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Themes of frankenstein

Themes of frankenstein. Sublime Nature. Sublime: dangerous beauty that has the power to renew and transform. Examples: Grand Canyon and Niagara Falls Whenever Frankenstein is depressed, he ventures out into nature. The powerful beauty of nature consoles him.

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Themes of frankenstein

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  1. Themes of frankenstein

  2. Sublime Nature • Sublime: dangerous beauty that has the power to renew and transform. • Examples: Grand Canyon and Niagara Falls • Whenever Frankenstein is depressed, he ventures out into nature. • The powerful beauty of nature consoles him. • The arrival of spring comforts the Creature despite his abandonment and rejection from society.

  3. Appearance Prejudices • Society’s perception of the beauty/ugliness binary: • Beauty is associated with good. • Deformity and ugliness are associated with evil. • The Creature is abnormally large and outwardly hideous. • Because of society’s prejudices against the unattractive, the Creature cannot be accepted into any sort of social sphere. • The Creature attempts to befriend a blind man (De Lacey) because he understands that he is shunned from for his appearance, but he is still rejected.

  4. Revenge • The Creature destroys Frankenstein’s family and friends in order to get revenge against Frankenstein for abandoning him and then destroying the mate he was creating for him. • As a result, Frankenstein relentlessly pursues revenge against the Creature. • Both of their unyielding pursuits for revenge lead to their demise.

  5. Responsibility • Frankenstein “fathers” the Creature, but then abandons him, never even naming him. • He fails to take responsibility for the life he creates and does not feel a sense of duty toward caring for it. • As a result of his abandonment of parental responsibilities, Frankenstein suffers the consequences.

  6. Nature versus Nurture • Nature: inborn or inherent qualities. • Nurture: the environmental influence. • Frankenstein and others that the Creature encounters believe that he is evil by nature. • His unnatural creation and unattractive appearance lead them to the conclusion. • However, the Creature does not truly become evil until Frankenstein and society reject him—the environment influences him in a negative way.

  7. Pursuit of Knowledge • Victor Frankenstein attempts to surpass the human limits and discover the secret of life. • In other words, he “plays God.” • Frankenstein’s pursuit of knowledge leads to the creation of a monster who destroys all who he loves and cares about. • This also leads to the destruction Frankenstein himself.

  8. Pursuit of Knowledge cont. • Capt. Walton also attempts to surpass previous human explorations with his expedition to the North Pole. • His pursuit proves dangerous when he finds his ship and crew trapped in ice. • However, Walton abandons his pursuit because he learned from Frankenstein how dangerous such a quest can be.

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