Fate In Frankenstein Research Paper

In the novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley there are many themes that could be discussed, but the theme that sticks out the most is the theme of fate. Fate is a constant entity that re-emerges throughout the book and manifests itself more heavily in the monster. The monster is a reminder for the audience that Victor’s fate is one of misfortune and misery as the creature slowly destroys the life of his own creator. The theme in Frankenstein is that it is by fate that Victor suffers these tragedies as the monster slowly destroys his life, and his attempts at stopping the monster only makes the suffering even more difficult.

It is by fate that Victor Frankenstein must endure the tragedies brought on by his creation as he has no control over what

happens in his life. The fate of Victor is shown by the death of his family, his best friend’s murder, and at last the loss of his own life the monster. Much like the author Victor’s fate was never one of good fortune as said in this passage: “But she was certainly unlucky, from the moment of her birth” (Brown 1). The author relates her life to the story pushing the theme of fate and loss even further. Mary Shelley’s life can be compared to the life of Victor quite easily as both have seen loss through creation this experience greatly influenced the novel itself. As said in the article Victor is told of the first loss while he is away from home: “Frankenstein learns from a letter from his father that his brother, William, has been murdered” (Cornillon 4).This is the first loss Victor faces (besides the loss of his sanity) and it makes him feel a sense of guilt he has yet to realize that the monster will not stop. This leaves the audience to feel that the monster cannot be stopped or slowed down in any way.
Victor has no control over what the monster does and he is unable to stop it as just like Anton Chigurh the monster is a soldier of fate. Victor never realizes that the monster is unstoppable, but as his life goes on he encounters more and more tragedies that further prove how dangerous the monster is. In this line of the book Victor expresses his guilt over the death of his friends: “I called myself the murderer of William, of Justine, and of Clerval” (Shelley 191). Victor goes on to blame himself for the murders, but it is an effect of the panic he feels as the monster has killed his closest companions, and he is incapable and feels responsible for it. Victor’s weakness to not stop the monster was always apart of his fate as his life has led to this misfortune.
Whatever happens in Victor’s life can all be traced back to the monster whether the creation or effects his whole existence shows that fate has led and killed Victor in his goal to create life. Victor’s cause of creating the monster was a very selfish one as said in the article: “A new species would bless me as their creator and source; many happy and excellent natures would owe their being to me” (Higgins 31). He starts off with a very self centered reason to create life and believes he should create it to better his life. Victor’s life has led to the creation of the monster as it is the climax of the story, but he is unaware of the monstrosity he creates. In the article it is stated that when the monster is created the true horror is released: “He (Victor) discovers with horror that he has opened Pandora’s box” (Cornillon 5). Victor’s creation slowly makes him realize the horror he brought loose onto the world, and his slow demise is almost a punishment. After the release the sole cause of Victor’s agony revolves around the monster and the actions it undertakes.
The monster is the main cause of Victor’s pain and it is by fate that his creation is slowly destroying his life as it kills his family and friends, and in the end causing Victor’s death as well. Even his own home at the end is stripped away from him by the monster as mentioned in this analysis of the setting: “When his creation kills Elizabeth on their wedding night, the transformation of Geneva into a hell on earth is complete” (Beatty 3 ). Victor’s own home has turned into a personal hell as the monster not only takes his loved ones but also his homeland. It is fate that the monster is the cause of Victor’s pain as his whole life has led to the moment of the monster’s creation and goes downward from there. As said in the novel Victor finally realizes the demon he has brought upon the world: “Alas! I had turned loose a depraved wretch, whose delight was in carnage and misery” (Shelley 80). The monster turns into Victor’s biggest fear as it destroys his life after creation. His fears are later justified as farther in the book the monster becomes a force that, much like fate, cannot be stopped.
The monster slowly kills Victor’s family and friends and it leaves the reader to believe the monster itself is unstoppable, much like fate. As stated in the article Victor is led to think that after the death of his best friend that there is nowhere he can hide: “His imprisonment in this remote land confirms his growing fear that there is no place to which he can go to escape responsibility for his actions” (Beatty 9). The monster makes the readers believe that it can be anywhere and proves it by the murder he commits. In the novel after Victor refuses to build the companion the monster makes a threat to Victor to be with him when he least expects it: “I will be with you on your wedding night” (Shelley 182). This is a promise the monster says to Victor and then the monster proves to be true, this leaves the reader to imagine that the monster can be anywhere at anytime. This fear leads all the way to the very end of Victor where even then the monster is present.
The monster in the end causes the death of Victor by bringing him out to the arctic and causing a fever that kills him this completes the fate of Victor by having the monster take the last thing Victor had: his life.

In a act of suicide Victor devotes his life to killing the monster as it draws him out into the harsh environment. This environment later becomes the cause of his death as it is involved with his search as stated in the article:“Frankenstein dies, weakened by his search” (Cornillon 8). In his search to kill his creation Victor dies from exhaustion and his fever, and this becomes the final appearance of the monster as it also commits suicide upon seeing him die. Not just is the monster unstoppable but every attempt Victor makes only worsens his

condition.
No matter what Victor does he cannot stop the monster, and by trying to he only makes his life even worse due to his failure and his lack of mental health.

Victor makes several attempts to stop the monster but all fail it solidifies the monster as a dangerous force that cannot be stopped. Every attempt Victor makes or every chance he misses it ends with another death as stated in the article: “Frankenstein believes he saw his creature in the area and concludes that he must be the real culprit. Justine is put on trial, condemned and executed. Frankenstein, who does not intervene, is overwhelmed by guilt”(Cornillon 4). The few attempts Victor makes to save his family are either stopped by the monster or Victor’s own fear. Not only does it result in a loss of a love one for Victor but it also makes severe problems to his own

self.
Each attempt Victor makes to stop the monster never ends in Victor’s favor he is either traumatized, or is harmed after the encounter. Every time Victor makes contact with the monster in some way it makes damaging effects to his mental state much like an H.P. Lovecraft cosmic creature just the sight of the monster to Victor makes him lose his mind. As stated in the article the effects of the monster have a lasting impact: “Traumatized by the awakening of the creature, he is caught by a nervous fever and stays bedridden for two months” (Cornillon 3). Victor’s first attempt was rejection but it only leaves him traumatized by his creation. Victor’s own madness does not help him with killing the monster as killing fate is not possible.
Victor’s attempts at killing the monster only show how his fate cannot be stopped and his actions against it are futile. The monster is stronger than any human on earth as that is how Victor made him, but he sealed his own fate when he made it unkillable. Victor’s only real attempt he had on the monster ended in his own choice of failure as stated in the article: “Frankenstein decides not to create a second creature, frightened by the possible consequences of doing so”(Cornillon 5). This was Victor’s closest chance to having the monster leave him but he decides to not pursue as he is afraid of making another this leads to the death of his best friend and his wife. Just like Victor the author, Mary Shelley, also experiences life changing loss that affects the plot of the book.
Victor is not the only one that experiences loss through creation the author of the novel also knows the feeling. Mary Shelley gave birth to multiple children but not many of them were able to survive. As stated by the article Mary Shelley lost many children: “the author had given birth to four children, buried three, and lost another unnamed baby to a miscarriage so severe that she nearly died of bleeding that stopped only when her husband had her sit on ice” (Lepore 2). Much like Victor Frankenstein, Mary Shelley knew just as much about loss through creation as he did. Her losses influenced the novel heavily as the experiences gave the novel the idea of a motherless child that is abandoned by its creator. These losses have much to do with how the individual views the world, and in Victor’s case his losses seem dominated by fate.
Due to Mary’s losses she most likely sought to make Victor relate to her through misery and death. Mary sealed Victor’s fate through the concept of a monster that is anywhere at anytime with enough power to ruin the life of its own creator. As said in the article Victor does not improve the situation: “The creature, born innocent, has been treated so terribly that he has become a villain” (Lepore 17). Victor’s discontent to the monster is what caused the monster’s misanthropy as it no longer views humans as a favorable species. Victor’s fate is controlled by the monster and it seems he is unaware towards it as he treats it with abandonment. This leaves the monster with anger and leaves the reader with the idea that Victor just signed his death warrant.
As fate would have it Victor Frankenstein would never kill his creation nor would he ever redeem himself on the horror’s he brought to humanity. His life climaxed at the creation of the monster and declined once it was let loose. He never anticipated what his monster would do nor did he ever think he could fail at his attempt at killing it he did not realize that fate had brought him to his death. In the end the monster was a representation of fate and Victor’s attempts in killing it never succeeded proving this as the theme of the novel.