Eternal Light Essay Example for Free

Eternal Light Essay Another â€Å"wayfarer† is Victor Frankenstein, who is striving for â€Å"eternal light,† but in another aspect. He is the â€Å"Modern Prometheus,† longing to â€Å"pour a torrent of light into our dark world,† while creating a human being – a deed, which is intrinsic to God (26). His creation is the third participant in the â€Å"journey† to â€Å"eternal light. † He is unnamed, or more often called the creature, the monster, the wretch, or the one with â€Å"unearthly ugliness† (55). Victor’s creation also dreams for â€Å"eternal light† in the meaning of pure love or happiness, but he is compelled to follow the contrary direction – to â€Å"darkness and distance† (134). The three meet each other at the â€Å"land of mist and snow,† where their â€Å"journey† ends, where the border between possible and common lies, between dream and reality, between genius and mankind, between God and mankind, between â€Å"a country of eternal light† and â€Å"darkness and distance. † The character, accountable for the novel’s drama, is Victor Frankenstein, a student in humanities. â€Å"A possible interpretation of the name Victor derives from the poem Paradise Lost by John Milton, a great influence on Shelley (a quotation from Paradise Lost is on the opening page of Frankenstein and Shelley even allows the monster himself to read it). Milton frequently refers to God as ‘the Victor’ in Paradise Lost, and Shelley sees Victor as playing God by creating life† (Wikipedia). As a god Victor is determined to endow mankind: â€Å"Yet my heart overflowed with kindness, and the love of virtue. I had begun life with benevolent intentions, and thirsted for the moment when I should put them in practice, and make myself useful to my fellow-beings† (50). Moreover, as Prometheus, he gives the world â€Å"a spark of being† (28). Furnishing the world with such extreme power Frankenstein should take the responsibility of creator and help his gift be useful not destructive. However he mishandles it. When he is fifteen, he witnesses â€Å"a most violent and terrible thunderstorm,† which â€Å"utterly destroys† an â€Å"old and beautiful oak† (18). This event could be interpreted as an allusion to how pestilential this â€Å"spark of being† could be. As Miglena Nikolchina contends, the â€Å"serious ailment† is â€Å"in the man alone, undertaking the ‘godlike’ function to be a creator, but in many respects immature for it† (57). The concrete reason for the creature being â€Å"spurned at, and kicked, and trampled on† is his physical ugliness (133). Why Frankenstein’s creation is ugly? According to Cvetan Stoyanov, â€Å"Ugliness is in fact alienation, drifting away from the vital principle – organic could not be ugly, transgressing and killing it is ugly† (206). Something, often cited in connection to Shelley’s work is a sentence in which the perfect artist is described as a morally perfect man, as a â€Å"second creator, faultless Prometheus under the sky of Jupiter† (Shaftsbury 207). In this respect Miglena Nikolchina considers Frankenstein as an untalented artist, because he is not â€Å"morally perfect† and shows this as a reason for the monster’s ugliness. She claims that the Frankenstein’s morality is not one of a creator, but one of an ordinary man. â€Å"Frankenstein has not even fancied that love – namely love and only love his creation wants – is the first characteristic of creator. † â€Å"Ugliness turns out the sign, left behind by the creator who infuses life, but does not manage to come to love it and thus calls forth death, for it is not possible the fated for living to be made without love, and has no vitality what is deprived of the mercy to be loved† (Nikolchina 79-82). Victor’s blindness about the monster’s innocent nature is more harmful than the physical blindness. The blind De Lacey is the only man who perceives the monsters good resolutions. About the structure of the novel Nikolchina offers an interesting definition. It is â€Å"constructed as if of concentric circles of ice. The sailing to the North Pole is the outer circle, which serve as a frame of Frankenstein’s story. The conversation between the monster and Frankenstein among the sea of ice near Chamounix is the frame of the monster’s story, which is the core of the novel† (Nikolchina 86). The central part of his story is when after burning down the cottage of De Lacey he wonders: â€Å"And now, with the world before me, whither should I bend my steps? (80). Hereafter he starts hunting for his creator and begins alienating from his natural innocence. The creature wends his way toward â€Å"darkness and distance. † The changing nature corroborates his moral collapse: â€Å"I travelled only at night, fearful of encountering the visage of a human being. Nature decayed around me, and the sun became heatless; rain and snow poured around me; mighty rivers were frozen; the surface of the earth was hard, and chill, and bare, and I found no shelter† (81). â€Å"Advancing into experience,† Miglena Nikolchina explains, â€Å"is entering into a core of cold as well† (87). She suggests two aspects in analysing the role of ice. First it could be seen as â€Å"a supreme, unapproachable, unsusceptible to changes reality. It elevates Frankenstein ‘from all littleness of feeling,’ it fills him with ‘a sublime ecstasy that gives wings to the soul, and allows it to soar from the obscure world to light and joy’† (Nikolchina 87). Such an eternal and infinite is the picture before Robert Walton too: â€Å"†¦the region of beauty and delight. †¦the sun is for ever visible; its broad disk just skirting the horizon, and diffusing a perpetual splendour. The explorer’s hopes are so great that they turn out fantasies – he imagines an absolutely unreal North Pole: â€Å"†¦there snow and frost are banished; and, sailing over a calm sea, we may be wafted to a land surpassing in wonders and in beauty every region hitherto discovered on the habitable globe† (2). The Modern Prometheus chooses the â€Å"wi ld and mysterious regions† to â€Å"the tamer scenes of nature† (11). He goes beyond the potentialities of ordinary people, however, aiming not at admiring of the Great Nature, but at gaining the divine secrets. While Elizabeth contemplates â€Å"with a serious and satisfied spirit the magnificent appearances of things,† Victor delights â€Å"in investigating their causes. † Elizabeth follows â€Å"the aerial creations of the poets† and â€Å"in the majestic and wondrous scenes† she finds â€Å"ample scope for admiration and delight,† while Victor is â€Å"capable of a more intense application,† and is â€Å"more deeply smitten with the thirst for knowledge† (15). He elevates his intellect, but not his soul. He does not realize that new born (for his creation emerges in a completely unfamiliar world) needs love and attendance. Striving to eternal light,† he encounters â€Å"impenetrable darkness. † Night is closing around,† †dark are the mountains,† â€Å"heavens are clouded† (40-41). The â€Å"spark of being† turns out a hideous abortion. â€Å"Thick mists hide the summits of the mountains† (54). Frankenstein falls into â€Å"deep, dark, deathlike solitude† (50). Suffering â€Å"the eternal twinkling of the stars weighed upon him,† instead of delighting â€Å"eternal light,† he exclaims: â€Å"Oh! stars, and clouds, and winds, ye are all about to mock me: if ye really pity me, crush sensation and memory; let me become as nought; but if not, depart, depart, and leave me in darkness† (87). The magnificent scenes give way to appalling â€Å"dusky plain† (124). The other aspect of the ice, according Nikolchina, is â€Å"something barren and lifeless; like a power, which is hostile to life; like muteness† (88). Longing revenge, Victor departs from land and â€Å"pursues his journey across the sea in a direction that leads to no land,† â€Å"†¦the snows thicken and the cold increases in a degree almost too severe to support†¦ The rivers were covered with ice and no fish could be procured† (123). The nature seems to be inspirited and acts against Frankenstein: â€Å"Immense and rugged mountains of ice often barred up my passage, and I often heard the thunder of the ground sea which threatened my destruction† (124). It seems he has stepped on some unseen border that can not be crossed. â€Å"When he appears almost within grasp of his foe, his hopes are suddenly extinguished, [ ]. The wind arises; the sea roars; and, as with the mighty shock of an earthquake, it splits and cracks with a tremendous and overwhelming sound. The work is soon finished: in a few minutes a tumultuous sea rolls between him and his enemy, and he is left drifting on a scattered piece of ice, that is continually lessening, and thus preparing for him a hideous death† (124). â€Å"Walton is also surrounded by mountains of ice which admit of no escape and threaten every moment to crush his vessel† (127). The situation with the â€Å"unearthly† creature is however different. The stream of his spiritual development is contrary to the ones of Frankenstein and Walton. Through the epithet â€Å"unearthly† Shelley differentiates him from mankind. While Walton and Victor aim â€Å"wild and mysterious regions,† the creature seeks an intimacy with common world. The monster is â€Å"immaculate in a quite literal meaning – he is empty, tabula rasa† (Nikolchina 72). Every scene and every feeling he touches to are admirable for him. Everything is for the first time. He is a child. The monster meets the civilization, for the first, through the agency of fire, which is an allusion to a new Promethean deed. However he encounters some strangers’ fire. The â€Å"new born† learns everything from the outside world, from accidental circumstances. There is no one to guide him, no one to show him what is worth learning. According to A. A. Belskee, Shelley displays â€Å"the destructiveness of individualism, the tragedy of compulsory desolation, the intangibility of happiness without associating with others† (Belskee 303). Every approach to human society brings a lot of suffering to the creature, notwithstanding he sees â€Å"the future gilded by bright rays of hope and anticipations of joy† (65). Despondently speaking to Walton he describes himself as â€Å"the miserable and the abandoned, [†¦] an abortion, to be spurned at, and kicked, and trampled on† (133). The only possible interrelation with the surrounding world is violence. His crimes are a natural reaction, a rebel against the complete solitude. Otherwise the monster â€Å"could not conceive how one man could go forth to murder his fellow, [†¦] when I heard details of vice and bloodshed, my wonder ceased, and I turned away with disgust and loathing† (68). He clearly declares: â€Å"I was the slave, not the master, of an impulse which I detested, yet could not disobey† (132). The wretched interprets his lot as worse than Satan’s from Milton’s Paradise Lost, for â€Å"Satan had his companions, fellow-devils, to admire and encourage him; but I am solitary and abhorred† (74). He is the only one of the tree, the only one in the world, who completely rejects society with its gall, the only one who crosses the â€Å"border,† laid by society, and fades in â€Å"no land. † He fades for there will be no one to see him. The â€Å"eternal frosts† have frozen all the hatred into his â€Å"ice-raft† and he is â€Å"soon borne away by the waves and lost in darkness and distance† (143). The hopes of â€Å"poor† Frankenstein also fade with his death. He remains at the icy border, between â€Å"eternal light† and â€Å"darkness and distance. † The only thing he succeeds in is revealing these two possibilities for the future human nature: â€Å"Seek happiness in tranquillity and avoid ambition, even if it be only the apparently innocent one of distinguishing yourself in science and discoveries. Yet why do I say this? I have myself been blasted in these hopes, yet another may succeed.

Philosophy of Music Education Essay -- Music Instrumental Essays

Philosophy of Music Education Music is a basic part of everyday life. What makes music unique is its ability to create an emotional response in a person. A music education program should develop the aesthetic experience of every student to its highest potential. Aesthetics is the study of the relationship of art to the human senses. Intelligence exists in several areas, which includes music. The concept of aesthetics allows us to see into ourselves, which in turn helps the development of the intelligences. Not only are these intelligences brought up greatly in music education, but they can be transferred to other areas as well, allowing students to grow more through their other subjects. My philosophy of music education is committed to offering a comprehensive program of Music Education to all students, at all levels who want to participate in musical study. The emphasis will be upon daily music education as it is developed in the classroom, through performance, and in the belief that students best learn to understand and appreciate music by active involvement in music. The job of a music educator is to foster an environment where everyone can succeed in music. Students have the ability to grow and to be a part of a team through their participation in group activities. We must encourage the growth of students within our music education program, not just as musicians but also as individuals.Instrumental Music For Special Learners This article ...

Animals Don’t Have Enough Rights

Animal rights Good morning my friends! how are you today? i’m going to start this discussion with a simple question â€Å" will you go to jail if you kill a human? †. Ofcourse you will, this is because humans have a right to live and to take ones life is a sin right? now let me ask you another question â€Å"will you go to jail if you kill an animal? †. The answer is no, why is this? because humans are more inferior then others? a life is a life whether its a human or an animal.Do you know that in one day an average human kills up to 3 animals? why? just so you can eat a good lunch or dinner at KFC or Mcdonalds. In my opinion animals dont have enough rights this is my topic for today. Did it ever occur to you that maybe animals have rights too? just because they cant speak doesnt mean they cant feel. Every year millions of animals are disected,infected,injected,gassed burned and blinded in hidden labs all over the world and most of the time without painkillers. A nd what for? ust so you can get the latest perfume or shampoo. Would it kill to use organic items? if they arent killed the animals get traumatised and are shaken up which is worse. The truth is, is that animal testing has endangered the life of humans because the results from animal testing cant be applied to humans. This is because animals and humans are completely different from each other! less than 2% of the diseases in humans appear on animals. In Australia last year, 6. 5 million animals were used in experiments.In these research labs just imagine how these animals would feel they are shoved in cages that are so small they get grazes and cuts on their skin from trying to get comfy, also when an animal dies it is kept in a wheelbarrow near the cages. The animals get scared and even sometimes attack each other. Despite the death of these animals before they even get tested, lab workers continue to stuff them in tiny cages, each animal branded with a barcode number instead of a name.In conclusion, animal testing is unreliable and sick, and now that there are alternatives to this (synthetic human skin, vitro testing) I suggest the government fully ban animal testing, we can help too! next time you go shopping buy animal friendly products only and then animal testing labs will be forced to shut down and try not to eat too much of meat so that the killing of animals can be reduced. lets make the world a better, safer, happier place for humans and animals Remember animals have rights too!

The Philosophical And Sociocultural Influences On...

This history of education is robust in the number of philosophical and sociocultural influences on educational theory and practice. According to the Taking Sides text for ED833, â€Å"Historically, organized education has been initiated and instated to serve many purposes – spiritual salvation, political socialization, moral uplift, societal stability, social mobility, mental discipline, vocational efficiency, and social reform, among others.† The changes that take place in education are a directly result of the ever growing and shifting needs of students and society. Furthermore, political demands, sociocultural differences, community expectations, parental authority, and professional difficulties cause shifts in educational theories and ideals. With the numerous differing philosophies, internal and external influences, and historical effects, education must bend and mold to fit its purpose. The idealist tradition, which dominated much of the philosophical and educational thought until the 1700 and 1800s, separates the material world from the spiritual and mental world. Socrates and Plato laid the foundation for Western philosophy and science. Plato believed talent and intelligence could be found in children from all caste systems. Aristotle continued developing scientific thought and investigation. Unlike Socrates’ emphasis on questioning, Aristotle felt students should be lead systematically and repetition should be used to acquire knowledge. Aristotle’s realism periodShow MoreRelatedPhilosophical And Sociocultural Influences On Educational Theory And Practice954 Words   |  4 PagesThis history or education is robust in the number of philosophical and sociocultural influences on educational theory and practice. 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