Chapter 7: In Fosters seventh chapter he talks about literary references to the bible. Fosters says that by using these biblical references in stories helped people and the writer stand on common ground. This idea is what Mary Shelley did in Frankenstein when Victor Frankenstein had created his monster relating it to the creator vs. creation in when God had created Adam and Eve. Another time a biblical reference was made was when the monster had asked Frankenstein to create a mate for him just how Adam had asked God for a mate for him. “My companion must be of the same species and have the same defects. This being you must create” (Shelley 159).
Chapter 9: Foster explains that in this chapter “It’s all Greek to Me” that the use of mythology is a way for authors to appeal to the reader if they do not believe in biblical approaches. It is in a way a much easier approach to understanding where the author is coming from. In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein; she uses a more mythological approach to the relationship between Frankenstein and the monster. In mythology Prometheus created man, so in this case Frankenstein is Prometheus and his monster is his creation; “I ardently wished to extinguish that life which I had so thoughtlessly bestowed”(Shelley 97).
You May Also Find These Documents Helpful
-
The pursuit of scientific knowledge and advancement has led man to challenge established values and assume an omnipotent role, often without forethought to the subsequent consequences. Both Tyrell and Frankenstein assume powers of the divine in their respective texts. Each of the characters in the creator roles are portrayed as being isolated from the world and therefore judged as being insufficient to hold divine power. Frankenstein is derivative of the ‘Promethean Myth’ with Victor challenging the role of nature and consequently being punished for his…
- 910 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
In Frankenstein, Mary Shelley uses symbolism and allegory to depict the actions of the main characters and what their actions truly mean. In How to Read Literature Like a professor, Thomas C. Foster asks his readers what you think a symbol stands for, Foster also writes “[whatever] you think it stands for, it probably does." (ninety-seven) Frankenstein contains many symbols, however there is only a few symbols that truly support our findings the whole nine yards. There are six specific symbols and allegories that were purposefully chosen to support our findings: Light, The Bible, Alps, Water, White, and Lightening. light, shelley establishes light as a symbol on the very first page, when walton tells his sister that he’s heading off to a “country of eternal light “ where the “sun is forever visible” (letter one.two), our first indication that light isn’t all good when the monsters first sensation is of “light pressed upon [his] nerves” (eleven.one). The light does not benefit to the daemen, it only allows people know how hideous he truly is. The Bible in frankenstein is not a symbol but in fact it is an allegory, the monster is compared to adam the first man in the Judeo-Christian Tradition, “like adam i was apparently united by no link to any other being in existence….” later on the monster is also compared to satan “Many times i considered Satan as the fitter emblem of my condition.” (15.7) The Alps is another important symbol that helps bring the true meaning to the characters actions, Frankenstein goes to The Alps, The Alps combined with it’s beauty took his mind away from his horrible time with the results of his creation. In Frankenstein, water figuratively brings life to Frankenstein whether he is traveling on it or drinking it. it brings him life and inspires him to be close to nature. Walton believes the light of the far North as eternal and full of hope “What could not be expected in the country of eternal light?” Light is important to all the…
- 423 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays -
8. Must include at least THREE IN-TEXT CITATIONS—which means quotes from the novel. The quotes must be cited correctly.…
- 404 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
Shelley’s novel ‘Frankenstein’ is filled with Christian imagery that illustrates the importance of the relationship between God and mankind which warns the reader against the dangers of too much knowledge. It was because of Victor’s desire to learn ‘…the secrets of Heaven and Earth…’ that he defied God’s divine law by creating life, therefore disrupting the peaceful relationship between God and mankind. In the Christian Bible, the book of Genesis says that God made man ‘in his own image’ and that he was satisfied with his work. Although Victor usurps the role as creator, unlike God, he is immediately repulsed by his creation. Originally, the creature sees himself as Adam, the first creation of his ‘god’ Victor Frankenstein. He also sees Victor as his father, as God is Adam’s father in Christianity. Although, as time goes on, the Creature becomes convinced that his situation is more like that of Satan: a cast-out angel, driven by envy of what he cannot have, ‘Accursed creator! Why did you form a monster so hideous that even you turned from me in disgust? …. Satan had his companions, fellow-devils, to admire and encourage him; I am solitary and abhorred.’ Shelley’s use of…
- 1799 Words
- 5 Pages
Powerful Essays -
Mary Shelly’s novel Frankenstein, conveys a tale about Dr. Victor Frankenstein, a creator, who produces an existence outside of love. If Dr. Frankenstein had believed in God, he would have known not to produce a being outside of natural law. The creature’s life would have been significantly different had god been involved. Frankenstein, the creature, is missing out on a creator who loves him, a creator who is forgiving, a creator who makes a companion for his creation, and a creator who sacrifices for his creation.…
- 548 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Frankenstein was a scientist who decided to go against the laws of nature and create life out of death as a science project. The use of the words ‘creator’ and ‘creature’ implies that Frankenstein wanted to act as a God, which he wasn’t.” Mary Shelley displayed the image of God when writing the story. She influenced the readers to think that Victor is the overall villain in Frankenstein, by showing them that you cannot just go and create or destroy life like you are God. That’s what Perry is saying, he is saying that Victor tried to create life out of death. He also took all the dismembered body parts and sort of threw them together without thinking about the end result and how that creation would feel. Victor created the monster without himself having a stable father figure which in the end lead his creation to not have a father figure. The monster was created just because it was possible, not because there was a good or scientific reasoning behind it. When creating the monster, Victor was thinking about how astonishing it would be to prove to his father that he could do something that his father didn’t think he would be able to do. The monster didn’t want to be created and when he was, he wanted to have a family and a home. While the monster looked at the world around him he thought he would get the courage to ask Victor for a companion. Victor couldn’t bring himself to make another creature because now he has realized the mistake he made in the first place and he doesn’t want to make another…
- 1204 Words
- 5 Pages
Good Essays -
From this point of view Frankenstein has a lot in common with the classic Prometheus, the dream and the creation of a new species, and the disregard of limits. But on the other hand Frankenstein is quite different from Prometheus. When the Titan recognizes that his human beings do not know how to use their capabilities, for example they do not see anything although they are able to see and they do not hear anything although they are able to hear, he takes care of his creatures, he teaches them to observe the stars, to read and write and to heal. And when Zeus refuses to give them fire, Prometheus exposes himself to danger to bring them fire. Victor Frankenstein on the other hand refuses his responsibility and flees from his creature after…
- 680 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Are individuals created evil and mildly redundant , or do they slowly begin to acquire these traits through experiences in life? Often times in life, people become overwhelmed with their natural instincts based off what they are used to and what they feel is the right thing. Also, being raised in a poor manner may lead to the downfall of a character as well. This argument is brought about several times in Mary Shelley's novel, “Frankenstein”. As we already know, two of the main characters of the story, Victor Frankenstein and the monster he creates both have distinct personalities. They both possess extremely different natural instincts and they both have been raised significantly different from one another. Mary Shelley’s use of powerful and…
- 734 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
From the sixteenth to the nineteenth century, the concept of the noble savage was extremely popular. People believed that man was inherently good and any evil that he develops is a direct result of the corrupting force of civilization. In Frankenstein, Shelley illustrates this change through the story of the creature.…
- 514 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Psychoanalysis is one of the many parts of Psychology that Sigmund Freud, who was the father of Psychotherapy, had created for the advancement of Psychology. Psychoanalysis is a system used to analyze how the unconscious and conscious mind interact together. The aim of finding this interaction between the two parts of our mind is to make the unconscious mind conscious, thus gaining insight into how we think and to treat or possibly cure fears and anxieties. When using psychoanalysis on yourself or others one can uncover how they think unconsciously, what they fear, how they were raised as a child, and multitude of other things that might have been repressed over time. Literary psychoanalysis is a very popular subject among psychologists and…
- 618 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
The contrast between humanity and god rests across the thin line of divinity. God, the gods, or simply the creator god, use their “divine” will to create life. Humans, in their own right, use their own power to parent life. Both invoke the same sense of authority, but only one holds the gift of creation from truly nothing. Victor Frankenstein, of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein or the Modern Prometheus, steps across the boundary between humanity and god and, while Frankenstein’s act of creation is grand, Shelley purposefully designed Frankenstein’s experiment as a crude mockery of godly creation to illustrate the fall of humanity as caused by the Enlightenment movement.…
- 1313 Words
- 6 Pages
Powerful Essays -
English romanticism can be defined a literary era in which several characteristics are utilized to cause meaning. During this time, “...emphasis shifted to the importance of the individual's experience in the world and one's subjective interpretation of that experience, rather than interpretations handed down by the church or tradition” (Romanticism). Numerous tenets highlighted several of the beliefs of this period and their shifted mindset of individual experience, represents one of the many tenets, “emotional over logic.” The idea of Romanticism “...was further developed during the twentieth century as part of modern psychological theory...the romantics were fascinated with self-exploration and with the particulars of the individual's experience…
- 701 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Before reading Frankenstein: or, the Modern Prometheus I didn’t know much about the story because the only exposure to the story I had was from Mel Brooks Young Frankenstein, while this rendition was extremely amusing, it did not follow the story line of the book in the slightest. I thought that the monster was named Frankenstein, I thought that the monster always had bad intentions, and I didn’t think the monster killed Victor's family. Now that I have finished reading Frankenstein: or, the Modern Prometheus I know there is a lot more to the story and that the monster was not named Frankenstein. I also have learned that the monster was ornately good from the beginning and that The Monster killed Victor’s family out of revenge because no one…
- 899 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
The novel Frankenstein, written by Mary Shelley can be compared to Prometheus Greek mythology in several different ways. The two novels are similar in plots as well as their characters. I believe Mary Shelley’s aim was to display to us the consequences of some choices we embark on and their aftermath. However, Frankenstein is parallel to the Greek mythology Prometheus through their involvement in creating life, suffering and being a good and bad creator.…
- 844 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
Analyzing a book can be a killer. Especially when it contains tons of subtle little messages and hints that are not picked up unless one really dissects the material. Mary Shelley 's Frankenstein is a prime example. It is analyzed by scholars all the time because of the subtle messages it sends through its themes, one of which needs to be discussed that is called Romanticism. Romanticism dealt with simplifying things as a break from the previous age which deal with grandeur. Romantics highly valued nature as well as isolation for salvation and healing. Frankenstein has all of these elements but some are more muted than others. There are also subtle nods to other works or the Romantic era throughout the book. However, let 's start with obvious examples of Romanticism.…
- 1685 Words
- 7 Pages
Better Essays