The controversial question of “what does it mean to be human?” has been discussed since the dawn of humanity. Throughout history, there have been numerous attempts to establish an absolute answer to the question, always being influenced by the world and its remarkable events. It often gave birth to new ideas such as Romanticism. At the end of the eighteenth century, Romanticism emerges as a result of the Age of Enlightenment and Industrial Revolution, which was accompanied by the rather threatening power of advancing science. Romantic philosophers focused on returning to human emotions and nature, not only impacting the literature and arts of their time, but the society of our time as well in terms of its relevance. Today, as science progresses,
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The relevance of the novel is felt the strongest nowadays because it poses an important reference, by providing a fictional simulation, to the continuing debate of the definition of human.
Emotions and self-consciousness determine the character of human and confirms its existence. The depiction of Victor's creature suggests the creature is human despite being created in a scientific experiment. For example, the creature can feel emotions that arise from human interactions. He tells a moment from his tale where he saw "[an old man] raised [a young girl] and smiled with such kindness and a affection that [he] felt sensations of a peculiar and overpowering nature; they were a mixture of pain and pleasure, such as [he] had never before experienced, either from hunger or cold, warmth or food; and [he] withdrew from the window, unable to …show more content…
Prior to this event, the entirety of the creature’s existence lied on his survival, just as any other animal that does not possess humanity. This remarkable event reveals that the creature can, unlike what one assumes of a monster, think and feel like a human. In addition to expressing emotions, the creature also demonstrates a high level of self-consciousness. The creature thinks to itself, "I was dependent on none and related to none. ‘The path of my departure was free,’ and there was none to lament my annihilation. My person was hideous and my stature gigantic. What did this mean? Who was I? What was I? Whence did I come? What was my destination? These questions continually recurred, but I was unable to solve them” (Shelley 152). The fact that the creature can ask such questions proves that he has human qualities. A non-human would not inquire its origins and existence, but would aim to satisfy its biological needs only. Recent advancements in Artificial Intelligence (AI) seem to suggest that machines capable of complex thoughts will eventually exhibit the same qualities
The relevance of the novel is felt the strongest nowadays because it poses an important reference, by providing a fictional simulation, to the continuing debate of the definition of human.
Emotions and self-consciousness determine the character of human and confirms its existence. The depiction of Victor's creature suggests the creature is human despite being created in a scientific experiment. For example, the creature can feel emotions that arise from human interactions. He tells a moment from his tale where he saw "[an old man] raised [a young girl] and smiled with such kindness and a affection that [he] felt sensations of a peculiar and overpowering nature; they were a mixture of pain and pleasure, such as [he] had never before experienced, either from hunger or cold, warmth or food; and [he] withdrew from the window, unable to …show more content…
Prior to this event, the entirety of the creature’s existence lied on his survival, just as any other animal that does not possess humanity. This remarkable event reveals that the creature can, unlike what one assumes of a monster, think and feel like a human. In addition to expressing emotions, the creature also demonstrates a high level of self-consciousness. The creature thinks to itself, "I was dependent on none and related to none. ‘The path of my departure was free,’ and there was none to lament my annihilation. My person was hideous and my stature gigantic. What did this mean? Who was I? What was I? Whence did I come? What was my destination? These questions continually recurred, but I was unable to solve them” (Shelley 152). The fact that the creature can ask such questions proves that he has human qualities. A non-human would not inquire its origins and existence, but would aim to satisfy its biological needs only. Recent advancements in Artificial Intelligence (AI) seem to suggest that machines capable of complex thoughts will eventually exhibit the same qualities