Sunday, 21 May 2017

Mary Shelley presents justice in 'Frankenstein'

LANGUAGE
In 'Frankenstein', Mary Shelley presents justice as non-existent through the use of the past participle.

  • "I was benevolent and good misery made me a fiend"
  • "was" suggests he no longer has the characteristics of being benign and kind. The past tense the monster uses opposes the present nature of the layered narrative of the novel which may suggest how justice is being left in the past and is vanishing. Moreover, the quick change between the monster being nice and becoming a "wretch" is incredibly quick in the sentence which suggests how rapidly justice was destroyed thus creating an ominous effect and tension in the audience.The past tense suggests the change happened in one moment which creates an uncontrollable effect in the reader. The reader therefore, may feel as though they are lost in the past when the monster tells his tale. On the other hand, from the subtle and quick time shifts, Shelley may be echoing ideas from the Enlightenment Era and perhaps may be warning readers of following the Enlightenment belief of logic and scientific too quickly without remaining aware of the sentient nature of humans.
  •  As a Romantic writer, Shelley preferred a less controlled and strict lifestyle which is dictated by nature as opposed to science and therefore may be criticising the opposing contemporary movement which leaves the audience at an ultimatum. The ultimatum is Romanticism or just scrapped from the novel in its entirety.

LANGUAGE
The author presents justice as doubtfully present through the use of rhetorical questions.

  • In Volume II of the 1818 edition, the monster ponders "who was I?" and "what was I?". The use of rhetorical questions suggests the monster feels rather discombobulated as there is no one who would answer his questions. The monster's discombobulated state may be synonymous to Shelley experience as she had to conceal her real identity when publishing 'Frankenstein'. Young women were not often believed to have had sufficient logic to write a novel so she may have felt rather suppressed and confused, just like the monster. Societies view on women -
  • The monster's question of identity may be to induce sympathy from the audience as the monster is not given a name except insults, Victor having called him "daemon" and "wretch" in volume I as is similar with Shelley knowing she would have to remain anonymous when publishing 'Frankenstein'. Both characters suffer from identity problems and Shelley may be trying to address the stereotypes women held in Elizabethan society.She may have been inspired by her mother (modern reader may say she was a feminist) Mary Wollstonecraft who wrote a book based on women's role in her contemporary society called 'A Vindication of the Rights of Women'. The readers may therefore feel  sympathy for the monster thus Shelley as "daemon" suggests the monster is the opposite of all good and God which instantly alienates him from the characters in the novel as opposed to the readership. However, the audience may feel justice is absent in the novel as they may feel they should answer the monster's questions since none of the characters in the novel are.
  • Hence, the readers may feel as though Victor is the "creature" of the novel instead of the monster although this is not evinced which presents justice as scarcely, if not at all imminent in the novel. 
FORM

Justice is present in the novel.
  • Chinese-box form
  • Despite the monster having less leave way to speak, one might suggest the monster is the heart of the novel and is just as powerful as Victor Frankenstein.
  •  His box may be synonymous to Pandora's forbidden box which was mighty enough to unleash horror and turmoil into the world. The Chinese-box form may suggest Shelley is echoing ideas from Prometheus as Pandora's box was presented to him, like with Victor Frankenstein. The title of the novel being 'Frankenstein' and 'the Modern Prometheus' suggests Victor Frankenstein which further alludes to Prometheus.
  • Thus, she relies on the audience to draw their own prior knowledge of the Greek myth 'Prometheus' as the protagonist: Prometheus is punished for being overly ambitious (stealing fire from Zeus) and is eternally eaten by caucuses. Moreover, Prometheus' brother is also punished by Pandora's forbidden box, which arguably is the same for Victor (as he is presented with the monster's box in the Chinese-box narrative).
  •  The monster can be deemed as symbolic of Pandora's box as his narrative may be considered the darkness and depths of the novel which is synonymous to the darkness and horror Pandora's box unleashes. 
  • Therefore, the Chinese-box form, shows how the monster experiences Justice as Victor is punished (the "die is cast") by being overly ambitious as well, for he tries to master the "secrets" of the "bolt". "Secrets" suggests Victor's intentions are forbidden, like Prometheus' was as he stole fire and both characters experiencing punishment which is often believed to be a form of restoring justice. The audience may feel a sense of relief as punishment to achieve justice is universal.

MORE

YOU CAN TALK ABOUT WOMEN FORM. 
HOW VICTOR IS GIVEN MORE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK

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