The Persistence of the Frankenstein Myth: Organ Transplantation and Surrogate Motherhood

Abstract

Abstract The myth of Prometheus embodied in Mary Shelley's novel Frankenstein, has transformed into a powerful metaphor that has influenced conceptions of science and bioethics, especially of organ transplantation and assisted conception. The authors of this article employ auto-ethnographic accounts that draw on personal experience of organ transplantation and surrogate motherhood with assisted conception to examine the fear that “mad” scientists and audacious people will, through their hubris, attract calamitous consequences. It is evident that the myth of Frankenstein continues to influence constructions of science and technology.