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Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus

            According to Greek mythology, Prometheus was a Titan God who was spared imprisonment due to the fact that he chose not to fight in the war waged against the Olympians. In doing so, Zeus granted him pardon and assigned him the task of creating man. Prometheus shaped and molded man from the mud beneath his feet and the Goddess Athena breathed life into his clay creations. Prometheus as well as his brother Epimetheus were also endowed with the task of providing mankind with gifts so that humanity may survive and thrive. Epimetheus was given the gift of fur and wings, lavish accessories to brighten up the world but by the time he had got around to man such gifts were no longer available. In seeing this, Prometheus so loved mankind that he stole fire from the Gods and gave it to man so that their struggles were less. This angered Zeus and by this betrayal Zeus sentenced Prometheus to be chained on the mountain of Caucasus and have his liver devoured by an eagle every day for eternity. .
             With the Promethean myth in mind, Mary Shelley historically created one of the most talked about and researched creatures of all time in her 1831 novel "Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus." Shelley called her readers to pinpoint connections between two great figures such as Victor Frankenstein's monster and the mythological Titan God Prometheus. In letter four of Shelley's novel Captain Robert Walton finds his ship completely surrounded by Ice but once the fog clears he discovers more than just frozen chunks, a man, on the brink of destruction, has just been pulled aboard the vessel. This man answers to the name of Frankenstein. It is here Frankenstein retells the story of one dreary night in November when he "beheld the accomplishment of his toils" (34). In chapter five Victor recalls the night he gave his monster life by the spark of electricity. Likewise in the Greek myth, Prometheus also gives life to his creations and just like Victor he molds them into what he believes to be perfection.


Essays Related to Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus

1. Frankenstein: The Modern Prometheus

Frankenstein: The Modern Prometheus What myths are to the race, dreams are to the individual, for in dreams, as in myths, there also appear those primitive emotions and feelings in the form of giants, heroes, dragons, serpents, and blood sucking vampires; representations of guilt, retribution, and fate; of lust and power, of monsters of the deep unconscious and of unknown but overwhelming beings which fill our nights with nightmarish dreams and make us fear our sleep, but which, rightly used, can be fruitfully integrated into our personality. ... What began with a simple dream became twenty-...

  • Word Count: 3377
  • Approx Pages: 14
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

2. the modern prometheus

They say that Victor attempted to become a "Modern Prometheus", infact that was the original extent to the title. Now, Frankenstein took a dark and different turn in his story. Victor Frankenstein wanted he's gift to be the knowledge of the secret of life! ... Frankenstein's obsessive hatred towards his creation drives him to turmoil an death, all the while Prometheus's love for his creation kept him alive and even ended up giving him a better life! ... Frankenstein wanted a man not born of woman. ...

  • Word Count: 1130
  • Approx Pages: 5
  • Grade Level: High School

3. Frankenstein; or the modern prometheus longform

She wrote Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus by the time she was 19. ... There are three main characters in Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus. ... Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus is set in eighteenth century Geneva, the Swiss alps, Ingolstadt, England, Scotland and the northern ice. ... There are two main symbols in Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus : light and fire. ... The title Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus goes along with one of the main themes of the book: fire. ...

  • Word Count: 1963
  • Approx Pages: 8
  • Grade Level: High School

4. Prometheus

Frankenstein or the modern Prometheus by Mary Shelley, is a modern Titan Prometheus of Greek mythology in his desire to overcome man's limitations and gain God-like power. ... (Shelly, Frankenstein or the modern Prometheus. ... In Frankenstein: or, the Modern Prometheus the haunted gothic castles and medieval trappings are missing replaced by experimental science and rationality. ... Benjamin Franklin, whose name has been suggested for the "Frank" in Frankenstein, may have been the modern Prometheus from whom Shelley drew inspiration. ... Frankenstein: or, the Modern Prometheus meets the ...

  • Word Count: 2302
  • Approx Pages: 9
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

5. Frankenstein- Modern Myth

In the 21st Century, we can view Mary Shelly's Frankenstein as a modern myth. ... In Mary Shelly's novel, Victor Frankenstein tries to be the modern Prometheus. ... In Mary Shelly's novel, Victor Frankenstein tries to be the modern Prometheus. ... We are manipulated into believing that this novel portrays a more modern mythological setting compared to the Prometheus, and Judea mythologies. ... One aspect of the modern transplant parallels well with Frankenstein. ...

  • Word Count: 2070
  • Approx Pages: 8
  • Grade Level: High School

6. Frankenstein: A Modern Myth

In the 21st century, Mary Shelly's Frankenstein can be viewed as a modern myth. ... Without a doubt, Frankenstein is a modern myth in current times. ... Victor Frankenstein tries to be the modern Prometheus. ... Victor Frankenstein stole the secret of the creation of life from God, in a similar way that Prometheus stole fire from Zeus. Frankenstein used this secret to create life of his own, and subsequently was punished by his creation in the same way Prometheus was punished by Zeus. ...

  • Word Count: 2228
  • Approx Pages: 9
  • Has Bibliography

7. Cloning and Frankenstein

Has modern science, like Prometheus and Pandora, unlocked a secret for which the control does not yet exist? ... Is there a lesson in this for modern Man? ... The subtitle to Mary Shelley's Frankenstein is The Modern Prometheus. ... Looking at Frankenstein as Prometheus the natural comparison is the knowledge of life from death and the knowledge of Fire. ... The stories of the past, such as Frankenstein and Prometheus, are the precursors to the future. ...

  • Word Count: 1596
  • Approx Pages: 6
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

8. Frankenstein

The Prometheus myths have various connections to Frankenstein. Prometheus created his creature using fire and this can be related to the methods employed by Frankenstein in creating the monster, "That I might infuse a spark of being into the lifeless thing". Furthermore, Prometheus became symbolic of breaking the boundaries of knowledge; he went too far and should have left things to the gods. ... Prometheus was admired for what he did whereas Frankenstein was criticised by Shelley for his egocentric antisocial tendencies. ... Victor Frankenstein, the "modern Prometheus" seeks to attain the kn...

  • Word Count: 1009
  • Approx Pages: 4

9. Frankenstein

Two Versions of Frankenstein: Nature Versus Nurture James Whale's 1931 film version of Frankenstein provides a deep contrast in both theme and characterization to Mary Shelley's original novel, Frankenstein, or the Modern Prometheus. In much the same way Prometheus stole fire and gave it to man, Shelley's subtitle suggests that God's power of creation has been stolen, in this case by Frankenstein. ... Whale's Henry Frankenstein receives a very different fate. ... Victor Frankenstein leaves his to die. Whale's creature, however, is the one that has become ...

  • Word Count: 697
  • Approx Pages: 3
  • Grade Level: High School

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