Frankenstein: The Modern Prometheus Essay

Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein or Modern Prometheus (1831) is considered as one of the oldest yet significantly popularized literature that symbolizes the tandem of Victor Frankenstein and the Creature. The horrendous creation, Frankenstein –the Modern Prometheus, is used to symbolize Mary Shelley’s time period wherein men are continuously advancing the level of possible knowledge present in their society. From the scientist Victor Frankenstein to the monster named as the Creature, Shelley creates an innovative argument that illustrates the trends of the progressive industrialization in European countries. Shelley’s Frankenstein involves with the societal dilemma of men’s overreaching efforts against the limitations of science and Mother Nature by initiating actions to dehumanize the conception of life. II. Brief Summary Shelley’s Frankenstein had give birth to physically deformed being with the sensations and needs similar to a human being. After abandoning his creation due to its horrendous look, Victor, the creature’s creator, heard the occurrence of death of his brother William. Frankenstein blamed the monster for his brother’s death, which further advanced to the death of his fiance – Elizabeth Lavenza. Victor tried to avenge the deaths of his beloved; however, he was not able succeed. By the end of the story, Victor felt very ill and eventually died. Walton found the monster after the death of Victor mourning the death of his creator. III. Judgment and Evaluation In Shelly’s version of Frankenstein, there were two essential literary implications that illustrate the purpose of the story: (1) the symbolism of men’s progressive scientific revolution and (1) concluding the outcomes of industrial revolution. IV. Support In the first argument, Shelley illustrates Vincent Frankenstein as the portrayal of men’s over-exceeding desire of power. Shelley utilized the role of Victor to illustrate the capacity of knowledge to violate the concept of life. Furthermore, Shelly even illustrated the possibilities of breaking the limitations of men over the godly and mortal realms. One of Shelley’s influential inspirations in the novel of Frankenstein was John Milton’s Paradise Lost (1667) wherein the character of god was referred to role of â€Å"the victor†, which defined as â€Å"the triumphant one, the winner, the ruler. † Meanwhile, Frankenstein was patterned from Milton’s lonesome illustration of Victor; hence, he became subdued by the hopes of creating a companion through science. â€Å"Learn from me, if not by my precepts, at least by my example, how dangerous is the acquirement of knowledge, and how much happier that man is who believes his native town to be the world, than he who aspires to become greater than his nature will allow (Shelley, 53). † In the second argument, Frankenstein also symbolized the social trends and the prevailing concepts of the European society during its scientific revolutionary age. Frankenstein illustrated the modern anxieties and fears about the possible outcomes of industrialization and science, and their impacts on ethics and morals of human. In the 18th century, readers considered Shelly’s Frankenstein as an allegorical illustration of ethical nature versus industrialization and scientific revolution.