The Age of Reason and the Romantic Era

The "Age of Reason" was in the 18th Century (the 1700's) and was marked by a small elite group of thinkers who extolled the intellect over emotion, and scientific inquiry over superstition.

The Romantic Era (1780 - 1830) was one that represented a turning away from the entrenched, classicist, hierarchical structure of British Society. For those of you who read the American Jonathan Edward's hellfire and brimstone sermon entitled "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" you may remember that God was portrayed as an angry, vengeful father-figure who - regardless of what you did or didn't do - was perpetually angry at you. Edwards thundered from his pulpit that you could only seek salvation by assiduously attending to your thoughts and to your soul, and since you were only a sorry human being, that still might not be enough. If you read Arthur Millers' THE CRUCIBLE, you may remember that the church fathers in the English colonies in Massachusetts kept careful tabs on the parishioners' attendance at church and that John Proctor was reminded that he could not worship God in his fields. The English Puritans believed in a strict hierarchical society in which God occupied the top, followed by the king (who was ordained by God to reign in his stead), followed by the clergy, the aristocracy, peasant men and lastly, peasant women. Yup, women were always winding up last - especially back then.

But that changed to a significant degree in the 1790's in France, during the French Revolution. (You might remember that the Ango-Americans had their own revolution a bit earlier.) The pain and the suffering of the peasant class had become so unendurable in France that they rose up en masse against their oppressors and forged a new government, a new society out of the blood and chaos of their revolution. (Admittedly, the revolution was ghastly in its brutality. Blood literally ran down the streets of Paris as nobleman and noblewoman were led to their deaths at the guillotine. Anyone even suspected of uttering a whisper of criticism of the Revolution might be denounced as a traitor to the cause and executed.)

The Romantic poets and writers in England responded passionately to the French cry of,"Liberty, Equality and Fraternity!" Unlike their conservative and rigidly class bound fathers and grandfathers, the Romantics believed that the individual and his/her thoughts had inherent worth. The Romantics believed that one did not have go to a grand cathedral to be with God, but that one could better commune with God surrounded by immense, majestic trees of the forests which were God's own magnificent cathedrals. The Romantics valued nature and they valued the power and purity of the still, quiet thought of the individual as s/he stood alone in nature. As a reaction to the vulgarity of the French courts of Louis XVl and its overwhelming artificiality, and the rigid class snobbery to be found in their own country, England, the Romantics valued simplicity and naturalness and equality for all. They also valued emotional truths over purely intellectual ones, and sought to find a purer, greater truth in nature and mysticism, then could be found in rigid intellectualism and convention.

The Romantic poets also believed in the value and purity of the poor - and admittedly, as you can probably tell from reading FRANKENSTEIN, the Romantics also heavily sentimentalized the poor. It's ironic, but at a time that was so horrible for so many people - starvation, hard and grueling work, lack of medical care, and shortened lives were the norm for most - people were frequently painted as being unnaturally good and kind. Now that our lives are relatively easy, our best writers and film makers depict us as we really are - egocentric and selfish. Anyone care to speculate as to why that is? Getting back to the Romantics, they thought humans were basically good - just a little below angels - but that it was the corrupting influence of society that warped us from our natural frame.

As you read FRANKENSTEIN, note the references to nature and note the depiction of the poor - Justine and Felix and Agatha for example. Also be aware that the Romantics were generally fascinated by the exotic - notice the introduction of Saphie, the "Arabian" - actually she was half Turkish. Be aware that Victor Frankenstein is totally destroyed by his intellectual pursuits which are at variance with his true emotional nature.

One thing I do want to bring up is a problem that some of the students have with the book - and that is, why or how does the monster speak such excellent French? ("French?" You're probably asking yourself, "but I thought I was reading this in English!") I know, I know, but remember when he's hiding out in the woodshed that's next to Felix's hovel? Felix, remember, is French and he is teaching his language to Saphie and - unbeknownst to him - to the monster, his avid student who is hiding in the woodshed just on the other side of his wall. I think Shelley does this for a couple of reasons: 1) to show how wretchedly lonely the monster is and 2) how much he craves human companionship and 3) to show the delicacy of his feelings and 4) to offer an explanation as to how the monster learned to speak. He had to learn how to speak somewhere, and he had to learn the social customs of humans.

You have to suspend a great deal of disbelief in this book. Just accept that the monster learned to communicate in perfect and eloquent French in a matter of months. Just accept that he was carrying around a suitcase and that he just happened to find a packet of his creator's journals in the lab coat he was wearing. Just accept and don't worry too much about the logic of some of the....continuity issues of the book. Concentrate now on the larger themes of the book - for example: the social and moral implications of humans daring to play god. That's one theme. Can you think of any others?

if you have any questions, please feel free to e-mail me at jkatbridge2004@gmail.com