Comprehension

Document 1 1. Viktor Frankenstein is a hard-working and obstinate scientist who worked tirelessly for two years in order to give life to a human being he created from spare-parts. (intro + l.1-2)

2. He succeeded in giving life to a human-being he created from bits and pieces of corpses.

3. Before he had given life to his creation, he thought it was ugly, but after the spark of life had ignited, he realized what he had done ; that is create a monster.

4. a- horror, disgust, unable to endure the aspect of the being I had created

b- He probably thinks he was wrong in doing what he did, and that it is beyond the laws of Nature, and he is not God, contrary to what he must have thought before : his creation has nothing human except the shape, but everything else is repulsive.

5. He can’t sleep because of the guilt he feels after what he has done. The discrepancy between what he expected and what he has achieved is too much to bear.

6. Prometheus created man from clay and gave him fire thus defying the ancient Gods. He was obviously punished for it. Doctor Frankenstein likewise created a human-being, thus trying to be on an equal footing with God, but what he made was an aberration, and he immediately realized and regretted it, though too late.

Document 2

7. Te person speaking in the very first lines is a would-be parent making an order as if at a drive-in for fast-food, except he’s ordering the characteristics of his/her baby. He’s/he’s addressing the doctor in charge of assisted reproduction.

8. He/She expects to have what he/she considers as the perfect baby (well, two, really) according probably to his/her own features, but also according to what he/she wants the baby to have in terms in intelligence, and on top of it, to ensure the baby will not bear any potentially serious illness.

9. The journalist mentions that it is the possible future, although he warns against the possible consequences of the breakthrough in science.

10. (l.5) Using a procedure called pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD), scientists can now accurately3 predict certain genetic diseases in potential embryos, ensuring that the chosen one is healthy.

11. Scientists can select the sex of the baby, the features and health characteristics.

12. This scientific progress could lead people to select characteristics of their future babies for bad reasons, such as physical traits, when this breakthrough is supposed to help parents with possibly disabled children, in order to avoid them the hassle of transplants and waiting for a compatible donor. Lobbies could be created to create a so-called superior race, dividing humanity like what has already been seen during WWII.

Both documents

13. Science now permits nearly every one to conceive a child, thanks to assisted reproduction. Although the risk is to feel god-like and choose specificities for the child to come, ethics and medecine do their utmost to prevent people to slide in selection rather than procreation.

Expression

A- After creating his monster, Viktor Frankenstien realises he now has to live with his creature. He tries to settle into a routine that will allow him to cross his creation as little as possible. Every morning, Viktor woke up early and checked in the corridor that no light was on before he went downstairs for his breakfast. His main goal every day was to avoid his creature, as the sight of him reminded him of the aberration he had committed. He deeply regretted his act, but was equally reluctant to kill his own creation, so he compromised. Meanwhile, the creature, having been endowed with feelings, was at a loss : he longed to see his master and maker, in order to learn from him, but he was equally aware of how repulsive he looked, and that his master was horrified every time he saw him. One day, he decided to flee the castle and discver the world by himself.