According to Hetherington
The novel Frankenstein was written in 1816 and published in 1818, with romantic themes such as the pitfalls of knowledge and the importance of emotions, the despair of human inability to interfere with one's own goodness, the agony of looking, the solitary hero, and the irresistible force of beauty.
Author's intention
About the fact that the tale of Frankenstein has been well received, Hetherington believes that the author intended to show something that humans could not do but God could. As much as Christians agree that the agonist is chastised for overusing his powers, Hetherington reveals that Shelley tried to show that man's strength is limited, therefore, it could only result in despair if it were to be used.
Critique of the article
With these remarks, given research paper seeks to critique the article "Creator and Created in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein" by Naomi Hetherington.
Discussion
As denoted in the stage version of the novel; Presumption, or, The Modern Prometheus, which was written by Brinsley Peake in 1823, the creator apologizes after coming up with the creature. Typically, this is a clear indication that humankind cannot create an intimate being since it does not conform to the will of God. Knowingly, the audience in the theater of Peake rephrased the same tale constructively not to compare human qualities to those of Creator. Therefore, the storyline of the novel was altered to indicate human's limitations in comparison to the perfect creatures of Lord. In the romantic age, most of the fictional writers demonstrated over-reachers as the audience lacked religious order; hence, becoming ethically ambiguous.
Comparison to Milton's evil acts
Shelley depicts Frankenstein as an evil force that existed solely to challenge Jesus Christ and God. In this manner, Romantic writers compared Frankenstein's qualities to Milton's evil acts where the two fight oppression in the church. This case is evident when Frankenstein says that all his hopes and expectations are nothing, but he is like an archangel who resulted to omnipotence that made him chained in hell. In this novel, Frankenstein relates himself with Milton and in the process he identifies some differences between his life and other peoples'. As evident in Mary's time, extremists have strong qualities of egotism, inhumanity, and arrogance, but Mary did not depict Frankenstein as an individual who was able to make creatures against the will of God. Therefore, her works were compared to Walton's since both relied on their fathers' earthly possessions ("Mary Shelley's Frankenstein: Science, Science Fiction, or Autobiography?").
Comparison to secular traditions
Nonetheless, Frankenstein conforms to the secular traditions since Mary's father had come up with numerous tales that challenged Christian norms and beliefs. Moreover, Frankenstein came to realize that secrets would only cause sorrow and suffering to love ones. He also understood that happiness does not lie in its power and possession, but emanates from simplicity and affection. Consequently, Hetherington indicates that man's abilities are limited therefore they could lead prosperity, which is hypothetically unattainable. Hetherington compares the over-reacher's separation with happiness and affection. From the claim that her primary concern in that respect was limited to the manifestation of affection, and the brilliance of universal quality, one can allude that the novel is immoral and impious. As much as other families are depicted as inferior, they were happy and lived in harmony in comparison to the isolation that Frankenstein went through as he struggled to overcome human limitations.
Frankenstein as an over-reacher
Even though this novel depicts Frankenstein as an over-reacher, his tales do not focus on rebelliousness. Instead, his objective emanated from his vanity since he wanted to do things that nature would not permit and he was also motivated by self-elevation. As a result, Frankenstein suggested that death and life were just ideal bounds as he attempted to achieve his goal. Hence, the hero admitted that his creation would please him more than what any other child could do to his father (Shelley and Clegg 46).
Origin of evil
Apart from the fact that human beings have many limitations, this story has been used to demonstrate the origin evil as some people still believe that creation was done by man since humans are the only rational creatures on earth. Besides, Frankenstein did not admit that God created him, but he acknowledged the efforts of his parents to bring him into existence. As the way Christian believe that they were created in the image of their creator, so Frankenstein created the vampire in his likeness.
Conclusion
Even though Hetherington managed to demonstrate that man's abilities are limited and could only result to despair, she also indicates that power and possession do not necessarily lead to happiness as portrayed in Frankenstein's life. As much as Frankenstein isolated himself trying to overcome human beings' limitations by creating a creature of his likeness, he still did not live a happy life. Just like other stories of that time, most of the over-reachers ended up in misery after possessing power. The same way, Frankenstein would have avoided his suffering if he could have lived with his relatives and conformed to the laws of nature.
Works Cited
Hetherington, Naomi. Creator and Created in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. Keats-Shelley Review, no. 11. 1997, pp. 11-39 http://knarf.english.upenn.edu/Articles/hether.html Accessed 6 Oct 2017 Ginn, Sherry. "Mary Shelley's Frankenstein: Science, Science Fiction, or Autobiography?" Wingate University www.clas.ufl.edu/ipsa/2003/ginn.html Accessed 6 Oct 2017. Shelley, Mary W, and Caden V. Clegg. Frankenstein, or the Modern Prometheus. N.p., 2016.
