“How strange, I thought, that the same cause should produce such opposite effects!” (93)

The monster’s discovery of fire’s ability to give light and warmth as well as to harm is a metaphor for science in the novel. While, obviously, the scientific efforts undertaken have enormous potential to be beneficial – like fire giving of warmth and light – there is also the possibility that harm could come from them. Like the lit candle that tips over and catches an entire house on fire, Dr. Frankenstein’s project (and science in general) has the potential to go accidentally and drastically wrong, inflicting damage on everyone unlucky enough to be in the vicinity. Unfortunately, that’s exactly what happens – a warning from Mary Shelley to all those contemplating a similarly uncharted undertaking.