Playing God

637 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Animals used in medical research

Many scientific pursuits have advanced throughout time lacking any catastrophic events. However, defying natural laws of life/death and violating the sanctity of human life crosses a line in the great chain of being, as a human utilizes godly powers. Violating this hierarchy causes dire consequences for the violator. Just as Prometheus stole fire from the gods and gifted it to man, Victor Frankenstein also transgressed the boundaries between the mortal and divine worlds and pursued the dangerous knowledge of reanimation, which ultimately lead to his demise.
Shelly communicates to the readers that powers belonging to a higher deity should remain with it and that science should not equal or surpass these powers. When Victor first sought animation, he believed that he could, “[…] renew life where death had apparently devoted the body to corruption” (Shelley 39), thus playing god and creating a new “Adam”. Victor’s first blunder was to leave to Creation to be in solitude. By putting himself in the role of the creator, Frankenstein assumed the responsibility to care for and enlighten the Creation, so the Creation thought. However, Victor was disgusted by it and he fled from his lab and abandons the Creation. Nevertheless, one must tend to their investigations, or consequences will occur. After reading John Milton’s Paradise Lost and viewing how Adam was guarded by the special care of his creator, the Creation loathed Frankenstein for the lack of paternalism he showed his Creation. God provided Adam with Eve, and the Creation wished the same, for a female companion. When Victor destroyed the almost created companion, the Creation vowed revenge and stated, “[…] you, my tyrant and tormentor, shall curse the sun that gazes on your miser...

... middle of paper ...

...humans in eluding natural processes like death, but it can cause calamitous events if proper precautions aren’t taken. Also, creatures subject to science can also be discriminated against, like the Creation was by Felix, who assumed it was grotesque, while it was actually nice and caring, as it brought wood to the family. An example of where Shelley’s warning isn’t heeded is in the film Gattaca, where in vitro fertilization partitions society into 2 groups, the “valids” (in vitro) and the “invalids” (natural birth). The consequences ensued are segregated classes, with the superior class receiving professional employment while the lower class receives menial jobs. The repercussion of the eugenics in the film reflect Shelley’s premonition about the advancement of science in the future: that attempting to go above one’s own power will cause complications in humanity.

Show More
Related

  • Frankenstein Romanticism Essay

    1864 Words  | 4 Pages

    By attempting to create life and messing with the natural order of the world, Victor loses his connection to the earth and eventually ends up as a shell of what he once was. No matter how hard he tried to redeem himself, he could no longer be one with nature. The creature that Victor creates by using the malicious techniques of science actually starts out to nature than Victor himself. The Creature recognizes the wonders of nature and finds temporary happiness in his closeness to the world. 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 to highlight the strife that her society was 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. Even now, people are constantly enraptured by the possibilities that science and technology offer, while neglecting their duties towards nature and the

    Read More

  • Impulsive Behavior In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

    1223 Words  | 3 Pages

    Shelley characterizes Victor in a way that he acts on his impulses and not with rationality. As a result, Victor does not take the time to teach or talk to his creation. This action leads to his downfall as his loved one’s are killed by the Creature taking revenge on Victor for leaving him to fend for himself. Victor’s actions have consequences, hence why all his loved one’s are murdered because of his instinct to leave out of fear and safety. Shelley proves that our id demands immediate gratification of needs and thus, is in control of our actions.

    Read More

  • Mary Shelley's Frankenstein - Victor Paid for his Sins

    924 Words  | 2 Pages

    New medications are discovered daily. However, had Mary Shelly's proposition of "playing god" been a reality in the late 18th century, and had Victor Frankenstein been able to take this dramatic shortcut in the slow process of evolution by creating life from death, the crisis between the church and science would have been decidedly against science. Such were the sentiments of Victor's headmaster at Ingolstadt, as well as the rest of the European scientific community. Frankenstein's intentions were good. He had wanted to rid the world of genetic defects and bacterial disease by creating the perfect man. He would do so by applying electricity to the polar regions of a body, which he had constructed from pieces of freshly executed villains, while submerging them in an elemental pool of life. However, he was so driven towards his goal that he never considered the consequences of his actions. He was in many ways acting like the benefactor of Jurassic Park, hastily creating a life form without consideration of possible detriments. When Frankenstein had created his monster, he didn't know what to do with it and immediately wished it dead, but ironically he had made it so strong that it would not die.

    Read More

  • Society as the True Monster in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

    1800 Words  | 4 Pages

    This evolution of Victor’s attitude about the creation occurs during the time immediately following the creation. In these few hours, Victor’s imagination creates an increasingly grotesque image of the creation. This developed condemnation that Victor imposes upon the creation is similar to all of the creation’s other encounters with human beings. This repeated rejection causes the creation to realize that "All men hate the wretched; how then must I be hated, who am miserable beyond all living things" (Shelley 65). Eventually, therefore, the creation accepts its role as a monster based solely on the reactions it receives from other human beings.

    Read More

  • Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

    521 Words  | 2 Pages

    Mary Shelley’s, Frankenstein, was written during a period of dramatic revolution. The failed French Revolution and Industrial Revolution seriously mark the novel with hints of moral and scientific revolution. Through Frankenstein, Shelley sends out a clear message that morally irresponsible scientific development can unleash a monster that can destroy its creator.

    Read More

  • The Differences Of Frankenstein And Ishiguro's Frankenstein

    1040 Words  | 3 Pages

    Since the beginning of time man has been infatuated with the idea of pushing the human body to its limits. The Guinness Book of World Records, the Olympics, the Space program, and more are all dedicated to celebrating Humans that push these boundaries. In the age of technology and scientific advancement ideas that once seemed like science fiction are now a reality. In order to push these constraints to human evolution, ethics and morals have been pushed aside. In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein a scientist, Victor Frankenstein, plays God by bringing his creature to life. When Frankenstein realizes the full extent to what he’s done, he abandons the monster. The monster then seeking revenge, killing all who Victor cares for. In Ishiguro’s Never Let

    Read More

  • Playing God in Shelley's Frankenstein

    1200 Words  | 3 Pages

    During this time of enlightenment and exploration however, the standards of Christianity and ethical thought challenged science and its moral reasoning. Despite the large progress in society, the church's vast power led the people to fear science. However the church's fear was not just for the salvation of their church, but that science would disprove the proof of God and take God's place in society. For this to happen would bring chaos to society and give little hope to people. The thought of a life without God is daunting to most, and would create an uneasiness to life and an immense fear of death. Mary Shelley's Frankenstein through Victor Frankenstein's perilous journey shows the destruction behind man's thirst for scientific knowledge and the ethical reasons as to why man should not play God.

    Read More

  • Monstrosity in Frankenstein

    1001 Words  | 3 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Not Born a Monster: Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

    1498 Words  | 3 Pages

    Victor Frankenstein, the main character in Mary Shelley’s novel, is the creator of the monster. When Victor created the monster, he believed he created the monster for the betterment of humankind, but he actually created the monster because he desired to prove to the world that an average human can do Godly acts. The desire to create the monster goes back to Victor’s childhood. As a young kid, Victor’s passions always lied in science and chemistry and in college; he became obsessed with the idea of creating life out of inanimate objects. He then decided to specialize in Alchemy. Within Shelley’s book Frankenstein, Victor said:

    Read More

  • The Importance Of Conformity In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

    1323 Words  | 3 Pages

    Victor had created the creature with the vision from his dreams of a strong, tall perfect being with no flaws. His years of study with the unnatural and science had come to this final conclusion and masterful idea that he was determined to finish. To his surprise, he had created the opposite, “For this I had 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 35) Victor is saddened by what he thinks of as a failure. He leaves his own apartment to go sleep in his court yard outside following his creation. He begins to isolate himself from the creature because of his fear of the creature’s outward appearance. He loses all hope for the creature without even learning anything about him. The fact that Shelley begins to refer to the being that Victor created as a “creature” shows Victor’s ignorance and lack of acceptance. It is Victor’s prejudice that blinds him of the creature’s true potential due to the unwanted preconception that follows the creature as he finds meaning in

    Read More

  • Frankenstein Vs. God

    1804 Words  | 4 Pages

    In the Bible, the book of Genesis 1:27 states that "God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them." Creating both men and women in His image, God is the only person who can do this successfully, giving us unconditional love and never abandoning us throughout our journey in life. On the other hand, Victor Frankenstein, a young scientist creates a life form due to his love of natural sciences. His desire to create this life form only for an experimental purpose unknowingly leads to disastrous outcomes for both Victor Frankenstein and his creation, the monster. In Mary Shelley's novel, Frankenstein, the protagonist, Victor Frankenstein uses his knowledge where he violates ethical principles by playing God and creating a life form that he is ultimately ashamed of.

    Read More

  • Shelly's "Frankenstein" and Milton's "Paradise Lost"

    1145 Words  | 3 Pages

    In "Paradise Lost", God creates man; in Shelly's story, Victor Frankenstein creates monster. Early in Shelly's book, we find that Victor has found out how to generate life "upon lifeless matter" (27), akin to God's creation of man from dust: "he formed thee, Adam, thee, O Man, / Dust of the ground" (Milton 189). Victor's representation of himself as a father relates well to Milton's illustration of God as the "Almighty Father" (65) and even the monster relates his existence to adam, "Like Adam, I was created apparently united by no link to any other being in existence" (Shelly 74). Lastly, as Adam and Eve fell in Paradise Lost when they ate from the tree of knowledge, the monster "falls"--"but sorrow only increased with knowledge" (Shelly 69). The ...

    Read More

  • Frankenstein, Community, and the Individual

    1689 Words  | 4 Pages

    To begin our analysis, I will look to how Mary Shelley positions Victor Frankenstein's motivations to create life against natural laws within the ideas of individualism, as Victor can correlate directly to the educated human at the center of Enlightenment, Industrialism, and Romanticism values. With the burgeoning interest in scientific discovery during the Industrial Revolution "transform[ing] British culture" and "changing the world"(Lipking 2065), many concepts of society were also changed, which Shelley looked to explore through Victor's actions. Rooted in the scientifically curious spirit of Industrial England, Victor's attempt to create life can show many examples of how an importance of the individual acquisition of knowledge and accomplishment can disrupt society. Victor's...

    Read More

  • Similarities Between Frankenstein And Never Let Me Go

    1335 Words  | 3 Pages

    Since the beginning of time man has been infatuated with the idea of pushing the human body to its limits by the use of science. The Space program is the best example of science helping humans accomplish things never before thought possible. In the age of technology and scientific advancement ideas that once seemed like science fiction, for example people walking on the moon, are now a reality. In order to push human development, ethics and morals have been pushed to the side. Necessary evils have been accepted as part of science without a second thought. In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein a scientist, Victor Frankenstein, plays God by creating a monster out of body parts and bringing it to life. When Frankenstein realizes the full extent to what he’s done, he abandons the monster leaving it confused and lonely. The monster then

    Read More

  • Free Essays: The Themes of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

    1717 Words  | 4 Pages

    One theme discussed by Shelley in the novel is birth and creation. She does this through the main character, Victor Frankenstein, who succeeds in creating a 'human' life form. In doing this, Frankenstein has taken over the roles of women and God. Shelley discusses how Frankenstein has used his laboratory or 'workshop of filthy creation' (page 53) as a kind of 'womb' as he has worked on his creation. He also refers to his task as his labour, suggesting that he has literally given birth to his creation.

    Read More

More about Playing God

Open Document