The Cost Of Knowledge Essay, Research Paper
In Mary Shelley?s Frankenstein, the dangers of knowledge are shown in detail. Knowledge can be both devastating and life saving depending on the way it is used. Mary Shelley uses knowledge?s role, its pursuit, and its cost to teach a valuable lesson.
The role of knowledge in Frankstein is that of the catalyst. Without knowledge, Victor would not have the ability to create the monster. On page thirty-eight after reading the works of Cornelius Agrippa he says, ?It is even possible that the train of my ideas would never have been received the fatal impulse that led to my ruin.? Had Victor never looked at the works of Agrippa he would have never imagined the idea of reanimating life. Later in the novel, knowledge leads the monster to his eventual downfall. On page one hundred thirty-one after the monster gain the knowledge of speak the residents cast him out scarring him mentally, ?I was like a beast that had broken the toils, destroying the objects that obstructed me and ranging through the wood with staglike swiftness.? In Frankenstein knowledge becomes the catalyst for the pain and anguish in everyone?s life.
Both Victor and the Monster devote their lives to the pursuit of knowledge. The monster spends his time pursuing the knowledge of love and friendship. ?I ardently desired to understand them, and bent every faculty toward that purpose?? on page one hundred fourteen the monster is putting all his resources toward his pursuit of knowledge. The knowledge of love and friendship only makes the creatures life harder because he yearns for companionship but can never get it. Victor is obsessed with reviving the secrets of reanimation on page thirty-nine, ?I entered with the greatest diligence into the search of the philosophers stone and the elixir of life; but the battle soon obtained my undivided attention.? Victor?s pursuit of this knowledge rules him. The pursuit of knowledge rules the body and mind of those who search for it.
Knowledge can be both good and evil. However, that knowledge casts more than the pursuer anticipates. Victor believes nothing could go wrong and fame would follow the discovery. On page thirty-nine Victor says ?? but what glory would attend the discovery, if I could banish diseases from the human form?? What Victor later realizes is the knowledge costs more than he was willing to pay. ?Destiny was to potent, and her immutable laws had decreed my utter and terrible destruction.? Victor loses everyone near to him and even his own life for his knowledge. Page two hundred fourteen at the end of the novel the monster announces his death, ?But soon I shall die, and what I now feel be no longer felt.? The monsters knowledge of love and friendship becomes his downfall and source of pain. The cost of knowledge can cost ones own life and ones sanity if used for greed.
Mary Shelley uses knowledge?s role, its pursuit, and its price to teach a valuable lesson. Only when one uses knowledge for the benefit of mankind and not for creed and self-aggrandizement can you afford to pay the price. Man must always seek knowledge but must always look ahead and plan so he is ready for the outcome.