“Life, although it may only be an accumulation of anguish, is dear to me, and I will defend it” (Shelley 87). Frankenstein’s monster has searched for his creator only to be faced with the reality that his creator wishes to kill him. Confused and hurt, the monster declares that he will defend his life. Not unlike the protests of students against the Vietnam War in the 1960s and 70s. “[C]ampuses became crucibles of antiwar protest, as students came to protest an unjust war, […], and a graduation that would bring them draft eligibility” (Kindig). College students would not be silenced, and protested openly on their campuses. Every day, new reports of death tolls in Vietnam would scare the nation. The draft would force men in the predetermined age range, as well as new graduates, to fly into combat. Obviously scared for their lives, students protested against the government and it’s draft. On-campus recruitment centers were targets, and over a half million students declared they would refuse being inducted into the military. All done in an act of self perseverance, and also protest against a war they wanted no part in.
Like Frankenstein’s monster, those students feel as if their lives are being threatened. Frankenstein has a duty to protect the creature of his creation. The government also has a duty to protect its citizens. However, both the creature and the students of America did not feel protected, but rather threatened. Frankenstein’s monster reacts violently, especially to Frankenstein’s family, wanting not only to protect his life but also to seek revenge on the creator who hated him. College students did not protest violently, but rather refused to comply with regulations; by burning their draft cards or simply running away. Life is precious, and neither party would allow those false protectors to easily steal it from them.
[A collection of Fred Lonidier’s photographs in the The Agitator newsletter in 1967]
Works Cited:
Kindig, Jessie. “Draft Resistance in the Vietnam Era.” Antiwar and Radical History Project. University of Washington, 1 Jan. 2009. Web. <http://depts.washington.edu/antiwar/vietnam_draft.shtml>
Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein: Or the Modern Prometheus. New York: Random House, 1981. Print.
Thank you for posting this! I’m in group B and was a little confused about what we were supposed to do. I think your comparison is really interesting. I’m reading Frankenstein right now in my gothic literature class and I keep thinking about how the creature is so relatable to what we have been talking about in class so far. One of the things that has struck me most about the creature most is that he is genuinely good on the inside. He’s “young” in his creation and only wants approval, but Victor wants nothing to do with him for the sole fact that he looks different. This is very much like what we have been discussing about teenagers and how it’s not their fault that they are in this transitional state.