Frankenstein OR The Modern Prometheus – Mary Shelley

1816 yilinda Geneva yakinlarinda bir ahbap grubu, soguk ve yagmurlu havada atesin basinda toplanmis, ellerine gecen birkac hayalet hikayesi ile oyalanmislar. Bu hikayelerin benzerlerini yazmak icin muzipce bir istek duymuslar. Ne var ki, ilerleyen gunlerde hava duzelince gruptan iki kisi Alpleri gezmeye cikinca, olaganustu hikayelerin verdigi ilhami kaybetmisler. Sansliyiz ki diger kisi, tam bir klasik olacak olan hikayesini tamamlayabilmis.

Kitap, kutuplara bir kesif gezisine gidecek olan R. Walton’un kizkardesine yazdigi mektuplarla basliyor. Kaptan, bir arkadasa olan ihtiyacini anlatiyor bunlarda:

‘I have no friend, Margaret: when I am glowing with the enthusiasm of success, there will be none to participate my joy: if I am assailed by disappointment, no one will endeavour to sustain me in dejection. I shall commit my thoughts to paper, it is true; but that is a poor medium for the communication of feeling. I desire the company of a man who could sympathise with me, whose eyes would reply to mine. You may deem me romantic, my dear sister, but I bitterly feel the want of a friend. I have no one near me, gentle yet courageous, possessed of a cultivated as well as of a capacious mind, whose tastes are like my own, to approve or amend my plans. How would such a friend repair the faults of your poor brother!’

Meshur hikayemiz, boyle bir arkadasin eksikligini kolayca giderebilecek olan Victor’un buzullar uzerinde kurtarilip gemiye alinmasiyla baslar. Victor, meger ogrencilik yillarinda, benzeri gorulmemis bi rise kalkismistir: olu insan parcalarini birlestirip yeniden canlandirmak.

‘A new species would bless me as its creator and source; many happy and excellent natures would owe their being to me. No father could claim the gratitude of his child completely as I should deserve theirs.’

Bu ise o kadar dalar ki;  ayni evde buyuyup asik oldugu sevgili Elizabeth’inin endiseli mektuplari bile gecesini gunduzune katarak bu amac ugrunda didinmesine engel olamaz:

‘I was encompassed by a cloud which no beneficial influence could penetrate. The wounded deer dragging its fainting limbs to some untrodden brake, there to gaze upon the arrow which had pierced it, and to die- was but a type of me.’

Uzun denemeler sonucu elektrik sokuyla canlandirdigi yaratigin cirkin yuzunden o kadar dehsete duser ki, yaratik kendini sokaga atar. Sanilanin aksine yaratigin adi degildir Frankenstein; her ne kadar o adla bilinse de Victor yaratiga bir isim vermez.

Victor yasadigi sok yuzunden aylarca hasta yatar ve arkadasinin bakimi sayesinde iyilesir. Tam babasinin evine gidecegi zaman en kucuk kardesinin kayboldugunu ve bogularak olduruldugunu ogrenir. Kucucuk boyundaki kocaman parmak izleri cinayeti yaratigin isledigini belli eder Victor’a. Bazi nedenlerden evin masum hizmetcisi Justine’den suphelenilmistir. Kiz hapse atilir ama Victor kimseye bir sey anlatamaz. Justine idam edilince vicdan azabi daha cok artar. Bir gun evine yakin buzul daglarinda gezerken yaratik aniden karsisina cikar Victor’un. Meshur yuzlesme su sekilde olur:

‘Devil! Do you dare approach me? And do you not fear the vengeance of my arm wreaked on your miserable head? Begone, vile insect! Or rather, stay, that I may trample you to dust! And, oh, that I could, with the extinction of your miserable existence, restore those victims whom you have so diabolically murdered!’

‘I expected this reception. All men hate the wretched; how, then, I must be hated, who am miserable beyond all living things! Yet you, my creator, detest and spurn me, thy creature, to whom thou art bound by ties only dissoluble by the annihilation of one of us. You purpose to kill me. How dare you sport thus with life? Do your duty towards me, and I will do mine towards you and the rest of mankind. If you will comply with my conditions, I will leave them and you at peace; but if you refuse, I will glut the maw of death, until it be satiated with the blood of your remaining friends.’

‘Abhorred monster! Fiend that thou art! The tortures of hell are too mild a vengeance for thy crimes. Wretched devil! You approach me with your creation; come on, then, that I may extinguish the spark which I so negligently bestowed.’

‘Be calm! I entreat you to hear me, before you give vent to your hatred on my devoted head. Have I not suffered enough that you seek to increase my misery? Life, although it may only be an accumulation of anguish, is so dear to me, and I will defend it. Remember, thou has made me more powerful than thyself; my height is superior to thine; my joints more supple. But I will not be tempted to set myself in opposition to thee. I am thy creature, and I will be even mild and docile to my natural lord and king, if thou wilt also perform thy part, the which thou owest me. Oh, Frankenstein, be not equitable to every other, and trample upon me alone, to whom thy justice, and even thy clemency and affection, is most due. Remember, that I am thy creature, I ought to be thy Adam; but I am rather the fallen angel, whom thou drivest from joy for no misdeed. Everywhere I see bliss, from which I alone am irrevocably excluded. I was benevolent and good; misery made me a fiend. Make me happy, and I shall again be virtuous.’

‘Begone! I will not hear you. There can be no community between you and me; we are enemies. Begone, or let us try our strength in a fight, in which one must fall.’

‘How can I move thee? Will no entreaties cause thee to turn a favourable eye on your creature, who implores thy kindness and compassion? Believe me, Frankenstein: I was benevolent; my soul glowed with love and humanity; but am I not alone, miserably not alone? You, my creator, abhor me; what hope can I gather from your fellow-creatures, who owe me nothing? They spurn and hate me. The desert mountains and dreary glaciers are my refuge. I have wandered here many days; the caves of ice, which I only do not fear, are a dwelling to me, and the only one which man does not grudge. These bleak skies I hail, for they are kinder to me than your fellow-beings. If the multitude of mankind knew of my existence, they would do as you do, and arm themselves for my destruction. Shall I not then hate them who abhor me? I will keep no terms with my enemies. I am miserable, and they shall share my wretchedness. Yet it is in your power to recompense me, and deliver them from an evil which it only remains for you to make so great that not only you and your family, but quit for ever the neighbourhood of man, and lead a harmless life, or become the scourge of your fellow-creatures, and the author of your own speedy ruin.’

Evet, filmlerdeki tasvirinin aksine, yaratigin orjinal hali  dilsiz veya akilsiz degil, kendini egitmis ve ikna kabiliyeti yuksek bir varliktir. Victor ilk kez yaraticinin yarattigina karsi gorevleri oldugunu ve onun kotulugunden yakinmadan once onu mutlu etmesi gerektigini dusunur. Adem, Havva’sini istemektedir.

Yaratik kendini kaderine terkedilmis bulunca ormanda bir kulube bulur. Icindeki yasli adami ve iki genci duvardaki bir delikten izlemeye baslar. Onlarin uzgun gorunusunden cok etkilenir ve dusunur: ‘Bu guzel yaratiklar, benim gibi yalniz ve kusurlu olmadiklari halde boyle mutsuzsa, ben mahvolmaliyim.’ Onlari dinleyerek konusmayi ogrenir, yasli adamin gozlerinin gormedigini farkeder. Bir gun kulubeden iceri ‘The Arabian’ karakteri, yani Safie girer. (Kim derdi Frankenstein romaninda bir Safiye olsun!)

Safiye meger yasli  de Lacey’in oglunun sevgilisi imis. Bunlar Paris’te yasarken, Safiye’nin Turk bir tuccar olan babasi ile Pariste’dir ama niyeyse hukumetle zitlasir ve tam Safiye’nin Istanbul’dan yanina geldigi gun hapse atilir. Haksiz yere olume mahkum edilir ve bundan dolayi tum Paris halki ofkelenmistir. Malesef bu kararin sebebi tuccarin dini ve zengin olmasidir.

Safiye’nin annesi Hristiyan olan bir Arap’tir. Turkler tarafindan esir alinmis ve ona asik olan tuccar ile evlenmistir (…) Kadin, kizini kendi dinine gore yetistirir, ruhun ozgurlugunu ve keskin bir kavrayisa sahip olmayi amaclamasini ister ki, bunlar Muhammed’in kadin takipcilerine yasak edilmis seylerdir. Asya’ya geri donup hareme kapatilma korkusu gittikce buyumektedir. Bir Hristiyanla evlenip, kadina toplumda yer veren bir ulkede kalmak tek umududur. Hasili, Turkiye’de kalmak onun icin korkunctu; cunku bu ulke diniyle de duygulariyla da catisma icindeydi vs. gibi cumlelerle yazar ulkemizi gommus de gommus.

Safiye faslini gecersek, yaratik iyilik yaptigi, odun toplayip kapilarina biraktigi insanlardan ancak korku ve dusmanlik gormustur. Victor’dan bir Havva istemesi bundandir. O bu istegi kabul etmeyince aralarinda bir kovalamaca baslar. Victor her adimda bir dostunun daha olum haberini alir ve bu kez o yaratigin pesine duser. Hikayenin basinda kurtarilarak alindigi gemide hastalanarak olur.

Classic!

Son bir alinti:

‘It is so long before the mind can persuade itself that she, who we saw every day, and whose very existence appeared a part of our own, can have departed for ever- that the brightness of a beloved eye can have been extinguished, and the sound of a voice so familiar, and dear to the ear, can be hushed, never more to be heard.’