1.) Initially, my first impression of this excerpt was unique. I felt as though I have read similar situations in other novels, however, the author describes the environment unlike any other. First, I wondered what the aliens were planning, and what effect it would have on humanity. Similarly, the characters in the book behaved the same way, some trying to communicate with the aliens, and others just wondering about them. It felt as though we were all moths flying around a bug-zapper, too mystified to realize the immediate danger posed by the aliens. Only when it was too late, did the main character break out of his trance and escape.
2.) The genre of this selection is science-fiction, however, the excerpt I read could be classified as a short-story.
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First, the author provides exposition, seen in the first three paragraphs. Second, rising action occurs as the main character watches as a strange flame emerges in the alien craft. After this, the climax transpires, and the surrounding pedestrians are engulfed in this strange flame. Unwinding, the falling action ensues, as the main character watches in bewilderment as the alien ship destroys everything besides him. Concluding, the denouement befalls, as the main character finally flees.
4.) During this excerpt, the protagonist’s name is unknown, however, he is the character in which the story is told. Opposing him, is this strange alien craft which is the antagonist.
5.) The most important traits of the main character are his bravery, curiosity, and humanity. He displays each of these when he approaches the alien craft, wondering what it is, he asks others around him. Without these three traits, the narrative would be very different, as he likely would have fled much quickly.
6.) Only one setting in seen in this work. That setting is the heather filled area the main character finds himself in. Other than the heather, the alien craft stands behind some sand dunes. No other setting is shown in this work, as the main character doesn’t describe any other. Although it is made apparent there are towns nearby, they are not seen in the
Dearest brother, I hope my letter reaches you in time. It has been a few weeks since I last heard back from you, and I understand the cause of your troubles. Upon reading your letters concerning your visitor’s life, I was also originally in a state of disbelief. The details of his tale were so implausible that I dared not even consider them as fact. However, upon reading your tales and conceiving the vigor with which you wrote it, it became increasingly believable. This caused me to further evaluate the character of this man you claimed as your closest friend, this Victor Frankenstein.
protagonists and antagonists, the plot structure and events of the story and the way he
throughout this novel and the movie. The decline is a less gradual one in the novel but a
In Shelley’s Frankenstein, the monster is portrayed as a grotesque abomination. However, as Hopkins states in Contending Forces, the cultural and geographical situations, or lack thereof, in which one matures in play a crucial role in the proper development of one’s mind and brain. The monster is simply a product of circumstance. The lack of social interactions alongside geographical isolation propelled the daemon to be alienated from society, ultimately resulting in a lack of morals and an underdeveloped psyche. By being a culmination of his surroundings and experiences it is revealed that the true monstrous entities are the factors that leave the daemon predisposed to fail in a modern society. Arguably, Victor created a being, while the circumstances that said being was placed in “created” a monster. Shelley purposefully terrorizes the monster with such intensity to provoke and justify the overarching theme in this novel which states that people should not be judged on their physical appearance.
Mary Shelley’s, Frankenstein, symbolized a person’s necessity for acceptance by society. Society labels everything as good or bad, right or wrong, rich or poor. Although some of these labels may be correct, many are misconceptions. The monster, needed to be accepted by society, but instead was scorned, attacked, and shunned because of his outward appearance. The treatment of the monster was on the assumption that he was actually a monster. The only justification of this treatment was his outward appearance.
Automatically, the reader knows that serious issues are about to be discussed and that the outcome may not be positive. This novel challenges the material ideology discussed above. It does this by bringing the issues to the forefront and reporting on them in a fictitious yet realistic manner. The reader is not led to believe that the ending will be happy, he is supposed to expect the consider the harsh realities of the world throughout the piece.
In her novel Frankenstein, Mary Shelley explores a wide range of themes concerning human nature through the thoughts and actions of two main characters and a host of others. Two themes are at the heart of the story, the most important being creation, but emphasis is also placed on alienation from society. These two themes are relevant even in today’s society as technology brings us ever closer to Frankenstein’s fictional achievement.
In the book Frankenstein by Mary Shelly, we discover that the search for now knowledge has a good and a bad side. Suffering is something we all go through at some point. We try to avoid it but our search for knowledge will always lead to suffering. In Frankenstein Victor had set out on a search for knowledge, he was relentless. His search consumed all his time, destroyed relationships, and lead to the death of not only himself but his friends and family. All of those negative effects originated from the monster Victor had created on his search for knowledge. Although Victor may have achieved his end goal, at what cost did this come to? Victor’s search
"Do you think, Victor," said he, "that I do not suffer also? No one could love a child more than I loved your brother" (tears came into his eyes as he spoke); "but is it not a duty to the survivors, that we should refrain from augmenting their unhappiness by an appearance of immoderate grief? It is also a duty owed to yourself; for excessive sorrow prevents improvement or enjoyment, or even the discharge of daily usefulness, without which no man is fit for society." (78)
Human morality is a product of evolution by heritable variation and natural selection. It is fully part of the natural world but is none the worse for that – on the contrary. In the last sentence of On the Origin of Species, Darwin states that “there is grandeur in this view of life… on which endless forms most beautiful and most wonderful have been, and are being evolved.” The beautiful and wonderful forms include true moral agents who respond to real moral facts and who form a natural moral community. Their existence contributes to the grandeur of Darwin’s evolutionary view of life.
Thank you June for sharing your comments! I enjoyed learning many things about Frankenstein. I also enjoyed learning many things about evolution. Yes, science is involved with the laws of nature. Science does involve culture. Culture may be able to affect the society overall. Different cultures have a different way of living. Yes, some people may believe that it is good to earn power. Evolution does deal with organisms. Did you learn anything new while conducting your
Frankenstein was a story written by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley while she was on her vacation in Switzerland with her husband. The story got published in 1818 without letting the public about the author. It was in 1831 when the novel revised edition was out and Mary Shelley name mentioned as an author. The novel focused on social, cultural and political facet of the societies during Mary’s lifetime. The fictional character in the novel clearly shows the battle against the pre-established people’s attitude during that time. Religion and science always create a controversy in the society with religion always differencing from any scientific principles and experiments. Shelley’s tried to addresses the above controversy and showed how science and modern technology is sometimes wrong. She tried to show how scientists and inventors are sometimes selfish only care for achieving their plan without evaluating the end result.
when he felt lonely and when he was hungry there was no one to guide
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is a literary classic that tells a story of a young scientist Victor Frankenstein who created a monster that tries to live in society but is rejected. The monster will later seek revenge by going after his creator. In this essay I will be evaluating two critiques about the novel. Beginning with Professor Naomi Hetherington’s critique and the second critique written by Professor Sherry Ginn.
As a young child Victor Frankenstein was loved unconditionally by his parents. They adored him and provided him opportunities and stability to develop into a well-rounded person. Victor becomes a scientist and is intelligent and loves research. As he develops, Victor became obsessed with creating life. He accumulates body parts for the local cemetery and begins to put together his monster. He is confident that he can be like God and has the skills to create life. Victor eventually creates a monster, and he comes to life. However, Victor is horrified by his monster, because of the way it looks. Instead of relishing in the joy of his accomplishment he runs away from it. The monster is left alone to fend for itself and doesn’t have the right skills to take care of his basic needs. He cannot speak, he cannot read and he doesn’t have anyone to teach him basic fundamental human skills. The monster escapes to the woods, afraid and alone, not sure where he is going or what he is going to do. Nearby is a village full of people and he sets forward to observe them. At first, he tries to be visible and friendly, but people turn from him in fright and run away. The monster is hurt and because he cannot make physical contact with anyone he decides to observe people secretly. During his observation, he watches human interaction and studies what is socially acceptable and what is not..