Victor Frankenstein Tragic Hero Essay

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Victor Frankenstein was born in Naples, Italy however, he claims he is Genevese. He is raised by his loving parents Alphonse and Caroline. Later, Victor would meet the love of his life, Elizabeth Lavenza, his adopted sister. Victor also finds a new companion, Henry Clerval, at school and they quickly become friends. Unfortunately, at the age of seventeen, Victor’s mother dies. One might suggest this is the very reason as to why he is so obsessed with bringing the dead back to life.
Victor ends up attending the University at Ingolstadt. This is when he becomes passionate about his work. His studies at the university foster him into a desire to discover the secret of life. Victor strives to be god-like. In other words, to do what no other man has ever done, bring the dead back …show more content…

Victor tries to go above the natural laws and believes he can go further than the limits of human knowledge. Victor is not displayed as the evil villain in the story, he never meant to actually create a monster but instead he plays the role of the tragic hero. He is not wicked or evil, he was only misguided. Throughout the course of the novel Victor’s innocence and youth transforms into guilt and remorse. Tampering with life and death proved to be more than Victor could handle and far more than he expected. In attempt to fulfill the title of Creator, he misjudged his experimentation and indeed created life. A life form no one, not even the creator himself, could control after creation. Even the most pure and innocent intentions can be twisted and blown out of proportions as seen in the story of Frankenstein. A simple wish to remedy the pain of losing his mother became Victor’s ultimate identifier as he defined himself by the product of his experiment – a monster.

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