A Lesson From Frankenstein | Light Force Network

Mary Shelley’s Gothic horror novel, Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus (1818) tells the tragic fictional story of a talented young scientist, Victor Frankenstein, whose arrogant and obsessive curiosity led him too far, tempting him to play God, a venture that produced a monster and ultimately destroyed its creator.

Bolstered by knowledge derived from modern science, the occult and alchemy, Victor Frankenstein was tempted to play God by creating a new human by reanimating an assemblage made from human body parts of the deceased. Rather than his science benefiting mankind, he created a monster that tormented him, destroyed Frankenstein’s friends and family and threatened mankind before Frankenstein was himself destroyed. Mary Shelley’s novel carries the message that not all science and knowledge produces progress.

The novel also carries the message that criminals are made rather than born. The horrific appearance of the monster generated fear and aggression in people, which is depicted as initially unfair. Victor Frankenstein, having created the monster, upon seeing its horrible appearance, rejected and neglected it, and therefore failed in his duties as a father. In addition, despite the monster’s initial benevolent attitudes towards people, this was not reciprocated when he sought companionship. Their fearful and violent responses produced a bitterness and vengeful resentment in the monster that was homicidal and destructive. Hostile to mankind, the monster reserved his cruellest revenge for his creator, Victor Frankenstein.- Mark Lopez *

One other message conveyed by Frankenstein is the danger that lies with considering the negative consequences of science and technology after-the-fact, instead of before. More generally speaking, when people neglect to consider the potential negative impacts of their actions, it is a form of willful ignorance. On the other hand, being risk-averse is tricky because predicting the future with complete accuracy is impossible. Although Frankenstein was written in 1818, the unintended effects of science and technology still plague society today.

In chapter three, a chemistry professor M. Waldman encourages Victor to pursue a broad education, which inspires Victor to gain knowledge on the secret of life and eventually create Frankenstein. I see a parallel in the often well-intended interests of people in scientific fields and the encouraging relationship between M. Waldman and Victor. Google started as a project by two PhD students with the goal of analyzing the relationships among websites.¹ Yet, Google’s use of user’s privacy data in the last decade has lead to controversy about its “freemium” model.² In order for Google to adequately fund its business operations, many critics have asked if it is moral to sell customers’ private data. It is a difficult question to answer because on the other hand, Google provides a host of free services that many educational institutions and their students benefit from. Much like Victor’s creation of Frankenstein, Larry Page and Sergey Brin’s creation of Google has sparked many issues regarding the ethics behind their technology. It is unlikely that Victor and the creators of Google could accurately predict the long-term impacts of their creation. However, some level of risk estimation is not impossible; Victor could have considered what to do if Frankenstein misbehaved and the creators of Google could have considered other ways to become a profitable business without data infringement.

“Seek happiness in tranquility and avoid ambition, even if it be only the apparently innocent one of distinguishing yourself in science and discoveries.”³

The novel also address the shortfalls of creating Frankenstein and in a broader sense, the negative impacts of science and technology in a cynical and destructive manner. In the above quote, Robert Walton recounts Victor’s warning on the dangers on ambition by “[seeking] happiness in tranquility”. In the context of the novel, this disposition is sympathetic to Victor’s character and his experiences creating Frankenstein. However, when placed in the context of modern science, this disposition will lead to laziness and further destruction. This quote sheds light on the cynical side of humans in face of immense scientific and technological discoveries. Many people today are like Victor and feel overwhelmed and defeated by the consequences of science. With global warming, for example, our society is divided on how to deal with high greenhouse emissions. Some people are indifferent and are not proactive about lowering their carbon footprint. As a result, these people are living in “tranquility” and following the negligent advice of Victor.**

¹“From The Garage To The Googleplex,” Google, accessed September 24, 2018. https://www.google.com/about/our-story/

²Freemium is any product that provides a service for free while additional services can be purchased for money.

³Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein. London: Lackington, Hughes, Harding, Mavor, & Jones, 1818.