A Study On The Formation Mechanism Of Tragedy In Frankenstein

In Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein,the monster created by the scientist was originally kind and helpful.However,because of his ugly appearance he could never fit in human society.Finally,the monster experienced the change from ugly appearance to evil behaviors and became a real devil and a great threat of social order.This thesis mainly re-explores and interprets this tragedy from the perspective of aesthetics.The purpose of the thesis is to study why the kind,intelligent and harmless creature has been relentlessly rejected and expelled by human society and how the monster gradually went on the road to revenge.First,the thesis points out that the process of making the "creature" violates the definition of "beauty" in the perspective of body aesthetics.Scientist Frankenstein blindly pursued scientific rationality and he frantically scraped together a monster in order to show his own capability in science.However,he didn’t realize that the creature’s huge body structure and ugly appearance would directly lead to terrible consequences.The seemingly superficial ugly appearance is actually the most basic and even the deepest cause of the tragedy.Then,the thesis uses the theories of Schusterman and Merleau-Ponty to analyze the unfair treatments that the monster has received due to his ugly appearance.The analysis bases on close reading of the text,studies people’s aesthetic behaviors and aesthetic psychology in the novel.It explores that aesthetic subconscious,which is difficult to overcome or change plays a very important role in people’s mental activities.Last,this thesis connects "beauty" and "ugliness" with the concept of "Self" and "the Other" in post-colonial theory.The ugly monster as "the Other" in human society was defined,excluded and marginalized.Finally,he tends to either destroy himself or retaliate against human society.The transformation from "ugly" to "hideous" is the last and inevitable step in the generation mechanism of the tragedy.From the above analyses,it can be concluded that the fundamental cause of the tragedy is the ugly appearance of the monster.People judged and ostracized him out of aesthetics before they can understand his character and nature.In other words,Frankenstein’s tragedy can also be referred as "the tragedy of appearance" .This thesis aims to deepen the understanding of the text,inspire people to reflect on their aesthetic behaviors and aesthetic psychology hide behind the behaviors and re-recognize and introspect the common aesthetic phenomena in our society.