Biographical/Historical Influences Essay

Frankenstein, also known as ‘The Modern Prometheus’, is written by a British author Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin – Shelley during her teens. The novel’s theme is leavened with a few characteristics of Gothic and Romanticism. Based on â€Å"Frankenstein, Or, The Modern Prometheus† (Shelley), the title is alluded to an inventor, Victor Frankenstein, who has an ability to create life of a man whom he calls ‘monster’ afterwards. Moreover, the long arguments with regard to the significance and originality of the story always come along the way; thus, this paper unfolds the real essence of the story—what does it signify for the modern readers; and how do words of the story flow along with the connotations; its influences and so on. Given the list of influences and/or events from Mary Shelley’s life, it becomes quite easy to identify and distinguish how these impacts have prospered to the entire conception of the novel. One of the influences concern the arguments of his father, Godwin in Political Justice, in which he argues that decisions made concerning who lives and dies should be made by those scientists and doctors that are completely impartial. In addition, the impacts of Godwin’s pieces of writing in Shelley’s philosophical thoughts become undeniable, indeed. Her father created a certain philosophy in which the presence of responsibility is inevitable: â€Å"The true perfection of man was to attain, as nearly as possible, to the perfectly voluntary state; that we ought to be, upon all occasions, prepared to render a reason of our actions; and should remove ourselves to the furthest distance, from the state of mere inanimate machines, acted upon by causes of which they have no understanding,† (â€Å"Political Justice 2: 519-528,† Godwin). Hence, as an analysis of the entire view, it becomes quite easy to determine all the responsibilities, which are accountable for every individual’s behavior such as those of Frankenstein. One of the impacts that should also be acknowledged is that which concerns her father’s disapprobation of the rise of technology; stating that its existence would diminish the need for human beings to cooperate with each other—making it less and less necessary to work together. In other words, such a view concerns dealing with reliability on the information technology: â€Å"Responsibility in the contemporary world and with the awesome power of technology which may be used for good or evil has changed. We cannot evade the responsibility that comes with this change — the responsibility to use technology wisely, not only for the sake of our patients but also for the sake of the future. In a sense, we need to be able to foretell the future, to re-enunciate norms and standards as substitutes for the norms and standards left behind by technology. If we fail to do this, the future is bleak,† (Loewy). In other words, development of the high and sophisticated technologies may bring a number of troubles in various means, as seen in the Frankenstein’s work. Moreover, the creation of the novel also comes along with an influence concerning Mary Wollstonecraft (Shelley’s mother) who refers Frankenstein to Prometheus who attempts to give the power of the gods to humanity. In her novel, the appearance of the ‘monster’ is a scientific blame in which the creature dares to imitate God: â€Å"Nature in every thing demands respect, and those who violate her laws seldom violate them with impunity,† (â€Å"Vindication of the Rights of Woman,† Wollstonecraft). Hence, the laws of nature should make the boundaries of everyone’s behavior; Victor Frankenstein surpasses such boundaries like the new sophisticated technologies. Cited Works Loewy, Erich. â€Å"Textbook of Medical Ethics. † NY: Plenum Medical Book Company, 1989, p. 69 â€Å"Political Justice. † bilkent. edu. February 2, 2009. Shelley, Mary. â€Å"Frankenstein, Or, The Modern Prometheus. † Broadview Press Edition 2. Eds. David Lorne Macdonald and Kathleen Dorothy Scherf. Melbourne, Australia: The University of Melbourne, 1999. 364 pp Wollstonecraft, Mary. â€Å"Vindication of the Rights of Woman† pp 138-139. sa