Torn. Desperate. I am a snob. Accused. All of these words describe Victor Frankenstein, as a result of his creation's evil actions, where he was blamed for the actions taken by this fowl creature. In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Victor creates a creature using Galvanism and the parts of dead people, however, he is perceived as the monster within the story as a result of the creation's doings. The novel Frankenstein has the main character Victor pursuing his passion for Galvanism, which is the direct electrical current used to stimulate nerves and muscles. After the creature comes to life, Victor is called a monster since the creature killed many people. In reality, Victor is not the monster. Many people are debating whether or not Victor is …show more content…
Mary Shelley uses the idea of the spread of misinformation to spread the idea that we humans are gullible and are very susceptible to making mistakes as a result. For example, in Frankenstein, it is revealed that the cause for Victor to make the creature and to be called a monster was the books that Victor read, “In this house, I chanced to find a volume of the works of Cornelius Agrippa”. (Shelley 20) The characterization used in this quote reveals that Victor didn’t purposefully believe the information in the books since they were the only things that he could read at that time. As a result of Victor reading the books he was given a vision that he enjoyed, and decided to pursue it, giving him a wrong start. Victor, believing in the books, easily proves how gullible humans are, and further reveals how his creation wasn’t purposeful and that Victor cannot be considered a monster since nobody is perfect. Alongside the spread of misinformation, Victor's amazement by the lightning along with the wrongful teachings of the books furthered his want to pursue …show more content…
Since he blindly jumped into the project without thinking he didn’t think of the creature to come out the way that it was, since he used the best parts “His limbs were in proportion, and I had selected his features as beautiful”. Shelley. As a result, he was horrified by his creation, but in reality, he shouldn’t have reacted the way he did. For example “Unable to endure the aspect of the being I had created, I rushed out of the room, and continued a long time traversing my bedchamber, unable to compose my mind to sleep”. (Shelley 35) The horrified emotions expressed through his words reveal that he was not thinking ahead at all, making it obvious that he is not truly the monster, but that he is partially responsible. Victor's failure serves as a lesson to why checking progress is important, especially when it is something as important as creating a human being. But all of this could have been avoided if and only if Victor wasn’t so blind to all the tragedies that could occur from this creation. Victor is assumed to be the monster in Frankenstein because he created a creature that went on to kill many people, however, it becomes more and more apparent that he was a victim of human ingenuity, being blinded by his
Merriam Webster’s Encyclopedia of Literature highlights Frankenstein as the work of Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, published in 1818, and it brought into the Western world one of its best known monsters. Elements of gothic romance and science fiction help in telling the story of young Swiss scientist Victor Frankenstein, as he creates a horrible monster by putting together limbs and veins, leading to destruction and his later regret. The creature is left alone in the world, even by his own creator, for his hideous appearance, and through watching humans he learns their ways of living. Haunting Victor due to his loneliness, he forcefully makes Victor agree to make him a female companion, but Victor’s regret and misery enables him to tear up his
In Frankenstein, everyone treats Victor’s creation like a monster including Frankenstein himself. This leads to the creation accepting that title and going on a murder spree. His creation says “When I reflected on his crimes and malice, my hatred and revenge burst all bounds of moderation” (69). Victor’s creation shows that
As a tragic hero, Victor’s tragedies begin with his overly obsessive thirst for knowledge. Throughout his life, Victor has always been looking for new things to learn in the areas of science and philosophy. He goes so far with his knowledge that he ends up creating a living creature. Victor has extremely high expectations for his creation but is highly disappointed with the outcome. He says, “I had desired it with an ardour that far exceeded moderation; but now that I had finished, the beauty of the dream vanished, and breathless horror and disgust filled my heart” (Shelley 35). Frankenstein neglects the creature because of his horrifying looks, which spark the beginning of numerous conflicts and tragedies. At this point, the creature becomes a monster because of Victor’s neglect and irresponsibility. The monster is forced to learn to survive on his own, without anyone or anything to guide him along the way. Plus, the monster’s ugly looks cause society to turn against him, ad...
Although some critics say that the monster Victor has created is to blame for the destruction and violence that follow the experiment, it is Victor who is the responsible party. First, Victor, being the scientist, should have known how to do research on the subject a lot more than he had done. He obviously has not thought of the consequences that may result from it such as the monster going crazy, how the monster reacts to people and things, and especially the time it will take him to turn the monster into the perfect normal human being. This is obviously something that would take a really long time and a lot of patience which Victor lacks. All Victor really wants is to be the first to bring life to a dead person and therefore be famous. The greed got to his head and that is all he could think about, while isolating himself from his friends and family. In the play of Frankenstein, when Victor comes home and sets up his lab in the house, he is very paranoid about people coming in there and finding out what he is doing. At the end of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, Victor says:
Victor Frankenstein, a character in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, decided that he wanted to bring life into this world; a life that would eventually go on to killing the creator himself. The Creature can be seen as either innocent or guilty. The popular opinion of the Creature seems to be that he is guilty considering how he has burned down a house, set up Justine for murder and murdered three others. However, after taking a close look at the text, it can be seen that Frankenstein’s creature is not guilty. He was brought into this world with a child-like innocence, never progressed past the emotional state of a child and was rejected throughout his whole life causing him to do the things he did.
...od; misery made me a fiend. Make me happy and I shall again be virtuous" (Shelley 66). In the novel, Victor has two chances to provide this happiness for the creation. In both cases, all the creation desires was a companion, be it Victor or a new creation. And, in both cases, Victor is influenced by his initial reaction of disgust at the sight of his original creation. This reaction originates from a preconception, a fear caused by the human nature to prejudge based on past experience. This prejudice is indeed the source of the pain and torment in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. If a "monster" exists in the novel, it is this aspect of human nature.
Science fiction writing began in the early 1800’s as a reaction to the growth in science and technology. The genre is characterized by its intellectual excitement, high adventure, and its making of the fantastic possible. Due to the nature of science fiction, film has become an essential piece to its popularity. Science fiction films have been popular since the earliest silent clips because of the outlandish visuals and creative fictional story lines that capture an audience’s attention. Under the guise of this popular platform writers relay political, social and philosophical messages to their audience. The popular 1931 version of Frankenstein, based on Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein, depicts an anti-exploration and anti-intellectual philosophy. In Frankenstein there is criticisms for the immoral behavior that is involved with progresses, the natural tendency for humanity to attempt to be greater than God and the pursuit of knowledge.
Mary shelley depicts the ambition of man as the source of fallibility in the novel Frankenstein. She uses the characters Victor Frankenstein and Robert Walton as two of the major examples of this . Both of these men desired to be glorified by men through scientific achievements, but their unchecked ambition eventually leads to their non-fulfillment. Blinded by dreams of glory, they fail to consider the consequences of their actions.
People are defined by their environment and how they react to their environment. Environments that appear to be perfect on the outside may very well be the cause of misery in man's life because one must be able to cope with their environment. Victor could not cope with his environment and lashed out at the world by trying to attain power. However, things do not always go as planned, and sometime this may be beneficial. One should not judge by external appearance alone. It is what is on the inside that counts. Had Victor Frankenstein been taught ethics such as this, his life, as well as the lives of those he loved, could have been saved. Also, the life of the creature could have been free of pain and hatred. The monster is a symbol for the outcasts and rejected of society. He is also a reflection of Victor, meaning that Victor was also considered an outcast. The reality of an animated object reflecting something that one does not want to see, combined with being alone in the world, is enough to drive man mad. The monster, in some ways, creates a harsh reality for Victor. Either love what you create or be destroyed by it.
The theme in a piece of literature is the main idea or insight on characters. Most pieces of literature do not limit itself to one but many other themes all collected into one. This is just like in Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. This horrifying story was produced in 1818 and has several themes that she portrays throughout. The theme of dangerous knowledge is unmistakably seen theme in Frankenstein. In Frankenstein we see this theme through three of the main characters, Victor Frankenstein, Robert Walton and the creature. We can see how their desire for knowledge can take them places and show them eventually what they are looking for. Sooner or later it will take them to dangerous and unwanted places. The desire for knowledge can eventually lead one to its grave. Victor Frankenstein’s scientific endeavor, Robert Walton’s search for the North Pole, and the creature’s kind heart but scary features creates this theme of dangerous knowledge.
..., played God, abandoned his creation, and then hid any relation to the creature. Victor is quite at fault for the murders that take place in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. True, the monster does know right from wrong, the difference is he was not brought up by his parents that way. How to live life is something that is learned and imprinted through experience and guidance. The monster was never fully given the chance to live because upon the day he arrived he was instantly rejected. Victor created the monster physically and emotionally within himself and in turn died by it.
As a romantic novel Victor is responsible, because he abandoned his creation. As an archetype novel, Victor is the villain, because he was trying to play god. Finally, Victor as a Gothic novel, Victor is at fault, because, he and the creature are two different parts of the same person. If Frankenstein is looked at as a romantic novel, Victor, not the creature, is truly the villain. When Victor created the creature, he didn't take responsibility for it. He abandoned it, and left it to fend for itself. It is unfair to bring something into the world, and then not teach it how to survive. The creature was miserable, and just wanted a friend or someone to talk to. On page 115, the creature said, "Hateful day when I received life! Accursed the creator. Why did you form a monster so hideous that even you turned from me in disgust." This line shows the agony the monster was in, because of how he looked when he was created which led to even Victor running away from him. If Victor didn't run, he could have taught the monster and made his life happy. After the creature scared the cottagers away he said, "I continued for the remainder of the day in my hovel in a state of utter ...
Another reason that Victor Frankenstein is a great threat to society is because of his lack of accountability for his actions. After creating a horrible creature, Victor’s first instinct is to retreat to his bedroom in disgust. In fact, Victor admits, “Unable to endure the aspect of the being I had created, I rushed out of the room, and continued a long time traversing my bedchamber” (Shelley 47). Frankenstein’s lack of immediate attention and care for the creature leads to the mutual feeling of disdain between
Mary Shelley in her book Frankenstein addresses numerous themes relevant to the current trends in society during that period. However, the novel has received criticism from numerous authors. This paper discusses Walter Scott’s critical analysis of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein in his Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine Review of Frankenstein (1818).
“People think of education as something that they can finish. And what’s more, when they finish, it’s a rite of passage” (Popova) noted Isaac Asimov, and in his short story ‘Profession’ this is exactly what he explores with the citizens of his constructed universe completing all their education with the turning on of a machine. This process, whilst ensuring that learning is quick and easy, and that people are matched up to jobs that are suited to their strengths, also stops the universe’s citizens from thinking originally and independently, ultimately forcing them into meaningless lives over which they have no control . In analysing Trevelyan’s failure at the Olympics, the economic issues facing Novia and through education day itself, it becomes clear that the downloading process is only able to create a certain kind of citizen; someone