Mary Shelley Essay, Research Paper
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein: or, The Modern Prometheus is a true classic, one
which has passed the test of time. The story of
Frankenstein has been told and retold, generation after generation. Not only
is the story line itself intriguing but the story has
many underlying themes that invoke thought and controversy. Depending upon
your individual perspective one might see the
underlying theme as a warning to the scientific community to question the
morality of their scientific advancements in light of the
betterment of mankind and society as a whole. Another reader, might view the
underlying theme as referring to interpersonal
relationships between men and women. From my own perspective as a parent and
mother of two children, I perceive the most
prevalent underlying theme to be that of parenting. This novel illustrates
and confronts many issues involving the dynamics of
parent-child relationships. Such as child abandonment, child neglect, the
dangers of spoiling your child, and their resulting
influences on the child’s emotional and psychological development.
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein clearly demonstrates the importance of attachment
and bonding between the mother and the
child for normal childhood development.. Shelley does this by identifying the
negative effects of depriving a child of a nurturing
mother. Without mothering a child’s capacity to trust others and commit to
loving relationships diminishes resulting in social
isolation later in life. More important, the lack of a loving education
deprives a child of developing a clear and comprehensive
understanding of human morality. A child that does not possess an adequate
moral understanding often dissociates themselves
from their feeling of anger and guilt resulting in unrepentive violence. This
is validated in the story by the demon’s inability to
form any type of loving relationship and the demon’s subsequent moral
failings resulting in violent outburst which legitimizes
societies condemnation of the demon as a social outcast. Thus, Mary Shelley
suggest that a rejected and unmothered child can
become violent and even a killer, a monster so to speak.
The Monster is not the only character in Frankenstein to find themselves
motherless. There is a conspicuous absence of
mothers throughout the book. Victor’s best friend, Henry Clerval, is
motherless and spends most of his formidable years
reared by the Frankenstein household as Henry’s father had little time for
him. Victor’s mother, Caroline who is herself
orphaned, dies a few months before he goes away to study at the university in
Ingolstadt. Elizabeth, Victor’s fianc?, is adopted
by the Frankenstein family after she is orphaned due the death of her mother.
William Frankenstein’s nursemaid, Justine, is not
only wrongfully executed, but is not even introduced into the Frankenstein
household until after her mother abuses and neglects
her and abandons her to Elizabeth’s good graces. Even the DeLacey family that
the Monster spends two years observing
through the peek hole of his hovel is motherless. Many of the characters are
lacking a mothers love and guidance as part of
their own childhood environment. Consequently, they maybe lacking the
experiences in life that implant good parenting skills.
Such is the case with Caroline who passed on a mother’s love the only way she
knew how. Ignorant of any harm she maybe
bestowing on her children.
Child abuse is not always as blatant as the nose on your face or as scornful
or intentional as out right physical abuse or child
abandonment. As S
Victor was overly indulged and spoiled, which in
itself is a form of child neglect. Victor’s parent showered him with love and
affection but did not set limits as to acceptable
behavior. As a result Victor grew into an manipulative self-centered adult
who was incapable of accepting responsibility for
his own actions and showed little or no concern for others. The disastrous
effects of spoiling Victor became obvious when he
could not control his impulse to meddle with the creation of life. Victor was
so overwhelmed with fulfilling his own personnel
ambitions and his childhood experiences were so lacking that he never
considered that there is a difference between wanting
and needing. As a result, Victor was so consumed with whether or not he could
create life he never stopped to consider the
consequences of his experiments.
In Victors rush to create life he did not give any deliberation as to the
quality of life he would be bestowing upon his
creation. Frankenstein’s reckless disregard for the power he was wielding is
manifested in the outward appearance of his
creation. From the onset the monsters hideous body sickened Victor. As a
scientist or a father, Victor never prepared himself
to face the repugnant embodiment of his creation. Victor did not consider how
his creation would fit into society or how this
frightening creature would be able to overcome the prejudice of his being. It
was obvious that Victor never intended to parent
his creation or assume responsibility for his actions. From the moment of the
creature’s birth, Victor thought of it as demonical
and abused it. Victor’s eagerness to abandon his creation demonstrates that
Victor never considered the creation to be of his
birth. He did not see the creature as his child but instead no more than an
ill fated adventure. Symbolic of Victors intentions to
abandon his responsibilities and alienate the monster from his lineage
becomes poignant when Victor fails to provide his
creation with a namesake. The absence of a name denies the monster the
knowledge of who he is or any family origins. The
monster’s lack of a name and place in society, caused him great distress, as
depicted in the following passage. "But where were
my friends and relations? No father had watched my infant days, no mother
blessed me with smiles and caresses. I had never
yet seen a being resembling me, or who claimed any intercourse with me. What
was I? (Shelley, 117)
Abandoned by his farther and shunned by society the monster tries to conceive
his humanity and find his place in the world.
Yet for all his toil it leads to but one conclusion…
…but…I possessed no money, no friends, no kind of property.
I was, besides, endowed with a figure hideously deformed
and loathsome;…When I looked around, I saw and heard of
none like me… "I cannot describe to you the agony that these
reflections inflicted upon me; I tried to dispel them, but sorrow
only increased with knowledge. Oh, that I had ever remained
in my native wood, nor known or felt beyond the sensations of
hunger, thirst, and heat!" (Shelley 116)
The monster having received a moral and intellectual education was still
lacking the warmth of a nurturing and loving parent as
well as companionship and acceptance from society which led him to reject
morality in favor of blind justice. The monster is a
classic story of an abused child turned abuser.
Cite
Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft. Frankenstein or The Modern Prometheus (the 1818
text). Chicago: U of Chicago P, 1982.