In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, there are recurring themes of isolation, nature, and scientific advancements. Written during the Industrial Revolution, Frankenstein also takes inspiration from the machinery and technology that was developed during that time. Shelley, as well as other romanticists, was against the societal shift towards technology and encouraged the appreciation of nature. Shelley uses the monster in her novel as a societal reflection of the Industrial Revolution and as a warning of the dangers of scientific advancements. When scientific advancements are made without morals or considering the consequences, they can harm society. Morals are what people believe to be right or wrong. During the Industrial Revolution, there was
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As the monster begins to learn more, he realizes that “sorrow only increased with knowledge. Oh that [he] had forever remained in [his] native wood, nor known nor felt beyond the sensations of hunger, thirst, and heat” (Shelley 120). The monster regrets learning about desires beyond basic needs. The more knowledge the monster obtains, the more self aware and miserable he becomes. The monster desires love, however he is unable to attain the same relationships regular humans have. Workers during the Industrial Revolution were aware of their poor conditions and were unable to fulfill their basic needs. Victor also learns the dangers of knowledge and technology. Victor describes himself as “a blasted tree; the bolt has entered [his] soul; and [he] felt then that [he] should survive to exhibit what [he] shall soon cease to be” (Shelley 165). Victor compares himself to a tree that is destroyed by lightning which parallels to how nature is destroyed by wild and uncontrolled technology. Since the monster was also created by lightning, the monster is the result of uncontrolled science. Shelley uses the monster to show readers how the factory workers’s poor situation was due to technology that was created without considering the consequences it would have on
As the monster begins to learn more, he realizes that “sorrow only increased with knowledge. Oh that [he] had forever remained in [his] native wood, nor known nor felt beyond the sensations of hunger, thirst, and heat” (Shelley 120). The monster regrets learning about desires beyond basic needs. The more knowledge the monster obtains, the more self aware and miserable he becomes. The monster desires love, however he is unable to attain the same relationships regular humans have. Workers during the Industrial Revolution were aware of their poor conditions and were unable to fulfill their basic needs. Victor also learns the dangers of knowledge and technology. Victor describes himself as “a blasted tree; the bolt has entered [his] soul; and [he] felt then that [he] should survive to exhibit what [he] shall soon cease to be” (Shelley 165). Victor compares himself to a tree that is destroyed by lightning which parallels to how nature is destroyed by wild and uncontrolled technology. Since the monster was also created by lightning, the monster is the result of uncontrolled science. Shelley uses the monster to show readers how the factory workers’s poor situation was due to technology that was created without considering the consequences it would have on