The romaticicm in Framkistein - Essay Example

Significantly, a profound exploration of the overriding themes, the plot, the characters, etc of Frankenstein: The Modern Prometheus confirms that many of the main ideas behind the literary movement of Romanticism can be seen in the novel. Thus, the themes such as the significance of nature, childhood, beautiful vs. sublime, revolt, etc reveal the basic Romantic ideals of the period. As Anneli Elsa?er purports, “In Frankenstein Mary Shelley contrasts beauty and serenity of nature to the destroying powers that can be released when meddling with scientific progress.

Her themes fit well into the ideas of the Romantic poets; she understands the state of childhood and also focuses on nature as counterpart to the progress and destruction of Industrialism and progress.” (Elsa?er, 2) Although the dark motifs of Frankenstein may not seem to conform to the brighter tones and subjects of the poems of the romantic poets such as Percy Bysshe Shelley, William Wordsworth, and Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Mary Shelley was deeply influenced by the romantics. Therefore, this paper makes a comprehensive analysis of Shelley’s Frankenstein, novel by highlighting the Romantic elements in the work, in order to establish that this novel is a prime example of a Romantic novel.

In a comprehensive appraisal of the major themes of Shelley’s Frankenstein, it becomes evident that the focal point of the novel is nature, which is a favorite theme of every Romantic poet. Whereas nature offers comfort and assistance to characters such as Walton and Victor in the novel, the theme of nature is closely connected to the underlying message of the novel: one should not attempt to conquer nature, but should try to embrace and harmonize with it. In fact, the novelist presents nature as a source of solace to almost all the characters in the novel, most markedly to Victor and his monster.

Thus, the novelist presents the monster as a lover of nature, and he has various connections to Romanticism. However, the monster is mocked by the nature when he is transformed into an anti-romantic, and it is evident from this character’s own words: “Nature decayed around me, and the sun became heatless; rain and snow poured around me; mighty rivers were frozen; the surface of the earth was hard and chill and bare, and I found no shelter. Oh, earth! how often did I imprecate currents on the cause of my being!

The mildness of my nature had fled, and all within me turned to gall and bitterness.” (Shelley, 110) Significantly, every Romantic poet focused on the soothing spirit of nature in their poems and Shelley’s Frankenstein reveals the soothing spirit of the nature through the characters such as Walton, Victor and his monster. Victor Franklin is a character who has experienced the soothing influence of the natural beauty tremendously in the novel, and it is evident that nature has shown the power to lift his spits again, whenever he feels the dark mood within himself.

“When happy, inanimate nature had the power of bestowing on me the most delightful sensations. A serene sky and verdant fields filled me with ecstasy.” (Shelley, 55) It is important to recognize that Mary Shelley frequently uses images of nature all