Sunday, October 7, 2012

Frankenstein vs. Macbeth


Frankenstein by Mary Shelley and Macbeth by William Shakespeare, both contain elements beyond each of the protagonist control. In Macbeth there are witches and powers of witchcraft. On the other hand, the story of Frankenstein contains a so-called 'devil' in flesh - the Monster suggesting that the monster is evil, although this is found to be untrue. Both Macbeth and Frankenstein are above-average human beings with exceptional qualities. Both characters contained hubris attitudes only brought about through their exceptional knowledge illustrating their want to be “better than God”.  Like in Frankenstein, there are supernatural occurrences in Macbeth, for instance when King Duncan is murdered. Both Macbeth and Frankenstein’s monster had started out as nice people. Macbeth was corrupted with power and Frankenstein’s was infatuated with bringing the dead alive again. Frankenstein’s monster was born with a loving heart, but was not able to fully experience Maslow’s Hierarchy theory.  Frankly, throughout the length of the entire novel, the monster is really just looking for acceptance. In Macbeth, coming to know one’s self is the central theme because with power comes chaos.

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