Victor Frankenstein: The Tragic Hero In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

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Victor Frankenstein, the creator of a demon that wreaked havoc upon the Frankenstein family and they’re dear friends without remorse in the novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, is the tragic hero of this tale. Through the introduction of the story we see Victor strive towards a cause with his gift in science, however, the method in which he tried to attain his goal was disturbingly immoral and ultimately led to his downfall. Although Mary Shelley initial introduces us to tale of the creature with this attitude of pity and sense of innocence from the audience perspective, the creature later on reverses his archetype throughout the rest of the novel revealing the true nature of the creature and who the real hero of the novel is, Victor. From beginning to end, Victor follows the path of a tragic hero outlined by Aristotle and is why he is the true hero in the novel.
Mary Shelley writes Victor Frankenstein character as a virtuous character, and with the compassion from his dear friend Henry, Elizabeth, and his family he becomes emerse with knowledge and love. As Aristotle explains, a key trait to being a tragic hero is noble origins as well
He’s passion for knowledge combined with the grief for his mother passing led to his tragic flaw. Unlike Victor, the monster had started from nothing and his desire for love and acceptance by society unleashes his inner demons and as result killing those closest to Victor. The creature’s early on intention in the novel are definitely heroic however as the story does progress he becomes more of freak of nature with no remorse to the lives of others displaying that he can not be a hero. Victor however, continually continues down the path of the tragic hero all the way through the story making him the only ideal hero in this

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