ENL 003 Post #6

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley and Rossum’s Universal Robots by Karel Capek both portray the darker side of progress. The character’s Victor and Domin become obsessed with rearranging the natural order of life. The primordial soup of genetic material created by Old Rossum draws parallels with the genetic pool of cadavers procured by Victor. Spiritual evolution appears in both as Victor realizes his folly in trying to seize a role reserved for the divine whereas Alquist assumes that privileged position on Earth in assigning the new world a prototype romantic pair. Both novels also illustrate that humans can become slaves to their ideas, metaphorically and literally as Victor serves his creation out of fear of reprisal and Radius declares Alquist a potential builder in the new world.
The role of women in both works is bias or at least socially commentary since both principle females, Elizabeth and Helena, are rather submissive and only work to make the artificial life more menacing. This is seen in Elizabeth’s vulnerability to the creature and Helena’s instigation of free will in the robots. The potential for a new race of monsters is considered by both principle characters, although Victor only briefly entertains the idea whereas Domin’s vision seems to ironically be the only hopeful conclusion. Both catastrophes begin with our leading male character attempting to recover a sense of innocence, Victor trying to undo the pain of loss by resurrecting a body composed of death and Domin trying to restore the blissful freedom humanity enjoyed in the Garden of Eden.
The achievement of humanity in the creature and the robots is reversed as the creature can at first only understand the world surrounding him on bodily experiences but later learns to absorb, repeat, and elaborate on knowledge; while the robots began with the impressive capacity to recognize and repeat vast amounts of information yet finally understand it only after Dr. Gall’s tampering allows them to ponder there experiences. During certain parts in both pieces, the proprietors decide to negotiate with their creations since they now have a noticeable foothold on the situation, as the creature proves to be a virtual immortal and the robots realize their physical superiority. The exact science of how Victor’s creature was imbued with life and Old Rossum’s formula concocted are only vaguely touched upon, implying that it is forbidden knowledge. These tie in with the notion of the cautionary claims.

ENL 003 Post #5

The broad topic I am planning to use for this essay is innocence lost. The first piece of evidence from the text is Victor’s difficult recollection of his mother’s death from scarlet fever (pg.27). Victor describes that this was the first instance of real pain that he ever experienced in his relatively privileged and peaceful life. Victor also attributes this overwhelming absence in his life to the forces of evil; despite death being a natural part of the human cycle, even if by disease. It is from this introduction into the pains of humanity that Victor’s interest in trying to create life epitomizes and his remaining innocence is gradually yet surely corrupted.
Another example is found in the creature’s description of his meeting with the cottagers (pg. 110). The creature, prior to this futile endeavor, regularly entertained the idea of his introduction to his unsuspecting companions, imagining that he would overshadow his monstrous visage with his gentle and cultured soul. This is the creature’s first instance of faith in humanity, having previously frightened an old man and no longer fueled by sensual instincts. Though the creature demonstrated heartfelt intentions in trying to attain this camaraderie, the cottager’s reception of shock and loathe further diminish his faith in compassion and his already weakened virtue.
The third case is seen in Captain Walton’s joyful befriending of Victor (pg. 16). Having been virtually isolated in the arctic voyage due to his intellect and authority, Walton describes in his early letters to his sister that only a true friend would restore his morale in such a desolate environment. Although Walton made no effort in securing a companion, his befriending of the rescued stranger was of his own volition. Victor’s natural and attuned friendship does restore Walton’s happiness, yet it culminates with the burdening of his friend’s dark history as well as his troubling decline in health.
These three examples for the essay all share the underlying theme of actions meant to resolve turmoil only exacerbating it. The first evidence with Victor seems the most different as his goal to restore the peace that death removes by creating life is an abnormal pursuit. The creature’s and Walton’s approach to regaining virtue through others are more noble, since both seem reasonable for individuals facing seclusion. The first two pieces, however, seem to compliment each other in that Victor’s plea for salvaging innocence is demonized in a human whereas the creature’s efforts to achieve happiness that is ascribed is humanized in a demon. Walton’s case serves to tie the theme to normality in that a desire to restore trust in humanity does not need to result out of amazing circumstances.