The Voyage Of Life And Frankenstein Comparison Essay

As direct opposites as they may seem, the gothic work Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, draws many similarities to the transcendental series of paintings titled The Voyage of Life, by Thomas Cole. The first painting in the series is titled “Childhood,” which features a very young infant in a boat guided by an angel. The boat is proceeding from a cliff face, symbolizing that there is nothing behind them, these are the infant's first moments, and the boat is holding an hourglass, symbolic of the time that the infant has on this Earth. The surrounding area is lush and draws many comparisons to the Garden of Eden. In the distance, you can see buildings and signs of civilization,

In his hindsight, Victor is extremely remorseful for creating the monster and wishing he could take it back, but now is forced to leave in the reality of his situation and forced to stand by as his destiny is crushed right in front of him. While Victor is never overtly religious in the text, I think that the man praying to the faces he sees in the clouds could represent Victor procuring his hate and resentment for the monster that he creates, as opposed to a more healthy or divine approach. He becomes overwhelmed with his hatred for the wretch, which he details when he says, “My abhorrence of this fiend cannot be conceived. When I thought of him, I gnashed my teeth, my eyes became inflamed, and I ardently wished to extinguish the life which I had so thoughtlessly bestowed” (Shelley 103). One interesting detail to be noted is that the painting features many faces focused on the man that is displayed by non-human objects, such as mangled trees or stormy clouds. I think that this relates to Frankenstein because there are many people that are present in Victor’s life that can only stand by and watch as he descends into

He is now at the mouth of the river, which spills into a calm sea, but he is still presented with a choice. The man is able to either ascend towards the heavens, which have parted the clouds and sent angels down to receive him, or continue on his dark path through an opening in the low dark clouds. What’s interesting about this is that this is the first time we really see the man presented with a choice. Nowhere else in the series do we see the man make a decision on which path to follow nor does it show where he went wrong. While you could say that there was a decision made, there was just no painting made to show it, I believe that the real reasoning for this is that it all points to a divine plan, God’s plan. I think that Cole’s lack of choice for the man in the painting was symbolic of God’s overarching plan for us. While the man was able to “steer” his destiny, the river only ever had one path and only ever flowed one way. Ultimately, the only true and important decision that we make is the one between whether we accept God as our one and true savior and rise into his heavenly kingdom, or continue on the sinful path of atheism and