Frankenstein

Paper Summary:

In this article, the writer notes that in the novel 'Frankenstein, or the Modern Prometheus' by Mary W. Shelley, the character of Victor Frankenstein is the central figure and generally the narrator of the story. The writer discusses that the fact that the monster kills is a stark fact, but why he does so and whether there is a personal responsibility for him in doing so are more complex questions that Shelley raises. The writer maintains that the response of the reader to the story shows how important these complexities really are and how much they may color perceptions and raise doubts. The writer concludes that the story is not black and white, and the reader's response to the characters is also not a simple matter of clear right and wrong.

From the Paper:

"Mary W. Shelley's novel is not merely a horror story but is also a philosophical novel which develops a number of themes related to the virtues of nature, a Romantic era notion, and the relationship of man to God. Shelley never says how the monster is brought to life. She does not detail this massive array of equipment but only hints at the terrible things Frankenstein must do to acquire the parts he needs. The one thing he must do is go against God, to go against Nature, and for this he must be exiled. His acts lead to the deaths of several other people, and the monster he has created is the shadow he chases far into the icy regions of the north. His last contact with civilization is with the captain of the frigate trapped in the ice, and then he chases his monster once more into the wilderness, as far from civilization as he can get. Frankenstein has no expectations of what leaving civilization will mean, for he has become an exile by chasing his horror. For Victor, though, never being able to go back is both a blessing, because he has changed and would not fit in, and a curse, because whatever he may have valued is no longer within his grasp."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Ellis, Kate. "Monsters in the Garden: Mary Shelley and the Bourgeois Family." In The Endurance of Frankenstein: Essays on Mary Shelley's Novel, George Levine and U.C. Knoepflmacher, 123-142. Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1979.
• Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft. Frankenstein, or the Modern Prometheus. Irvine, California: Libray of the Future 4th Edition CD-ROM, 1996.
• Small, Christopher. Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1972.
• Veeder, William. "The Negative Oedipus: Father, Frankenstein, adn the Shelleys." Critical Inquiry 12 (Winter 1986), 365-390.
• Walling, Willliam A. Mary Shelley. New York: Twayne, 1972.

More papers on Frankenstein:

• Essay # 137670 : "Frankenstein and Power"
• Analytical Essay # 135003 : "Monster in Shelley's "Frankenstein"
• Analytical Essay # 134991 : "Analysis of Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein"
• Comparison Essay # 71164 : "Frankenstein" and "The Birthmark"

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