Concetti Chiave
- "Frankenstein" by Mary Shelley is presented as letters from Robert Walton to his sister, recounting Victor Frankenstein's story after rescuing him near the North Pole.
- Victor Frankenstein, a Swiss scientist, creates a living being from dead body parts due to his fascination with life's origins, but is horrified by the result and abandons the creature.
- The creature, feeling abandoned and angry, confronts Victor and asks for a companion. When Victor refuses, the creature seeks vengeance, targeting those Victor loves.
- The novel draws a parallel between Victor and Prometheus, as both acquire forbidden knowledge for humanity's benefit, leading to severe repercussions.
- Victor's life becomes a nightmare as he is pursued by the creature, with the story culminating in their mutual destruction.
“Frankestain” is Mary Shelley’s masterpiece. It is written in form of letters by the caption Robert Walton to his own sister in which he tells the story of a man called Victor Frankenstein that he rescued during a voyage to the North Pole, who tells him his history.
The Creation of the Monster
Victor was a Swiss scientist and he explains that he was affascinated by the mystery, of the origin of life so that he had discovered “the cause of generation and life”. He builds a creator assembling parts taken from dead man bodies and menages to instil the park of life into it.
When the creature opened his eyes, and started to breathe, Victor was horrified and disgusted and he abandoned him rushing out. When he returned, the creature was gone and Victor felt relived. However, some tragic events began to happen and Victor began to suspect the monster he had created.
Encounter with the Creature
Shattered by grief and guilt, Frankenstein tried to find consolation in nature : he climbs up a mountain and there he finds the creature that explains to him that he hates his makers since he abandoned him. The creature asks to the scientist to give him a companion but, if at the first moment Victor agrees, than he refuses his request. From that moment Victor’s life is a nightmare: the creature persecutes him killing those that he loves. Victor’s aim si to destroy the creature but it will die only when the scientist dies too.
The Subtitle and the Parallelism
The subtitle of Frankenstein is “the modern Prometheus” : Prometheus was the titan who side from the sun to help mankind and punished by Zeus who chained him to a mountain and sending an eagle to feed on his liver.
In Mary Shelley novel Frankenstein is like Prometheus : he is a men who knows a lot more than others and steals the knowledge of the secret of life for helping mankind
Domande da interrogazione
- What motivates Victor Frankenstein to create the monster, and how does he react upon its creation?
- What is the significance of the subtitle "the modern Prometheus" in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein?
Victor Frankenstein, a Swiss scientist, is driven by his fascination with the mystery of life's origins. He discovers the cause of generation and life, and assembles a creature from dead body parts. However, upon bringing it to life, he is horrified and disgusted, leading him to abandon the creature immediately.
The subtitle "the modern Prometheus" draws a parallel between Victor Frankenstein and the mythological figure Prometheus. Like Prometheus, who stole fire from the gods to aid humanity and was punished for it, Victor gains forbidden knowledge of life's secrets to help mankind, leading to tragic consequences.
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