Self-discovery, Destruction, and Preservation in Frankenstein

New York: Norton. 2012. 355-368. Print. Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft, A Norton Critical Edition: Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein: The 1818 Text, Contexts, Criticism.

Mary Shelley’s novel “Frankenstein” is infused with metaphors, revealing the state of the world during 1818 when the first edition was published. Firstly, through the initial dialog between Victor Frankenstein and the monster he created, an image of a repulsive creature is depicted, revealing the destructive relationship possible between a creator and his offspring. Secondly, it can be observed that the metaphor of the monster reveals Shelley’s criticism of the displacement of religion during the era of the enlightenment. Thirdly, Frankenstein can be seen as a condemnation of the treatment given to those with a visible difference within society. Additionally, Shelley’s creation of the monster in her novel could be seen to reveal the toxic effect of a world without female influences.

Frankenstein: New York, NY: Maxwell Macmillen international, 1993 6. )Shelly, Mary. Frankenstein: the 1818 text, contexts, nineteenth century responses,      modern criticism/ Mary Shelly; edited by J. Paul Hunter: New York, NY: W. W. Norton, 1996

Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein: A Norton Critical Edition. Ed. J. Paul Hunter. New York: W.W. Norton, 1966.

Desp... ... middle of paper ... ...ng 1997. Johnson, Barbara. “My Monster/My Self.” Rev. of Frankenstein: or, The Modern Prometheus by Mary Shelley, My Mother/My Self by Nancy Friday, and The Mermaid and The Minotaur by Dorothy Dinnerstein. Cherchez la Femme Feminist Critique/Feminine Text: Vol.

Thornburg, Mary K. The Monster in the Mirror: Gender and the Sentimental/Gothic Myth in Frankenstein. Ann Arbor: UMI Research, 1987. Print. Veeder, William. Mary Shelley and Frankenstein: The Fate of Androgyny.

New York:  W.W. Norton, 1994. Edwards, Lee. "Sexuality, Maternity, and Selfhood." A Norton Critical Edition:  Kate Chopin:  The Awakening. Ed.

The novel explores the theme of how society can ruin good through human alienation. Shelley powerfully expresses that theme through the development of Victor Frankenstein's failed aspirations, the creature's plight, and the inevitable destruction of Frankenstein. Frankenstein is a novel about a creature that was made by a scientist driven by ambition. It first introduces Victor Frankenstein, the protagonist, and his interest in science. However, he doesn't have an interest in modern science as his father wishes, he is appealed by the fascinations of alchemy and mystical sciences.

She asserts that man is egotistical to believe that he or she can completely dominate a comprehension of the human experience. In the novel, Victor Frankenstein embodies Enlightenment philosophers as a man possessed by a drive to understand the laws of human creation, a drive that is considered far beyond the limits of human knowledge. Therefore, Shelley makes it a point to emphasize Victor’s evident failure as he creates a monster that becomes the cause of destruction. Mary Shelley attaches symbolic meaning to characters and heroic types in Frankenstein to depict man as egotistical in attempting to exploit his understanding of nature. Shelley communicates the egotism she finds in the Enlightenment principles through Victor Frankenstein.

Though Shelley’s literal monster is not a hero he is made so only when compared to her ruthlessly determined man of science, the monster’s villainous father, Victor Frankenstein. Abandoned by his creator, Shelley’s creature is left to explore the world. In his endeavors he finds hostility. The creature’s quest for acceptance is rivaled only by his quest for knowledge, like his father. Trying to educate himself about the world, the creature happens upon a cottage.