Frankenstein Tragic Hero Essay

A tragic hero is a literary character who makes a judgment error that inevitably leads to his/her own destruction (Tragic Hero). Mary Shelley presents the downfall of Victor Frankenstein, the tragic hero, as a result of his fatal flaw. Some could argue that the creature is the tragic hero in the book, while the creature does possess some of the qualities of a hero, he is not the protagonist of the book. Victor Frankenstein, the protagonist, demonstrates the qualities of infinite potential, good intentions, and the fatal flaw that leads to the hero's downfall. No, Victor is not the black villain that foolishly plays with the forces of life and death, but he is a good, but flawed, human being, who unwittingly unleashes destruction.
A tragic hero is not like the rest of us. Victor success in creating life proves his potential is virtually limitless. Victor states, “Two years passed in this manner, during which I paid no visit to

Geneva, but was engaged, heart and soul, in the pursuit of some discoveries which I hoped to make” (Shelley 36). Victor blossomed into a gifted scientist from his studies at the university. The thought of creating life thrills him. Know one believed that Victor could ever accomplish the nature of life, except his professor. Full text of "Victor Frankenstein as Tragic Hero" states “Victor also demonstrates his attraction to the biological sciences, what was then called "Natural Philosophy," and gravitated toward the works of scholars considered "alchemists," including Cornelius Agrippa and Albertus Magnus” (Full text of "Victor Frankenstein as Tragic Hero"). Victor is determined to be a scientist, his potential is endless.
Victor Frankenstein not only possesses infinite potential, he also presents good intentions. Victor receives a letter from Elizabeth that says, “Answer me, I conjure you, by our mutual happiness, with simple truth-Do you not love another?” (Shelley 178). Elizabeth believes that Victor no longer loves her and has found another partner who satisfies him more. Victor takes advantage of knowing Elizabeth will believe what he says and wait great lengths of time to marry him. In his response to Elizabeth, he says “I have one secret, Elizabeth, a dreadful one; when revealed to you, it will chill your frame with horror, and then, far from being surprised at my misery, you will only wonder that I survive what I have endured” (Shelley 180). Still, knowing the consequences that the creature previously has informed him, Victor is still desperate to marry Elizabeth even though they have not seen each other for many years. Although Victor has good intentions in marrying Elizabeth, it destroys by his selfish behavior. His passion and selfishness for Elizabeth takes control has he marries her, resulting in her death.
The inevitability of the fatal flaw is what makes the tragic hero tragic.

Victor’s journey for the secret of life and ultimate knowledge drives him to his downfall. Victor says in the passage, “It was the secrets of heaven and earth that I desired to learn…, still my inquiries were directed to the metaphysical, or in its highest sense, the physical secrets of the world” (Shelley 23). Victor possesses the fatal flaw in the fact that he believes he can become a scientist unparalleled in the ability to do science stuff. Success to Victor was gaining knowledge that no other human has yet possessed. Victors overpowering desire to obtain all knowledge sends him into a world doomed by fate to fail. According to the “Tragic Hero” website I learned “The sufferings and fall of a hero, arousing feelings of pity and fear through catharsis, purges the audiences of those emotions, to transform them into good human beings and good citizens” (Tragic Hero). The whole point of a fatal flaw is to learn the wrong of the hero and not to repeat their

mistakes.
In the book Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, Victor is the best representation of the tragic hero. Victor Frankenstein, the protagonist, demonstrates the qualities of infinite potential, good intentions, and the fatal flaw that leads to the hero's downfall. These are all characteristics that a tragic hero portrays in a story.