E-C-201: The Romantic Literature

Name: Nargis I. Saiyad

Paper: E-C-201: The Romantic Literature.

Topic: Themes & Motifs in ‘Frankenstein’

SEM: 2, Part: 1.

Year: 2011/12.

Submitted To,

 Dr. Dilip Barad,

Dept.of English,

Bhavnagar University.

 Themes                    

                                                Themes means the fundamental universal ideas used in a literary work. The themes are like these:

v Dangerous Knowledge-

                                                           Here, Victor wanted to learn the secret of life beyond the limits of human-being and so, the result came out the death of every nearer and dearer of Victor. Robert Walton- Victor’s friend also wanted to know something which breaks the limitation. He attempts to surpass previous human explorations by trying to reach the North Pole. Luckily, he learns the lesson from Victor’s life and finally withdraws his voyage. He comes to know how destructive the thirst for knowledge can be. It reminds one Gujarati saying,

                                           “Ati ni koi gati nai”

v Monstrosity-

                                           The monstrosity is of course very important theme of the novel. Victor creates monster by using chemical and dead body.  He does monstrosity in the whole world.

                                            Even the monster’s creator is one monster because of his monstrous deed. We can say he was the true “monster” inside.

                                                           Some critics even call this novel as monstrous novel because it was the combination of different voices, texts and tenses, also.

v Sublime Nature-

                       

                                                           The influence of Nature on mood is clearly seen throughout the novel. After the deaths of William and Justine, Victor feels guilt because he thinks that he was responsible for their death and he heads to the mountains to lift his spirits. Same like that, after a hellish winter of cold and loneliness, the monster feels lighten as spring arrives. In the end, as Victor chases monster, nature was in the form of the Arctic desert.

v Secrecy -  

                   

                                          In the novel, Victor thinks that science is a mystery to be probed. He keeps the secret of his making a new life from dead body and chemicals. Victor tells about the natural philosopher, Mr. Krempe with whom he meets at Ingolstadt,

              "An uncouth man, but deeply imbued in the secrets of his science."

                               After creating monster, He keeps this secret away from society. The truth of his life becomes immortalized in Walton's letters.

v Texts -

                    

                     'Frankenstein' is full of text like letters, notes, journals, and books fill the novel.

                          We come to know about the story through Walton's letters.

                            In Walton's letters, Victor's story comes, in victor's monster's story fits, in monster's story, the love story of Felix and Safie and references to 'Paradise Lost' comes in it. Monster understands the manner of his creation, as described in Victor's journal. At the end, he leaves notes for Victor when he goes to the northern ice.

 Motifs

                         Motifs are the recurring structures, contrast or other literary devices that can help to develop the text's major theme.

·       Passive Women -

                                             Marry's mother Wollstonecraft was the author of 'A Vindication of the Rights of woman', a feminist tract encouraging women to think and do for themselves but her daughter's novel is striking without strong female characters.

For example,

> Caroline Beaufort - She is a self - sacrificing mother who dies                                                                      taking care of her adopted daughter.

> Justine - She is executed for murder, she has not committed.

> Female monster - Victor first creates female monster then himself destroys him.

> Elizabeth - Elizabeth waits for Victor to marry and in waiting he becomes impatient. But she is also killed by the monster at the end.

                              One can argue that Shelley has intentionally put her characters so passive to exhibit the destructive behaviors of Victor and the monster.

·         Abortion -

                             This motif recurs as both Victor and the monster express their sense of the monster's evilness. When Victor first time sees monster he says,

"When I thought of him, I gnashed my keenly wished to destroy that life which I had so thoughtlessly made."

                        Monster also feels disgust for himself:

"I, the miserable and the lonely, am an abortion, to be spurned at, and kicked, and trampled on."

                        We can see the second time appearance of the motif when Victor destroys his work on a female monster.

                          Frankenstein transcends Gothicism by combining science with the supernatural, or at least the supernatural and 'Frankenstein; or, the Modern Prometheus' can be approached as a treatise on moral development and educational theory. Shelley has used the themes and motifs like these to represent it which are very symbolic.