Frankenstein Nature Vs Nurture Essay

1075 Words3 Pages

Hanan Essa
Essay #2
Prof. Holly Melgard
29 March 2017
The Creature’s Evil Character as a Product of His Environment (Nurture)
Throughout the past decades, Psychologists have developed many theories to explain one's characteristics; how we feel, act, and behave. One of the theories that are portrayed in Frankenstein is nature vs. nurture. Victor creates this creature who he abandons upon his birth. Was the creature inclined to be evil or was the feeling of abandonment, rejection, isolation the cause of his behavior to change? Throughout the story we see both Victor and the creature develop through a sense of nature vs. nurture.
In “Frankenstein” by Mary Shelley the main characters, Victor Frankenstein and the creature have an inborn nature …show more content…

The nature debate is in charge for the fall of Victor and the nurture debate is in charge for the fall of the creature. Shelly first addresses the nature of Victor by describing where he was born in Geneva with a family that is “one of the most distinguished of that republic” (Shelley, page 31). Victor mentions how his ancestors have been “counsellors and syndics for many years”. He goes on to describe his family with words such as; honor and integrity. Shelley’s effective decisions on diction suggest to the reader that Frankenstein's family have a prestigious position in society, making his lineage part of his nature.
Victor’s nature outweighs the nurturing debate. Victor quotes that his father “devoted himself to the education of his children” since the beginning of his childhood. He mentions how “no creature could have more tender parents than his own. The essence of this quote is that within Victor’s environment he grew up being privileged with a dad who dedicated his life to him. But despite his nurture environment, Victor falls for his selfish needs and innate …show more content…

Here I retreated, and lay down happy to have found a shelter (Shelley, page 118).” This scene illustrates that the creature does not fight his attackers but runs away instead, proving his innocence, purity, and good intentions. The creature not only proves that retaliating isn't the answer but that escaping from a situation might be the best move. The creature runs away to the woods to avoid any human contact but eventually he runs into this nice family who unfortunately make his situation worse. Because of his loneliness, the creature tries to get close to De lacy family. He studies them night and day and notices how sad the siblings are. This indicates that the creature has a heart and can feel like the humans. He thought the reason to their sadness was because of poverty. So he figures out a way to help them by collecting wood and leaving it by their front door. Alternatively, instead of being thanked and praised for his nice and caring action he was rebuked and harmed for approaching the blind old man in the family. “He dashed me to the ground and struck me violently with a stick…...I could have torn him into limb from limb….but my heart sank within me” (Shelley, page 152). The author points out how the creature could have torn their bodies apart

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