Modern Criticism of Frankenstein- Spivak

1. Shelley believed that an engineered society should not be based purely on one idea. It should involve "natural philosophy", "practical reason", and "aesthetic judgment" together to function properly (Spivak 264). Unfortunately, Frankenstein made his creation only out of natural philosophy while not including the other disciplines. This fact sheds a new light on the story. The monster never really had a chance to function properly in society. Besides his ghastly appearance, he did not have the knowledge of crucial principles in everyday life. Maybe this lack of understanding led him to feel the need for revenge.

2. Mary Shelley's parents were anti-evangelicals. This small fact about Shelley explains a lot about her story. She incorporates many religious aspects into the story. Spivak touches upon the human family the monster observes and the Arabian woman whose father was a Muslim but whose mother was a Christian. This whole section of the book, as Spivak explains, brings up many common views of the time about Muslims and Christians and makes a statement about the biased views of religion during this time period. Shelley intertwines religion throughout the whole book. She makes Victor a sort of "god-like" creator of life who possesses abilities that no mortal man has. She also discusses how Victor, although he thinks at first he has done something great, is actually an almost "anti-Christ" because of the destruction he has brought to the world in creating such a beast. This information about Shelley's past explains a lot about the whole story and many individual parts within it.

3. Spivak makes an interesting point in explaining how the monster is extremely complex; he is a monster on the outside, but really has many human qualities on the inside. He wants to be able to be a human, to be a functioning member of society. Frankenstein also tries to "humanize" him by telling his story to the magistrate and asking him to take action to bring him to justice. There are therefore many conflicts throughout the story about what the monster actually is. Clearly he wants to be human and at some points his creator even assists in making him seem so, but he can never fit into society. This view adds a new level of complexity to the monster. He is not just a monster, he possesses the ability to be so much more (at least in his own mind). This makes me sympathize a little more with his situation because it really is not his fault that he is not a human being and was created the way that he was.

Passage on page 32- Mary Shelley's attitude towards Frankenstein

Mary Shelley clearly shows her mixed feelings about Victor’s creation in this passage. At first she shows her amazement and admiration for Victor’s work by praising him and his accomplishments. She basically makes him a “god-like” figure. Many believe that only a higher power, such as a god, has the ability and power to create life. Victor takes on this role in the passage. He describes how life and death are merely “ideal bounds” (Shelley 32) and therefore shows his immense power. She also describes him as a “creator,” (Shelley 32) reaffirming his god-like powers. Shelley, in granting her character such abilities, goes against a widely-held belief of the time: only a higher power could do what Victor did and create life. Shelley shows that she has great respect for Victor in giving him such gifts. 

In the second paragraph, Victor and Shelley both realize that they have created a monster. In the first paragraph Victor calls himself a proud father who wants to be involved in the life of his creation. However, once he realizes the sheer horror of what he has done, he wants absolutely nothing to do with his creation. He now calls his work “a filthy creation;” (Shelley 32) he no longer feels pride in his great accomplishment. This contrast adds great complexity to Victor’s character and exposes Shelley’s true feelings towards both Victor and the monster. She knows she has unleashed this menacing beast on the world and no longer approves of Victor’s work; she faces much difficulty in accepting that what her character has created is so awful and real. In this paragraph she does not make Victor seem god-like in any way. She now makes him seem almost devil-like in unleashing this demonic creature on the world. In so deliberately contrasting the emotions in these two paragraphs, Shelley adds great complexity to Victor’s character and her attitude towards him. She makes a statement that Victor does not possess any higher and respectable powers; he is not good at all. He has done something truly evil. 

Blog entry #2- A memorable moment in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

One moment that really stood out to me in Frankenstein was when Victor Frankenstein found that his closest friend, Henry Clerval, had been killed by his own creation. I remember reading the pages before he finds out about Clerval’s death and wondering what the real significance was to the story. Why was Shelley going into such great detail about this random small town that Victor went to and why were its inhabitants so suspicious of him and so inhospitable towards him? Was it really necessary to discuss this one detour Frankenstein took? What were the odds that Frankenstein would have to deal with yet another horrible situation? I was clearly being too naïve and optimistic about Frankenstein’s situation. I remember then feeling filled with dread as I realized this town’s tragedy probably did have some significance to the story and to Frankenstein himself, obviously. I began to wonder about who would suffer next, but I did not ever suspect that Frankenstein would have to face such a tragic loss or that Clerval had been murdered by the monster. I suspected that maybe Frankenstein looked like the criminal the town was after and would merely be placed in jail for a little while. I wondered if possibly some random man who looked like he would have been associated with Frankenstein but who actually had no connection to him whatsoever had been murdered. I thought that maybe the monster had killed an innocent man who could not bear to look at his demonic face and was killed because of his fears. I was again being far too optimistic, but how was I to know that such horrible events were about to occur! I just didn’t want this poor man to have to suffer any more, as childish as that sounds. I honestly was moved most by this scene because I genuinely felt bad for Victor. Victor says in the book, "The human frame could no longer support the agonizing suffering that I endured" (Shelley 122). It was at this point in the book that I myself could no longer endure the horrific amount of suffering this one man faced. I felt a new sense of sympathy towards Victor. Clerval had been such a central figure in his life and was one whom he even considered a part of his family. I could not even begin to imagine the amount of pain he must have been in after finding him dead. I also felt that this moment began a huge shift in the book. Although Frankenstein had been depressed before, now he truly wanted to be dead. I could only hope that the next chapters would be happier, but I now knew that this one sad man would never truly feel happiness again. 

Blog Assignment #1- Most memorable books

1. The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini. I read this book when I was 14. I was so moved by the stories and became very connected to the characters. I didn't want to put it down!

2. The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay, Michael Chabon. Although I had to read this book for my ID Paper, I still loved it! I liked reading about the Holocaust from the perspective of Jews in America.

3. All of the Harry Potter books, J. K. Rowling. I began reading this series the summer before my sophomore year while I was at camp. They scared me a lot at first and I even put away the books for a few months, but when I picked them back up I couldn't stop reading. It ended up taking me almost a full year to read all seven, but it was one of the best decisions I have ever made. They influenced me in uncountable ways. Literally obsessed.

4. Memoirs of a Geisha, Arthur Golden. I don't know why, but I loved this book. It was fascinating to read about such a different culture.

5. Flowers for Algernon, Daniel Keyes. I read this book some time during my middle school years and loved it. The story is amazing.

6. The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne. I read this for an English project last year and discussed corruption in the book. It is definitely a classic for a reason.

7. 1984, George Orwell. I read this this past summer. It was amazing to me how correct Orwell was in some of his predictions about the future.

8. Wild, Cheryl Strayed. It took me a while to finish this book, but it was amazing. Her story is unbelievable and I truly admire her strength and persistence.