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“The fear, anxiety and uncertainty of the future have shaped the composer’s values as well as

their perspective of their own society” 

Frankenstein exhibits the fear, anxiety and uncertainty of the future stemming

from the composer, Mary Shelley’s values during the early 19th century,

expressed using Gothic and Romantic ideas. Further, her perspective of her

own society is deeply enmeshed in the Age of Enlightenment science. Similar

notions are conveyed in Blade Runner, a 1983 film directed by Ridley Scott,

whose own values and perspective of society have been altered by the vision

of an uncertain future arising from the cold war era and the corporatisation of 

science. These texts share core ideas about the flawed responsibilities of 

humans as creators and the destructive potential of abusing science. They

demonstrate the transcendence of both composers’ values through context,

due to the uncertainty about the future of their societies which are on theverge of social change.

In Frankenstein, Shelley highlights her fears of the illegitimacy of mankind to

employ their scientific powers during the industrial revolution due to the

innate selfishness of humans flawing their responsibility as creators. This is

reflected through the contrast of values between Frankenstein’s childhood

experiences to his poor treatment of his creation, the monster. While

Frankenstein hyperbolically states that his parents were “agents and creators

of all the many delights” in his childhood, this is a stark juxtaposition to the

following, “Wretched devil! You reproach me with your creation; come on then

may I extinguish the spark which I so negligently bestowed”. Shelley ironically

associates the monster with the “devil” through this recurring gothic motif,

while the intensity of Victor’s hatred and unwillingness to accept responsibility

as the monster’s creator positions him as more devilish than his creation.

 Therefore, Shelley correlates Victor’s selfish reluctance to assume

responsibility as a creator with the degraded morals in the Enlightenment

period, solidifying humanity as illegitimate to play the role of god. Hence, the

fear of man’s failure to properly consider the consequences of their scientific

explorations during the industrial revolution shapes Shelley’s negative

perspective of the future.

Similarly, in Blade Runner, Scott depicts his fear and uncertainty of the future

by developing the idea of the failure of humans as creators through the

characterisation of Dr. Tyrell. Tyrell exerts a powerful dominance over the

dystopian Los Angeles city through his exploitation of science and commercial

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power. This is exemplified when he states “Commerce is our goal at Tyrell…

Rachael is an experiment, nothing more”, with a close-up of his emotionless

facial expression. This quotation conveys the apathetic attitude of Tyrell

towards his creation, Rachael, explicating the selfish and flawed sense of 

responsibility that Scott fears mankind will possess with an increasingly

unethical economic paradigm. Through a dehumanised portrayal of Tyrell,

Scott reflects the contextual concerns of the power struggle involved in the

cold war and the potentially subverted socio-economic values. The rise of 

‘laissez faire’ capitalism is further depicted in the ‘meeting of the maker’

scene. Here Scott utilises sound effects of the computer generated secretary

voice, combined with a mid shot highlighting the white curtains and candles in

 Tyrell’s bedroom. The mis-en-scene emphasises the luxurious lifestyle in

which Dr. Tyrell resides in contrast to the dystopian metropolis of Los Angeles,ironically portraying him as a god-like figure. Hence, Tyrell’s characterisation

solidifies Scott’s values about the flawed responsibilities of humans as

creators due to society’s obsession with progress.

Furthermore, Shelley’s novel exhibits her personal values about the

destructive potential of abusing science, conveying her fears in response to

Enlightenment science. This fear is demonstrated through Frankenstein’s

degraded psychological state following the creation of his monster. “The bolt

has entered my soul; and I felt then that I should survive to exhibit what I shall

soon cease to be – a miserable spectacle of wrecked humanity”. The

personified ‘bolt’ entering Victor’s ‘soul’ is symbolic of the corrupted values

during the Industrial revolution where the repercussions of unethical and

excessive scientific exploration are ignored. Moreover, Shelley’s use of 

romantic imagery depicts the sublime natural environment whilst

disconnecting the monster from its surroundings. The monster thus becomes

a metaphor for the adulteration of nature by scientific abuse. “The labours I

endured were no longer to be alleviated by the bright sun or gentle breezes of 

spring…I was not made for the enjoyment of pleasure”. Here, the monster

irrevocably states his predicament, accentuated through Shelley’s association

of the creature with harsh gothic treatment and the juxtaposed romantic

background. The monster, a destructive product from the abuse of 

Enlightenment science, is Shelley’s allusion of the fear and uncertainty of her

future society if mankind was to pursue its scientific path.

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Additionally, Ridley Scott represents his perspective of his modern western

society using neo-noir cinematography, portraying the destructive potential of 

abusing science through the replicants themselves. The full repercussions of 

playing-God by creating human replicants are not fully conceived until their

murderous intent is alighted. In the ‘Voight-Kampff test scene on the replicant,

Leon’, Scott depicts the true corruption of technology through the brutal, cold-

blooded killing of the Blade Runner, Holden. The mise-en-scene of a dark,

gloomy roomy and a large table with Leon and Holden sitting at opposite ends

creates a foreboding atmosphere. This is coupled with sound effects of 

heartbeats to increase tension, climaxing with the barbaric killing of Holden by

Leon. Scott’s characterisation of the replicants highlights his concerns of the

fatal use of excessive science to advance the world. This can be seen to

parallel the context of the Cold war where the mass development of nuclearweapons struck fear that it could potentially cause a nuclear holocaust.

Further complicating this uncertainty was the declining importance of religion

and ethical values during this period. Tyrell himself ironically reflects the

dangers of humanity’s obsession with progress stating that “To make an

alteration in the evolvements of an organic life system is fatal”. Through this

dialogue, Scott reinforces his changing perspective of his Cold War society

due to civilisation’s abuse of science to gain power.

Ultimately, threatening scientific exploration in their respective context

shapes Shelley and Scott’s cynical views of the future. In Frankenstein, the

flawed responsibility of humans as creators as well as the destructive

potential of abusing science reflects Shelley’s values and her perspective of 

the industrial future during the Age of Enlightenment. Scott expresses similar

notions within Blade Runner, his values shaped by the cold war era and the

mass corporatisation of science, reinforcing that the fears and uncertainty of 

societal change transcends context.