“The creation of the monster” is an extract from Chapter 5 of “Frankenstein, or the Modern Prometheus”. It is a Gothic novel written by Mary Shelley in 1818, taking inspiration from a nightmare she had during a summer passed in the Lake Geneva region.
The text
"It was on a dreary night of November that I beheld the accomplishment of my toils. With an anxiety that almost amounted to agony, I collected the instruments of life around me, that I might infuse a spark of being into the lifeless thing that lay at my feet. It was already one in the morning; the rain pattered dismally against the panes, and my candle was nearly burnt out, when, by the glimmer of the half-extinguished light, I saw the dull yellow eye of the creature open; it breathed hard, and a convulsive motion agitated its limbs.
How can I describe my emotions at this catastrophe, or how delineate the wretch whom with such infnite pains and care I had endeavoured to form? His limbs were in proportion, and I had selected his features as beautiful. Beautiful! Great God! His yellow skin scarcely covered the work ofmuscles and arteries beneath; his hair was of a lustrous a lustrous black, and flowing; his teeth of a pearly whiteness; but these luxuriances
only formed a more horrid contrast with his watery eyes, that seemed almost of the same colour as the dun-white sockets in which they were set, his shrivelled complexion and straight black lips.
The different accidents of life are not so changeable as the feelings of human nature. I had worked hard for nearly two years, for the sole purpose of infusing life into an inanimate body. For this I had deprived myself of rest and health. I had desired it with an ardour that far exceeded moderation; but now that I had finished, the beauty of the dream vanished, and breathless horror and disgust filled my heart. Unable to endure the aspect of the being I had created, I rushed out of the room and continued a long time traversing my bedchamber, unable to compose my mind to sleep. At length lassitude succeeded to the tumult I had before endured, and I threw myselfon the bed in my clothes, endeavouring to seek a few moments of forgetfulness. But it was in vain; I slept, indeed, but I was disturbed by the wildest dreams. I thought I saw Elizabeth, in the bloom of health, walking in the streets of Ingolstadt. Delighted and surprised, I embraced her, but as I imprinted the first kiss on her lips, they became livid with the hue of death; her features appeared to change, and I thought that I held the corpse of my dead mother in my arms; a shroud enveloped her form, and I saw the grave-worms crawling in the folds of the fannel. I started from my sleep with horror; a cold dew covered my forehead, my teeth chattered, and every limb became convulsed; when, by the dim and yellow light of the moon, as it forced its way through the window shutters, I beheld the wretch – the miserable monster whom I had created. He held up the curtain of the bed; and his eyes, if eyes they may be called, were fixed on me. His jaws opened, and he muttered some inarticulate sounds, while a grin wrinkled his cheeks. He might have spoken, but I did not hear; one hand was stretched out, seemingly to detain me, but I escaped and rushed downstairs."The plot
The story is narrated throughout some letters sent by Captain Robert Walton to his sister. He shares with her the vicissitudes of doctor Victor Frankenstein that he met during his voyage to the North Pole. Victor first describes his early life in Geneva and his studies at the University of natural philosophy and chemistry. There, he is consumed by the desire to discover the secret of life because his mother died when he was very young. After several years of research, even though he succeedes in creating life, the result is horrible. Rejected by his own “father” and by society, the monster claims revenge.
The extract
It’s a night of November defined as “dreary” by the narrator that anticipates the terrible event is about to happen. It’s one in the morning and it’s mournfully raining outside. Victor is working with anxiety and agony utilizing the light of a candle almost utterly burnt. Thanks to an electric “spark”, the doctor finally gives life to the “human being” he created by putting together the best parts of different dead bodies. In actuality, the result of the experiment reveals itself as awful and scary. The creature, to which reference is made via the pronoun “it”, is a veritable monster. He opens his apathetic yellow eyes, tries to breathe and starts shaking his body.
Here comes the first Victor’s disappointment, who’s full of horror and disgust at the sight of his “son”. He testifies the effect of the sublime with an oxymoron: he feels a strong emotion in front of something terrible. The creature has feeble yellow skin which makes visible the muscles and blood vessels under it. He is characterised by fluent black hair and bright white teeth that point out the contrast with his languid eyes, wrinkly skin and “straight black lips”.
In a distressed mental state, confused, stunned and tired, the doctor falls asleep, hoping to forget his creation. He has a nightmare in which he dreams of seeing Elizabeth through the night's fog. He tries to hug and kiss her when she becomes livid as starting the death process. Then she turns into Victor’s mother and he sees worms starting crawling out of the burial shroud which enveloped her. Covered with fear and anxiety, Frankenstein wakes up and witnesses an atrocious scene: the monster comes towards him, trying to speak.
Creation
The doctor tries to wear God's clothes by creating life, but he fails. The author Mary Shelley creates a contrast between God's creation of Adam and Eve to Victor's creation of the monster. Frankenstein sees his creation as beautiful and yet repugnant, according to the feeling of the sublime, widespread during the romantic period. Instead, in the Book of Genesis of the Bible, God considers his creations as good and He loves them as a Father.
Gothic elements
The grotesque is the dominant element of the entire event. It is expressed by the detailed descriptions of the horrifying monster’s features, which make the creature take shape. The mysterious atmosphere emphasizes the narration thanks to an undead ambience, instilling fear in the reader.
Victor’s immediate emotion is disappointment. His mind follows a logical process that makes him consider all his sacrifice as quite vain. He studied and worked hard, even without considering his own health, to create life, but now he feels part of a huge and horrible disaster.
The role of science
The whole novel is based on the role that science has in society. As we can read, its bad use creates disappointment, just like the revolutions of the 18th century. Mary Shelley creates a comparison between Frankenstein and professor Waldman. When he was young, he created some experiments about life very similar to the ones made by Victor. The huge difference between the two characters relates to the approach to science. The author has faith in progress but she also underlines the scientists’ responsibility to mankind. Professor Waldman was able to stop his studies when he understood that he was reaching the limits of human knowledge. Victor got obsessed with his project and tried to go beyond his own possibility (this is the reason why the novel is also called “the Modern Prometheus”). He is an overreacher just like Captain Walton, who tries to reach the North Pole.
What are the consequences of their action? Can always progress improve human life quality? As well as Mary Shelley, the German dramatist Bertold Brecht analysed this topic in the play “Life of Galileo” (1938). The book represents the last part of Galileo’s life in which he has to fight against the church to protect his scientific discoveries. The essential opposition between dogmatism and scientific progress is the main topic of the play. Galileo tries to defeat the previous Aristotelian-Ptolemaic system with the Copernican option. In the end, due to one of his books, Galileo is condemned to abjuration. Brecht fits part of his society in the book. In fact, he lives during the era of the nuclear arms race and he criticises people who use science not to help humanity, but to destroy it.
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