Mary Shelley's Frankenstein - Themes

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein - Themes

Frankenstein Emerges From The Storm (binary/octet-stream)

Knowledge v Wisdom

The industrial revolution and the enlightenment period in general prioritised the accumulation of knowledge above all else. Scientists had freed themselves of centuries of church dogma and had began a new quest based on Socratic thinking. The problem, as Shelley suggests, is that knowledge may be gathered and discoveries can be made faster than is safe.  Victor is obsessed with discovering the means to reanimation without ever thinking ahead to the consequences of his actions. The monster he creates may be read as a crime against nature, and so it is nature who punishes him  - consider the changes in weather before any death. In a more modern sense, this may be an early treatise on the need for a system of medical ethics. Does the Hippocratic oath apply to Victor? 

Hippocrates222 (binary/octet-stream)

The Sublime

One of the central tenets of Romanticism was the idea that Nature is more than merely a spectacle. Nature is a gateway to the emotional core of mankind. Nature has the power to render speechless. Nature has the power to heal. Nature is a conduit to the divine. Nature is sublime.  Following the many tragedies of the novel, Victor is often seen to retreat to the joy of Nature to recuperate. In this way, Nature provides a counterpoint to the monster who is anti-Nature - as destructive as Nature is beneficial.  For Victor, the healing power of Nature lessons, as he realises that the monster will never let him in peace. So Victor tracks him to the harshest realm in Nature - where beauty is outweighed by danger and ultimately which kills him. 

Swiss Alps (binary/octet-stream)

The Written Word

In contrast to Nature, Shelley places the written word as an equally potent force in the story. Consider the many letters from characters to each other. Think of the books on alchemy that shaped Victor's worldview and, likewise, the three main texts that guided the monster's hungry mind. A series of other authors are referenced during the narrative such as Coleridge and Goethe.  The knowledge Victor accumulates has the power to give life, but the letter he writes his father (following Elizabeth's death) has the power to kill. 

Quill Photo (binary/octet-stream)

Beauty v Ugliness

There are many references in Frankenstein to things that are both beautiful and ugly. The innocent characters, in particular Justine, Elizabeth, Safie and Felix have physiognomies that match their personas. The landscapes of Geneva, the Rhine valley and  Chamonix are all described in beautiful terms. Only Orkney, Ireland and the Arctic tundra are described unpleasantly, matching the unhappy events associated with each place. The monster, for his part, is a good creature until he becomes aware of his outer visage. When attacked for his ugliness, this sparks the murderous streak inside.  

Frankenstein2 (1) (binary/octet-stream)

Truth and Secrecy

Victor is driven by his desire to extract scientific truths that are hidden from him. Yet, he keeps his research secret, even from his Professors, who he may imagine to be among the only ones who would understand his experiments. Even after the monster escapes, kills William and frames Justine, Victor is still compelled to keep his existence a secret. A secret which costs Justine her life. Moreover, when Victor finally does tell his father and the magistrates about the monster, no-one believes him. Only at the end, does Walton become a confessor for both Victor and the monster. Moreover, Walton is the only witness to the existence of the creature.

Secrecy (binary/octet-stream)

Coupling

Victor's narrative opens with the union of Alphonse and Caroline. The story continues to how Elizabeth was adopted to serve as a companion to Victor and who would, one day, be his wife.  The monster is beguiled by the coupling of Felix and Safie, which inspires his own wish to couple. The text he reads is Plutarch, who couples famous Romans with their ancient Greek counterparts.  In the end, all Victor and the monster have is each other - both caught in a spiral of revenge for the cruelties they have each performed. 

Pears (binary/octet-stream)