Frankenstein and Society

Mary Shelly critiques the prejudice of her contemporary society. Victor, the mad scientist in her novel, is treated with respect and dignity, while his creation is mistreated as a social outcast. The cause of prejudice, of course, is an instinctive impulse engraved into our minds by society. It is not controlled by our rationality, but a psychological mystery. In a way, therefore, Mary Shelly is critiquing human being’s irrational side. At the same time, however, Shelly critiques the contemporary era of Enlightenment and suggests that man should turn to something less rational- our intuition. It is not by chance that Victor tampers with the dangers of science, which ends up with deadly consequences. The double message and confusion are shared with the movie, Solaris. In both masterpieces, it is unclear whether the main characters are rational or emotional; just as in real life, both aspects guide their decisions.

In Frankenstein, social prejudice is evident in the manner that Victor and his creation are portrayed. As an overdramatic scientist, Victor is egocentric and selfish. Looking into his soul, one will see a hideous creature masked by the skin of his face. He is the ultimate prejudging character in the novel. In the beginning, after the discovery of William’s death, Victor automatically believes that it was the monster who had done it. During Justine’s trial, Victor was not thinking about the possible execution of Justine, but rather the effect of her death on him. Furthermore, when the creature swears revenge on Victor’s wedding night, he did not think about the safety of his wife, but his own. However, society treated Victor with great respect; after his death, his companion Walton had claimed Victor as a heroic scientist. On the contrary, Victor’s creature is rejected by society. Firstly, his master immediately runs away from him due to his appearance. And as the creature learns from people, he encounters a blind man who tolerates the creature as a “human creature.” (177) However, when the family returns to the cottage, the monster is immediately “struck violently with a stick.” (178) Though he is mistreated, the creature discovers the beauty of mankind and learns to be sophisticated. The creature gains intelligence and logic through books such as “Plutarch’s Lives, Sorrows of Werter, and Paradise Lost.” He would have a beautiful soul if it weren’t for social prejudice, for he kills Victor’s wife because Victor has killed his. Without the impulsive prejudice in the story, the creature would not have become miserable/violent and Victor would have been the monster.

Shelly shows the injustice of prejudice, but does indicate rationality as the answer to the problem. In fact, she also critiques reason. Since science is a product of reason, Shelly uses it as the theme of critique and shows how it is dangerous. Victor tampers with the dangers of science by vitalizing the creature. During the Romantic era, the heavy industrial development left reactionary resentment, creating a wave of writers like Shelley who thought science to be dangerous. Rather than looking at the world through rational eyes, Romantics embraced the beauty of nature and the world with love. They argued that scientific machinery like factories will ultimately destroy the world. In Frankenstein, the creature is angry with the world due to social prejudice. “Remember that I have power..You are my creator, but I am your master..!” (Pg.224) By inventing a scientific creature that is uncontrollable even by the master, people’s lives are jeopardized. Victor had created the monster with benevolent intentions. “I will pioneer a new way, explore unknown powers, and unfold to the world the deepest mysteries of creation.” (53) Just as scientists start out with optimism, experiments go wrong and the world has to suffer the consequences. Instead of discovering a method to fight death, Victor has killed everyone around him.

Solaris, like Frankenstein, follows a similar double. Solaris does not advocate rationality, but does not embrace irrationality. Though Soderbergh revolves the theme around love, the double message of the movie is ambiguously similar to Frankenstein. Solaris, the ship, is an experiment gone wrong, which shows the dangers of science. Like the monster, the Solaris experiment ultimately kills most people on the ship. However, there is a deeper part to the story which is linked with the social injustice of Frankenstein: Kelvin lustfully hungers over his wife, but just like the prejudice in Frankenstein, the impulsive side of humans is not the answer. In the end of the movie, Kelvin’s impulsive sexual need for his wife is rejected, for Rheya kills herself.

As a psychologist, Kelvin must have led a routinely life. As seen in the beginning of the movie, he is the host of a group session of mental patients, though he himself is mourning over the death of