Concetti Chiave
- "Frankenstein" is an epistolary novel by Mary Shelley, considered one of the first science-fiction novels, published in 1818.
- The narrative unfolds through letters written by Robert Walton, discussing the story of Victor Frankenstein during his North Pole exploration.
- Victor Frankenstein creates a living creature from dead body parts, but his initial excitement turns to fear, leading the creature to flee.
- The creature, feeling fear and rejection, seeks revenge on Victor, resulting in the deaths of Victor’s close relations and ultimately Victor himself.
- The novel explores themes of the dangerous pursuit of knowledge, creation and its consequences, and the true nature of monstrosity beyond physical appearance.
Frankenstein it’s an epistolary novel written by Mary Shelley and published in 1818. It can be considered as one of the first science-fiction novels.
In the novel there’s Robert Walton that writes letters to his sister Margaret. In some of these letters he tells the story of Victor Frankenstein, a man that finds during his exploration in the North Pole.
The creation and the escape
Victor is obsessed with scientific studies and so he gets to bring to life a creature, made of dead human bodies parts. His previous excitement about the experiment turns to fear when Victor sees what he has made and his reaction terrifies the creature too, which runs away.
After discovering the death of his brother, Victor decides to look for his fugitive creation and when he finds it, this one starts to tell to Victor about the fear, loneliness and rejection that has felt. So Victor decides to create a female companion to “the monster”, but he quickly changes his mind and destroys this second creature for fear of how dangerous could have become.
The monster's revenge
That’s now that the creature becomes a monster. In fact, full of anger, begins to put in act his revenge against his creator: he kills Victor’s best friend, Henry and then Victor’s future wife, also causing indirectly Victor’s father death.
At the end also Victor dies and the “monster” disappears.
The main themes are:
- the dangerous side of knowledge, in fact Victor’s thirst of knowledge and excessive
curiosity lead him to tragic situations that he can’t manage;
- the creation of living beings, there’s an evident bond between Victor and Prometheus, the titan that created human kind, according to greek mythology. Furthermore both Victor and Prometheus made the mistake of ignore the rules, one by deciding to go beyond Nature limits and the other by stealing fire from Gods;
- the monstrosity, that’s faced with the presence of a monster, but real monstrosity can be seen in the way with which Victor and other people treat the creature, making win the prejudices and considering only its appearance. So the immoral behavior of people that’s the exact cause of the conversion of an harmless creature to a dangerous monster.
Domande da interrogazione
- What is the significance of Victor Frankenstein's scientific pursuits in the novel?
- What parallels are drawn between Victor Frankenstein and Prometheus in the novel?
Victor's obsession with scientific studies leads him to create life from dead human body parts, highlighting the dangerous side of knowledge. His excessive curiosity results in tragic situations he cannot manage, illustrating the novel's theme of the perilous pursuit of knowledge.
Both Victor and Prometheus are depicted as figures who defy natural limits—Victor by creating life and Prometheus by stealing fire from the gods. Their actions reflect the theme of creation and the consequences of ignoring rules, as both face dire repercussions for their transgressions.
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