How does Mary Shelley present power, ambition and knowledge in 'Frankenstein'?

LANGUAGE

• In 'Frankenstein', Shelley presents power and ambition as deceiving through the use of figurative language. Victor frequently refers to the "yellow light" of the moon when nearing an accomplishment. The moon reflects the sense of power he feels at these climatic moments as the moon controls the waves of the sea. Thus, Frankenstein's ambitions of controlling nature and mastering it like God makes him feel as though he can control the world. 
• The reader may feel as though Victor has become quite delusional as both a modern and Elizabethan audience may assume that God is omnipotent and perhaps transcendent which is unlike a human like Victor Frankenstein. Moreover, Shelley may be echoing ideas about Romanticism and how reason can not be found for everything. In Jean-Jacques Rousseau's 'Emile or On Education', the author says one must allow 'nature to work'. Victor assumes he can look at the moon with a "yellow light" when it is often seen as white by the entire readership which suggests Victor should not try to manipulate the image of nature. 
• Shelley being a Romantic writer may have wanted to suggest how ambitions to twist nature is dangerous because Victor becomes delusional isolates himself in a "little hut" for "two years" for instance. Therefore, nature should be left 'to work'.
• Moreover, the "yellow" may be referring to a trophy thus an award for his accomplishments. Turning a natural satellite (the moon) into an artificial object emphasises how Victor Frankenstein has become incredibly obsessive and blind to reality (power and ambition is not great to have) which suggests how power and ambition is deceiving.

STRUCTURE

Mary Shelley presents power and knowledge as destructive through the use of juxtaposition. Victor says he "kept his workshop of filthy creation" which contrasts with the "divine" nature of his ambition he initially held.

• The juxtaposition between "filty" which connotes to dirt whereas "divine" suggests Victor's ambitions are pure and clean of sin. An Elizabethan reader may feel suspense as contemporaneously, many people felt fear from God. The juxtaposition may suggest Victor is rejecting God as he opposes the "divine" with "filthy". Moreover, the audience may assume ambition is terrible as they can see how rapidly and significantly Victor's ambitions became a positive to a negative quest. Shelley may be allowing both a modern and contemporary readership to see the rapid and extreme changes in Victor's mood and may be echoing ideas from the Enlightenment Era. Shelley opposed the Enlightenment movement as she found greater pleasure in the Romantic movement. The Enlightenment movement consisted of using reason to explain everything. The juxtaposition, therefore, may demonstrate how discombobulated Victor has become from trying to find reason through Enlightenment beliefs. A modern reader may feel as though Victor's attempt to use science to provide reason is unethical, for in Modern society, science can be used to create new organs through stem cells and even clone. Thus, his vocations seem dangerous and the consequences may seem destructive (creating a human by selecting their genes for instance is very controversial and may create a super species which is a threat to normal humans).

FORM

In 'Frankenstein', Mary Shelley presents knowledge and ambition as destructive through the use of the Chinese-box form. A01

• The monster's narrative follows from Victor's which follows from Robert Walton's. Thus, Victor's creation may be considered as the heart of the novel or Pandora's forbidden box which was presented to Prometheus to punish his brother, Epimetheus (which could be symbolic of Robert Walton). Thus, Shelley may be echoing ideas from the Greek myth: Prometheus and may create an ominous effect to an Elizbethan and modern readership as they may draw their own knowledge of the myth and realise that both Robert Walton and Victor Frankenstein will be crushed for their ambition and knowledge. A03 and A01
• Victor opens the 'forbidden' box in pursuit of knowledge and in turn releases horror and turmoil into the novel: his creation. The monster's box as portrayed through the form is the deepest and the darkest in the novel which suggests the horror and turmoil will affect not only Victor, but also Walton's narrative. He is powerful and therefore able to cause grave danger. Ambition and knowledge seems ruinous as the mosnter is a product of Victor's. A02 and A03.
•  Moreover, the audience may assume Victor Frankenstein is 'The Modern Prometheus' as Victor 'Frankestein' takes the alternative novel name. Victor tries to achieve his ambition of creating life by the "bolt" by altering nature (creating the monster, the next box). He fails like Prometheus who was often believed to have stolen fire from Zeus in order to master the power of the divine. However, their knowledge and ambition lead to destruction as Prometheus is eternally eaten by a caucuses and Victor's "die is cast". Thus ambition and knowledge is presented as devastating.  A03 and A02 and A01

NOT DESTRUCTIVE to be critical
Juxtaposition between art subject and Victor's fondness of "natural philosophy" which was creating reason to matter although a modern audience would consider it a science. Art more about self-expression etc.
Find in extract
Well, Clerval's character - essay attached here. Clerval prefers to be the "complete master of the oriental languages" so he would like to "plan his life".

He is ambitious but not selfishly.