Science vs Nature in Frankenstein

Assignment

Romantic Literature

Name : Nishtha Makwana 

Roll no. 15

M.A part 1 ( sem 2 )

Batch : 2019 - 21

Enrollment no. 2069108420200025

Topic : Science vs Nature in Frankenstein 

Submitted to S.B. Gardi department of English, MKBU Bhavnagar. 

Introduction:

From the Ancient times we all are curious to know about our existence and still we don't know perfectly about it. Some are curious who do experiments to find how we existed and some are very narrow minded who easily believed that God has made us and one  can not challenge him. Man has made so many changes and changed the parameter of how to live life. With the passing of time our life became so fast with the scientific experiments. As we know, we live in the era of technology and scientific experiments. Still nowadays there are people who blame science and technology for damages in society. We are constructed in a society or culture where we have become so traditional we refuse to accept new things in our life. Charles Darwin was a scientist and what he thought about science at that era..

Man is not the first and final creation of God,

It is just an accident from an ameba to an ape

and ape to man and their might be superman

to come

There is always conflict between science and nature and there are many debates on it. From the Ancient times we find some people are in favor of science and some are in favor of nature. But what is the truth? 

Science V/S Nature in Frankenstein: 

As we know, Frankenstein is a scientific novel which supports the idea of being a naturalist. At the end of the novel nature wins in the battle of science vs novel. So let's see how Shelley uses the element of science to praise nature. As we know, it is a novel of the Romantic era where we can find the influence of wordsworth as a major poet of the era. He praises nature and a different way here Shelley praises nature. 

Core Idea

The main or core idea of this assignment is to see how Mery Shelley put her ideas against science and favored nature with the help of failed scientific experiment of Victor Frankenstein.  

Victor Frankenstein as a Scientist :

In her novel Shelley uses the character of a scientist. A man who is curious to know about the secret of life and death. He faces the death of her mother and with the help of study and research he wants to change the law of nature. It was the era where science has made a terrific change in everyone's life. 

more, far more, will I achieve; treading in the step already

marked, I will pioneer a new way, explore unknown power,

and unfold to the world the deepest mysteries of creation.

As we know it was the time where scientists have made so many changes but Shelley wanted to prove that they can not challenge God in an indirect way. She portrays an egoist character who wants to be a historian with the help of scientific experiments. But if we look at Victor's character we find he just wanted to give a new life to people. 

Victor and his failed experiment :

After 3 years of his mother's death Victor went to Ingolstadt University to study natural philosophy and chemistry. He started studying there and argued with one of the professors in the matter of believing in God. One of those professors has experimented and tried to challenge the law of nature but he failed and that is why in Ingolstadt University professors refused to talk about giving new life. But Victor didn't believe them. 

I have no doubt 

of your success. Chemistry is that branch of natural phi-

losophy in which the greatest improvements have been and

may be made…

M. Waldman

M. Waldman was also a scientist who had a desire to do research and find the secret of life. He supported Victor and tried to help him in his research.  Once he failed and saw a horrible result of his experiment though he had faith in science. With so many thoughts in mind he started to work on the creation…

I began the creation of a human being

This line is spoken by Victor but  if we look at this from a natural perspective it shows science as an evil in society.  The creation of human beings is in the hand of God not in the hand of man, which we can find in this novel. So, from here Victor has started his journey to create a human being like him. He worked hard for two years and then started searching for dead bodies and collected body parts. It seems like a very unnatural thing. On a dreary night of November when he found the instruments of life around him. He thought that he had found the secret of life. But what did he create ? A monster. 

He was very scared and ran away from there. The failed experiment of Victor shows how science and scientific experiments go wrong if you challenge the creation of God. 

Human vs creature :

As we know, the birth of human beings is very natural. In the novel we find that human beings are perfect because they are the products of God. Where the product of man is like a monster as we can find in this novel. We can see the binaries of nature and science. As Victor says...

The miserable monster whom I had created

This line spoken by Victor shows that he tried to bring a new life as we all are created.  But as a result he found a monster rather than a man like him. This part of the novel shows how science failed to create humans or give a new life.  

Monster - as an unnatural product:

As we discussed above, Victor wanted to create a man like him. But at the end of the process he created a monster. But he was just looking as a monster, not a real monster. Victor and his science failed to give him a perfect look as humans are given. And it is very natural whereas the creature is artificial and unnatural. The creation is rejected by society, 

Many times I considered Satan as the fitter emblem of my condition; for often, like him, when I viewed the bliss of my protectors, the bitter gall of envy rose within me.

Monster compares himself with Satan because God has left him as his creator left him alone. It is very natural but what he did was a very unnatural thing. He thought that God has perfection. His creation is beautiful. And he is not the creation of God but a creation of a man, an ugly creation. So he started to hate Victor and decided to take revenge for it. He started killing innocent people. He murdered so many people who were related to Victor. This thing shows how a creature turned into a monster. He argues that it is not his fault. Human beings made him declare war by treating him as an enemy. Society rejected him because he was not a natural product, by his look everyone scared and just abused him. Here also we can find how science failed against nature. There are two types of nature. One is the nature of mankind and the other is the natural cycle. Here we can find, it is very natural to ask for a companion from  his or her Creator as Monster did. 

You must create a female for me, with whom I can live in the interchange of those sympathies necessary for my being

Here also we can find science vs nature again. With the help of science Victor only can create a monster, a female monster not a human being as he is. Now his creature is asking for a companion and Victor didn't fulfill his wish. Now the creature becomes so cruel and he started to kill people.  He murdered Elizabeth because he wanted a companion. Again with the help of science he gave a new life to Elizabeth. But her look was very ugly and she suicided. Again here science failed against nature. 

At the end nature wins :

In Frankenstein in the battle of science vs nature, nature wins. 

I am poor and an exile, but it will afford me true pleasure to 

be in any way serviceable to a human creature.’

Here, we can find that Mary Shelley has reflected the image of Science v/s Nature as an equipment of learning lessons from the humanity of the monster and dangers from the monstrosity of Victor. It shows how nature is realistic and kind, still gives one chance for realization.

We all are the product of nature and we have to face the reality of death and life. No one can escape from nature’s clutches. Even the Master of Science has to put his ornaments on the land and to die. Nature requires just a bit of a moment to vex human beings and this happens in the novel Frankenstein. Nature always conquers everyone who goes beyond it. By conflict between science and nature, Marrey Shelley wants to say that science is not still everything. It is limited and should be limited otherwise people have to face its repercussions.

Conclusion:

At the conclusion, one can say that Mary Shelley has reflected the image of science vs nature. But in this image she supports the natural elements. As she tries to warn people that nobody can challenge the law of nature. But is it so? Nowadays we have already challenged the law of nature by doing…

Heart Transplant 

Various types of surgery 

Operations

With the help of science we are saving lives. Frankenstein is a very popular novel, but if everyone goes with the flow then nobody can bring change in the world. Scientific experiments will go wrong but because of this you can't stop doing research. No one can challenge the law of nature but nowadays scientists and doctors are doing and trying to save the lives of people. Here we can say science has been a part of our day to day life.

There is nothing like a battle, which one is better, but science is for helping people and Victor Frankenstein also wanted to save the lives of people. It is different that he was not successful, but he left so many questions to find. 

              

Work Cited 

Darwin, Charles. On the Origin of Species . John Murray, 1859.

Shalley, Mary. Frankenstein : The Modern Prometheus . First ed., vol. 1, Lackington,Hughes,Harding,Mavor and Jones, 1818.