Student: Silvia Andonova

Theme: Madness and Violence in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

The creation of life is a cautionary metaphor for the development of science in Mary Shelley's

Frankenstein. Today, however, this type of life-creating science is commonplace. It does not

take place in a mad scientist's laboratory, but in sterile and cutting-edge research facilities.

Scientists use technologies such as genetic engineering, cloning and in vitro fertilization (IVF)

to modify the genomes of microorganisms, plants and animals, including humans. Many

consider this to be the creation of life, and these achievements have their share of moral and

religious breakdowns. The technological revolution that our society is experiencing today is

not much different from the scientific revolution of the Enlightenment of the 18th and 19th

centuries. Key figures in the scientific revolution, such as Newton and Darwin, brought

evidence that challenged religious principles. As a result, concern for scientific progress was

visible throughout the Romantic era.

Romantic writers, poets and artists expressed their criticism of these achievements. Edgar

Allan Poe reflects anti-industrial developments in his Sonnet to Science. Poe compares

Science to "a Vulture whose wings are bleak realities" (1-4). Poe reflects his view that

science is predatory, vile, and devoid of creativity. John Keats, poet and accomplished

physician, laments how science has corrupted mankind's sense of beauty in his poem

<Lamia>.

The lines "Let the spears and malice of the thistle make war in his temple" and "Philosophy

lift up the wings of an angel..." reflect his disapproval of the Rationalism brought about by the

Scientific Revolution (230-235). William Blake, the romantic poet and printer, "considered

Reason as the devil, and Newton as its high priest" and "proclaimed art the tree of life...

science the tree of death" (Raman). Like, Mary Shelley incorporates elements of knowledge,
nature, and existence into her novel Frankenstein. In Frankenstein, the obsessed Swiss

scientist Victor Frankenstein creates human life.

However, his creation becomes corrupted and kills those whom Frankenstein loves the most:

his brother, best friend, and wife. The violence drives both Frankenstein and his Monster to

hopeless insanity, which results in their death at the end of the novel (Frankenstein).

“Frankenstein not only stands out as the first modern novel by a mad chemist, but is also the

most radical because it committed the fate of obsessed mad alchemists to the fate of science”

(Schumer).

Frankenstein not only reflects cultural concerns about scientific ethics, but also

portrays scientific research as harmful to society. By attributing the characteristics of madness

to Frankenstein and his monster, Shelley creates an opposite dichotomy between science and

morality. Science is shown as immoral through its association with madness. She archetypes

Victor Frankenstein as a mad scientist driven insane by his obsession with creating human

life. Ironically, presenting science in this way is itself harmful to society. The medieval

pseudoscience that Frankenstein experiments with must be applied not to the latest advances

of the time, but to the obsolete practice of alchemy. This is not indicative of how scientists

practiced medicine and science at that time. Likewise, the Monster goes mad with revenge

because Frankenstein is unable to take responsibility for his creation. The conflict between

Frankenstein and his monster is a manifestation of self-destruction between the scientist and

his work. Shelley also includes the death of innocence to further vilify the mad scientist.

Frankenstein is constantly shown as unstable, obsessed and insane to perpetuate the cliche of

the mad scientist. The characterization of Frankenstein as a madman robs him of all

credibility. In Chapter 4, Frankenstein reveals "the horrors of his secret labor" where he

"dabbled among the uninhabited damp places of the grave, or tortured a living animal to

revive the lifeless clay" (Frankenstein). The graphic imagery recognizes both the dark and
amoral nature of Frankenstein's work. He also details his obsession with work and how it

affects his health. Physically, he has become pale and emaciated due to his confinement in the

lab (Frankenstein).

His research also influenced his social life and mental health. Frankenstein refused to keep in

touch with his old friends and family and "avoided his fellows as if he were guilty of a

crime" (Frankenstein). He even goes on to state that "I looked more like a man doomed to

slave labor in the mines ... than an artist doing what he loves" (Frankenstein). It literally

says that science is not artistic or creative, but it is repressive and sinful. These descriptions

contribute to Frankenstein's character as a mad scientist, as he is a slave to his work.

Another element of the mad scientist is pride; in this case pride was Frankenstein's fatal

mistake. Pride, in the sense of comparing one's abilities with those of a divine creator,

challenges the characteristics of Christianity. It is this lack of ethics that makes up the mad

scientist (Sumer). Frankenstein's experiments lack an ethical basis; he plays God, creating

life.

“A new species would bless me as its creator and source; many happy and beautiful natures

would owe their existence to me. No father could claim his child's gratitude as fully as I had

to earn it" (Frankenstein). He has delusions of grandeur; he claims that his experiment will

compete with the natural order of life. Frankenstein's ambition and pride reached their peak

while studying at Ingolstadt. So much has been done, exclaimed the soul of Frankenstein - I

will achieve more, much more ……I will open a new path, explore unknown forces, and

reveal to the world the deepest mysteries of creation” (Frankenstein < / EM>). Scientific

ambition is the driving force in progress; but here it is disastrous. His arrogance only exists

before he creates the Monster. After the "disaster", his pride dissipates. Since Frankenstein is

characterized as crazy and vain, the reader does not empathize with him. This facilitates the
dehumanization of scientists, the separation of science from morality, and further criticism of

the scientific revolution.

Another flaw in Frankenstein's character is that he does not take responsibility for his actions.

Frankenstein creates life only to leave the monster behind. Frankenstein's guilt and horror

manifests itself in a series of catatonic seizures throughout the novel.

He began to hallucinate after he made the Monster and then fell ill with "a nervous fever that

kept him for months (Frankenstein). This scenario indicates that scientists are unable to

separate their emotions from their experiments. They also cannot control the outcome of what

they create.

Creations are vulnerable to being corrupted or misused by society. In this case, the

Frankenstein Monster had innocent intentions that were tainted because he was mistreated and

left behind. "My [monstrous] heart was fashioned to be receptive to love and sympathy, and

when it was torn out by suffering through vice and hatred, it could not endure violent change

without torture that you cannot even imagine" (Frankenstein). Through the monster narrative

box, it is given that the monster had good intentions in the beginning. However, after being

rejected by the cottagers in the woods and shot dead after rescuing a drowning girl, the

monster promoted revenge on humanity, specifically Frankenstein.

The monster's trial darkens and he descends into a frenzy driven by revenge against

Frankenstein. When the Monster declares: “You are my creator and I am your master; obey,”

he declares his dominance (Frankenstein). This is a transfer of power. The monster has taken

on the role of the mad scientist, and Frankenstein momentarily becomes the voice of reason.

Although Frankenstein has changed his ways, the consequences of his actions are absolute.
In the case of Frankenstein, the mad scientist primarily harms other people because of his

obsession (Sumer). All monster victims are only indirect consequences of Frankenstein's

morality. The murder of William and the execution of Justine is a metaphorical death to

morality and innocence. William had the innocence of a child, and Justine was innocent both

in nature and in her cause.

Frankenstein later goes on to confess: "I saw those I loved mourn in vain for the graves of

William and Justin, the first unfortunate victims of my lawless art" (Frankenstein).

Clerval and Elisabeth were the moral characters of the compass; both tried to help

Frankenstein and teach him to do what is right.

"Clerval occupied himself ... with the moral relations of things" and "Elizabeth's holy soul

shone like a lamp consecrated to shrines" (Frankenstein). In both cases of murder, the

Monster showed self-gratification towards Frankenstein. “There was a smile on the face of the

monster; he seemed to be mocking… towards the corpse” (Frankenstein). Although

Frankenstein created life, his creation took it away. Creation through science upset the

balance of life and death.

In conclusion, throughout the novel, the theme is constantly discussed that ignorance is bliss,

and scientific knowledge leads to madness. Shelley places her strongest argument for this in

Frankenstein's dying mouth at the end of the novel. “Seek happiness in serenity and avoid

ambition, even if it is only an apparently innocent manifestation of yourself in science and

discovery” (Frankenstein).

Frankenstein tries to convince Walton to ignore his scientific curiosity. As the novel drew to a

close, Walton was at a critical juncture to either continue his perilous expedition north or turn
for safety. Frankenstein, who has already experienced failure in his ambitions, constantly tries

to dissuade Walton from living a knowledge-driven life. At the beginning of the novel,

Frankenstein declares: “Unfortunate man! Do you share my madness? You also drank an

alcoholic drink” (Frankenstein).

The intoxicating call here is the pride of the mad scientist. The acquisition of knowledge

clouds judgment and creates pride. The right and moral choice is to strive for peace and

ignore ambition.

The novel is a cautionary allegory for scientific advances in response to the Age of Reason

and Enlightenment. The mad scientist archetype is used not for entertainment, but to criticize

modern scientists and their immorality. Also, the novel is not a critique of pseudoscience

practices such as alchemy.

Shelley distinguished between alchemy and modern chemistry when Frankenstein was

lecturing M. Krempe. “I [Frankenstein] mentioned the names of my alchemists as the main

authors I studied,” the professor looked. "Have you really spent your time learning such

nonsense?" (Frankenstein). After this, Frankenstein focused most of his research on the study

of modern chemistry. He used this knowledge, not alchemy, to create his monster.

Frankenstein widens the gap between morality and science. Shelley effectively uses

Frankenstein's madness and the Monster's violence to warn his readers about the dangers of

scientific progress and arrogance.

However, the association of the pursuit of knowledge and ambition with madness

may be more pernicious than the scientific advances criticized by romantic writers. Despite

what many believe, ethics and science are vital partners. Both are important for social

development.
Works cited

1.Keats, John. "Lamia" Part II. Bartleby, www.bartleby.com/

2.Poe, Allan Edgar. "Sonnet to Science". Poetry Foundation. www.poetryfoundation.org

3.Proffitt, Edward. Science and Romanticism. The Georgia Review, 1980, p. 55-80.

4.Schummer, Joachim. The Historical Roots of the "Mad Scientist": Chemists in Nineteenth-

Century Literature. Ambix, July 2006, pp. 99-127.

5. Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft. Frankenstein or Modern Prometheus. London: Penguin,

2003. Print.

6. Raman, Varadaraja. Truth and Tension in Science and Religion. United States: Book River

Books,

2009. Print