The argument of whether the monster was evil or not is very controversial. Taken into consideration of the neglectment that was bound to the monster, he is often found villainous without being given the chance to prove otherwise. The monster was abandoned so therefore he had no ethical guidance. He also had a moment of self-realization when he was able to distinguish his own moral compass. The monster's desire for companionship brought out his malicious intents. These reasons of acts of evilness are represented in the novel Frankenstein. Mary Shelley makes this clear in her writing by expressing the emotions that the monster is going through from the beginning of his life until he takes his life on a new journey and by showing how the monster treated and reacted towards his own personal problems. The creature was an evil being as his murderous nature and extreme …show more content…
This emotional trauma that the monster endured brought bitterness into his life, so naturally he reacted violently from the lack of ethical guidance. The monster did not know how to deal with his anguish when he approached William. The monster had no intention of hurting William until the moment the child revealed that he was related to Frankenstein's, “Hideous monster! let me go. My papa is a Syndic-he is M. Frankenstein-he will punish you” (122). The monster became triggered because of the recognition of the connection of William and Frankenstein. This caused the monster to react impulsively and irrationally, killing William by strangling him. His initial thought after realizing the crime he had just committed was invigorating and he had lack of remorse. The monster exclaimed, “I gazed on my victim, and my heart swelled with exultation and hellish triumph: clapping my hands…” (122). Without an authority figure in his life, his sense of morality is lessened, progressing towards his now pre-determined instinct of being
At first, The Monster is very kind and sympathetic. He has a good heart, as shown when he collected firewood for the family on the brink of poverty. Like every other human creation, he was not born a murderer. All the Monster wanted was to be accepted and loved by Victor Frankenstein and the other humans but instead he was judged by his appearance and considered to be dangerous. The Monster says, “like Adam, I was created apparently united by no link to any other being in existence…many times I considered Satan as the fitter emblem of my condition; for often, like him, when I viewed the bliss of my protectors, the bitter gall of envy rose within me” (page 105). This line is an important part of the novel because the Monster lets it be known how like Adam he was created into this world completely abandoned and like Satan he is angry with those people who have found contentment and satisfaction in their lives. The rejection and unwelcome feeling he is faced with, is the main reason the Monster becomes a killer. Watching another family show love towards each other made the Monster realize how alienated he truly was. He did not know how to deal with his pain and emotions so he murders as
At first the Monster never intended to hurt anyone, but continuously being made fun of by every human that he ran into took a toll on his mental state. He knew that the only way to get Frankenstein’s attention was kill someone that he loved. It started off with his brother, William. Then Justine, the family servant, was the one framed and was executed for “killing” William. Henry Clerval, Frankenstein’s best friend, and last his wife and cousin Elizabeth were killed throughout the book in hopes of getting Frankenstein to create another creature like the Monster. The Monster never had a fair life because he was created as...
Virtue is found at the margins of society more often than at its center. In Frankenstein, the novel by Mary Shelley, the monster exemplifies virtue to a greater extent than his creator, Victor Frankenstein. Shelley's creature is an isolate of great sensitivity, kindness, and insight. Contrary to James Whale's 1931 film, Frankenstein, which portrays the creature as a lumbering dolt, Shelley's monster was modeled on Rousseau's notion of humanity as the "noble savage". The nobility of the creature is evident as encounters a simple French family and observes and draws form the quirks of humanity.
Analysis of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. Analyzing a book can be a killer. Especially when it contains tons of subtle little messages and hints that are not picked up unless one really dissects the material. Mary Shelley's Frankenstein is a prime example.
Monsters, in myths and legends, are ugly beasts with vicious tendencies and overbearing powers who bring suffering and agony to those who cross their paths, regardless of intention. However, the same cannot be said for Mary Shelley's monster, the Creation. Victor Frankenstein's lab experiment emphasizes the danger of not taking responsibility for one's own actions and knowledge, by being an instrument of Victor's suffering.
Mary Shelley's book, Frankenstein, deals with the major dilemma of the creation of man. Rousseau deals with the topic of abandonment in Emile, which stemmed the thoughts of creation for Shelley in 1816 upon reading Rousseau's opinions. Rousseau blames the problems that children inhibit solely upon the parents shoulders (Mellor). Mary Shelley is able to relate to this statement on a personal level due to the parenting (or lack of) within her life. This in turn leads to a broader question concerning Shelley's Frankenstein; is the monster really the sole person to blame for his murderous actions? According to Rousseau's theory, the monster is not the sole problem. Victor Frankenstein is his creator or "father" figure thus giving him the responsibility of his monster.
At first glance, the monster in Frankenstein is a symbol of evil, whose only desire is to ruin lives. He has been called "A creature that wreaks havoc by destroying innocent lives often without remorse. He can be viewed as the antagonist, the element Victor must overcome to restore balance and tranquility to the world." But after the novel is looked at on different levels, one becomes aware that the creature wasn't responsible for his actions, and was just a victim of circumstance. The real villain of Frankenstein isn't the creature, but rather his creator, Victor.
Afterwards, he comes to deeply regret his action and abandons the Monster by throwing him out into the world without any education or guidance. Because of this, throughout the book, the Monster harbors resentment towards Frankenstein and dedicates his life to making Frankenstein’s a living hell. Out of the many horrible things that the Monster did to achieve this goal, the main evil action I will be focusing on is the murder of William, Frankenstein’s younger brother, and the framing of his nanny for the murder. After being continually rejected by not only his creator, but countless other humans based only on his gruesome appearance, the Monster decides to exact revenge on humankind and especially on Frankenstein for giving life to such a horrible creature as himself. Upon deciding this, the Monster decides to go to his hometown and look for Frankenstein, and along the way runs into William.
The creature’s moral ambiguity characteristic was a vile ingredient to the construction of this novel Frankenstein because it made the reader 's sympathies with him even after the audience knows he had committed murder because the readers had seen the truth this creature had to face. That he had tried everything within his power to peacefully live with them, to interact, communicate, and befriend them “these thoughts exhilarated me and led me to apply with fresh ardour to the acquiring the art of language”, that even though he was seen as a monster because of the looks he was created with, something he had no control over, he still had hope to be seen as equals, ”My organs were indeed harsh, but supple; and although my voice was very unlike the soft music of their tones, yet I pronounced such words as I understood with tolerable ease. It was as the ass and the lap-dog; yet surely the gentle ass whose intentions were affectionate, although his manners were rude, deserved better treatment than blows and execration;” this hope of his was utterly crushed, and can only set him up for utter disappointment(12.18). Because in the end he only received hates, scorns, violence, and prejudice from his good will. So in the end of the story, Mary Shelley’s forces the readers to see within the creature’s heart and for
Throughout most of her novel, Frankenstein, Mary Shelley establishes a them stating no one can be born evil but the life a person lives turns them evil. The creature becomes a monster everyone believes him to be after continuous rejection and abuse. This is the reason why readers become more sympathetic towards Frankenstein's creation than any other character in the novel.
Monsters can come in various physical forms, but all monsters share the same evil mentality. A Monster is a being that harms and puts fear within people. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is a prime example of how appearance does not determine whether a creature is a monster or not. In the story, Victor Frankenstein tries to change nature by creating a super human being. The being appears to be a monster. Victor becomes so obsessed with his creation and then rejects it. Victor is the real monster because of his desire for power, lack of respect for nature, and his stubbornness.
However, the monster is not inherently evil because he never fights back when he is attacked. At more than one point in the monster’s journey he gets attacked by many people, but decides not to fight back. During one attack he “retreated, … happy to have found a shelter, however miserable, from the inclemency of the season, and still more from the barbarity of man” (74). Frankenstein's monster had no intentions of hurting the people who attacked him. He left and found shelter after being attacked, the thought of attacking the people back did not even cross his mind. The monster tries to introduce himself to a family of cottagers, but ends up being attacked by their son. Instead of attacking their son the monster thinks “I could have torn him limb from limb, as the lion rends the antelope. But my heart sunk within me as with bitter sickness, and I refrained” (97). The monster had the chance to rip their son limb from limb, but knows other people will get hurt from his actions, so he refrains. Ripping this poor man limb from limb only because he is afraid and defending his family would not be fair to the family. Frankenstein’s monster understands that hurting the family wouldn't be right because he is simply protecting the family. During one attack towards the monster, people “attacked [him], until, grievously bruised by stones and many other kinds of missile weapons, [he] escaped to the open country and fearfully took refuge” (74). The monster went into the village to get food because he was hungry, but he was chased out violently with the use of weapons and stones. Instead of fighting back, the monster leaves peacefully while being attacked. Even when the monster was shot “[he] sank to the ground, and my injurer, with increased swiftness, escaped into the wood” (101). After being shot, the monster had no
The Creature, Victor Frankenstein’s creation, is shaped into a monster through its experiences, instead of the nature of itself, which is more expected. Victor Frankenstein, on the other hand, is shaped into a monster because of his mind’s power-hungry nature. Victor treats his creature poorly and he himself becomes wicked. While the Creature also becomes wicked in the end, its actions are more justified because multiple people treated it poorly, causing the Creature to lash out. Even though Victor Frankenstein and the Creature both turn into wicked monsters, to some extent, only one of
Throughout Frankenstein, one assumes that Frankenstein’s creation is the true monster. While the creation’s actions are indeed monstrous, one must also realize that his creator, Victor Frankenstein, is also a villain. His inconsiderate and selfish acts as well as his passion for science result in the death of his friend and family members and ultimately in his own demise. Throughout the novel, Shelley investigates the idea of monstrosity. She makes the point that a monster does not have to be genuinely evil in order to be considered monstrous.
For Frankenstein created a monster who had no identity, and was willing to murder all of Frankenstein's loved ones if Frankenstein did not create another female creature. Victor Frankenstein refused to create another female monster to accompany his monster. Thus, the monster felt that he had no choice but to take away Frankenstein's family, just to show how Victor Frankenstein would feel being alone in the world. The murder of William Frankenstein (Victor's younger brother) caused Victor to believe that his own creature had murdered his younger brother because "nothing in human shape could have destroyed that fair child." (Frankenstein, pg.74) Frankenstein knew from then on that he had "turned loose into the world a depraved wretch, whose delight was in carnage and misery." (Frankenstein, pg.74) Frankenstein's monster caused "the death Frankenstein not only blamed the murders of his loved ones on his monster, he blamed himself for creating the monster. Throughout Frankenstein, the words "friend, monster, daemon, vile insect, enemy, and abhorred devil" were used by Frankenstein to describe the monster he had created.