The Illegitimate Humanity of Frankenstein’s Creature Victor Frankenstein alchemically created an instance of life, a life declared human at conception and rejected throughout the rest of its existence. The story portrays the creature as a human that just doesn’t look human, a being the reader should sympathize with the same way they would any other character. This creature, though, should never have been recognized as such at any stage of its creation; it is merely a poor, albeit impressive, imitation of humanity in its capacity for experience. Though it may resemble humans in its intellect, sympathy, desires, and capabilities, it is ultimately a separate from us. The creature is a monster that is not human, the story should be understood with this core premise as the cruel …show more content…
not human) feats. “I discovered also another means through which I was enabled to assist their labourers. I found that the youth spent a great part of each day in collecting wood for the family fire, and during the night I often took his tools, the use of which I quickly discovered, and brought home firing sufficient for the consumption of several days” (Shelley 118). Ignoring his weather resistance, he also has the strength to do the work of multiple people in a fraction of the time. His monstrous appearance is another significant feature, not only in the story but in the discussion of his humanity. No human is so ugly that they are treated the way the creature is. A human of extreme ugliness would be treated either with pity, disgust, cruelty, or a combination of these. In contrast, the creature subjects nothing but pure terror, treated as some eldritch horror set to decimate anyone it sees. The only ones who don’t run or feel mortal danger at all times are Victor, its creator who has assumed himself immune, and Walton, who has a duty regarding the creature and also possesses a level of curiosity superior to his
Previously portrayed through Frankenstein’s letters as the sole cause of both his and society’s despair, the monster’s use of the word “abortion” instead demonstrates Victor’s individual contribution towards his creature’s destructive path. Since the definition of abortion serves as the premediated act of terminating life, Frankenstein’s deliberate decision to desert his artificial creature exhibits society’s lack of sympathy for those with uncontrollable differences such as the monster’s physical deformities. Nevertheless, the textual irony of the monster’s frustrations eventually becomes apparent when the creature exclaims “Was there no injustice to this?”. Setting off a chain reaction of several more questions, Shelly’s text further mirrors the monster’s bafflement with the careless actions of Victor Frankenstein. That is, although Frankenstein gave his creation the “gift” of life, the monster has been perpetually denied every chance to live happily because of mankind’s relentless and inescapable hatred. More so, explained as the abandonment or failure of a process, Frankenstein’s ultimate refusal to love his own creation typifies how the creator’s ironic choices remain accountable for failing both the monster and
To begin with, Victor Frankenstein's creature thinks, reacts and acts like a human. For example, When the creature was in the woods he noticed that a girl was drowning in the lake. When he went in the lake to go save her from dying a man comes and thinks that the creature was doing harm to the girl. When all the creature was trying to do was to save the girl from drowning. In this case the creature reacted and acted just like a human would. To add on, the creature also made some horrid mistakes in which he regrets in doing. The creature regrets and admits that he did wrong ''But now vice has degraded me beneath the meanest animal''(192). In this quote it states that the creature calls himself an "animal'' because of all his wrong doing. The creature
The creature’s moral ambiguity characteristic was a vile ingredient to the construction of this novel Frankenstein because it made the reader 's sympathies with him even after the audience knows he had committed murder because the readers had seen the truth this creature had to face. That he had tried everything within his power to peacefully live with them, to interact, communicate, and befriend them “these thoughts exhilarated me and led me to apply with fresh ardour to the acquiring the art of language”, that even though he was seen as a monster because of the looks he was created with, something he had no control over, he still had hope to be seen as equals, ”My organs were indeed harsh, but supple; and although my voice was very unlike the soft music of their tones, yet I pronounced such words as I understood with tolerable ease. It was as the ass and the lap-dog; yet surely the gentle ass whose intentions were affectionate, although his manners were rude, deserved better treatment than blows and execration;” this hope of his was utterly crushed, and can only set him up for utter disappointment(12.18). Because in the end he only received hates, scorns, violence, and prejudice from his good will. So in the end of the story, Mary Shelley’s forces the readers to see within the creature’s heart and for
The Creature, Victor Frankenstein’s creation, is shaped into a monster through its experiences, instead of the nature of itself, which is more expected. Victor Frankenstein, on the other hand, is shaped into a monster because of his mind’s power-hungry nature. Victor treats his creature poorly and he himself becomes wicked. While the Creature also becomes wicked in the end, its actions are more justified because multiple people treated it poorly, causing the Creature to lash out. Even though Victor Frankenstein and the Creature both turn into wicked monsters, to some extent, only one of
The Creature was born capable of thing such as love and sympathy though he lost these capabilities as a result of how he was treated. The creature’s heart was ‘fashioned to be susceptible of love and sympathy’ but wrenched with misery to ‘vice and hatred’. On a cold night in November, Victor Frankenstein brought his creation to life. This creation has thin black lips, inhuman eyes, and
When Mary Shelley's novel Frankenstein is analyzed, critics comes to a conclusion about Victor Frankenstein's creation. The creature invokes the most sympathy from the readers than any other character in the novel. Because he is abandoned by society which manipulates the creature to do evil things despite his good heart. Therefore Shelley's message throughout the novel is that a person is not born evil, they are made evil.
The creature from Mary Shelley's novel "Frankenstein" displays many different human qualities. Some of these qualities include: the creature's ability to learn, his capability to feel pain, his desire to be accepted, and his need for affection and sympathy. The need for affection and sympathy is something which the creature is unable to attain. This unrequited desire to be accepted causes the creature to be the victim of the novel. The creature is never given affection by human society because of his physical deformities, Dr. Frankenstein's denial to create him a mate, and the creature's violent behaviour.
“Frankenstein” by Mary Shelly explores the concept of the body, life, ‘the self’ and most of importantly humanity, which is repeatedly questioned throughout the novel. The definition of humanity is the quality of being humane or in other words someone that can feel or possess compassion. Despite all the facts against the “monster” in “Frankenstein” he is indeed what one would consider being human. Humanity isn’t just about ones physical appearance but also includes intellect and emotion. Some people argue that the “monster” is not a human for he was not a creature that was born from “God” or from a human body. That being said, the “monster” is not only able to speak different languages, he can also show empathy - one of many distinct traits that set humans apart from the animals. Both the “monster” and his creator, Victor, hold anger and feel a sense of suffering throughout the novel. Victor is a good person with good intentions just like most individuals, but makes the mistake of getting swept up into his passion of science and without thinking of the consequences he creates a “monster”. After completing his science project, he attempts to move forward with his life, however his past – i.e., the “monster” continues to follow and someone haunt him. While one shouldn’t fault or place blame on Frankenstein for his mistakes, you also can’t help but feel somewhat sympathetic for the creature. Frankenstein just wants to feel accepted and loved, he can’t help the way he treats people for he’s only mimicking how people have treated him, which in most cases solely based on his appearance. Unlike most of the monsters we are exposed to in films past and present, the character of the “monster” ...
There are obvious similarities between Victor and his creation; each is abandoned, isolated, and both start out with
In the story Frankenstein, Frankenstein creates a creature. So the creature doesn’t know any better than to think that he is a regular human being. But, he is not he is very different from normal humans. His appearance is the first thing that you can notice about him that is monstrous. He has all
The literary critic Harold Bloom, in his Afterward in the Signet Edition of Frankenstein states that, “The monster is at once more intellectual and more emotional than his creator.” Bloom continues to say that the creature is more human, more lovable, and more to be pitied than Doctor Frankenstein (292). Throughout the novel Frankenstein, the monster portrays more human qualities than his creator Dr. Frankenstein. Dr. Frankenstein appears less human than his creation because he rejects his own creation and he fails to plan for the results of his experiment. As the monster wanders through the novel searching for companionship and acceptance, Dr. Frankenstein refuses to provide the support expected of a parent or creator. While the monster appears human in his attempts to socialize with his peers, Dr. Frankenstein represents the monstrosity that occurs when humans tamper with life.
At the moment of his birth, the creature is entirely innocent; he affectionately reaches out to Frankenstein, which is interpreted as a hostile movement, only to have the latter violently abandon him. Despite his appalling appearance, his “wrinkled” grin is as guiltless as a newly-born child which, in a sense, is precisely what he is to Frankenstein (61). With the rejection of his monster based solely on a personal appearance that epitomizes everything Frankenstein fears in his life, the reader begins to recognize the profoundly unethical character of Frankenstein's experiment and of Frankenstein himself.
In the story Frankenstein, Frankenstein creates a creature. So the creature doesn’t know any better than to think that he is a regular human being. But, he is not he is very different from normal humans. His appearance is the first thing that you can notice about him that is monstrous. He has all different
The monster in Mary Shelly’s novel Frankenstein is a creature somewhere in between human and non-human being. Through learning and observation, the monster acquires the basic skills to live in the human world. He perceives the world and himself through the view of human, and he develops the emotion and taste similar to human. However, his human identity is constantly rejected by people—even his creator, Doctor Victor Frankenstein refuses to acknowledge him as human and refers to him as “the monster”. Throughout the whole novel, the monster struggles to pursue a human identity yet suffers from the sorrow of failure, which ultimately leads to his hatred and retaliation.
When is lying okay? According to the article, “Honestly, Tell the Truth,” by Barbara Billinger argues that lying is not okay and that you should tell the truth, no matter what situation you’re in. I agree with the author Barbara explains to us that we should always tell the truth and not lie in anyway, and to always be honest.