary. Victor, like no other man, experiences the feeling of immense power and responsibility as creator of man, and this provoked a sympathetic response from me. Finally I also accepted and responded to the extraordinary concept of the monster, who, unlike to the majority of humanity, is created without a sense of cultural identity. Additionally, what is extraordinary to me as a reader is the humanity and intelligence the monster displays, despite the disadvantageous of his creation. This made me have sympathy for monster and served to blotch the credibility of Victor. Throughout the novel I was inclined to accept Shelley’s invitation and to explore a deeper view of humanity.

The most apparent extraordinary element in Frankenstein is the concept of galvanic creation. Shelley invites us to believe that Victor can bestow life to the inanimate monster. This achieved by stressing the power and enticement (None but those who have experienced them can conceive of the enticement of science...

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...ng the extraordinary I responded in favour of the monster and in disfavour of Victor.

In her novel Frankenstein, Mary Shelley invites us as readers to accept the extraordinary. In accepting this invitation my response to the major characters in the novel, Victor and the monster, changed noticeably. Firstly I responded in favor of Victor, due to the extraordinary position he finds himself in as creator of man. But as the novel progressed I was invited to accept the extraordinary humanity of the monster, and this provoked a sympathetic response from me. We as readers are positioned to accept the elements of Frankenstein that are out of the ordinary because Shelley encourages an imaginative response from us. Throughout my reading my imagination was the dictum that influenced my response. By accepting the extraordinary I am able to explore a deeper view of humanity.

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