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Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein
It is the reason men have gone to the moon; the reason mars is being investigated; and the reason for medical advancement. Discovering the unknown should sometimes be left alone; in the case of Victor Frankenstein “a little knowledge is dangerous;” and his pursuit of knowledge only brings him misery.
Clearly Victor Frankenstein is not like the other boys with whom he is associated; he is gifted. His father’s decision to give him a rounded education is a wise choice. Victor is aware of his over-average intelligence and he does not hide it, he is conceited. “So much has been done, exclaimed the soul of Frankenstein--more, far more, will I achieve: treading in the steps already marked, I will pioneer a new way, explore unknown powers, and unfold to the world the deepest mysteries of creation” (Frankenstein 26). Victor is so sure of himself and his abilities that he dares to compare himself with his creator. As a matter of fact, he thinks he will do more than the creator, he would reveal the mysteries of creation. Victor admires the astuteness of his professors and while most young men are socializing, he is their constant visitor; always picking their brains –seeking more knowledge beyond the classroom. It is obvious that Victor is not interesting in the mundane activities of his peers.
Victor’s quest for knowledge is insatiable; he has a “fervent longing to penetrate the secrets of nature” C30). Above all as Victor endeavor to deciper nature he is most attracted to the workings of the human body. As much as other scientists are contented to narrow their learning to the noticeable, Victor has a deep, genuine desire to go past where others have been. Victor had no qualms about watching the body decays if it will reveal to him its workings. “To examine the causes of life, we must first have recourse to death. I became acquainted with the science of anatomy, but this was not sufficient; I must also observe the natural decay and corruption of the human body” (45). Victor has allowed his quest for knowledge to become so consuming that even his father and then his professors become alarm and forbid not to read certain books. They may as well have left him alone because their disapproval only serves to make his search more intense. Finally Victor gets to the point where he thinks he has fulfilled his dream and he thinks it is worth his hard labor. “After so much time spent in painful labor, to arrive at once at the summit of my desires was the most gratifying consummation of my toils” (46).
Having compiled all the necessary components that will set him above all other scientists, Victor proceeds to bring to life his project. With his new found knowledge he decides that his creation would top all creations. He would make a gigantic being, eight feet tall. Little does Victor know that the hard work that he found so gratifying will turn on him; more importantly, he will never find peace once he completes his masterpiece. His quest has led him through the mire and corruption of death; it keeps him from food and sleep, but that is a choice he made. The aftermath of his labor will send him on another chase that makes what he has already gone through seems ordinary. Victor’s masterpiece develops a mind of its own when it assimilates itself into society and learns that there is more to the lonely life that it is leading. Like his creator he has a mind to learn more about life, and his quest has evoked in him the desire to experience love. The tides turn and unless Victor is willing to provide him with a monster wife he will find no peace and will regret the day when he allowed his imaginations to take him on this unnatural journey. “I felt the bitterness of disappointment; dreams that had been my food and pleasant rest for so long a space were now become a hell to me” (51).
Victor first discovers the horror of his ways when his brother William is killed. He know that that his monster has done this but he is determine not to indulge his desire for the unknown no matter what the cost maybe. Victor is beginning to understand that certain secrets are best left alone and pursuit into the unknown is unpredictable. Too late he finds out that his pursuit of knowledge is dangerous and the wisdom he has acquired will only bring him grief. From this moment on he will no longer be free. Victor listens to Justin proclaims her innocent and says: “Anguish and despair had penetrated into the core of my heart I bore a hell within me, which nothing could extinguish” (88).
Victor’s flight from his masterpiece takes him away from his homeland, and his family. Knowledge has robbed both Victor and his monoester of their freedom. Victor refuses to repeat his first mistake by creating a monster bride and the same amount of fervor he uses to create his monster; he uses to run away from it. It is not just that the Victor refuses to create another monster—a bride for the monoester, but he realizes that his quest for knowledge of causes him to create one monster that gives him no peace and he is not going to attempt the unknown again.
Mary Shelley rocked the literary world when she published her only novel, Frankenstein. Unlike other women gothic writers before her, she refuses to publish her work hiding behind a man’s name. The main character of her novel, Victor Frankenstein develops a thirst for knowledge and he feels himself above ordinary men. His pursuit of this knowledge takes him through the horror of the tomb and in the end her discovers that a little knowledge or too much knowledge is dangerous and sometimes the unknown is best left unknown/
Work Cited
Shelley, Mary (date), Frankenstein city of press location. Press ( I don’t have the book, please add the information I have left out).
