Frankenstein

Blog #2

Upon reflection of this week’s allusion presentation I began to see references of Adam and Eve in almost every aspect of pop culture. The most prominent correlation that I was enlightened of was that of the deeper context in one of my favorite books, Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. I have always been familiar with the story of Adam and Eve in the book of Genesis and how the act of disobedience against God led to the eventual fall of man. However I have never gone so far as to connect that particular story with any relevant source of entertainment. It never occurred to me that my favorite movies, books, and songs could potentially contain some deeper context in reference to the Bible itself. What eventually made the connection between the story in the Bible and the connection to Frankenstein was the word “creator”. In the book of Genesis God speaks of how he created Adam out of the dust of the ground and put him to work, and later he created Eve from the rib of Adam. The Bible states that God, “breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being”. This recounting of the creation of a living being out of nothing but dirt triggered a neuron in my brain that made the connection between this biblical reference and my favorite book. Not only did Dr. Frankenstein create his monster out of nothing but old body parts, he soon gave the creature life. Dr. Frankenstein essentially is the representation of a Christ figure because he created life out of a previously inanimate object. In this novel, Dr. Frankenstein is so disgusted and appalled by his hideous creature that he flees from it and never wants to see it again. This display of disappointment and disgust mimics that of God’s reaction to the actions of Adam and Eve. After Adam and Eve disobeyed God and listened to the serpent, they directly went against God’s word, and after God found out about this misdeed he banished them from the Garden of Eden and placed many trials upon their life. Much like how Dr. Frankenstein banished his creation from any aspect of his life. Essentially the second parallel of the story of Adam and Eve to the book Frankenstein is the essential creation of a second “being” from a God figure. In the Bible God creates Eve from the ribs of Adam after he had put Adam into a deep sleep. God breathed the breath of life into Eve just as He had Adam and so there were two of man in the Garden of Eden. Much like the Bible, in the book Frankenstein, Dr. Frankenstein is forced to make another creature to keep his original monster company, as quite a coincidence, a female monster. So as a recap, God created Adam and Eve out of nothing and then banished them for bad behavior. In the book written by Mary Shelley, a doctor creates a man and a woman monster out of nothing, and then banishes them for bad behavior. Seems a bit coincidental for me!