“Though this be madness, yet there is method in ‘t.” – Polonius in Hamlet This blog is for the reflections, thoughts, rants, and discussions of Mrs. Caldwell’s Senior English classes at Mountain Brook High School. Come and check out the madness. There is method to all of it, I assure you!
Frankenstein has many themes. Identify what you think to be an important theme and cite one quote from the book that exemplifies that theme. Once someone has used a quote to back up a theme, it cannot be used again. Be creative and use original thought on this one.
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One of the main themes in Frankenstein is the dangers of seeking knowledge. Frankenstein upon seeing his creation describes his feelings as, “breathless horror and disgust filled my heart”. Frankenstein was disgusted once he actually saw what he created. His pursuit of knowledge led to the death of William, his wife Elizabeth, Henry, Justine, and eventually himself. Shelley wanted to show that when one desires something too far, it can lead to their destruction.
One major theme of Frankenstein is the over all shallowness of society. Although some people may deny it, society as a whole is extremely judgemental based on appearance. The monster is ultimately rejected by society because of the way he looks. One example of this intial rejection takes place when Walton enters the cabin that houses Victor’s dead body at the end of the story. He describes the monster as, “gigantic in stature, yet uncouth and distorted in its proportions. As he hung over the coffin his face was concealed by long locks of ragged hair…” Walton is so taken back by the monster’s looks. This is the general response every human has upon meeting the monster- the quickly judge him based on his looks.
I think that a prominent theme used in Frankenstein is that of loneliness. The monster pleads of his creator, “I demand a creature of another sex, but as hideous as myself; the gratification is small, but it is all that I can recieve, and it shall content me. It is true that we shall be monsters, cut off from all the world; but on that account we shall be more attached to one another” (Shelley 134). Not only does the monster make clear that he is lonely through his request, but Frankenstein is lonely as well. He shuts up the secret of his creation within himself, especially in the situations of the deaths of William and Justine. This, in turn, gives him a great burden upon his conscience.
The theme of Adam and Satan is presented alot in this book. The monster’s struggle to define himself can be mirrored by the story of Adam and Satan. He and Adam were both the first of their kind, being unlike any other living creature. He makes this connection by saying, “Like Adam, I was apparently united by no link from mine in every other respect” (114). But the monster often feels more resemblance to Satan, because Satan has also been lonesome and feels forsaken by his creator.
I think that one theme of Frankenstein is the idea of abandoning obligation. Victor ignores the obligations to which he should attend. Victor ignores an engagement to Elizabeth, the consequences of the monster, his health, etc. It is not until shortly after Justine’s execution that he begins to accept responsibility. He finally becomes engaged and more importantly, he destroys his work on a second creature. The most crucial quote from Victor is “William, Justine, and Henry—they all died by my hands.” Here, Victor takes responsibility for the murders and realizes that it is his fault.
I think that a reoccuring theme seen in Frankenstein is creation vs. death. Victor and the monster both struggled with this theme because they were both unclear of what they’d hoped to achieve: creation and life, or death. The monster seems so distraught with his own existance that he kills others as a release for himself. He is also confused as to why he was created in the first place,”All men hate the wretched; how then, must I be hated, who am miserable beyond all living things! Yet you, my creator, detest and spurn me, they creature, to whom thou art bound by ties only dissoluble by the annihilation of one of us.’” The monster is questioning why he was ever created and if he was not wanted, then why did Victor slave away to construct him?
In the last letter to Walton’s sister, He writes of what Frankenstein’s monster expresses as he stands above Frankensteins dead body. This statement is “I, the miserable and the abandoned, am an abortion, to be spurned at, and kicked, and trampled on.” This is showing the theme of society’s judgement. Throughout the book the monster is cast from society because of his distance from being normal. This quote also shows how the monster finally ends up being like this since in the beginning he was a good natured being, but now he has done bad.
I think that a very important theme in Frankenstein is Issolation. In the end letters by R. Walton, Walton writes about Victor dying and the montser coming onto the ship. When the monster finds out that Victor has died, he becames very sad and feels the guilt of his death upon him. The monster vows to leave the ship and reamin in issolation and solitude until his death. “i shall quit your vessel on the ice raft which brought me thither, and shall seek the most northern extremeity of the globe;I shall collect my funeral pile and consume to ashes this miserable frame,…” (209).
“Like Adam, I was apparently united by no link from mine in every other respect” ..The monster says this quote for several reasons. Adam and the monster were very similar. They were both men and they were both the first of their kind. Adam was the first man on earth, and the monster that was created by Frankenstein was definately the first of his kind. They are also similar in the way that they both were far from perfect, Adam did not listen to the Lord and the monster killed people that were close to Frankenstein.
One of the biggest themes that I have found in Frankenstein is the theme of the oddball. It seems that Victor has been left out… he has no friends he had to create a monster because he was so bored. This is the last resort of a weak individual. His monster ended up killing his only friends and family so he ended up being even more of an oddball. He is a big loser and the monster who is also an oddball ends up being lonely aswell. “The monster stood over Victor’s dead body”.
One of the main themes in Frankenstein is the passion of seeking knowledge. Frankenstein, ever since he was a teenager, was consumed with studying science. When he went to the university, he became sick because he was working so hard: “My passions started to take a drain on my health, and I started neglecting my family” (42). The passions did drive him insane as he created the monster that eventually drove him insane.
I think that Frankenstien’s major themes would be Nature vs. Machine. Victor uses a machine to create something that nature can create on its own. I think that if humans should be made they should be born naturally with the abillity that we allready have. I think that when victor made his machine he did not know how th mostor would turn out, and that is another theme nature vs. nurture. Maybe if victor nurtured his mostor like a mother to child relationship he may have turned out not to be a “monstor” and be mor human.