Both texts act as a warning to mankind. Compare and contrast how Shelley in Frankenstein and Scott in Blade Runner imaginatively represent this idea through their characters. (max. 7 mins = 1050 words)

Albert Einstein, once proclaimed, It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has exceeded our humanity. The central message embodied within this physicists quote establishes the backbone of Mary Shelleys gothic novel, Frankenstein and Ridley Scotts exotic film, Blade Runner. Despite the differing contexts, the characters in these texts convey the universal idea that the fatal consequence of humans desire for omnipotence and unbridled ambition leads to a detached society in which we lack humanity. In Frankenstein, Mary Shelley creates a confronting image when contrasting the personalities of Victor and the monster in wake of utilising Galvanis concept of electricity as a reanimating force. Within the fragmented epistolary, their confrontation in the desert mountains and dreary glaciers, represents their polarised attitudes. The monster evokes in a pleading tone, have I not suffered enough, that you seek to increase my misery? ...I ought to be thy Adam, but I am rather the fallen angel... Make me happy. This biblical allusion reiterates Shelleys faith in the divine whereby the reference to Miltons Paradise Lost reinforces the hardship and evokes pathos for the monster intensifying his rejection. On the other hand, Victor ironically reacts in an inhumane fashion with strong imperatives, Begone! I will not hear you. There can be no community between you and me; we are enemies. Begone! The refrain of begone reinforces Victors attempts to ignore his creation and denial of their inevitable bond of father and son. Ultimately, the monsters benevolent nature is transformed into a thirst for retribution as he questions how Victor could sport with life, as Shelley warns the audience of humanitys inherent yearning to usurp the role of the creator results in disturbing the natural order which causes a lack of cohesion with the surrounding environment.A similar scene occurs in Ridley Scotts Blade Runner, where the director echoes the rise of capitalism and commercialisation in the 1980s and notions of humanitys obsession with controlling death through scientific progress. In direct reflection, the conflicting father-son relationship is highlighted as Roy evaluates its not an easy thing to meet your maker. Whereby Tyrell employs high modality to praise Roy Battys perfection look at you, youre the prodigal son, youre quite a prize. Roy like the monster pleads for something radical.I want more life, father the biblical allusion alluding to Tyrell as the creator further fuels his egocentric personality. He ironically justifies that to make an alteration in the evolvement of an organic life system is fatal, suggesting that he doesnt understand the impact of his unrestrained ambition which has fatal repercussions acting as Scotts indirect caution. In addition, the foreboding non diegetic sound further emphasises this confrontation, stressing the importance of the final moments of Tyrells existence. The emphatic kiss between Tyrell and Roy parallels the kiss that Judas gave Jesus before he was crucified and reinforces the argument surrounding the increasing computing industry and its role in society during the 80s.

Often unchecked personal ambition leads to a disregard of mores and ethics which causes us to disregard our surroundings and especially our judgement or perception of others. The search for humanity in Shelleys Frankenstein questions whether humans have the capacity to act altruistically. Victors retrospective words how dangerous is the acquirement of knowledge, encapsulates the warning of such actions in his senseless experiment where body parts are referred to as understated materials, further evoking his detachment from any humane feelings. The monsters metaphysical journey whilst residing in the De Laceys cottage acknowledges his altruistic actions whereby the juxtaposition in that he was benevolent and good, misery made me a fiend, accentuates the inevitable nature of humanitys fatal flaw. Shelley reiterates the cruel nature of society in our obsession with the physical appearance whereby the audience feels compassion and mercy for the monster who has been unjustly subjugated. I shall no longer see the sun or stars, or feel the winds play on my cheeks. .The light of that conflagration will fade away; my ashes will be swept into the sea by the winds. This final passage portrays the humanity within such a catastrophe whereby he sorrows for his fathers and his inevitable death evoking pathos towards the monster through the sensory imagery. Blade Runners opening scene warns of an artificial world devoid of human involvement that is a consequence of a lack of responsibility distinctly reflecting the explosion of the technological development during the 1980s. The opening panoramic panning shot of 2019 L.A. reveals a morose world lit by the glow of corporate advertisements, Scotts representation of the bleak future manifested by the dominance of capitalism. In addition, the fireballs, together with the haunting Vangelis background music emphasises the nightmarish dystopia. This reflects the awareness of the decaying environment, similar to Shelley, is employed to represent mankinds destruction due to technology. In exact comparison to that of the monsters last moments, Roy Battys last moments evoke that in truth, the replicants can be seen as more humane than humans whereby he sacrifices his own life in order to save another. I've seen things you people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of OrionAll those moments will be lost in time, like tears in the rain. Time to die. The simile gives the audience insight into experiences that had not only physical but emotional impacts on Roy before his peaceful acceptance of death in direct mirror of Jesus crucifixion. Thereby enacting Ridley Scotts warning that this overreliance on technology will cause us to become detached from society without any retreat. Thus, we can see how both Shelley and Scott represent their zeitgeists in their texts, Frankenstein and Blade Runner, as they draw upon societal concerns to warn us of the consequences of overstepping our boundaries and unbridled ambition resulting in the dehumanising effect on society. Subsequently, it becomes evident that despite their temporal and contextual differences, through common concerns and concepts that transcend human beings these texts are unequivocally linked.