Frankenstein and the Bible

In this year’s AP Literature class, we’re always encouraged to consider allusions to past works (like the way that Thomas Foster in How to Read Literature Like a Professor insists that there exists just one story and all the works of literature created are enriching it). As the most universally known work of literature or religion, the Bible is an excellent source to look to for inspiration in analyzing literature. So it is fascinating to examine Mary Shelley’s Romantic –era novel, Frankenstein, from a biblical perspective. Motifs that I notice in particular include references to the Christian God, Adam and Eve, the Garden of Eden, and the fall from innocence.

Perhaps Frankenstein has maintained its status as such an iconic story for so many centuries because it has such strong ties to well-known archetypes. Dr. Frankenstein can be seen clearly as a God figure in the way that he “overreaches” nature and its laws. His experiments are not described in scientific, logical terms but in loud noises and flashes of lightning. His creation of the Monster (who is not named Frankenstein!) is characterized and magical, unnatural- evil. He’s like a foil for the Christian God, who is described as a peaceful, benevolent, father figure. The Christian God does break the laws of nature in his mythical creation of the world just as Dr. Frankenstein does, but what he does is justified by his religion- Frankenstein’s unholy creation is not.

Speaking of this “unholy creation,” I would like to consider the monster himself. He is very obviously a sentient being (especially as evidenced by his dialogues in Chapter 10), just as Adam was created by the Christian God as a fully sentient, self-aware being. Neither went through the normal stages of life that we view as inescapable: infancy, early childhood, adolescence, and maturity. Instead, they are born with their full intelligence but a lack of knowledge about the world around them they soon cure with their curiosity. Adam is purely curious and is punished for the sin of his (Eve’s) curiosity. The monster (is monster even an apt moniker for him- he’s not monstrous at this point?) begins his journey in life full of love and appreciation for the world around him. But he is abandoned by his creator and isolated by the world. These things shaped him, changed him from his peaceful initial self to a violent creature.

Adam’s knowledge (literally, because Eve eats fruit from the Tree of Knowledge) is what causes his fall from innocence. But he is not abandoned by his creator like the Monster- more like disciplined. The monster’s fall from innocence occurs not through any fault of his, but of his creator. So the story can be connected to another universal archetype- the irresponsible parent. It is essentially Dr. Frankenstein’s fault that his “son” loses his innocence in the rough world around him and it is Dr. Frankenstein’s fault that the “monster” begins to become a force of destruction. It will be interesting to read the rest of the novel and see how the situation plays out, especially in relation to the biblical allusions.