Frankenstein: Observe its Realism from another Side
With the enthusiasm of the knowledge of science, a young ambitious scientist discovers the origin of life. He secretly collects body parts from corpses and finally creates a monster that is extremely ugly. The scientist feels so disappointed and terrified that he abandons his creation. After a series of miserable experiences in human society, the monster fails to receive compassion and gain understanding; eventually, the monster embarks on a path of revenge and ruin. This is the first science fiction entitled Frankenstein by female writer Mary Shelley, which is a horror story that explores human nature and society.
In George Levine’s critical essay Frankenstein and the Tradition of Realism, Professor Levine discusses both the gothic and realistic elements in Frankenstein. According to George Levine, Frankenstein is better to be interpreted as gothic fiction because first, there is always an ambivalence of evil and goodness inside human’s mind; secondly, the novel conveys a sort of subjectivity that characters are always “doubles” (Levine 209); finally, through a simple structure, Mary Shelley constructs a complex emotion and a sort of imagination power that gives readers more space to pursue their own understanding of evil. Levine suggests that is how Frankenstein stands as one of the representative gothic fictions in the early 19th century, However, beside those gothic characteristics, if the novel is viewed from another side, Frankenstein can simultaneously be interpreted as a realistic fiction because no matter the plot or the complex correlation between characters, or even the historical and social context of the entire novel they all enable readers to rethink about themselves and gain understanding about the objective world.
Through out the entire story, the main characters always struggle in the fall between the beautiful dream and the cruel reality. Their fates begin with hope, passion, excessive...