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Manaan Mashriqi
British Literature
Professor Schrantz
3/31/18
Frankenstein Critical Essay
In the early 1800’s the short story Frankenstein was written by author Mary
Wollstonecraft Shelley, who was married to the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley. All through out the
short story, Mary Shelley touches on multiple morals that one could draw knowledge from
within the characters At first, a reader simply reading for pleasure, may see the theme of the
short story as a battle of good versus evil. During the time the short story was written, medicine
was a big topic filled with the unknown, it was all up in the air to experience with. Being the
bright observant young woman, she was in that time period, Shelley incorporated the things that
were going on around her into her writing. The experimental aspect of the short story to be one
of the stronger underlying themes of Frankenstein. The abuse of knowledge, and lack there of is
evident in the birth of Frankenstein. This also ties into another popular underlying theme of the
short story. The fact that Frankenstein was even able to come into existence, shines light on how
corrupt society was, how there was a lack of empathy for those around them, an those they
encountered.
In this writing, one can really get a sense of who Shelley was in the world emotionally
and socially. In Shelley’s life, the lineup of the events happening fall in line with the tragedies
occurring through out the short story. There are many similarities that can be found in the
reading and in an analysis of Shelley’s own real world experiences. Some readers may not pick
up on the indications of hero own trespasses and the evils she faced in her day to day living.
Now because of this, Frankenstein is a unique and organic story, written and inspired by
Shelley’s own experiences with the evils of mankind and with the world itself; like the strong
presence of death, with three children, her husband, her mother, and a few more, there would be
no hopeful cheerful experiences coming from a person who has experienced all of that; fictional,
or real.
During the time the short story was written, there were many advances being made, from
science to technology and everything in between as a result of the industrial revolution. Many
people claim works in the Iron and fuel industries are what set the wheel spinning with news
advancements that made life easier for the common people of Europe. Abraham Darby figured
out that using coke instead of charcoal when melting iron was much faster, therefore being able
