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Science In Frankenstein

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“Here we find nature to be the circumstance which[…] judges like a god all men that come to her.” is one of the first statements by Ralph Waldo Emerson in his essay “Nature”, referring to nature’s role in romanticism. Nature, as well as science, are one of the main topics depicted in writings of the romantic period. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein can be attached to these writings. Her novel implies many natural and scientific characteristics that approach throughout the novel and finally clash by Victor Frankenstein’s creation of the monster. The following essay states the importance of nature and science in Frankenstein and argues that Frankenstein’s monster is a personalization of the danger involved in connecting both nature and science.
Before …show more content…

Nature has a mostly positive effect on Victor, as he describes it as “happy”, “calm” and “lovely” (Shelley 7, 45, 92). Every time Victor comes into contact with natural phenomena such as the sun, the moon or a sea, it immediately takes him back to the past where he was a “happy creature” and had no worries (45). Already at a young age, Victor develops his passion for science when he witnesses a lightning. Fascinated by its power, he does his own experiments and even attends lectures of natural philosophy and other sciences such as mathematics and chemistry. Slowly, Victor realizes his interest in science and in the human life which lead him to the anatomy of the human body (31). This development of interest hints at the upcoming clash of science and nature. Victor’s improving abilities in scientific experiments make him believe in even severing the boundaries between life and death and thus connecting science and nature (33). When Victor is uncertain about the recreation of life, he again refers to the scientific abilities that have improved and offer a wide range of possibilities (33). This improvement of science goes back to the actual achievements in times of romanticism when people like Davy imposed significant ideas of natural philosophy and other scientific fields such as electrochemistry. (Cunningham & Jardine …show more content…

These phenomena hide a danger that Victor is aware of after the creation of his monster, who illustrates this risk of connecting nature and science. Victor even warns of trying to be greater than your nature which is a consequence of a growing knowledge. To summarize, he believes in creating new life with the help of inanimate body parts and scientific approaches and creates a monster that reflects the power of nature and

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