Reflection of Justice in Frankenstein and its Relevance in Reality
Justice—and lack of justice—plays a crucial role in shaping the overall story of Frankenstein. It is prevalent from the moment Victor Frankenstein abandons his creation the first time the latter opens his eyes, and its significance is also present towards the end as the monster talks about his life and sorrows with Captain Walton. Furthermore, a significant part of the novel also revolves around the two main characters, Frankenstein and the monster, seeking vengeance from each other due to the injustice they experience because of their counterparts. In some parts of the story, the theme of justice is prominently laid out for everybody to comprehend. For example, all of the monster’s hatred and feeling of isolation is caused due his initial—and unjust—abandonment by his creator. Towards the end of the story, he talks about how he was abandoned by his creator solely based on his appearance. He looked grotesque, but he was initially innocent and only desired love and affection. He turned violent only after being unjustly isolated by everybody he tried interacting with. In some other parts, this theme is presented more subtly. For example, to some readers, Frankenstein’s misfortunes may only be viewed as consequences of his own reckless actions. However, if we consider the time and effort he put into building the creature solely to see it take a form he had not anticipated, it may be easier to see how he was also a victim of injustice.
Furthermore, the theme of justice is not only significant in shaping the story by playing a crucial role in the main characters’ actions and lives. It is prevalent everywhere and in almost every other character’s life as well. Justine is executed for a murder she did not commit, and the people related to Frankenstein—his brother, his wife and his best friend—lose their innocent lives because of Frankenstein’s actions. Moreover, the theme of justice also plays an important role in introducing and reinforcing other themes in the novel. For example, injustice leads to and ties up with the theme of isolation. The latter theme is portrayed in the life of both the monster and Frankenstein—the former is ‘unjustly’ abandoned by his creator and everybody he interacts with, and the latter eventually loses everybody he cares about because of the monster he created. These two themes work together to shape, and even conclude, the rest of the story. It is evident how the theme of justice and injustice connects individual stories together and adds relevance to the plot as a whole by tying itself with other themes.
We can conclude, from all these examples, that it is not possible to ignore the significance of the theme of justice in Shelley’s novel. However, over time, this theme—with regards to Frankenstein—has also proven to be relevant in terms of reality. In other words, throughout the years, the theme of justice has not only been significant in shaping just the story of Frankenstein. With time, different aspects of this novel relating to justice have proven to be relevant in the context of real life. For example, the catastrophe caused by Frankenstein’s recklessness in creating the monster has been referred in Massachusetts Institute of Technology Press’s edition of Frankenstein, focusing on the importance of being cautious with regards to artificial intelligence. Another journal written by author Joe Abbott examines the ethical aspect of artificial life by comparing and contrasting the lives and the overall story of two man-made creatures with consciousness of human beings, one of them being the monster in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. It explores the question of ethics and moral when it comes to abandoning one’s own creation. It is truly impressive to acknowledge how the creation of the monster and its abandonment—based entirely on fiction—has proven to be relevant in the area of science, a field of study based on facts. Likewise, the theme of justice portrayed in the novel has also proven to be relevant in different areas concerning real life and our ethics. A journal article written by Josh Bernatchez discusses the role of an individual’s community in shaping their character with reference to Frankenstein and talks about how the ‘creature’ turned into a ‘monster’ after repeatedly being abandoned by everybody he interacted with. It talks about how isolation can change an individual and the extent to which our characteristics are shaped by the societal forces. This reference makes it clear to see how the story of Frankenstein and the theme of justice can be taken as an example in analyzing reality with regards to the society. Another insightful reference to the novel comes from Marie Mulvey-Roberts in one of the chapters from her book ‘Dangerous Bodies: Historicising the Gothic Corporeal’, where the author talks about the similarities between the life of Frankenstein’s monster and that of slaves. In the book, specifically the chapter ‘Mary Shelley, Frankenstein and Slavery’, she highlights the similar kinds of struggles and injustice faced by the fictional character and the victims of slavery during the nineteenth century—how they were “mistreated based on their appearance and how Shelley’s creature parallels nineteenth-century racial stereotypes in size, strength and skin color” (Mulvey-Roberts, 53). The chapter provides an in-depth comparison to the life of the monster and that of the slaves and highlights the injustice they experienced. It is clear to see the significance and relevance of the novel and the theme of justice in comparing different aspects of reality from both, our history and our present.
The theme of justice in Frankenstein has played a crucial role in shaping the story by introducing and interlacing different themes and shaping the overall plot of the novel. Furthermore, over time, the significance of Shelley’s beautiful work of literature and this over-arching theme has also become relevant in different aspects of reality—in the past, it was relevant to the lives of slaves in the early 19th century. At present, at a time where technological advancement is at its peak, it is specifically relevant to the development of artificial intelligence. Its relevance is also prominent with regards to the society since it can be referred to in order to examine and analyze our ethical and moral stances. The creation of Frankenstein has truly been a creation of timeless wonder.
