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Analysis of frankenstein frankenstein
Victor frankenstein character analysis vs monster
Victor frankenstein character analysis vs monster
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Monsters and Orphans Make Me Love My Mother Out of fear and eventually anger Victor Frankenstein neglects the life he brought into the world. Neglecting that which one brings into the world is a violation of the natural order. In order for a healthy relationship to be formed between offspring and a creator, the offspring must have some sense that they were created out of love and will continue to be loved. This is the foundation for not only motherhood, but also numerous religious ideologies such as Christianity. Without the love and nurturing care from a mother physical and emotional health problems often arise for offspring during childhood and down the road during the rest of their lives. Frankenstein’s complete abandonment of his monster lead to the Monsters homicidal behaviors, and disordered life. The Monster craved love from his creator but never received any. Out of great anger the Monster, whether directly or indirectly, stripped Frankenstein of practically everyone that he loved. He killed Victor’s younger brother William, and then framed Justine a highly regarded family servant, who was eventually tried and killed for William’s death. The Monster also takes the life of Henry Clerval, one of Frankenstein’s best friends …show more content…
It is often easy to blame the monster for his horrific actions, but this question becomes much more difficult when considering the effects that childhood neglect can have on one’s actions. Personally, I think that Frankenstein is to blame for the Monster’s actions. While I am not sure that the principles of epigenetics and molecular biology apply directly to the fictional character in Shelley’s work, Frankenstein negated his basic responsibility of caring for his creation. Whether The Monsters epigenetic mechanisms were altered or not abandonment clearly drove The Monster down a troubled path that lead to
The classic theme of perversion of family is a major component in Frankenstein. Dr. Frankenstein comes from a good family but in his adult life he longs for a new companion this is mainly found in the Creature and Elizabeth. The development for the need for the Creature starts when he falls in love with knowledge and is furthered when he leaves to study. In his child hood he has “Natural philosophy is the genius that has regulated my fate; I desire, therefore, in this narration, to stat those facts which led to my predilection for that science”(Shelley 36). This passion develops into his obsession in his adult life when he gains more accesses to knowledge and equipment. Then it climaxes with start of the creation of the Creature because his accesses to bodies and tools. (quote Intro) “I read with ardour those works, so full of genius and discrimination… it easily conceived that my progress was rapid”(48). His description of the creation makes it seem like he is mothering a child into birth. He distorts the sanity of child birth by creating a human in a lab. This also makes him the mother and father of the Creature. (quote intro) “When I found so astonishing a power placed within my hands, I hesitated a long time concerning the manner in which I should employ it… my first success to permit me doubt of my ability to give live…”(51). This illustrates his power that he has that was never meant to be any humans. With the successful test my can create life, strengthens his bond with this impending birth of Creature, who embodies all of his scientific achievement. (quote Intro) “How can I describe my emotions at this catastrophe, or how delineate the wretch whom with such infinite pains and care I had endeavored to from?” (55). Frankenstein shuns his own creation, whom he should be the loving parents of. The culmination of all of Frankenstein’s education led to creation his own companionship; he can not bear to see his hideous creation.
Every parent has their own opinion on the best way to raise a child. Victor Frankenstein, however is a perfect example on how not to raise a child. Unlike Victor’s parents, he was not a good caretaker of the creature that he created. Victor’s parents were compassionate people not only to their children but to the poor and the rest of their family as well. Victor can recall his childhood as being grateful for what he had and for the way his parents treated others. Victor's monster on the other hand, would not describe his first months of being alive as anything close to happy. Not only was victor fortunate enough to have had such caring parents, he also had his best friend Clerval and his adopted sister, Elizabeth. Elizabeth was there to comfort
As Frankenstein explains, he declares that he deliberately neglects to communicate with his creation, based on its shockingly hideous appearance. Had Frankenstein taken the time to communicate and care for his creation, with all the knowledge that he possesses of the responsibility of a good parent, the creation would have never developed the sense of vindication and reprisal that lead him to murdering Victor's loved one's. The creation would henceforth account Frankenstein for all his sufferings succeeding his birth.
In the book of Genesis, God is creating the world and eventually creates his children Adam and Eve. Like Adam, the creature in Frankenstein was created by another being, in this case Victor Frankenstein. As a creation, the monster has had no choice in his own development just like Adam didn’t. Frankenstein abandoned his creation and left it to fend for itself and cope with abandonment as it learns the workings of the world. This is similar to Adam’s excommunication from the Garden of Eden as he himself was cast away from God. The creation says, “Remember, that I am thy creature; I ought to be thy Adam; but I am rather the fallen angel, whom thou drivest from joy for no misdeed,” (Shelley 84) which shows how even though Frankenstein is the parental figure he has disowned the creation similar to the story of Adam. In the book of Genesis, as a result of God’s negligence as a parent, Adam acts in rebellion towards God. Likewise, the creature’s abandonment leads it to act in a malicious manner towards Frankenstein and other human beings. The negligence of the parental figures led both of their children to have eccentric behavior as they had to develop their own understanding of the world without any guidance from a parental
In Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein the protagonist Victor Frankenstein creates a monster. The monster in the novel is deprived of a normal life due to his appearance. Like the creature, some serial killers today are killers due to the same rejection. In the novel Frankenstein, Mary Shelley warns that a childhood of abuse and neglect will often result in evil actions.
As Frankenstein is enroute to his pursuit of gaining more knowledge, he states, “I wished, as it were, to procrastinate all that related to my feelings of affection until the great object, which swallowed up every habit of my nature, should be completed” (Shelley 41). Frankenstein’s decision in allowing his intellectual ambitions to overpower everything else in his life leads him to be blinded to the dangers of creating life. He isolates himself from his society when creating the monster, letting himself be immersed in his creation while being driven by his passions, allowing nobody to be near him. The fact that he allows this creation of a monster to consume his total being reveals how blinded he is to the immorality of stepping outside the boundaries of science and defying nature. His goal in striving to achieve what wants to in placing man over nature makes him lose his sense of self as all he is focused on is the final product of his creation. He starts to realize his own faults as after he has created the monster, he becomes very ill and states, “The form of the monster on whom I had bestowed existence was forever before my eyes, and I raved incessantly concerning him” (48). His impulsive decision to make the monster leads him to abhorring it as it does not turn out to be what he has expected. Because he chooses to isolate himself in creating the
A predominant theme in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is that of child-rearing and/or parenting techniques. Specifically, the novel presents a theory concerning the negative impact on children from the absence of nurturing and motherly love. To demonstrate this theory, Shelly focuses on Victor Frankenstein’s experimenting with nature, which results in the life of his creature, or “child”. Because Frankenstein is displeased with the appearance of his offspring, he abandons him and disclaims all of his “parental” responsibility. Frankenstein’s poor “mothering” and abandonment of his “child” leads to the creation’s inevitable evilness. Victor was not predestined to failure, nor was his creation innately depraved. Rather, it was Victor’s poor “parenting” of his progeny that lead to his creation’s thirst for vindication of his unjust life, in turn leading to the ruin of Victor’s life.
Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein is book about the importance of human relationships and treating everyone with dignity and respect. The main character of the book is Victor Frankenstein who is a very intelligent man with a desire to create life in another being. After he completes his creation, he is horrified to find that what he has created is a monster. The monster is the ugliest, most disgusting creature that he has ever seen. Victor being sickened by his creation allows the monster to run off and become all alone in the world. Throughout Frankenstein, Mary Shelley uses the theme of human relationships to illustrate the bond that man has with other beings and the need for love and affection. The importance of human relationships is shown throughout the book in many ways. Victor’s mother says to him, “I have a pretty present for my Victor—tomorrow he shall have it”(18).Victor is very excited that he has such a precious gift that will always be his. They become very close and refer to each other as cousins. However, there is a deeper a relationship between the two, and Victor vows to always protect and take of the girl whose name is Elizabeth. Mary Shelley uses this quote to explain how special Elizabeth is to Victor and that she is gift sent to him. Victor’s mother reinforces this again when she says to Victor and Elizabeth, “My children, my firmest hopes of future happiness were placed on the prospect of your union. This expectation will now be the consolation of your father. Elizabeth, my love, you must supply my place to my younger children. Alas! I regret that I am taken from you; and, happy and beloved as I have been, is it not hard to quit you all? But these are not thoughts befitting me; I will endeavour to resign...
Upon first discovering how to make life, Victor is overwhelmed with excitement and pride, feeling as though he has unlocked the greatest power on earth. His imagination is “too much exalted” by this newfound ability, and thus determines there is no “animal as complex and wonderful as man” for him to attempt as his first creation (Shelley 43). Frankenstein does not contemplate how he will react to or interact with the human he gives life to, or that he has created an extremely twisted parent-child relationship by creating a human from dead bodies. His general lack of concern regarding the consequences of his remarkable yet dangerous power is the root of the rest of the conflict between him and his monster throughout the rest of the novel, and it exemplifies Shelley’s underlying theme that science should not be pushed past morally and psychologically safe boundaries.
The Human Need for Love Exposed in Frankenstein Written in 1817 by Mary Shelley, Frankenstein is a novel about the "modern Prometheus", the Roman Titian who stole fire from the gods and gave it to man. The story takes place in several European countries during the late 1700's. It is the recollection of Victor Frankenstein, a ship captain, about his life. Victor is a student of science and medicine who discovers a way to reanimate dead flesh. In a desire to create the perfect race he constructs a man more powerful than any normal human, but the creation is so deformed and hideous that Victor shuns it.
The wise Uncle Ben once told Peter Parker, “remember, with great power. Comes great responsibility.” There is no greater power than that acquired by the infamous Victor Frankenstein in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein when he discovers the secret to creating life. Shelley’s Frankenstein is a tale of creation that depicts acts of human conception and discovery. The Oxford English Dictionary defines creation as “the action or process of bringing something into existence from nothing by divine or natural agency; the fact of being so created.” It defies the natural order of things and creates a world of its own. The multiple acts of creation and discovery bring upon a certain set of responsibilities and implications as depicted by David Collings who analyzes the responsibilities that come as a result of these acts in his essay “The Monster and the Maternal Thing: Mary Shelley’s Critique of Ideology”. The main act of creation is evident through Victor Frankenstein’s creation of the Being which is depicted most prominently in the novel. However, there are multiple other acts of creation and discovery that may not be apparent at first sight. One of the most important being, Victor’s discovery of the knowledge required to create life. Apart from initially creating the Being, Victor also plays a critical role in the Being’s evolution into a raging and vengeful creature. Perhaps above all other acts of creation and discovery is Victor’s personal creation of himself into a monster. As stated by Collings most of these acts of creation on Victor’s part are subconsciously brought upon because of their lack of a maternal figure but also in part because of his desire for fame and glory. However, he is blinded by his motives and forgets that with his...
Someone once said, “No one can hate more than someone who used to love you”. In other words, hate comes from love. We hate the ones we once use to love, and that same love can be shifted towards hate due rejections of acceptance. Some say that hate is natural and other says it is taught. Though out the novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, we see the same love and hate relationship between the creature and victor. Shelley provides numerical examples in which we see that the creature learns to hate because of Victor. Victor and the creature did not get along because Victor sees the creature as “The other” therefore the creature begins to view himself as such and begins to hate.
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...
Many people who have done despicable deeds in history would seek to blame, or at least offer by way of explanation, terrible things that may have occurred in their childhoods. Shelley is sure in the case of Frankenstein to spell out clearly that this is not applicable in this case. As Victor himself explains to Robert Walton, “No human being could have possessed a happier childhood than myself. My parents were possessed with the very spirit of kindness and indulgence” (Shelley, 1998, p...
Victor Frankenstein's successful closeness with Henry Clerval plays a valid foil to the Creature's unrequited passion for a comrade. Their intimacy is extremely obvious when Victor relates that, "Nothing could equal my delight on seeing Clerval;…I grasped his hand, and in moment forgot my horror and misfortune;"(p.44). The close friendship between these two grown men prospers and expands up until Clerval's tragic death, which is caused by the Creature. The actual termination of this particular companionship works symbolically to show the final path of destruction the Creature has chosen to take. His greed for revenge ...