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Short Comparison Essay - Discoveries in Frankenstein & The Handmaid's Tale
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Short Comparison Essay - Discoveries in Frankenstein & The Handmaid's Tale Introduction inc AO1, AO2 & AO3
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EDEXCEL ENGLISH LITERATURE- An essay on the presentation of setting in The Handmaid's Tale and Frankenstein
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Discoveries can be defined as new things, places or knowledge found out by someone or a group ofpeople. Within both ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ written by Margaret Atwood in 1985 and ‘Frankenstein’
written by Mary Shelley in 1916 theme of discoveries is presented using characters who seek to
discover. Characters such as Robert and Victor Frankenstein who seek to make huge, world-changing
discoveries for the purpose of self-gain or personal glory and fame are explored in ‘Frankenstein’,
whereas in ‘A Handmaid’s Tale’ discoveries made especially those made by the novel’s protagonist
Offred are for survival from a theocratic and extremist regime called Gilead which turned Offred into
a Handmaid from the Bible as Rachel did to her servant.
In both ‘Frankenstein’ and ‘A Handmaid’s Tale’ there are characters who seek to make discoveries
however for very different reasons. In ‘Frankenstein’, the character Robert Walton seeks to make
discoveries during his voyage to the Arctic. Just as people like Captain James Cook who became
famous for his three voyages between 1768 and 1779 Walton set out for the Arctic with the
intention of discovering hidden land and nature’s secrets. Which to the reader would seem like a
noble conquest if not for Walton’s intentions: ‘I preferred glory to every enticement that wealth
placed in my path’. The abstract noun ‘glory’ shows that the reason why Walton wants to make
important discoveries is not for the good of mankind or to advance civilisation as Captain Cook did,
rather he wants to make a discovery In order to become famous and well-known. This presents
discoveries as a negative thing as they can cause a person to desire glory and to seek knowledge for
self-gain, a message which is continued with the character of Victor Frankenstein. The impact and
consequences of the desire to make discoveries for the wrong reasons in reflected in the setting of
the Arctic: ‘the floating sheets of ice…indicating the dangers of the region towards which we are
advancing’. The ‘ice’ in this case could represent the dangers and obstacles that stand in Waltons
way, they could also represent the drawbacks of making discoveries purely for fame and glory. The
fact that Walton ignores the ‘dangers’ and continues his voyage despite the ice following his own
precept: ‘What can stop the determined heart and resolved will of man?’ (one which is very similar
to that of William Godwin who believed that is men are left alone then they will make all the right
decisions for the good of man) shows the naivety of Walton as a character and perhaps men in
general – that those like Walton, Frankenstein and Godwin all believe that just because a man can,
he should, however within Shelley’s novel this is disproved with both Walton and Frankenstein.
Similarly, in ‘A Handmaid’s Tale’ the theme of discoveries is present, however in this novel it is
presented through a woman consequently changing the nature of discoveries and the reason for it.
The main character Offred makes many a discovery during the novel, some on her own and some
with the help of others, such as the Commander. Within the regime Offred’s status as a woman
means that the discoveries she makes are all (in some form) pertinent to her own survival whether
mentally or physically. For example: through Ofglen, Offred discovers a group of rebels (those who
do not truly believe in Gilead or its teachings) within Gilead and whilst this could save her physically,
it more importantly saves her mentally because Offred seems to feel less trapped after finding out
that there are people trapped like her, people who might become her safety net.
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