Human Righteousness In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

In the iconic 19th century novel, Frankenstein, Mary Shelley criticizes mankind's imbedded desire for that which is unreachable- supreme and ultimate knowledge- and the corruption that follows through mad scientist Victor Frankenstein's pursuit to create unnatural life to his eventual bastardization of the very root of human righteousness. Throughout the novel, Frankenstein's utter obsession for scientific development evolves into an unquenchable thirst for foremost knowledge. It can later be learned within the narrative that this ravenous hunger became a fountainhead for his ensuing corruption and eventual demise. Through highlighting mankind's desire to find the undiscoverable, Shelley symbolizes the contradiction and inevitable destruction of natural human righteousness. Through his determination to fabricate human life, Frankenstein finds he has morphed into a monster, inevitably bound for a life of exile and torment- the very thing he unknowingly was destined to create. From this, Shelley is warning the dangers of obstructing the very basics of mankind and because of this exile and torment, Frankenstein finds himself choking on his own fabricated …show more content…
The fact that Victor is unable to realize the severity of the sin he has committed until the creature is breathing, much like himself, further symbolizes Shelley's central theme on the laws of existentialism. Through creating this monster, Victor sentences a living being to a life of blatant suffering and isolation (due to Frankenstein's relinquishment of his own creation). By abandoning his creation of life, Victor forgoes more and more of his humanity and exhibits his akin to the monster. In castigating his unnatural child to a life of unimaginable torment and isolationism, Victor pays the ultimate price for a knowledge that causes his own