The Parent And Child Relationship In Mary Shelly's Frankenstein And His Creation

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Frankenstein Essay
With the same hands Frankenstein built the monster, he holds his dying wife. Throughout Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein, Victor Frankenstein and his creation fight against each other as ambition, abandonment and the lack of responsibility result in the downfall of both. Frankenstein represents a parental figure to his creation. Their conflict arises through the years leading up to Frankenstein’s creation and continues for years while taking the lives of multiple people. Frankenstein’s knowledge and ambition, the creature’s life in isolation, and the poor relationship between the two result in their conflict.

Two powerful words that can change the way one thinks and views the word. Knowledge and ambition. Victor Frankenstein
In every aspect of the parent and child relationship, Frankenstein fails to be a parent to his son. All the monster asks for is a female companion who he could depend on and live his life with. However, Frankenstein decides to “[destroy] the creature on whose future existence [the creature] depend[s] [on] for happiness” (170). He continuously reveals his selfish deposition as fails to meet the creatures needs. This results in an even greater conflict between that two characters as the creature is denied (does not receive) his one wish. Moreover, once the creature understands human relationships he realizes that he has no childhood/fundamental relationship that most have. The creature has “[n]o father [who] watche[s] [his] infant days [and] [n]o mother [who]… bless[es] [him] with smiles and caresses” (). A parents’ job is to raise their child as a caring human being. They live their lives to instill good virtues within their child so the child can become a person that they are proud to call their own. Moreover, Frankenstein is never there for his child. The creature did not receive the education that is critical in a human being’s life. Instead this innate purity a child is born with alters due to isolation and his vulgar appearance. In the end, all these factors lead to one conclusion, the creature’s dying goal, revenge. The creature is “malicious

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