Frankenstein's hunger for knowledge and success is quite admirable, however sometimes it is best to let the unknown remain unknown. The old adage that knowledge is power is still very true, but it's how one uses that power that attests to their being. In the case of Frankenstein, he got so caught up in how he would be glorified and the success that would follow his experiment, that even though he considered whether or not he should proceed with his with giving life to creation, he refused to open his eyes to the true consequences of him toiling with life and death. Frankenstein said, "When I found so astonishing a power placed within my hands, I hesitated a long time concerning the manner in which I should employ it," (53). Here we see that Frankenstein did in fact ponder his decision of bringing life to his creation, however, his imagination was too permitting and wouldn't allow him to doubt the fact that he would be able to give life to something in the form of man.
Knowledge & Power
It wasn’t until immediately after Frankenstein bestowed life to his creation that he saw he used his power of knowledge in the wrong way. Upon telling his story to Walton, Frankenstein warns Walton and says, “how dangerous the acquirement of knowledge is, and how much happier [is] a man who believes his native town to be the world, than he who aspires to become greater than his nature will allow” (53).
Though Frankenstein gives Walton this warning of not to “become greater than [a man’s] nature will allow,” what Frankenstein fails to do is explain the balance between knowledge and power; the reason being that he still doesn’t know. In the eyes of Frankenstein, if he
could go back and change his past he would have never ventured out to Ingolstadt and he would have never left behind his family to receive an education that he believes ruined his life. It is evident that though Frankenstein sees that knowledge is power, he is still terrified of the power he would have gained and instead of learning how to use his power wisely, he would have much rather not have it at all.