Frankenstein: the Connection Between Victor Frankenstein and Percy Shelley
Mary Shelley’s novel, Frankenstein, is about one man’s desire to create life, and how it later becomes his demise. Parallels can be drawn between Shelley’s life and her novel. One distinct connection between Shelley’s life and Frankenstein is the resemblance of Shelley’s husband, Percy Shelley, and Victor Frankenstein. While the connection between Victor and Percy has been previously made by literary scholars, this essay will further explore the idea. To begin with, Victor Frankenstein had a passion for natural philosophy, but he also believed in controversial ideas about the subject. When asked by his professor about his studies in the field, Victor replied with the names of
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The disapproval of Victor’s studies and beliefs from the professors at the University is much like the disapproval that Percy Shelley faced, when he discussed his ideas. Percy attended University College, Oxford, but was later expelled for his controversial writings in The Necessity of Atheism. The University gave him the stipulation that he must apologize for his work, if not he would be expelled. Percy chose expulsion ("Percy Bysshe Shelley | English poet"). Although Victor and Percy’s opinions appear to be vastly different from each other, their ideas are connected. Percy’s writings in The Necessity of Atheism went against the idea of religion, while Victor’s belief in alchemy puts a magical spin on science. In other words, both men believed strongly in science. Including the connection between the two men’s beliefs, both men faced disapproval from their respective college. Victor’s professor believed that Victor’s time spent studying alchemy was a waste of time.