Monday, February 17, 2014

“The Real Monster”- Reaction Paper on the Bride of Frankenstein


Morality almost always draws the line when it comes to how much scientists are allowed to do. The issue of bringing someone back to life has always been a perfect example of the line that must never be crossed, always accompanied by the line, “One must not play God.”
Frankenstein has brought a human being back to life but people view him as a monster. The reason is clear: he does not belong in the world of the living anymore. Add that to his violent and impulsive nature where he does not even hesitate to take the life of the townspeople when he is crossed.  Dr. Frankenstein has acknowledged that this power is not meant to belong in the hands of irresponsible and greedy human beings but he is a bit too late. We could see that Dr. Frankenstein did not want any part in the making of the bride for the monster after realizing it was wrong to even have made one. It took a great deal of forcing before he eventually gave in, half-heartedly if that is any consolation. There was a point where they killed a young woman for a fresh heart. This just shows how having the power to bring back human life also means people get to decide who lives and who dies. Imagine if we were given that kind of right: dead people’s hearts replaced by prisoners’ heart. We might even take a random person’s heart to bring our family back to life!

The monster is not able to talk but he is not really dumb. He understands, he thinks, and he would have responded as we normally do had he been thought to speak from day one. Having the monster unable to talk in the film may be more of “adding thrill” to him. He appears scarier and more “non-human” to the other characters in the movie and also to the audience. Also, had he been able to talk, he would be able to tell people about his thoughts and feelings unlike the usual grunts and hand gestures that make him look angry and like he is ready to kill someone on sight, giving people the “right” to pursue him and kill him. And then there is the guilt effect for the audience. From the start of the movie, viewers see him as a danger and must go back to the world of the dead as soon as possible. We are made to believe that he is too dumb and would fight for as long as he could. And yet, he knew he belonged to the dead. He finished himself and his bride. The monster was not the one at fault in any way. He was just made and used by some human being who wanted to try playing God. And yet, he had the heart to let Dr. Frankenstein escape. By creating a so-called “monster”, we do not realize that we become one. 

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Balignasa, Catherine S.
Section: THX

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