Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
Throughout all of human history, people have tried to be the first to
accomplish certain things so that they could make themselves famous. They feel
that if they reach a goal that seems so hard to accomplish, that they will get their
name in history books and that the mere mention of their name will bring about
.respect and admiration.
In Mary Shelley's book Frankenstein, Victor Frankenstein shows this
characteristic of being egotistical self absorbed and arrogant. He has a thirst for
knowledge that is obvious, and the desire that he has for it is blinding and he
does not realize it until he is driven mad by it. His aspirations at first look may
seem to be a positive way to help humanity. He wants to get rid of diseases so
that man will live forever. He describes himself as being "dedicated", "frantic",
and "tortured", from his relentless work. He became so dedicated to his work that
he became ill, and his only concern was to reach his goal. Victor's father tries to
contact him, but Frankenstein is so selfish, that he makes no effort to
communicate to his own father. Victor has this image in his mind of creating a
being that is beyond human, made from remnants of the dead, but he thinks that
it would still be a beautiful creation. He shows pride in his work because he picks
out good parts to make it from, like white teeth and thick, black hair. The image of
beauty stays with him, only until the spark is put in the monster and he becomes
alive. Then just as the charge that gave the monster life, a charge hits Victor as
fast and powerful that makes him realize what exactly he had done. He then sees
that his creation is hideous and he has no idea what to do. When he sees what
he has accomplished, he tries to ignore what he has done and denies all of
his responsibilities that came with his creation. He abandons the creature and
has no intention of doing any sort of scientific experiments and does not even
care to try to learn from what he has done. This showing of recklessness and non
devotion show that Frankenstein is not as good of a scientist as he thinks himself
Due to the lack of free will, he recognizes that no person can change fate. As well as a
Victor is weak and it is only near the end of the novel that he
transgression and his vulgar presumption that he can emulate its force. What drives Victor to do
...or was not thinking of others in his actions, but only of himself. He did not consider the tumult the abnormally large creature could cause in the world, nor what the feelings of the monster would be towards him if he abandoned him. Victor also did not contemplate the safety of his friends, as he had the chance to stop the creature’s misdoings but failed to do so, risking the life of his friends. Therefore, Victor was a selfish being, who only concerned himself with his wishes and never evaluated the situation of his loved ones, ultimately causing their demise. The misfortunate events that occurred through Victor’s life could have been prevented, and also discontinued when Victor had the chance. However, Victor’s irresponsibility overcame these opportunities and he in turn, caused misfortunes for himself as well as his loved ones.
... of nature. In fact, this belief, which does beg the question, is what predominates his thinking.
In Frankenstein, Victor’s monster suffers much loneliness and pain at the hands of every human he meets, as he tries to be human like them. First, he is abandoned by his creator, the one person that should have accepted, helped, and guided him through the confusing world he found himself in. Next, he is shunned wherever he goes, often attacked and injured. Still, throughout these trials, the creature remains hopeful that he can eventually be accepted, and entertains virtuous and moral thoughts. However, when the creature takes another crushing blow, as a family he had thought to be very noble and honorable abandons him as well, his hopes are dashed. The monster then takes revenge on Victor, killing many of his loved ones, and on the humans who have hurt him. While exacting his revenge, the monster often feels guilty for his actions and tries to be better, but is then angered and provoked into committing more wrongdoings, feeling self-pity all the while. Finally, after Victor’s death, the monster returns to mourn the death of his creator, a death he directly caused, and speaks about his misery and shame. During his soliloquy, the monster shows that he has become a human being because he suffers from an inner conflict, in his case, between guilt and a need for sympathy and pity, as all humans do.
“God, in pity, made man beautiful and alluring, after his own image; but my form is a filthy type of yours, more horrid even from the very resemblance” (93).
Everything starts to change once Victors ambitions become his life. He leaves to study at Ingolstadt, where his destiny begins to unfold. This is when Victor’s isolation begins. The search for the secrets of life consumes him for many years until he thinks he has found it. For months, he assembles what he needs for his creation to come alive.
Victor said when he saw the monster before it was alive. Afterwards it was the
Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein, is a book in which men pursue their goals against hopeless odds. Robert Walton’s decision to turn the ship around at the end of the novel is questioned by many. This essay will discuss the interpreted views on Robert Walton’s decision to retreat by Victor Frankenstein, Mary Shelley and myself. Although, some may disagree ultimately Robert Walton made the right choice to turn his ship around at the end of the novel and is therefore not a failure.
Because of Victor’s need for fame and desire for power leads to Victor becoming a monster. Victor begins his quest to bring life to a dead person because he does not want anyone to feel the pain of a loved ones death. At first he is not obsessed with his project. As he moves along in the project he thinks about what will happen to him. "Life and death appeared to me ideal bounds, which I should first break through, and pour a torrent of light into our dark world. A new species would bless me as its creator and source, many happy and excellent natures would owe their being to me." (Shelley 39) He realizes that he will become famous if he accomplishes the task of bringing a person back to life. The realization that he will become famous turns him into an obsessive monster. He wanted to be admired, and praised as a species creator. He isolates himself from his family and works on the creature. “I had worked hard for nearly two years, for the sole purpose of infusing life into an inanimate body. For this I deprived myself of rest and health. I had desired it with an ardour that far exceeded moderation, but now that I had finished, the beauty of the dream vanished, and breathless horror and disgust filled my heart.” (Shelley 156) By spending most of his time inside on his experiment, he has no time to write or contact his family. He puts fear within his family because they fear for him.
Like a child longs for a mother’s love, the monster longs for the love of his creator. When the monster was first created, Victor says that the monster looked at him “while a grin wrinkled his cheeks.” The monster looks at Victor with love and instead of receiving love in return, he receives complete rejection. The monster cannot understand why his own creator does not love him like God loved Adam. The monster believes he should be like Adam but is “rather the fallen angel.” God made man in his own image and loved Adam even with his flaws. Yet, victor made “a monster so hideous that [Victor] turned from [his creation] in disgust.” This rejection from Victor makes the monster angry and
feelings, he lets those that he loves die, and abandons his own creation. Even the creature couldn’t have committed
humans and seeks to construct himself out of divine knowledge, he is destined to fail in his own