So... we are through with lit terms for this semester. And, as you saw on the Unit 1 test, your tests will include allusions every unit. SO, I came up with a plan to get those taken care of. For this week, I want you to locate allusions from your master list that occur in Frankenstein. Post those allusions in the comments to this post by Wednesday of this week. On Friday, everyone will be quizzed over a random allusion. :) HOW FUN IS THAT??????
Posted by A. Davis at 7:50 AM
I want to use this blog as a multi-purpose blog for my English IV AP class. I will be posting the weekly schedule on here, as well as any assignments. My favorite part is probably to showcase wonderful writing and projects! I also will probably post some school/class news at times. Finally, and the most important part to you twenty-eight over-achievers, is that I will be putting a few postings per unit and the students are required to post a comment (a THOUGHTFUL comment) every unit. These comments should take the form of an online discussion, where you read all of the comments before yours and then make a contribution. Each unit will have a blogging grade attached to it. I am looking forward to the semester both in the classroom as well as online! :)
9 comments:
Furor.
At the beginning of chapter 24, Frankenstein says "the furies possessed me as I concluded, and rage choked my utterance." This refers to the Furies in Greek mythology. They were spirits of vengeance that often tormented people who had murdered their family members.
Julia Goncalves:
On page 87 it states, "Remember, that I am thy creature; I ought to be thy Adam; but I am rather the fallen angel, whom thou drive at from joy for no misdeed."
This is an allusion from the Bible; it references the Original Sin, which involves Adam and the Devil, whom are mentioned previously.
There whole premise of Frankenstein can be considered an allusion to Prometheus. In greek literature, Prometheus created man out of clay. Although Victor Frankenstein did not create the monster out of clay, he did create a new life in a similar way that Prometheus did.
Alec Shirer:
Pg 94: "'Here then I retreated, and lay down happy to have found a shelter, however miserable, from the inclemency of the season, and still more from the barbarity of man..."
"Barber" was a term used by the Greeks to mock uneducated foreigners. The monster uses this allusion to describe the unsophisticated and unfriendly acts of mankind.
Alexander Schroder:
On pages 120 -121, Frankenstein decides to destroy the female monster instead of creating another potentially dangerous creature. He does this despite the fact that the monster was going to kill all of his friends and family. This is alluding to the tragic losses of Pyrrus, King of Epirus, against his enemies. Frankenstein causes his monster to commit suicide at the end of the novel after his own death because the monster no longer had purpose. This is a pyrrhic victory.
Pyrrhic Victory.
No one truly believed that Victor Frankenstein could make life, but he proved them all wrong (talk about what would seem like a victory!!). However, his victory -- the creation of the monster -- would only haunt him for the rest of his life.
(A pyrrhic victory is "a victory that inflicts such a devastating toll on the victor that it is tantamount to defeat".)
The full title of the novel, Frankenstein, or the Modern Prometheus, emphasizes the theme of Victor as an overreacher, To defeat (oneself) by going too far . In Greek mythology, Prometheus created man. As a modern Prometheus, Victor creates a new species. Prometheus feels love for his creation (unlike the modern Prometheus) and ultimately steals fire from Zeus. Zeus punishes Prometheus by chaining him to a rock for eternity and sending an eagle to eat his liver daily.
Much like Prometheus suffers eternally, so must Victor Frankenstein.
Original Sin/The Fall
When Frankenstein created the monster, he is becoming like God by creating life. The monster is like Adam, innocent and pure at first, but then gaining knowledge and being a more of a corrupted image than what he was.
One of the major plot points of Frankenstein is a Promethean allusion, hence the title Frankenstein, The Modern Prometheus. Frankenstein and Prometheus' stories parallel each other. Frankenstein unlocked the secret to creating life, and Prometheus gave fire to mankind. Both of these acts were betrayals against a higher power, one being God and one being Zeus, and they both subsequently suffered for their actions.
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