Introduction
The novel Frankenstein is one of the well-known literary works written in the romantic era, vastly referred to as the Romanticism era. The phrase "Romantic" was used to describe the culture which ignored the complicated life realities from the age of Enlightenment and focused on the representation of novels, philosophy, drama, poetry, and art in nostalgic and thoughtful depiction of life ideas (Balfour 777). The enlightenment era influenced Mary Shelley in writing the novel Frankenstein. Enlightenment movement was a cultural transition characterized by its focus on scientific inquiry, intellect, and reason. However, Shelly was Romantic and acknowledged the role of nature and emotion in society. The center stage of the novel Frankenstein lies in the conflict between Enlightenment and Romanticism. This paper presents an exclusive evaluation of the Enlightenment and Romanticism ideas in the first couple of chapters of the Novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley.
The age of Enlightenment encouraged the use of reason and science to explain some of the social uncertainties and eliminate superstition. Shelley presents an evaluation of Enlightenment and its effects on society by elaborating on the different attributes of the character Frankenstein. In the pursuit of Enlightenment, Frankenstein focused on science to derive explanations to some nature concerns but turned him into a slave of the human creation (Rubino). He revolted against Romanticism but failed to acknowledge the role of his scientific ideas. The role of Enlightenment and Romanticism are both outlined critical in the existence of humankind.
As highlighted in the novel, Victor was deeply engraved into the scientific explanation of the world's functioning. The contrary is visualized in the cousin whose playtime was based on visualization and imagination of the news worlds (Balfour 778). The two characters present the contradicting views of Enlightenment and Romanticism, respectively. Victor focused on understanding the concepts of the operation of the world while cousin Elizabeth was into the beauty of the world. Based on Elizabeth's visualization of the world's beauty, the novel's setting was established, highlighting the concept of Romanticism in the early chapters of the novel. The desire to learn and gain more knowledge grew when he joined university. He spent his youthful life in seclusion studying science and new approaches to banish diseases and pursued education over anything else in life. However, his imagination and innovation can be regarded as Romanticism since it entails visualizing and imagining what the world would be with scientific knowledge and reasoning.
Conclusion
The novel highlights the ideas of Enlightenment and Romanticism as crucial aspects that need to be balanced as opposed to the character of the novel. The author used Frankenstein and Elizabeth to create a comparison in the indulgence in reason and beauty of the world. The desire to explain the concepts on the operation of the world and the focus in education and experimentation highlights the influence of the age of Enlightenment in Frankenstein's early life. However, the visualization of life without diseases and imagination on the aspects of the operation of the world and how to make it better can be highlighted as Romanticism in the era of Enlightenment. Therefore, based on a couple of the first few chapters of the novel Frankenstein, ideas of both Enlightenment and Romanticism are outlined.
