Playing God usually ends up in catastrophic events, and can even lead to the loss of one’s life. In Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein, Victor Frankenstein’s obsession with creating life ultimately leads to the death of many of his loved ones. In Frankenstein, Victor, Robert, and the creature all share some trait that shows how they try to play God. Victor becomes addicted to the science of life after his mother dies, and learns the secret of reanimation He succeeds in creating life, but the creature he creates ends up killing the ones he loves most. An example of Victor’s obsession over life is, when he is reading the works of Cornelius Agrippa, Albertus Magnus, and Parcelsus who were all famous alchemists. He states that “there attempts were futile, …show more content…
I may die, but first you, my tyrant and tormentor, shall curse the sun that gazes on your misery.” (Shelley 153). The Monster then states he will see Victor on his wedding day, which he believes as a threat against his own life. The creature’s threat however ends up being made towards Victor’s new wife. The creature’s killing spree in the novel proves how he wants to pick who lives and who dies, ultimately resembling his desire to play God. Robert Walton is shown in the story to be a ship captain on the endless search for glory. His quest for glory and making a name for himself leads his crew into danger by getting their ship stuck in ice up in the Arctic Circle. Before he had his encounter with Victor he writes to his sister saying, “You cannot contest the inestimable benefit which I shall confer on all mankind to the last generation, by discovering a passage near the pole to those countries…” (6) He states that she can’t contest the benefit that he’ll leave on mankind, although it’s obvious his intentions are of fame and glory. His feeling of deserving praise and glory are similar to the religions that state that God deserves praise for all He does. Walton’s intentions of wanting praise and glory negate the praise he “deserves” for exploring the North
I strongly believe that the creature made by Victor Frankenstein is indeed very human. I say this because he shows many human traits. Some of these traits are that he can feel complex emotion's and he has a higher intellect than most animals such as humans. In this essay I will also discuss multiply reasons some might use as evidence to support the claim that he is not human and why they are not sufficient to make the conclusion that the creature made by Frankenstein is not human.
Many people in history have tried to play the role of God by taking other people’s lives and trying to do what has never been done before, creating a new species. In the novel Frankenstein, Victor Frankenstein accomplished this goal by creating the monster thus playing the role of God. There are even many hints and lines in the story that are related to biblical stories and ideas to compare Victor as God or a father figure towards the creature. It gave Victor something to do with his life and even to this day people want to be like Victor and have the power of God.
“No human being could have passed a happier childhood than myself. My parents were possessed by the very spirit of kindness and indulgence. We felt that they were not the tyrants to rule our lot according to their caprice, but the agents and creators of all the many delights which we enjoyed. When I mingled with other families I distinctly discerned how peculiarly fortunate my lot was, and gratitude assisted the development of filial love.”
The struggle that Walton has with knowledge is that he has to know what is at the North Pole, and he just like Victor will stop at nothing to find out or reach their goals. Walton puts himself and all of his crew at a major risk voyaging through harsh conditions. Walton knew the risk and danger that he was taking when he set sail. “One man's life or death were but a small price to pay for the acquirement of the knowledge which I sought; for the dominion I should acquire and transmit over the elemental foes of our race.” We see in this quote that Walton will go to extreme measures to achieve his goals and continue his never-ending search for
Letter 1 Explain what is established in the first passage/letter who is narrating? Why is he making this voyage? When and where is this taking place? To whom is he writing the letter?
Victor has become obsessed with studying (something no one should ever be interested in) and has locked himself in his room studying for days on end. He "applied so closely, it may be easily conceived that my progress was rapid. My ardour was indeed the astonishment of the students, and my proficiency that of the masters... Two years passed in this manner, during which I paid no visit to Geneva, but was engaged, heart and soul, in the pursuit of some discoveries which I hoped to make". (7) This early application of himself is what drove him to become lonely and reclusive, shying away from all who attempted to come into contact with him. He is also inspired in this chapter to start his reanimation project. He becomes consumed in this one project spending many months alone in the top of his apartment assembling his creature. He raided slaughter houses, grave yards, and dissection rooms to furnish what he needed to create his monster. The lines between life and death became blurred
After Victor rejects to create a companion for the monster, the daemon once again assassinates one of Victor’s closest relatives, Elizabeth. The monster had warned him many times, “ I will be with you at your wedding-night.” Victor once again enters in a stage of depression and seeks to end the malice once in for all by destroying his creation. The monster taunts him and makes him chase him around the world. The monster seeks to fulfill his justice by making Victor suffer the way he did for so long. In the end, Victor can no longer endure the fatigue and depression and dies.
The idea of playing God is a strong theme throughout science fiction and portrays different effects in various works. One of the first characters to accomplish this is Victor Frankenstein in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. Another character of science fiction recognized to do this is Dr. Tyrell from Blade Runner. These men played God and created a new form of life, but for different reasons and different results.
whether it was the outward substance of things or the inner spirit of nature and the mysterious soul of a man that occupied me, still my inquiries were directed to the metaphysical, or in it highest sense, the secrets of the world.” (23) Victor has said, this quote shows Victor’s deep desire to learn about all the secrets the world may have. This is the when Victor realizes what he would like to dedicate his life’s work to. Victor ignores both his social life, and his health. He focuses solely on discovering the secrets nature holds. Victor’s obsession with this consumes all his time thus destroying relationships he had. This shows that Victor no longer holds his friends or family close, but instead he pushes them aside to focus on what he feels is more important. Victor speaks of all the countless nights and days he has spent, and how he is tired. Victor had stopped mailing Elizabeth, and she grows worried all due to his search for knowledge. Later on in the story Victor’s work comes alive. He creates a monster, and from this point on nothing will be the same between him and his
"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)
Taking God’s role into your own hands proves too much for someone to take on and Victor could not escape the negative repercussions of his actions. Victor Frankenstein is the protagonist in the 1831 novel Frankenstein. Victor unnaturally creates a monster from the bodies of the deceased. This creation would haunt and torture him for the rest of his life. Victor Frankenstein foolishly assumed that he could take the role of God into his own hands and create life from death. Victor shows the negative effects of playing God through Victor’s mental state, his negligence of the creature, and the behavior of the creature.
Question 4 At the beginning of Frankenstein by Mary Shelly we are first introduced to a quote from Paradise Lost. The quote says “Did I request thee, Maker, from my clay/ To mould Me man?
Throughout Mary Shelley's, Frankenstein, the characters of the novel parallel to biblical allusions. Victor takes on the role of God, as he works to “pioneer a new way, explore unknown powers, and unfold to the world the deepest mysteries of creation” (33), thus displaying a God-like power. The power Victor holds allows him to create a being solely from his own imagination, therefore giving him similar characteristics to God in the “Story of Creation”. However, Victor differs from God as Victor does not allow the Monster to stay in his life, as Adam and Eve stayed in the Garden of Eden, but abandons the monster directly following its animation. The abandonment significantly affects the
One of the most famous literary examples of a human playing God, is Frankenstein written by Mary Shelley. Shelley candidly believed that man was never intended to assume the role of God, and she conveyed this message quite clearly throughout her novel. Frankenstein acts as a commentary on the consequences that come when man creates life from death. The novel tells the story of it’s namesake Doctor Victor Frankenstein, who becomes fascinated by the mystery of creating life from death and is consequently all consumed by his studies. Doctor Frankenstein sets out to assemble and reanimate a corpse, and only upon completion of his creation does he truly grasp that he had not created life, but instead just twisted death. He notices the grotesque nature of death that lingers within his creation and is quick to abandon it. This abandonment and rejection shapes Frankenstein’s creature into the monster it is known for being. The message of this is clear, manufacturing life from death is extremely unethical, as these beings will inevitably be rejected by society.
Recognising the true feeling of his creator towards him the monster beings to inflict pain on to Victor by hurting his loved ones. Revengeful, Victor wants to“trample [his creation, the creature,] to dust” (Shelley 97) for the murders the wretched monster has done and fully intends to commit, similar to how a God in many religions may deliver divine retribution onto its creation. Victor’s supposition of authority over whether his creation will live or die is another attempt to play God. Victor plans to kill his own creation to protect the lives of his family and friends, however, as Victor pursuits after his creation, other humans are endangered and Frankenstein’s attempt to prevent the monster from harming any more of Victor’s loved ones is