ipl-logo

Frankenstein Scientific Accomplishments

519 Words3 Pages

Today’s world of science is considerably different than it has been in the past. In a world with 3D printing and humanoids coming to life, one would never have expected to be in a world where none of this was possible. In Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, the reader is introduced to a character that battles with his scientific successes and his morals as he comes to terms with what he’s done in both realms. Shelley utilizes Frankenstein to provide an almost uncanny resemblance to what goes on in the science realm today and her stances on both sides. Before diving into the scientific successes and morality issues that Frankenstein fought with, the difference between scientific standards of 1818, when Frankenstein was published, and today’s world should be touched. When first published, scientists were more focused on finding and creating the philosopher’s stone than medical advancements. Alchemy was prominent and also where young Victor got his inspiration following the death of his mother. He notes famous alchemists including Agrippa and Magnus, who was the first to claim he created the philosopher’s stone. It is safe to say that finding a way to become immortal was the primary goal of scientists. …show more content…

Had the creature not decided to kill himself, he would have lived forever. From a realist’s standpoint, this would never be possible but still a substantial feat. Shelley shows how beautiful science can be as she details the perfections the creature has in the beginning of chapter two, but also how destructive carelessness can be with the consistent murders committed by the Monster towards Victor’s family. It goes to show that science is necessary, but the chance of immortality and the dangers it brings are an extreme

Show More
Related

  • How Does Shelley Use Embryonic Stem Cell Research Persuasive Essay

    606 Words  | 3 Pages

    To begin, in the first story "Frankenstein" by Mary Shelley it is about the Dr. Frankenstein who is creating his monster. This passage is Frankenstein talking to another person about the creation, but not fully telling him what he has made. This creation is a breakthrough in the science world in this quote it shows how he thinks this is a major break through, "After days and nights of incredible labor and fatigue, I succeeded in discovering the cause of generation and life; nay, more, I became myself capable of bestowing animation upon lifeless

    Read More

  • Frankenstein Annotated Bibliography Essay

    1348 Words  | 6 Pages

    Works Cited Enstein, Vicki F. "Frakenstien" Vicki F. Enstein. 8 Mar. 2005. Web. 19 Jan. 2016. Higgins, Nicholas.

    Read More

  • Embryonic Stem Cells In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

    1024 Words  | 5 Pages

    In Mary Shelley’s 19th century novel, Frankenstein, Victor Frankenstein is noble in his effort to help mankind. His scientific Prometheanism is initially meant as a good thing, but has serious negative consequences. Victor wants to bring life back to dead matter so humans, in theory, would not have to die. Similarly, in today’s world, scientists and doctors continually and nobly pursue advancement in the medical world to generate new treatments for sick patients. For example, the medical community today is pursuing embryonic stem cell research to discover cures for diseases like cancer, Alzheimer’s, and diabetes.

    Read More

  • Repercussions Of Scientific Advancement In Frankenstein

    172 Words  | 1 Pages

    As the esteemed literary critic T. S. Eliot once said, "Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go" (Eliot). Though this was stated by Eliot in his 1931 poetry "Transit of Venus," it still rings true as a theme in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. In her novel, Shelley explores both the positive and negative repercussions of scientific exploration and advancement. The positive effects include a wider range of knowledge of the natural world, which eventually leads to new discoveries that could change the course of human nature. These advancements could potentially save lives.

    Read More

  • The Dangers Of Ambition In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

    524 Words  | 3 Pages

    Ambition as propelling it is, however can lead to the demise of the person influenced by it. Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein, informs the reader of the consequences of ambition, by telling a story of man named Victor Frankenstein who is overwhelmed by his ambition to see the atrocities he commits. In his ignorance created a monster who served to be Victor’s mistake as he slaughtered his family members. The novel illustrates the dangers of ambition because it is the main reason of Victor’s downfall. Pursuing a desire too strongly as to cause obsession is what destroyed Victor.

    Read More

  • Henk Van Den Belt Frankenstein Quotes

    1424 Words  | 6 Pages

    The article discusses ways that “Frankenstein” should serve as a lesson and impact the actions of present-day scientists. Van Den Belt focuses on an overarching theme of the novel, which is the possible dangers of scientific exploration. He writes, “The story is commonly taken to imply a dire warning about the dangers of scientific hubris” (Van Den Belt). Victor Frankenstein, the main character of the novel, is an iconic example of a science experiment gone wrong. In many different aspects, the story should be studied by explorers to prevent the repetition of Frankenstein’s errors.

    Read More

  • Victor's Desire For Power In Frankenstein

    146 Words  | 1 Pages

    Frankenstein by Mary Shelley has been an American classic for almost 200 years, which contains both philosophical and moral themes in the text, making the reader question the limits of humankind and its desire for power. For every character presented in the story their independent desire to overcome their intentions becomes so intense that the future that lies upon them is nothing close to what they can imagine. Victor Frankenstein´s desire to quench his thirst for power ends up clouding his judgement and making him elude the future that awaits him. As Victor´s intention to succeed in natural sciences grow to an abnormal point, his judgement about what to do with that knowledge didn't let him contemplate the future consequences

    Read More

  • How Does Frankenstein Influence Pop Culture

    1267 Words  | 6 Pages

    Introduction First published in 1818, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein busted its way into popularity as one of the first science-fiction novels. As Shelley trudged her way into the literary canon, Frankenstein’s preliminary success was surpassed by a wave of Frankenstein-esque characters. Shelley’s great influence and success caused a whirlwind of Frankenstein references throughout pop culture. The many allusions to Frankenstein in pop culture arguably molded the text into a cult classic; inevitably making it’s mark on literature and the arts for centuries. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein influenced and inspired numerous beloved characters, portrayals, and adaptations in America’s pop culture.

    Read More

  • Victor Frankenstein Technology Quotes

    960 Words  | 4 Pages

    Society today is greatly affected by science. Cell phones, computers, and social media are just some of the many facets of technology that we use in our everyday lives. To most people, this technology is wonderful, but Mary Shelley provides us with a caveat. In her novel Frankenstein, science and the pursuit of knowledge are recurrent themes. The novel starts off with Walden trying to make a discovery in the North Pole, and follows with a story about how Victor Frankenstein deals with his creation.

    Read More

  • Mary Shelley's Frankenstein: Knowledge A Blessings And Curse

    977 Words  | 4 Pages

    Knowledge can be Blessings and Curse A teenage girl Mary Shelly wrote Frankenstein in the 18th century. A Gothic novel Frankenstein deals with two genres, Gothicism and science fiction. Victor, one of Mary Shelly’s characters represents man’s pursuit of knowledge which ultimately leads towards the path of destruction while another character Robert Walton implemented his knowledge wisely to get benefits for the society. Mary is indicating to the society that mankind has to pay full attention to science and scientific innovations in order to avoid the catastrophic events due to misuse of knowledge.

    Read More

  • Genetic Engineering In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

    1801 Words  | 8 Pages

    Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is closely related to the current issue of genetic engineering. Shelley’s main character, Victor Frankenstein, is a scientific engineer who brings different parts of people’s bodies together to make a new creation. This new creation at first seemed good to Victor however, he was eventually overcome by it. Genetic engineering is not only gene manipulation; it is a desire to take parts of an organism and create a new living thing. Shelley was 17 years old when she wrote Frankenstein almost 200 years ago and although young, her perceptions of what is good or evil, what is beautiful or monstrous, are topics today that are discussed in relation to genetic engineering, gene manipulation and mutation.

    Read More

  • Tragedy And Destruction In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

    797 Words  | 4 Pages

    Science covers numerous viewpoints of everyday life and reality. There are numerous studies that include the study of environment, universe, and animals. Another well known study of science is the study of people and life. In “Frankenstein” by Mary Shelley, Victor Frankenstein is an inspiring scientist who researched the dead. Victor hopes to be the first person ever to accomplish the impossible by giving life to the dead.

    Read More

  • Importance Of Romanticism In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

    963 Words  | 4 Pages

    In Mary Shelley’s Romantic novel, Frankenstein, an over-ambitious young scientist, infatuated with the creation of life without a female and the source of generation, breaks the limits of science and nature by conjuring life into a lifeless form constructed from stolen body parts. The young experimenter confesses his monstrous tale that defies nature to a captain who shares his desire for glory and the pursuit of knowledge. Though a Romantic novel itself, Frankenstein serves as a critique of part of the philosophy behind Romanticism, that is, the promotion of radical self-involvement that celebrates the individual’s pursuit of glory and knowledge. Both the lone captain and the young scientist seek glory from their quest for knowledge but ultimately their pursuits end disastrously. Throughout the novel, Shelley warns against excessive self-confidence, the ambitious overreaching in the acquirement of scientific knowledge, and the arrogant pursuit of glory, using the young scientist as a forewarning to the lone captain against his

    Read More

  • Technology In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

    1605 Words  | 7 Pages

    “Do we evade the full consequences of our advances: denying the ugly while claiming the beautiful...ignoring the impoverishment while squandering the wealth”(Vargish)? Mary Shelley's, Frankenstein projects an underlying message that the rapid advancements of knowledge and science are truly monstrous. This tale illustrates a man’s dangerous, unbridled thirst for advancing science and researching a new field yet to be discovered; and questions advancements in technology, science, and the nature of humanity. Mary Shelley’s argument is more relevant today than it was during the gothic era. Our culture’s evident addiction to electronics and personal devices is taking away all forms of intuition and initiative.

    Read More

  • A Comparison Of Scientists In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein And Robert Louis Stevenson

    2180 Words  | 9 Pages

    Representation of Scientists in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and Robert Louis Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Towards the end of the 19th century, the portrayal of science in literature became more frequent than before; science has been progressing and it began to spark the interest of the readers of fiction. Supernatural elements in stories have been ascribed to scientists and experiments rather than God and miracles. However, since science still covered much of the unknown and inexplicable, the characters of scientists have occasionally been given almost godlike powers, thus prompting the readers to consider the question of morality. The scientist characters in both Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and Robert Louis Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde have initially been successful with their scientific experiments and achieved groundbreaking discoveries, but have ultimately been punished for having gone too far with their experiments on humanity.

    Read More

More about Frankenstein Scientific Accomplishments

Open Document