this post was submitted on 09 Jul 2023
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Showerthoughts
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A "Showerthought" is a simple term used to describe the thoughts that pop into your head while you're doing everyday things like taking a shower, driving, or just daydreaming. The best ones are thoughts that many people can relate to and they find something funny or interesting in regular stuff.
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See for me it's not so much the rejection of science itself as the fact that he was trying to play God and the creature was a reflection of that. There might even be a metaphor in there somewhere regarding original sin and God's rejection of man. He creates this thing then abandons it because it's not perfect. Had he an ounce of love things would've turned out differently.
He even dug up corpses to pursue this knowledge of creation. He chose to stick to outdated science even while professors and his father tried to show him new fields of science. He wasn't pursuing science, he was pursuing an outdated model of knowledge.
That’s a really fascinating perspective, it’s definitely set my mind spinning. I reckon our theories might actually mesh together in a way.
Consider why Victor felt the need to abandon his creation. Was it not in part due to his dread of society’s judgement, which, in turn, highlights the destructive influence society can wield?
And regarding the aspiration to ‘play God,’ could it possibly be an offshoot of societal pressures and expectations?
The novel is incredibly rich, and all too often, it’s overly simplified.
Great post OP, really an engaging discussion. (At least I think so)
Your version reminds me of Vonnegut's that was something like this in an imagined conversation with Mary Shelly: "Dr. R - Does it bother you when people call the monster in the book 'Frankenstein'? MS - Not really. There were two monsters in the book, after all, and one of them was named 'Frankenstein.'"