Wagner, Sven
The Scientist as God

A Typological Study of a Literary Motif, 1818 to the Present.

Ever since the publication of Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein", in which the protagonist desires to "pour a torrent of light into our dark world" by assuming the role of creator, writers have been fascinated with the motif of the scientist as God - that is, of the scientist who seeks to rival God by engaging in such projects as creating life, resurrecting the dead, and freeing humans from sin. This study explores the scientist-as-God motif in a wide range of literary texts, spanning different genres (fiction, drama), periods (Romantic to Postmodern), and national literatures (British, American, Canadian). The study takes a predominantly typological approach, distinguishing and examining the principal modes of representing the godlike scientist. These include cautionary tragedies about scientific hubris, feminist comedies of creaturely self-fashioning, and probing allegories of divine failure. 263 Seiten, gebunden (Anglistische Forschungen; Vol. 421/Universitätsverlag Winter 2012) leichte Lagerspuren/minor shelfwear