Nature and Science in "Frankenstein"

Paper Summary:

This paper attempts to determine the overall relationship between science and nature in "Frankenstein" and whether both serve as vehicles to God, or divine knowledge. It looks at how Shelley portrays the pair as antithetical adversaries. It also discusses how themes from John Milton's "Paradise Lost" feature heavily in the question of science versus nature and the potential for divinity within the pair. The paper relates that Milton's poem shapes the consciousness of the monster as well as epic allows Shelley to add a human drama to the non-human entities of science and nature. The paper also argues that Shelley's Miltonic references imply that divinity is dead in the realm of science.

From the Paper:

"When the monster bounds across the perilous landscape and approaches his creator, Victor's words becomes charged with god-like rhetoric. He commands the creature, the "vile insect," to flee, or else be trampled to "dust." Victor even wishes for the power over life and death (the initial motivation for his scientific pursuits), so he can "restore those victims whom <the creature>...diabolically murdered." Victor, once so close to a euphoric ecstasy with nature, now becomes an embittered and wrathful god. He sojourns to the peaks of Montanvert for rest and recovery, but his interactions with the creature weaken him physically and rob him of a spiritual communion with nature. "

Sample of Sources Used:

• Bloom, Harold. The Anxiety of Influence. New York: Oxford UP, 1997.
• Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein. Boston: St. Martin's P, 1992.

More papers on Nature and Science in "Frankenstein":

• Analytical Essay # 61472 : "Science in "Frankenstein"
• Analytical Essay # 88155 : "Good and Evil in Frankenstein and Dracula"
• Comparison Essay # 71164 : "Frankenstein" and "The Birthmark"

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