In Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein, or The Modern Prometheus, Shelley develops ideas from The Myth of Prometheus through the use of allusions. In The Myth of Prometheus, Prometheus provided humans with the knowledge that he had to help them survive. Zeus took away fire from humans as revenge for a trick Prometheus pulled. Prometheus gave fire to man once again and for that he got punished for eternity. In the section of “It’s Greek to Me” in How to Read Literature Like a Professor, Foster states how Greek allusions are ubiquitous, and that the allusions are around in titles. Mary Shelley uses the title Frankenstein, or The Modern Prometheus, to allude to Prometheus, but as Foster presents through “Musee des Beaux Arts” and “Landscapes with Fall of Icarus” , is that the allusions are more in-depth than what is shown through the title. The title has a direct allusion to Prometheus, but Shelley is also conveying that the storylines have common themes, such as ignorance and tragedy.
In Frankenstein, Victor, like Prometheus, is flawed. One reason why greek allusions are often thought of is because greek gods and goddesses are associated with perfection, but Fosters’ ideas show that they are as imperfect and flawed as humans as he states that “these folks aren’t saints. ”(Foster, 63). Victor had the desire to do something that would give him recognition because to him it was a great way to gain glory and power, but it is ironic because in reality it was ignorance that drove him into believing that he could defeat nature. “A new species would bless me as its creator and source; many happy and excellent natures would owe their being to me.” (Shelley, 48) Shelley presents that Victor forgets what is best for society and instead seeks glory. Victor soon created a monster, and immediately felt “…breathless horror and disgust…” (Shelley, 51) of the monster he created. Although the monster was supposed to be a good offering to the world, he soon became a danger to others, whose will was to slaughter. After Victor created the monster he spent his life miserable, stating the he is “…chained in an eternal hell.” (Shelley, 194) just the way Prometheus was in a reoccuring state of misery by the eagle who was sent to destroy his organs every day.This makes Victor the reincarnation of Prometheus, because he wanted to create something that he hoped would be a gain for the world and bring him power without thinking of the repercussions of his actions. They both have a keen sense of knowledge and a fantasy of doing something great. It is from their ignorance and foolishness that they have a miserable life and that they suffer from their curiosity and desire for knowledge.
Foster presents the idea that Greek allusions are used throughout different texts, and the allusions to the Myth of Prometheus in Frankenstein supports this argument.Through this chapter Foster states that allusions are found through titles, people, and symbols which reflect toward Shelley’s significant work in Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus.
Chapter 9- It’s More Than Just Rain or Snow
In the novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley weather plays a vital role in connecting major plot lines in the book. Shelley uses the motif of weather to state the emotional state the characters in Frankenstein are expressing at the time. In How to Read Literature Like a Professor, Foster explains how weather is “plot device”(Foster, 71). Shelley incorporates Fosters idea of a “plot device” to foreshadow events. When Shelley states, “It was on a dreary night of November that I beheld the accomplishment of my toils” (Shelley, 51), she uses weather to foreshadow the events to come, using the diction of darker, more gloomy days, to express that bad times are near, this unpleasant event being the creation of Victor’s monster and the conflicts that arise with the monster. This instates the themes of prejudice and revenge because of the “…breathless horror and disgust…” (Shelley, 51) the monster brings, and the revenge the monster wants due to the prejudice against him. This description of weather was used as a plot device in a major point of Frankenstein to symbolize that bad times were coming. This event presumably led to the death of many of Victor’s loved ones, where Shelley also used dark weather to foreshadow their deaths.
In How to Read Literature Like a Professor Foster also expresses the idea that weather has the potential to influence the characters state of emotion. Foster states that rain can either “cleanse” a character or “… that if he falls down, he’ll be covered in mud and therefore more stained than before.” When Victor says “I remained, while the storm lasted, watching its progress with curiosity and delight” (Shelley ,36) it is at first an awakening for him because he realizes that in his life he would like to be a scientist, but it is also the beginning of a downfall for him. She uses the description “…dazzling light…” (Shelley, 36) to show the enlightenment the lightning causes and to foreshadow the obsession he has with dangerous science and the future pain it will bring to his emotions which will cause further negative emotions.
Chapter 11- More Than It’s Gonna Hurt You: Concerning Violence
Chapter 19- Geography Matters…
Mary Shelley use geography in her novel Frankenstein symbolically as a way to provide new themes to the book and further develop the plot and characters. In Thomas Foster’s How to Read Literature Like a Professor, Foster expresses the idea that geography can develop themes throughout books stating “Geography in literature can also be more. It can be revelatory of virtually any element in the work. Theme? Sure.” (Foster, 174) When Shelley describes certain setting she is using those locations as a way to present new themes and provides each setting with an essence surrounding it supporting Foster’s idea that geography can advance new themes in a book. For example when Shelley uses the sea as a setting, it presents the book with a theme of loneliness. When Shelley states “But I have one want which I have never yet been able to satisfy; and the absence of the object of which I now feel as a most severe evil” she is using Walton’s journey through the sea to show that he is alone and has virtually no one around, which is the first time in this book where you get the sense that there is a horror in being alone. She once again uses the sea in Victor’s point of view to give off a sense of loneliness saying “…many appalling hours passed…” (Shelley, 183) Foster elaborates on how geography has advanced many books using Song of Solomon as an example stating “He could have done none of those things had he stayed in his familiar geography”(Foster, 176) which through these descriptions of the sea Shelley presents new themes that wouldn’t be present if in another location which the character Walton was more familiar with. Another idea Foster presents is the highs and lows of setting. The high being areas such as mountains and valleys and the lows being areas such as fields and lakes. Foster associates the highs with “snow,…purity,…life”(Foster, 181) while the lows are associated with “darkness,…unpleasantness,…people” (Foster, 181) In Frankenstein the monster undergoes a lot of prejudice from humans. To get away he goes to the “unstained snowy mountain-top”, which by the description is pure and isolated. He uses the mountain as a place of refuge from humans who have a prejudice against him. For the monster the highs of the setting are his getaway from the evils the lows bring. Through the use of geography Shelley uses the ideas Foster presents to further develop the plot and characters within the book.
Chapter 20-…So Does Season
Throughout the novel Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, Shelley uses seasons to communicate certain plot lines and emotions in the novel. In How to Read Literature Like a Professor Foster states that in books “We read the seasons in them almost without being conscious of the many associations we bring to that reading.” (Foster, 191) Shelley uses the seasons spring and fall to express what the character Victor is experiencing in terms of age, mood, tone, and view on life as a way to further develop Victor’s character and his goals. In Frankenstein Shelley makes a divide in each season using different moods and emotions to express each season. Foster expresses “…spring has to do with childhood and youth…”(Foster, 186) and Shelley presents Fosters idea by making spring when he is young and full of life. For example Shelley states “…to see once more the blue lake and rapid Rhone that had been so dear to me in early childhood…” (Shelley, 162) to describe that spring is associated with Victor’s childhood and the cheerful parts of his life. Foster also presents the idea of “seasonal implications” (Foster, 187) where even though the seasons aren’t directly stated in the book it can be inferred due to “time of day, mood, tone, and point of view.”(Foster, 187) Foster also states that fall is associated with “decline and middle age and tiredness” (Foster,186) Shelley applies both of Foster’s ideas when describing fall time. She states “By my enthusiasm was checked by my anxiety, and I appeared rather like one doomed by slavery to toil in the mines, or any other unwholesome trade…Every night I was oppressed by a slow-fever, and I became nervous to a most painful degree…”(Shelley, 50) She is expressing fall, through the use of tone, mood, and time of day, as a time in Victor’s life that causes him depression and jadedness without explicitly stating that it is fall. Foster also describes fall as a season of “agricultural but also to personal harvests”(Foster, 188) which is what Shelley presents when she states “The leaves of that year had withered before my work drew near to a close; and now every day showed me more plainly how well I succeeded.” (Shelley, 50) She uses fall to describe Victor’s own personal accomplishment in creating the monster, but also to show the horrid in his isolation by the result endeavors. When using season Shelley advances the plot line by using season to describe emotion, age, and life.