Are parents responsible for their children's misdeeds if they were not involved in their lives, could it be that the lack of involvement ties fault to themselves? In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, otherwise known as the modern Prometheus, she explores the extensively complex concept of nature versus nurture. A concept which has been a major debate in the world of psychology for centuries, as in simple terms it argues whether the way someone acts is the result of their innate characteristics that they received upon birth or their development which is constituted by both their environment and upbringing. Numerous studies have been conducted on the subject, however, none truly stand as a testimony that either side is objectively the answer. With …show more content…
Then Victor Frankenstein delves into his journey of giving life to the non-living and then the consequences that arose as a result. To which, the last narrator, Frankenstein's creation is also presented by having him explain his life following Victor abandoning him. All of this ties into the grand theme of nature versus nurture as throughout the novel, Victor's "monster" will commit a plethora of crimes including murder, arson, and framing an innocent person. To which a particular question arises. Are these sins the result of the creature's nature or the nurture he received? With this in mind, it is without question that the crimes the creation will ultimately go on to commit are primarily the result of the nurture it experienced through Victor's lack of guidance along with his continued resentment of the being, society's rejection of the creation, and evidence which demonstrates that the creature was initially of a kind …show more content…
Therefore, the crimes it will go on to commit trace back their rationale to a point in its life where its only rationale was derived from its nature rather than nurture. Despite there being truth to the understanding, those same advocates fail to recognize that this inadvertently contradicts their argument since the creature was originally of a kind nature. During that period in which he was alone and having increasingly disappointing interactions with people, he would always exhibit his kind nature. For example, the previously mentioned family he was examining was the De Lacey family, which were poor and struggling. After having made note of that, the being had taken it upon himself to help out the family without incentive by collecting firewood for them throughout the night. Then, after having been chased out of the De Lacey home when he showed himself to them, he stumbled across a drowning girl in a nearby river, to which he then instinctively, or in other words by nature, had chosen to save. Clearly, these are all acts of compassion that the supposed "monster" had done out of his nature. All of this is to say that the being's nature could not have been the primary motivator for his sins since his proven nature was one of kindness
In Frankenstein, various themes are introduced. There are dangerous knowledge, sublime nature, nature versus nurture, monstrosity, and secrecy and guilt. I chose a main theme as nature versus nurture. Nature is some traits that a person is born with, and nurture is an environment that surrounds a person. The novel indirectly debates whether the development of individual is affected more by nature or by nurture through Victor and the Monster.
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
“I now hasten to the more moving part of my story. I shall relate events that impressed me with feelings which, from what I was, have made me what I am” (Shelley 92). Frankenstein’s Creature presents these lines as it transitions from a being that merely observes its surroundings to something that gains knowledge from the occurrences around it. The Creature learns about humanity from “the perfect forms of [his] cottagers” (90). Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein offers compelling insights into the everlasting nature versus nurture argument. Her husband, Percy Bysshe Shelley wrote, “Treat a person ill, and he will become wicked.” Shelley believes that the nurture of someone, or something, in the Creature’s case, forms them into who they become and what actions they take. While this is true for Frankenstein’s Creature, the same cannot be said about Victor Frankenstein.
For nearly 2 centuries Mary Shelleys Frankenstein has been considered by many to be the ultimate human vs monster conflict. However what makes someone a “monster”? Appearance? Character traits? Since the creature was born as an outsider humans neglected him and he becomes malicious. In the beginning an overly ambitious victor creates an imperfect creature. Since he is neglected by his creator as he is born an outsider he faces societies shunning. This causes him to take his wrath out on victors family. So the question is was the creature really a monster.
In a world full of novelty, guidance is essential to whether a being’s character progresses positively or negatively in society. Parents have a fundamental role in the development of their children. A parent’s devotion or negligence towards their child will foster a feeling of trust or mistrust in the latter. This feeling of mistrust due to the lack of guidance from a parental figure is represented in the relationship between Victor Frankenstein and his creation in Mary Shelley’s novel, Frankenstein. The creature created by Frankenstein was shown hatred and disgust from the very beginning, which led to its indignant feelings toward his creator and his kind.
American psychologist and well renowned author Jerome Kagan states “Genes and family may determine the foundation of the house, but time and place determine its form.” The topic of nature vs. nurture is highly known to the English literature community and is classified as a major aspect of gothic works. In the novel Frankenstein the author Mary Shelley uses the monster’s constant rejection from society to demonstrate that an individual’s traits are affected more by their environment and their surroundings than by nature.
When Frankenstein is at Ingolstadt, he “has a void of the soul'; so profound that he subverts Nature to fill it (qtd. in Renfroe, 2). He conceives, “A new species would bless me as its creator and source; many happy and excellent natures would owe their being to me'; (Shelley, 32). Frankenstein decides to make a creature, to defy the powers of Nature and God -- a poor decision that ruins the rest of his life. When Victor finally succeeds in his quest to possess Nature, “horror and disgust'; fill his heart upon viewing his new creation (qtd. in Renfroe, 2). He sought companionship by capturing Nature and creating someone to honor him for giving them life; but it backfired and he sealed his fate to the wrath of his creature.
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.
The nature vs. nurture discussion is extremely vital in Blessed Virgin Shelley’s novel Frankenstein. Victor Frankenstein and so the creature he creates every have academic degree innate nature that factors into each of their personalities. Frankenstein and so the creature unit of measurement subjected to 2 really totally different nurturing styles. although every nature and nurture unit of measurement necessary throughout the novel, the character argument is guilty for the season of Victor Frankenstein, whereas the nurture argument is guilty for the season of the creature. Shelley makes this idea clear to the reader through her powerful words once describing Victor’s and so the creature’s personalities.
After his creation, Frankenstein’s monster is left in isolation, cursed to endure people’s hatred towards him. This revulsion met by onlookers is merely based on the creature’s hideous looks. The monster is not actually a monster at all. He displays more humanity than many other characters in Frankenstein. The ultimate irony is that the prejudicial belief is what caused the reanimated human to become a monster. In the nature versus nurture debate, proponents of the nature theory believe that a person is unchanging and that one’s experiences do not affect that person’s behavior. If this were true, the monster would not change as a result of his interactions with humans. It is undeniable that the creature does immoral things, but when Frankenstein’s monster saves a little girl from drowning, Mary Shelley takes a clear stance that the creature was naturally noble but became monstrous as a result of interactions with humans.
Are nature and nurture required when creating a person? In the novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, the nature vs. nurture discussion is put to the test by the actions of the main character Dr. Frankenstein's creation: a monster. In the novel Dr. Frankenstein is enthralled with the scientific creation of life and creates what he thinks will be a human but actually turns out to have the makings of a monster. Dr. Frankenstein is terrified by his creation and abandons it by running away and leaving it locked up. The monster breaks out of Dr. Frankenstein's confines and goes into the world to explore in his surroundings and hates his creator for not caring for him. By looking at environmental effects on a child's intellectual ability to learn, and a child's inherent sense of direction it is apparent that at birth the human mind is a blank slate.
In Frankenstein, Victor was interested with the science of life. In his quest to understand death, Victor creates life, using his brilliant mind to bring a corpses to life. He is satisfied with his success, but is then disgusted by the creature, abandoning him as a baby without a mother or father to show him the way of the world or to protect him. The abandonment that occurred in the monster's early life had a huge effect on his whole life. As a result of this abandonment, Frankenstein and society ultimately pay a very high price. Telgan says, "Frankenstein's moral failure in his heedless pursuit to know all he might about life without taking responsibility for his acts. His "sin" was not in creating the monster, but in abandoning him to orphanage at birth" (page 194). "Childlike in his innocence, the monster wants only to be loved, but gets it from neither his "father" nor from any other in the community" (page 195). The monster searches for love and friendship, and he fails at finding it.
Andrew Lustig proposed a great question to the readers of Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein, “How far should we go in out efforts to alter nature, including human nature? As stewards of God’s creation what are our responsibilities?” (Lustig 1) This question results in theme of nature vs. nurture in the novel. The nature vs. nurture debate is an important topic in Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein. The two central characters, Victor Frankenstein and the creature that he creates; both, characters were raised differently. The nature and the nurture of their upbringing can be a cause of why they are, the way they are. Victor and his creature are subject to very different nurturing styles. Shelley also incorporates the representations of light and fire. This representation is key to the nature vs. nurture discussion in the novel.
Philosophers and scientists alike have debated for centuries whether a person’s character is the result of nature or nurture. In the writings of Thomas Hobbes, it is expressed that humans are endowed with character from birth, and that they are innately evil in nature. John Locke’s response to this theory is that everyone is born with a tabula rasa, or blank slate, and then develops character after a series of formative experiences. The idea that true character is the result of experiences and societal interaction is a theme deeply explored throughout Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. Through different interactions with the monster, Shelley attempts to express that it is because of Victor’s failings as a parent and creator, because of the monster’s isolation, and because of society’s reaction to the monster that the monster has become evil. The monster’s character is a direct result of how he was nurtured, based on his experiences and circumstances, rather than his being innately evil from “birth.”
The wise Uncle Ben once told Peter Parker, “remember, with great power. Comes great responsibility.” There is no greater power than that acquired by the infamous Victor Frankenstein in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein when he discovers the secret to creating life. Shelley’s Frankenstein is a tale of creation that depicts acts of human conception and discovery. The Oxford English Dictionary defines creation as “the action or process of bringing something into existence from nothing by divine or natural agency; the fact of being so created.” It defies the natural order of things and creates a world of its own. The multiple acts of creation and discovery bring upon a certain set of responsibilities and implications as depicted by David Collings who analyzes the responsibilities that come as a result of these acts in his essay “The Monster and the Maternal Thing: Mary Shelley’s Critique of Ideology”. The main act of creation is evident through Victor Frankenstein’s creation of the Being which is depicted most prominently in the novel. However, there are multiple other acts of creation and discovery that may not be apparent at first sight. One of the most important being, Victor’s discovery of the knowledge required to create life. Apart from initially creating the Being, Victor also plays a critical role in the Being’s evolution into a raging and vengeful creature. Perhaps above all other acts of creation and discovery is Victor’s personal creation of himself into a monster. As stated by Collings most of these acts of creation on Victor’s part are subconsciously brought upon because of their lack of a maternal figure but also in part because of his desire for fame and glory. However, he is blinded by his motives and forgets that with his...