As the subtitle of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein indicates, the tragic story of Victor Frankenstein and his creation takes elements of the classic myth and reinterpreted through the progress of “modern” science. Against the backdrop of the scientific revolution, Shelley's novel confronts eternal dilemmas that have been addressed through myth. Although science and myth often seem at odds, one need only consider that much of ancient stories deal with unrealized, often fanciful, human ambitions that have since come true. For example, the legend of Icarus describes man's desire to dominate the skies through flight – an ambition made true by the invention of the airplane. In the same way, Frankenstein fulfills the human desire to create life through artificial means. However, Shelley suggests that such technological advances can have serious moral implications. Although science gives man the ability to realize his age-old ambitions, Shelley shows that we should look to classical myths as precautionary measures against the irrational use of scientific power. Shelley uses the story of Frankenstein, the “Modern Prometheus,” to demonstrate the consequences of overstepping natural limits and usurping divine authority. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Shelley's most explicit mythological reference is the often-overlooked subtitle of his novel, which describes Dr. Victor Frankenstein as a contemporary parallel to Prometheus. Prometheus, whose name means "foresight" (Prometheus), is a rebel Titan of the Greek pantheon, said to be the creator of man. According to legend, Prometheus intended man to be a being capable of imitating the gods - an idea similar to that expressed in the Genesis account, although distorted by the later disapproval that Prometheus' divine creations received from the of Zeus. Prometheus further angers the gods when, in search of a gift for his creation, he steals divine fire and transmits it to mortal man. As punishment for his transgression, Prometheus is chained to a rock, where an eagle descends daily to consume his liver. The most obvious parallel between Victor Frankenstein and Prometheus is that they both illegally create a human being. It must be remembered that Prometheus is not a god himself, but a Titan who takes on the task of creation to mock the gods of Mount Olympus. Likewise, Dr. Frankenstein usurps divine authority by creating a man through scientific means. Frankenstein's divine ambitions are also strongly implied in his first name, Victor, which can be interpreted as a subtle nod to Milton's Paradise Lost (Prometheus). Because the novel opens with a quote from Paradise Lost and the monster is later seen reading the epic, it is clear that Shelley intended for his readers to make a connection between Paradise Lost and Frankenstein. Therefore, it has been suggested that the name Victor refers to one of Milton's recurring titles for God in Paradise Lost, "The Victor". Shelley thus suggests that through his failed experiments, Victor Frankenstein seeks to play the role of God. Perversely, Frankenstein strives toward what sociologist Erich Fromm calls "transcendence" - "the act of transforming his accidental and passive role as a 'creature' to that of an active and determined 'creator'" (Allen 182). . Everyone recognizes that life in mortality has certain limitations. For the most part, these limitations depend on the extent to which the mind and bodyhumans can impose their will on the outside world. To compensate for the perceived inability to change one's environment, an individual strives to achieve transcendence (Allen 182). In a healthy context, the desire for transcendence will manifest itself through creative forms such as art or music (Allen 182). However, Fromm cautions that striving to overcome natural limitations can also lead to counter-creative impulses. “How does man solve the problem of surpassing himself, if he is not capable of creating, if he cannot love?” Fromm writes: “There is another answer to this need for transcendence: if I cannot create life, I can destroy it. Destroying life makes me transcend it” (Fromm 37). This negative attempt to overcome human constraints is also present in Shelley's Frankenstein. Frankenstein, in seeking to overcome his own limitations as a created being, decides to project those same limitations onto another entity by creating his own creature. Frankenstein hopes that the birth of the creature will bring about a shift in roles, in which the creature is the limited created being and the scientist is the transcendent creator. As evidenced by its prevalence in world mythology, this desire for divine power is central. to human nature. Frankenstein studies the works of medieval alchemists Albertus Magnus and Paracelsus, which inspire his own diabolical experiments. Throughout the Middle Ages, alchemists searched for powers capable of transforming one substance into another. Naturally, the alchemist's highest goal was to transform non-living materials into a living being ("Penetrate the secrets of nature"). Jabir, a famous Islamic alchemist, spoke of an art he called “takwin” – the artificial creation of life by alchemical means (Alchemy). In a similar vein, Jewish mystical texts speak of rabbis who sought to create Golems – living beings molded from mud or clay and brought to life through the mystical application of the Divine Name. The theme of "playing God" is explicit in the Golem legends, as the casting of man from clay mimics God's creation of man in the book of Genesis. Additionally, alchemists regularly sought magical items that would grant immortality, variously called "the panacea", "the elixir of life", or "the philosopher's stone" (alchemy). In Shelley's novel, the newly discovered power of electricity provides the means to create and prolong life. Frankenstein thus reflects the encounter of science with the mythical tradition of alchemy. At the end of the 18th century and the beginning of the 19th century, attempts were already being made to reanimate lifeless bodies using electricity. When Shelley's husband Percy's first wife drowned, the London Society attempted to revive her using electricity and artificial respiration ("Penetrating the Secrets of Nature"). But more notable were the experiments of the 18th-century Italian physician Luigi Galvani, who began to discover the electromagnetic basis of the nervous system (“Penetrating the Secrets of Nature”). A kind of popular mythology grew up around Galvani's experiments, and in Shelley's time the word galvanism "implied the release by electricity of mysterious life forces ("Penetrating the Secrets of Nature"). Reflecting on Galvani's experiments, Mary Shelley speculated that “perhaps a corpse would be reanimated; Galvinism had given a guarantee of such things (Frankenstein). » In Shelley's novel, contemporary advances in science materialize the archaic ambitions of the magician. Shelley's work raises the question: is science a "new" worldview, oris it simply the realization of ancient aspirations? This is a question that Christian writer CS Lewis would later attempt to answer in his science fiction novel That Hideous Strength. Lewis, perhaps drawing inspiration from Shelley, presents the scientist as a kind of modern magician, employing technological methods instead of mystical powers to control the forces of nature. This view is highlighted in Lewis's novel by the scientific organization NICE's plan to resurrect and work cooperatively with the wizard Merlin. Lewis, however, adds a religious dimension to the subject, barely mentioned in Shelley's work. Since wizards of previous generations worked under the influence of demons, Lewis speculates that science, pursued outside of an ethical context, can allow the forces of evil to gain powers only dreamed of in the past. By critiquing unethical scientific practice from a Christian perspective, Lewis discovers a new dimension of meaning that is also present in Shelley's work. work. Frankenstein suggests that when man uses science for selfish and impulsive purposes, there are serious moral consequences. From a theological perspective, the desire to create life in one's image is a symptom of man's fall into sin. This is implied in Genesis 5:3: “When Adam lived 130 years, he had a son in his likeness, in his image; and he named him Seth. » In a twisted way, Frankenstein's monster is his offspring, the corrupted son of his misplaced ambitions. Symbolically, Dr. Frankenstein is cast as Adam from Paradise Lost, who fell from grace because of his desire to usurp God's creative sovereignty. The monster serves as a metaphor for the corrupt human race, created in the image of Adam. Although depicted in monstrous terms, the creature is the pitiful victim of Frankenstein's failed experiment. Forced to live with the consequences of a sin he didn't commit, the creature can only quote Paradise Lost while asking, "why did you make me like this?" A second aspect of the fall of Adam which subtly parallels both the myth of Prometheus and Shelley's Frankenstein. is the transmission of forbidden knowledge to the human race. According to Greek myth, Prometheus steals fire from the gods and brings it to the young human race, leading to his own doom. Traditionally, light and fire symbolize knowledge, as evidenced by colloquial expressions such as "to shed light on the matter." In the Genesis story, the serpent introduces the knowledge of “good and evil” to humans, thereby facilitating their fall from innocence. The Serpent of Eden plays a role similar to that of Prometheus in his attempt to "steal" the fire of knowledge and place it in the hands of man. Another parallel is established when we recognize that the name Lucifer - often associated with Satan - literally means "bearer of light"; he is the illicit bearer of the light of Divine Knowledge, which he attempts to give to man. This second parallel has important ramifications for Shelley's Frankenstein. Writing at a time when science was generally viewed with great enthusiasm, Shelley clearly casts Dr. Frankenstein as the serpent who offers the world miraculous knowledge, but with disastrous consequences. Like Prometheus and Lucifer, Frankenstein attempts to “steal” what belongs to the realm of the Divine, the ability to create life. In this parallel lies one of Shelley's most haunting observations. If Frankenstein assumes the role of Satan, then Shelley wants his readers to recognize that the consequences of Frankenstein's experiment will extend far