The Secrets Of Life In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

"With an anxiety that almost amounted to agony, I collected the instruments of life around me, that I might infuse a spark of being into the lifeless thing that lay at my feet. It was already one in the morning; the rain pattered dismally against the panes, and my candle was nearly out, when, by the glimmer of the half-extinguished light, I saw the dull yellow eye of the creature open; it breathed hard, and a convulsive motion agitated its limbs.” Humanity enjoys pushing the limits of what we know and what we can do. Today extensive amount of time and resources are spent on discovering the unknown. Fiction allows humans to view the world from alternative perspectives. Mary Shelley lived during the enlightenment period, which was a time that

His desire to accomplish scientific feats were conceived during his childhood readings of natural philosophy posed by Cornelius Agrippa, Albertus Magnus, and Paracelsus. “I confess that neither the structure of languages, nor the code of governments, nor the politics of various states possessed attractions for me. It was the secrets of heaven and earth that I desired to learn; and whether it was the outward substance of things or the inner spirit of nature and the mysterious soul of man that occupied me, still my inquiries were directed to the metaphysical, or in it highest sense, the physical secrets of the world.” (Shelley 23). This quote comes from Victor’s recounting of his childhood. From this we learn that Frankenstein was not a well-rounded student but rather focused on a single point of interest. Victor’s lifelong attraction for knowledge was to discover the creation of life. He reveals that the curiosity for the nature of the soul was secluded to the physical aspects. While students like Clerval were engaged in the moral association of things, Frankenstein obsessed over the inner spirit of

Without guidance from Frankenstein the creation acts solely upon his experiences. “Cursed, cursed creator! Why did I live? Why, in that instant, did I not extinguish the spark of existence which you had so wantonly bestowed? I know not; despair had not yet taken possession of me; my feelings were those of rage and revenge. I could with pleasure have destroyed the cottage and its inhabitants and have glutted myself with their shrieks and misery.” (Shelley 125). In this passage, the creation expresses his feelings after being rejected and violently assaulted by the family in the cottage. Since the cottage family appeared to be genuine loving people, it made it all the more hurtful upon the creation that not even good people could see him as anything more than his appearance. This quote is significant because the creations values of community, family, love, and affection were replaced with hatred and revenge upon