Dr. Victor Frankenstein has always wanted to achieve great things—achieve them and be acknowledged for them. In the novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, Victor Frankenstein’s ambition pushes him to extreme, unorthodox measures, which leads to his obsession of getting noticed. It makes him create a monster from body parts of the dead. To make such a discovery, Frankenstein must possess almost superhuman intelligence and focus. However, once his creature was brought to life, his behavior in his research make it clear that he is remarkably short-sighted and irresponsible on a fundamental human level. When the monster turns violent and vengeful, killing everyone Frankenstein holds dear, it is clear that the monster should not be held responsible. …show more content…
The monster is an infant in comparison to Frankenstein, and it never asked to be brought into this world.
Victor Frankenstein’s hatred of the monster’s appearance and his rejection of his own creature reflects negatively on the creator. Dr. Frankenstein’s failure to take responsibility at any point in his experiment guarantees that disaster will overwhelm the characters of the novel.
During the monster’s creation, Frankenstein defies natural law, which eventually leads to his own destruction. He is consumed by his dream of gaining fame and advancing science, and fails to think of whether anything unintended could result from his research. In fact, he dreams of creating a whole new race of people without thinking about the risk: “A new species would bless me as its creator and source; many happy and excellent natures would owe their being to me. No father could claim the gratitude of his child so
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completely as I should deserve theirs” (48). Here Frankenstein is thinking only of himself and his glory rather than the benefit or cost to anyone else. He further ignores plenty of clues, making it apparent that his actions are wrong. It becomes clear to the reader when Frankenstein steals dead bodies from a cemetery, with the intent to recreate a life, that he is stepping over his boundaries. Obsessed with being noticed for a new discovery, Frankenstein does not pay any attention to what he is making. Without even getting to know the monster it is astonishing when Frankenstein wonders, “now that I had finished, the beauty of the dream vanished, and breathless horror and disgust filled my heart” (51). Frankenstein has overlooked completely whether he has been doing something awful. Creating a life form is just like deciding to have a child. Even though the parents do not know how the child will turn out, they must consider what it will mean to bring a life into the world. Frankenstein never bothers to ask himself these basic questions. If at any point in his research he chooses to do so, much pain and terror could be avoided. By creating the monster, Victor is giving himself the responsibility to take care of it, a responsibility he also avoids. Just like a baby, the monster is a newborn and learns from the influences around it. The monster’s development is Frankenstein’s responsibility to guide in this world. Instead, Frankenstein neglects this basic requirement. In talking about the success of giving the monster life, Frankenstein reveals his selfishness and inability to think about others: Sometimes my pulse beat so quickly and hardly that I felt the palpitation of every artery; at others, I nearly sank to the ground through languor and extreme weakness. Mingled with this horror, I felt the bitterness of disappointment; dreams that had been my food and pleasant rest for so long a space were now become a hell to me; and the change was so rapid, the overthrow so complete! (52) Nowhere in this description does it show concern for the monster. Frankenstein is not even thinking about science anymore. He is thinking only about how disappointed he feels that the monster has turned out ugly and frightening. He abandons the monster because of its looks. By disowning his creation and leaving the monster to fend for itself in a world that cannot understand it, Frankenstein is guaranteeing the monster an unhappy life. This gives the monster an incentive for vengeance against its creator. When the monster later describes to Victor what it is like to come into the world, he shows how awful it is to be alone and rejected: “‘It was dark when I awoke; I felt cold also, and half frightened, as it were, instinctively, finding myself so desolate.… I was a poor, helpless, miserable wretch; I knew, and could distinguish, nothing; but feeling pain invade me on all sides, I sat down and wept”’(92). No one was there for the monster, so it sees no other choice and flees from the place of its creation. Only by lending guidance to this creature that has a brilliant mind and tremendous physical power, could Frankenstein hope to give it a good life. He does not, and destruction occurs for everyone involved. Frankenstein is foolish and heartless to create a new form of life and then immediately reject it.
He shows another failure of character in neglecting to deal with this creature. If he believes the monster should not exist, Frankenstein should take care to imprison the monster or kill it, so that it cannot harm others. However, he lacks the stomach for that harsh decision, and instead just runs away. In fact, in the aftermath of creating the monster, Frankenstein manages to feel sorry for himself. Instead, he should be out trying to find the monster, either to help it or to capture it: “But I was in reality very ill, and surely nothing but the unbounded and unremitting attentions of my friend could have restored me to life. The form of the monster on whom I had bestowed existence was forever before my eyes, and I raved incessantly concerning him” (55). Victor makes himself ill by worrying about the monster, but he does not do anything to prevent the monster from the destruction that it is capable of doing. Frankenstein’s solution, which is not really a solution at all, is the worst possible path to take. He has too much pride to tell his family about the monstrosity that he has created. This monster causes everything he loves to be taken from him. He does not want his family to change the way they look at him, as they might if he were to admit what he has done. By staying silent because he does not want to be treated like an outsider, Frankenstein leaves his family
vulnerable. They cannot protect themselves from a thing they do not know about. It first starts with the monster killing William. Justine takes the blame for William’s death and dies as a result. Victor just stands around, but really he is to blame for this murder as he is irresponsible and a coward. He later makes this claim and places the blame for all the family’s deaths on his own shoulders: “Human beings, their feelings and passions, would indeed be degraded if such a wretch as I felt pride.…I am the cause of this—I murdered her. William, Justine, and Henry—they all died by my hands” (164). All could have been avoided at several earlier points, but Victor’s actions have made the monster too angry to allow Victor any happiness. This rage causes Henry and Elizabeth to be killed in the same manner as William. Victor, not the monster, has the blood of his own family on his hands. Through not being responsible for his actions, Victor Frankenstein pays the price as everything he loves is torn from him. Victor could have avoided the problem by not seeking forbidden knowledge. He also could have avoided disaster by caring for the monster and teaching it how to behave in the world. Further, if he has pursued his forbidden knowledge and decided to reject the creature, he still could have averted a crisis. Frankenstein could effectively deal with the monster by killing or imprisoning it. He exposes his family to immense danger and never bothers to warn anyone. The disaster of the novel is Frankenstein’s creation. He creates the monster that carries out the destruction, and he creates the situation that causes the monster to behave the way it does.
Although humans have the tendency to set idealistic goals to better future generations, often the results can prove disastrous, even deadly. The tale of Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, focuses on the outcome of one man's idealistic motives and desires of dabbling with nature, which result in the creation of horrific creature. Victor Frankenstein was not doomed to failure from his initial desire to overstep the natural bounds of human knowledge. Rather, it was his poor parenting of his progeny that lead to his creation's thirst for the vindication of his unjust life. In his idealism, Victor is blinded, and so the creation accuses him for delivering him into a world where he could not ever be entirely received by the people who inhabit it. Not only failing to foresee his faulty idealism, nearing the end of the tale, he embarks upon a final journey, consciously choosing to pursue his creation in vengeance, while admitting he himself that it may result in his own doom. The creation of an unloved being and the quest for the elixir of life holds Victor Frankenstein more accountable for his own death than the creation himself.
As a tragic hero, Victor’s tragedies begin with his overly obsessive thirst for knowledge. Throughout his life, Victor has always been looking for new things to learn in the areas of science and philosophy. He goes so far with his knowledge that he ends up creating a living creature. Victor has extremely high expectations for his creation but is highly disappointed with the outcome. He says, “I had desired it with an ardour that far exceeded moderation; but now that I had finished, the beauty of the dream vanished, and breathless horror and disgust filled my heart” (Shelley 35). Frankenstein neglects the creature because of his horrifying looks, which spark the beginning of numerous conflicts and tragedies. At this point, the creature becomes a monster because of Victor’s neglect and irresponsibility. The monster is forced to learn to survive on his own, without anyone or anything to guide him along the way. Plus, the monster’s ugly looks cause society to turn against him, ad...
As Frankenstein is enroute to his pursuit of gaining more knowledge, he states, “I wished, as it were, to procrastinate all that related to my feelings of affection until the great object, which swallowed up every habit of my nature, should be completed” (Shelley 41). Frankenstein’s decision in allowing his intellectual ambitions to overpower everything else in his life leads him to be blinded to the dangers of creating life. He isolates himself from his society when creating the monster, letting himself be immersed in his creation while being driven by his passions, allowing nobody to be near him. The fact that he allows this creation of a monster to consume his total being reveals how blinded he is to the immorality of stepping outside the boundaries of science and defying nature. His goal in striving to achieve what wants to in placing man over nature makes him lose his sense of self as all he is focused on is the final product of his creation. He starts to realize his own faults as after he has created the monster, he becomes very ill and states, “The form of the monster on whom I had bestowed existence was forever before my eyes, and I raved incessantly concerning him” (48). His impulsive decision to make the monster leads him to abhorring it as it does not turn out to be what he has expected. Because he chooses to isolate himself in creating the
Although some critics say that the monster Victor has created is to blame for the destruction and violence that follow the experiment, it is Victor who is the responsible party. First, Victor, being the scientist, should have known how to do research on the subject a lot more than he had done. He obviously has not thought of the consequences that may result from it such as the monster going crazy, how the monster reacts to people and things, and especially the time it will take him to turn the monster into the perfect normal human being. This is obviously something that would take a really long time and a lot of patience which Victor lacks. All Victor really wants is to be the first to bring life to a dead person and therefore be famous. The greed got to his head and that is all he could think about, while isolating himself from his friends and family. In the play of Frankenstein, when Victor comes home and sets up his lab in the house, he is very paranoid about people coming in there and finding out what he is doing. At the end of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, Victor says:
The fact that Frankenstein’s creation turns on him and murders innocent people is never overlooked; it has been the subject of virtually every popularization of the novel. What is not often acknowledged is the fact that Frankenstein himself embodies some of the worst traits of humankind. He is self-centered, with little real love for those who care about him; he is prejudiced, inflexible and cannot forgive, even in death. While some of these traits could be forgivable, to own and flaunt them all should be enough to remind a careful reader that there are two "monsters" in Frankenstein.
Victor Frankenstein, blinded by pride, remained unaware of how his experiment would affect not only him, but the world around him as he formed his new discovery. His secret to creating life only caused more life to be lost. Because of Victor’s reckless behavior, he caused the depressed and lonely world around his own creation, one who, in the end, Victor did not want to take responsibility for making, no matter how remarkable. The Creation, a being of unfortunate circumstance, exemplifies how knowledge has dangerous and everlasting effects if not used safely or for good intentions. Unfortunately, The Creation leaves his own damage behind as well, again showing how knowledge is harmful, by killing Elizabeth, Victor’s wife, Henry Clerval, his dearest friend, and other members a part of Victor’s family and friends. This demonstrates how knowledge, if not used wisely, can lead to death and suffering. The power of knowledge, in Mary Shelley’s writing, is a gift bestowed on those who can handle the power responsibly, as opposed to using it for selfish boasting. In contrast, she uses these two characters to show the importance of being knowledgeable in both science and responsibility and the unforgivable mutilation that comes if you fail to overcome
Upon first discovering how to make life, Victor is overwhelmed with excitement and pride, feeling as though he has unlocked the greatest power on earth. His imagination is “too much exalted” by this newfound ability, and thus determines there is no “animal as complex and wonderful as man” for him to attempt as his first creation (Shelley 43). Frankenstein does not contemplate how he will react to or interact with the human he gives life to, or that he has created an extremely twisted parent-child relationship by creating a human from dead bodies. His general lack of concern regarding the consequences of his remarkable yet dangerous power is the root of the rest of the conflict between him and his monster throughout the rest of the novel, and it exemplifies Shelley’s underlying theme that science should not be pushed past morally and psychologically safe boundaries.
“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” ...
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.
Victor Frankenstein, the monster’s creator, is the victim of his own pride. An ego unchecked is a dangerous thing. But in truth, it really just shows Victor’s humanity. He is privileged, educated, talented, loved, adored, but he is not perfect. His flaw is his own ego and pride. Without doubt, this is the result of a childhood where he was overindulged. Overindulged to the extent he was given a little girl “Elizabeth” as a “present”, whom he considered from childhood “mine only” (Shelley 21). Little wonder the twenty year old Victor would think he could create, control and command life. But Victor as with any indulged child did not take the time to learn much from his parents about parenting and fath...
In Frankenstein, Shelley creates two very complex characters. They embody the moral dilemmas that arise from the corruption and disturbance of the natural order of the world. When Victor Frankenstein is attending school, he becomes infatuated with creating a living being and starts stealing body parts from morgues around the university. After many months of hard work, he finishes one stormy night bringing his creation to life. However, “now that [Victor] had finished, the beauty of the dream vanished, and breathless horror and disgust filled [his] heart” (Chambers). Right after Victor realizes what he has done, he falls into deep depression and must be nursed back to health by his friend. Victor spends the rest of the story facing consequences and moral problems from creating unnatural life. When he realizes that the ‘monster’ has killed his brother, even though no one believes him, he feels responsible for his brother’s murder because he was responsible for the existence of the ‘monster’. Also feeling responsible, Victor...
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, or the Modern Prometheus, explores the monstrous and destructive affects of obsession, guilt, fate, and man’s attempt to control nature. Victor Frankenstein, the novel’s protagonist and antihero, attempts to transcend the barriers of scientific knowledge and application in creating a life. His determination in bringing to life a dead body consequently renders him ill, both mentally and physically. His endeavors alone consume all his time and effort until he becomes fixated on his success. The reason for his success is perhaps to be considered the greatest scientist ever known, but in his obsessive toil, he loses sight of the ethical motivation of science. His production would ultimately grieve him throughout his life, and the consequences of his undertaking would prove disastrous and deadly. Frankenstein illustrates the creation of a monster both literally and figuratively, and sheds light on the dangers of man’s desire to play God.
Countless situations created in life will always have some consequence, whether the outcome is a positive outcome or a negative outcome. During the novel, Frankenstein, there are many incidents portrayed through the characters that have both a positive outcome and a negative outcome, no matter the type of situation. The majorities of the situations that are conveyed in this novel almost always have a negative outcome because of the way the effects damage and hurt the innocence of the other characters in the story. In this novel many of the negative outcomes are a consequence of a hideous monster, known as Frankenstein’s monster, which was created by the hands of Victor Frankenstein.
Mary Shelley’s gothic novel Frankenstein is a novel narrated by Robert Walton about Victor Frankenstein and the Monster that he creates. Frankenstein grew up surrounding himself with what he loved most, science. He attended Ingolstadt University where he studied chemistry and natural philosophy, but being involved in academics was not enough for him. Frankenstein wanted to discover things, but did not think about the potential outcomes that could come with this decision. Frankenstein was astonished by the human frame and all living creatures, so he built the Monster out of various human and animal parts (Shelley, 52). At the time Frankenstein thought this creation was a great discovery, but as time went on the Monster turned out to be terrifying to anyone he came in contact with. So, taking his anger out on Frankenstein, the Monster causes chaos in a lot of people’s lives and the continuing battle goes on between the Monster and Frankenstein. Throughout this novel, it is hard to perceive who is pursuing whom as well as who ends up worse off until the book comes to a close.
At first glance, the monster in Frankenstein is a symbol of evil, whose only desire is to ruin lives. He has been called "A creature that wreaks havoc by destroying innocent lives often without remorse. He can be viewed as the antagonist, the element Victor must overcome to restore balance and tranquility to the world." But after the novel is looked at on different levels, one becomes aware that the creature wasn't responsible for his actions, and was just a victim of circumstance. The real villain of Frankenstein isn't the creature, but rather his creator, Victor.