Mary Shelley’s literary treatise ‘Frankenstein’ originally published in the year 1818 falls in the genre of horror fiction. Shelley gives an account of the ethical issues present in technological developments and researches. She discusses the relation of a monster and its creator Victor Frankenstein, who possesses a deep passion for science and research. Out of his burning desire, Frankenstein creates a monster, which acts inhumane and destroys the lives of the human beings it encounters unable to withstand the unacceptability in the society. As a result of his creation, Frankenstein loses all his near and dear, and decides to end his life in the arctic after going insane. Frankenstein creates the monster as a creation to gain love and kindness, however, the monster experiences refusal and rejection from everyone, which leads to the violent behavior of the creature. On one occasion, the monster opposes Frankenstein for creating it. It puts the blame of its activities on Frankenstein and expresses its feeling as to how it had to face life in the painful encounters with other human beings. It feels sad for the human hatred received in return for the love expressed by the monster and decides to take revenge on its creator, Frankenstein. Thus, the lines of the passage that follow expose the metaphor of revenge, which the monster plans to take on Frankenstein by destroying his friends and family.
As a child grows from an infant to early childhood, it begin begins to display complex emotional reactions and responses to the surrounding situations. In Frankenstein, the author portrays the monster as an adult-sized child experiencing such changes. The monster emotionally confuses about its role in the society. The ways the people of the society look at the monster impact the creature’s behavior. The passage “But Paradise Lost excited different and far deeper emotions” said by the monster implies its emotional and personal feelings. The monster portrays the metaphor of solitude for being alone on the earth. The passage maintains the theme of secrecy when the monster comes to know about the way Frankenstein conducted his experiments secretly and safeguarding the papers. For the first time, the reader encounters signs of abstract thinking and emotional development in the monster. The creature struggles to define its identity and role in the society. It gets disappointed and curses the creator Frankenstein for creating it. The monster internally conflicts within itself to find answers for the purpose of its creation. The passage also portrays the symbol of light. Frankenstein uses light as a symbol of knowledge and warns Walton about the dangerous results of acquiring knowledge.
The monster tries to acquire a higher understanding about its self image as well the meaning of life. It implements a complex thought process to relate the creator Frankenstein with God from the lost Paradise. The metaphor of haunting is evident in most of the lines of the passage. The monster admires Frankenstein and feels the need for a female partner. It mentions “no Eve soothed my sorrows nor shared my thoughts; I was alone” . The creature associates the character with reality and uses the lifestyle of the people as a basis for its life. As it adapts to the human environment, the monster begins to notice its dissimilarity from the protagonist Frankenstein. The monster being hated by everyone including its creator struggles to make friends and feels tormented unable to justify its purpose of creation. Under such circumstances, the monster starts to compare itself with the antagonist and begins to make connections. Both Frankenstein and the monster experience rejection in the society even though they try to make good deeds. The villagers fear from the monster right from the beginning and show a sense of rejection, which leads to anger and destruction instead of peace. Ambition and fallibility are the two metaphors visible in this scenario. The ambition of the monster to mingle with the humans and the fallibility of its actions in impressing the people are evident to prove the metaphor. Another usage of this metaphor is Frankenstein’s ambition to use scientific knowledge to create something and his fallibility in creating a monster that strives to destroy humans.
The monster explains the feeling of rejection as “a bitter gall of envy” . From the passage, it is evident that the monster is emotionally immature. The tone of the passage is passive for the monster curses Frankenstein for its isolation. Overwhelmed with emotion, the monster enrages and decides to complain to Frankenstein about his solitary and abhorrence. He explains that the Satan had fellow companions to encourage him in his deeds but the monster is all alone and lacks admiration from others. The monster develops complex emotions and makes connections between the similarities and dissimilarities between the creator and himself. It realizes the potential role in the society and relies on the characters of Paradise Lost due to which it fails to develop its own consciousness of self. The question as to whether or not to hate the society adds to the anxiety and stress of the monster. In the ending chapters, Frankenstein spends much of his time in the jail with fever and illness repenting for the mistake of creating the monster. Finally, after the death of Frankenstein, the monster weeps over its body mourning the loss of its creator. It feels that there is nothing more to live in a world without the creator and decides to end its life in the arctic. This scenario implies the metaphor of sadness.
Frankenstein is responsible for the demonic acts of the monster as it was his self-righteousness and arrogance that brought the situation. Author Shelley presents the actions of Frankenstein as negative and unadvisable. Instead of contributing to the progress and advancement of the society, Frankenstein’s ambition and curiosity to create a being lead to suffrage and damage. Nature and weather serve as metaphors whenever Frankenstein decides to make use of his knowledge. On one occasion, when the monster requests Frankenstein to find him a female partner, Frankenstein, out of fear agrees to the creature’s demand and sets out on an island to create a female counterpart for the monster. He withdraws his attempt to create a female partner for the monster and disposes the parts in the fear of the damage caused to the world. This part of the passage shows Frankenstein’s metaphor of lost innocence. The major reason for all the destruction and suffrage is not due to Frankenstein’s creation, but due to the mistreatment received by the monster in all stages of life. The monster himself is a metaphor who is an outcast of the society. It is Frankenstein’s incapability to assume responsibility for the monster that led to the loss of his near and dear ones.
References
Shelley, M. (2012). Frankenstein. Broadview Press.
