More handpicked essays just for you.
Character of Victor in Frankenstein
Victor frankenstein character analysis essay
Essay on victor frankenstein's character
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
What is a monster, really? Is it really a Creature that has three eyes instead of two, with pus seeping out of every crevice in his face and an abnormally large form? Or is it someone with a mind so corrupt it rivals that of Satan? Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is a story within a story that centers on the tale of a man with an immense thirst of knowledge and a fetish to imitate the Creator. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is a lot like the Greek mythological tale of the Greek God, Prometheus, and his brother, Epimetheus, who were assigned the task of creating man. The story captivates the theme of monstrosity. Mary Shelley wrote the novel in a form so the reader’s opinions never stray far from sympathy for the monster and apathy for Victor Frankenstein. The novel looks at “Monstrosity” and “Humanity” in a deeply analytical way.
Victor was born into a happy family and they lived in Geneva. His parents then adopted Elizabeth, whom he immediately felt a strong sense of possession towards. At a young age, Victor was always obsessed with alchemy and constantly divulged in experiments to prove the words of the mad men who wrote the ancient texts. When his mother died after her attempt to care for Elizabeth, Victor was sent to Ingolstadt where his interest swayed from alchemy to modern knowledge. In Ingolstadt, he became fascinated with the human body: “One of the phenomena which had peculiarly attracted [his] attention was the structure of the human frame, and, indeed, any animal endued with life” (36). Learning from his professor M. Krempe, he decided to delve into the discovery of “the secrets of heaven and earth” (23).
Before the monster was created, monstrosity was showed through Victor. Although Victor claims he decided to create ...
... middle of paper ...
...as made of different people, so he had different personalities, and therefore could not be expected to act as a normal person. Upon his creation, he was left not receiving the protection and guidance he desperately needed. His feelings were the same as any other humans: grief, and distress, anger. But, instead of calmly diffusing his anger, he chose to destroy that which made his “enemy” happy. There was never a good reason to bring the dead to life, despite all of Victor’s claims. Because of his arrogance, and lack of a functioning human heart, he disregarded everyone’s opinions and advice and sought to do what was right for himself and not even attempting to protect his family, regardless of how he claimed he did. His incompetence cost his entire family’s life, but fortunately, saved that of Walton and his crew mates. So, at least, he did one good.
Victor said when he saw the monster before it was alive. Afterwards it was the
As a romantic, archetype and gothic novel, Victor is responsible for the monsters actions because Victor abandons his creation meaning the creature is dejected and ends up hideous and fiendish. It is unfair to create someone into this world and then just abandon it and not teach it how to survive. The quote from the creature “Why did you make such a hideous creature like me just to leave me in disgust” demonstrates how much agony the creature is in. He is neglected because of his creator. The monster says “The hateful day when I received life! I accurse my creator. Why did you form a monster so hideous that even you turned from me in disgust?” Victor is wholly at fault for his actions, image and evil.
...he creature which has also resulted in death, It could be argued that Victor himself is a monster as his ambition, secrecy and selfishness that alienated him from human society is what eventually consumed him.
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is a nineteenth century literary work that delves into the world of science and the plausible outcomes of morally insensitive technological research. Although the novel brings to the forefront several issues about knowledge and sublime nature, the novel mostly explores the psychological and physical journey of two complex characters. While each character exhibits several interesting traits that range from passive and contemplative to rash and impulsive, their most attractive quality is their monstrosity. Their monstrosities, however, differ in the way each of the character’s act and respond to their environment. Throughout Frankenstein, one assumes that Frankenstein’s creation is the true monster. While the creation’s actions are indeed monstrous, one must also realize that his creator, Victor Frankenstein is also a villain. His inconsiderate and selfish acts as well as his passion for science result in the death of his friend and family members and ultimately in his own demise.
Peter Brooks' essay "What Is a Monster" tackles many complex ideas within Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, and the main concept that is the title of the essay itself. What is the definition of a monster, or to be monstrous? Is a monster the classic representation we know, green skin, neck bolts, grunting and groaning? A cartoon wishing to deliver sugary cereal? or someone we dislike so greatly their qualities invade our language and affect our interpretation of their image and physical being? Brooks' essay approaches this question by using Shelley's narrative structure to examine how language, not nature, is mainly accountable for creating the idea of the monstrous body.
While scientists pursuing the progress of science today, it would be good if they do it for the benefits of human race. However, if their desires for scientific discovery are caused by their selfish ambition, and they do not take responsibility of them if fail, their creations might become threats for human. As an example of Frankenstein, written by the English author Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, tells the story of a young science Victor Frankenstein who creates a grotesque creature in a scientific experiment, and that cause the tragedy for the rest of his life and the death of many innocent people. When people read this book, many of them might see the creature as a monster as the fact that it has a horrible
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein or; The Modern Prometheus, published in 1818, is a product of its time. Written in a world of social, political, scientific and economic upheaval it highlights human desire to uncover the scientific secrets of our universe, yet also confirms the importance of emotions and individual relationships that define us as human, in contrast to the monstrous. Here we question what is meant by the terms ‘human’ and ‘monstrous’ as defined by the novel. Yet to fully understand how Frankenstein defines these terms we must look to the etymology of them. The novel however, defines the terms through its main characters, through the themes of language, nature versus nurture, forbidden knowledge, and the doppelganger motif. Shelley also shows us, in Frankenstein, that although juxtaposing terms, the monstrous being everything human is not, they are also intertwined, in that you can not have one without the other. There is also an overwhelming desire to know the monstrous, if only temporarily and this calls into question the influence the monstrous has on the human definition.
Monsters can come in various physical forms, but all monsters share the same evil mentality. A Monster is a being that harms and puts fear within people. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is a prime example of how appearance does not determine whether a creature is a monster or not. In the story, Victor Frankenstein tries to change nature by creating a super human being. The being appears to be a monster. Victor becomes so obsessed with his creation and then rejects it. Victor is the real monster because of his desire for power, lack of respect for nature, and his stubbornness.
It is the responsibility of nature, not that of man, to create human life. Nevertheless, Victor has accomplished something unnatural; creating life after death. As soon as he realized that he put all of this time and effort into creating this monstrosity, he abandoned his creation without attempting to amend his failure. "I have created a monster", he says (123HelpMe.com). He has also betrayed his family because they were under the impression that he was doing something extraordinary that would give them a sense of pride. In reality, Victor determined he would just leave it to its own devices. In doing this, he created “the monster” that he subsequently betrayed. The monster did not ask to be created and it was unfair for him to be shunned by all who came into contact with
As I read read a few chapters I understood that Victor was the sole creator and it showed me that the monster was created by multiple body parts.
Victor was consumed with trying to find the secrets of life. Being so consumed made him an untrustworthy character. He cared more about his creations and discoveries then he did about revealing his secrets to his family even when it cost people their lives. When Victor told his father, “My dear father, you are mistaken; Justine is innocent.” (Shelley, 53)
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley is a novel renowned by many as the spawn of the monster archetype in science fiction and horror literature, portraying a beast ruthlessly chasing its creator, ultimately leading to death and misery for both. However, it would be ignorant to assume that the creature is the villain in this novel. On the contrary, Shelley proves to the reader that the creature is the hero of the tale. Specifically, through his heavy usage of several literary devices in his speech to his creator on page 103, the creature demonstrates the unquestionable heroism he possesses, especially in comparison to the humans he encounters.
In Frankenstein, Mary Shelley uses the motif of monstrosity to convey the theme that a person’s outward appearance is not what makes them a monster but rather their actions or inactions that classify true monstrosity. Despite the fact that the monster Victor Frankenstein creates is a literal example of monstrosity in the novel there are many parts that give meaning to monstrosity within character’s actions. Although Victor appears normal, since he is human his ambitions, secrets, selfishness, and inaction makes him a monster himself. Along with monstrous characters the pursuit of knowledge that is seen in Victor, his monster, and Walton in Frankenstein prove that knowledge can be a monstrosity. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is created using the life stories of different characters in the novel. The novel itself could be seen as a monster created similarly to Victor’s monster.
Mary Shelly's Frankenstein was an inspirational novel about a creator a monster and a lot of killing. Many people may think that the overall purpose of the book is not to judge a person by their appearance, however the overall theme of the book Frankenstein is revenge. The monster sets out to kill all of victors family because Victor abandoned him soon after creating him.
Almost every child has that inner monster when their mother says no to something they want, whether it’s a new toy or food. In the gothic novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley a young scientist, Victor Frankenstein, creates a monstrous creature in a experiment similar to that of a child not getting something they want. Dr.Victor Frankenstein, a young doctor who, devastated by the death of his mother during childbirth, becomes obsessed with bringing the dead back to life. His obsession leads to creating a monster assembled from various body parts and chemicals. The monster stands at eight feet tall, but holds the mentality of a newborn baby. When Victor abandons his creation, the monster is confused, he tries to integrate himself into society.