Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Prijedor
Mentor:
Miroslav Babi
Uenik:
Aljoa Timarac, IV2
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
1. Introduction.............................................................................................................................3
2. Never-Ending Hunger For Knowledge...................................................................................4
2.1. The Perks of Electricity...................................................................................................5
2.2. Life for Death...................................................................................................................5
3. Monster and Monstrosity........................................................................................................6
3.1. Monstrosity of the Creator...............................................................................................6
4. Moral responsibility................................................................................................................8
4.1. Good Intentions................................................................................................................8
4.2. Playing God and Consequences.......................................................................................9
5. Conclusion............................................................................................................................10
1. INTRODUCTION
Sir Francis Bacon once said, Knowledge is power; but how far is actually willing
to go in order to pursue it? Over the past few centuries, the intellectuals of society have
made countless advances in science and the development of technology, which, to different
degrees, have all benefitted mankind. These scientific discoveries are a result of mans
thirst for and dedication to acquiring knowledge, information, and power. The curiosity and
desire for understanding in an individual can grow so extensive that his or her moral and
ethical boundaries end up ravaged, which results in disastrous consequences for all who are
involved. A warning and a plea about the dangers of misusing academic genius and the
consequences that result from the reckless pursuit of scientific progress lies on the pages of
Mary Shelleys masterpiece: Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus
Frankenstein a mixture of science fiction, gothic, and romantic elements, is a
novel in which the author tells a story of monstrosity, secrecy, and dangerous knowledge.
Indeed, in his quest to discover the secrets of creation, Victor Frankenstein, a Swiss doctor
who is to become a stereotype of a mad scientist, designs and builds his monster, in that
way confronting the boundaries of mortality, science and ethics. Therefore, Frankenstein
is indeed portrayed as a warning against the pursuit of knowledge and as an embodiment of
its dangers. However, this pursuit is not only interpreted through the eyes of Victor
Frankenstein but Robert Walton as well. Walton is an arctic explorer who tells the
scientists story in that way adding a completely new, deeper layer to the narrative itself.
The pursuit of knowledge is at the heart of Frankenstein, as Victor attempts to surge
beyond accepted human limits and accesses the secret of life. Likewise, Robert Walton
attempts to surpass previous human explorations by endeavoring to reach the North Pole.
This ruthless pursuit of knowledge proves dangerous, as Victors act of creation eventually
results in the destruction of everyone dear to him, and Walton finds himself perilously
trapped between sheets of ice. Whereas Victors obsessive hatred of the monster drives him
to his death, Walton ultimately pulls back from his treacherous mission, having learned
from Victors example how destructive the thirst for knowledge can be.
In the coming pages you are to read an analysis on the pursuit of knowledge and all
the dangers that emerge from it: monstrosity, hunger for glory, and ethical and moral
misconducts, as depicted in the novel Frankenstein.
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Aljoa Timarac, IV
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Therefore, the monster is only the most literal of a number of monstrous entities in
the novel while Victor, although ordinary on the outside, may be the true monster inside,
as he is eventually consumed by an obsessive hatred of his creation. Victor cannot
recognize his kinship to his monster because to do so would be to lose his identity in the
chaos imaged in the monster's appearance. In other words, he would no longer be able to
use his view of the monster as a means of displacing his own monstrosity.
Furthermore, his parents point out to him that it will cause them great
disappointment if he doesnt stay in touch with them. Despite their pleading and past
kindness to him, Frankenstein selfishly still chooses to remain isolated and trapped in his
work and ambition. It is his choice to remain isolated that contributes to his monster-like
attributes. Hence, falling into depression and at the verge of turning mad, he recognizes
himself as a monstrous existence: "I considered the being whom I had cast among mankind
. . . nearly in the light of my own vampire, my own spirit let loose from the grave, and
forced to destroy all that was dear to mecan you wonder, that sometimes a kind of
insanity possessed me, or that I saw continually about me a multitude of filthy animals
inflicting on me incessant torture, that often extorted screams and bitter groans. Here he
refers to humans as a multitude of filthy animals. He also mentions screams and bitter
groans, which could relate to humans perception of him as a monster. Frankensteins
extreme ignorance towards fixing the problem he has created also contributes to his
monster side. As shown by his actions and his thoughts, Frankenstein is often a hypocrite.
Through this statement, Frankenstein seems to be asserting that humans are in fact equal to
beasts, for there is a sense of equality that exists between the two. Yet despite this
statement, in his interactions with the creature, he seems to show little respect for the
creatures very logical request.
Victor notes that destructive power of knowledge far before it devours him "If the
study to which you apply yourself has a tendency to weaken your affections, and to destroy
your taste for those simple pleasures in which no alloy can possibly mix, then that study is
certainly unlawful, that is to say, not befitting the human mind.. However, he fails to
defeat it. Victor Frankensteins chosen isolation and his ignorance for those who care for
him as well as his own creation make him the true monster. In contrast, the creatures wish
to attain to achieve friends and social interactions almost make him more of a human than
Victor Frankenstein. Finally, many critics have described the novel itself as monstrous, a
stitched-together combination of different voices, texts, and tenses.
Aljoa Timarac, IV
4. MORAL RESPONSIBILITY
Martha Nussbaum, an American philosopher, stated in her book Upheavals in
Thought: The Intelligence of Emotions that everyone has the capacity for evil and that it
is more closely connected with circumstance than with any innate human quality. The role
of circumstance in evil and criminal misconduct raises interesting and complex questions
regarding moral responsibility. For example, if factors such as circumstance can lead
previously good people to behave in evil ways? Mary Shelleys Frankenstein is a
narrative that offers a rich source for thinking about how good people can become bad and
what this may mean for moral responsibility. Hence, driven by his pursuit Victor turned
from a prospective, desirable young doctor, to an isolated, alienated monster.
One can even argue that at one point in the novel the monster becomes the moral
agent while the society is characterized with inhuman attributes and is to blame for what
monster has done. Hence it is rational of him to expect acceptance, love and worship while
he is emotional, caring and possesses the same qualities that make Victor Frankenstein
human, all up to the point when revenge is born out of the loneliness and despair.
Aljoa Timarac, IV
At the same time however, Victor is intent on acquiring a unique and far-reaching type of
power; one that is tainted by the means which it is to be attained and also by his
illegitimate claim on it. Since it is difficult to know whether attaining power or aiding the
human condition was primary goal of Victors pursuit for knowledge, it is unclear what
impact his motivations have on his blameworthiness.
Aljoa Timarac, IV
5. CONCLUSION
Pursuit of knowledge has always been, still is, and till the eternity will remain the
main human goal. That desire to make history, to discover what remains undiscovered, or
to know what remains unknown is hidden in every human. Although many have feared to
realize this dream, a very few have been wildly successful in their pursuit. The immortality
afforded to these select few has of course, only served to encourage those who come after.
Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley's Frankenstein is a literary meditation upon this intensely
human desire, here exemplified by the title Frankensteins quest for knowledge by means
of scientific discovery. Mary Shelley warns that with the advent of science, natural
philosophical questioning is not only futile, but dangerous. In attempting to discover the
mysteries of life, Frankenstein assumes that he can act as God. He disrupts the natural
order, and chaos ensues. Thus, this masterpiece stands as a warning against the misuse of
knowledge and power it brings, as well as the consequences which ought to be fatal.
Hence, Frankenstein is not just a book about a man who creates a monster; it is a book
about human nature. Shelley intended her readers to learn from her tale. She advocates
against the pursuit which was undertaken by Dr. Victor Frankenstein, the pursuit which
steps over the lines of sanity and morality, and puts other peoples lives at risk.
With this in mind, we can conclude that knowledge and science itself arent
dangerous, but become so through their misuse and abuse by society. Thus, Shelleymoral
warning isnt about the pursuit of knowledge, but rather about the necessity for scientists
and society to be responsible with their creations and discoveries.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
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