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Essay on victor frankenstein's character
Science and religion in frankenstein
Essay on victor frankenstein's character
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In "Frankenstein" by Mary Shelley, she illustrates the significance of Victor's encounter of the Monster at Mont-Blanc through diction and imagery; Victor's journey to Mont-Blanc becomes a casement of the Monster's and Victor's mental and behavioral pattern towards each other. Mary Shelley utilizes the motifs such as fire, ice, water, doppelgangers, and biblical allusions to Satan and the creation of Adam to present the finite limits of Victor to God.
Victor Frankenstein’s journey in Mont-Blanc functions in the novel as an illuminating episode, whose diction alludes to the sceneries of heaven and earth; in one instance at the beginning of this event, Victor utilizes oxymoronic language to describe his surroundings, through which presents
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his desire to become supreme. Victor’s ascension to Mont-Blanc provides an illusion of power, as he cannot surmount the glorious mountain; for example, "..thick mists hid the summits of the mountains...Still I would penetrate their misty veil and seek them in their cloudy retreats," creates a similar image of heaven: Victor compares the act of penetration together to evoke the violation nature to create his super-being. The thick mist prevalent in the same passage creates a barrier between humanity and god, of which limits Victor from ever reaching this status. The laws of nature are described definite and immutable, similar to the power of God, of which Victor attempts to emulate. Victor's pursuit of the Monster illustrates that the monster is a mirror image of his ego through the placement of Montanvert and Mont-Blanc--though the monster is far stronger and emotionally intelligent than Victor. The recurring motifs of water and ice illustrate the idea that Victor and the Monster are doppelgangers and reflections of each other. Victor's desire to reach the finite limits of God can be inferred through the incoming event of a confrontation with the monster; from Victor's perspective he "...
may extinguish the spark which I so negligently bestowed," depicts himself at a higher position above others since only God and kinds may be bestowed. Victor's lust for power alludes him as an ironic God figure, as he seeks out to meet the Monster--his neglected creation; he goes to the extent of contemplating his relationship with the monster before having the chance of meeting him with such thoughts as "Alas! why does man boast of sensibilities superior to those apparent in the brute; it only renders them more necessary beings," who Victor, despite his symbiotic relationship with the Monster, renders as inferior to him. Victor, whose thoughts are clouded by his inflated perception of himself, felt that his surroundings "all gathered round me and bade me be at peace," imitating the image of a creator or God-figure to nature despite his inability to appreciate his own creation. Victor, in relation to the immutable laws of nature, contrasts as "nought may endure but mutability," as the absolute power of God is disparate from Victor's creation--the Monster is changing out of his control. Victor's attempt to "play god" by fabricating the creature in his laboratory, implies that he is flawed by excessive hubris such as lack of self-awareness; another prominent example occurs when the creature gives power to Victor by groveling to him as "Yet it is in your power to recompense me, and deliver them from an evil which it only remains for you to make so great, that not only you and your family, but thousands of others, shall be swallowed up in the whirlwinds of its rage." thus plays into Victor's ironic god figure dynamic. The diction stated from the Monster alludes to the Lord's Prayer, "deliver us from evil," infers that the Monster is vulnerable and needs Victor's protection from the temptation of evil. God
created Adam in the image of him, synonymous to Victor, who created the Monster in the reflection of his ego. But it is the Monster who, because of his emotional intelligence, reasons with Victor; for example the Monster believes "The guilty are allowed, by human laws, bloody as they are, to speak in their own defense." The Monster's confrontation with Victor alludes to the Genesis, in which he "ought to by thy Adam,"--God's creation of the first man; the Monster began to feel betrayed, as Victor's creation, and identified as the fallen angel --placing Victor in the position of God. The Monster and Satan parallel throughout this novel as both acts discordant and revolts against their creator, demanding the rights that they deserve. The Monster is self-aware in comparison to Victor and warns him to “remember, thou hast made me more powerful than thyself; my height is superior to thine…” indicating that he is mentally and physically superior than him; the monster acts as the angel of death, killing Victor's loved ones one by one to capture his attention. The location of Montanvert in a body of icy water and the motif of Promethean fire takes inspiration from Dante's inferno, which states the center of hell is ice--strengthening the Monster's identification with Satan. Through the Monster's initiative to learn literature and keen observation of human behaviors such as relationships in the DeLaceys, the Monster's ability to manipulate Victor into, at first, creating his partner--similar to Adam and Eve. The Monster's capability to have an intellectual conversation with Victor concerning his demands illustrate his sensibility and ability to manipulate his creator.
‘Frankenstein’ or ‘The Modern Prometheus‘ is a 19th century gothic novel written by Mary Shelley. Shelley’s interest in the physical sciences had led her to writing a novel that is based on creating human life in an unnatural way. Victor is one if the narrators who has an unnatural obsession with the sciences led him to discover the secret of life; creating the abomination that is his monster. Walton serves as the neutral narrator that has no personal impact on Victor’s and the monster’s tales. It is through Walton that the monster was able to express his feelings at the death of his creator.
Victor Frankenstein’s recollects his past before his mind in youth was plagued by his self destructive passions later on in his life. By reflecting on his past, he becomes keenly aware of the poor choices he has made which inevitably lead to the decimation of the innocence he used to possess in the past. The simile in this text compares the beginning of when he discovers his passions for natural philosophy, and his eventual demise caused by it, to the flow of a river which source was in the mountains. The serene nature of the mountain and river foreshadows the purity of Frankenstein’s being before the discovery of his passions, and the peak of that mountain symbolizes the height of this innocence. The many sources of water at the peak represents
Mary Shelley's Frankenstein explores the downfall of certain human characteristics, set to the backdrop of creation, destruction, and preservation. The subtitle denoted by Shelly herself supports this idea, by relating the fact that the title can be viewed as either Frankenstein or The Modern Prometheus. One scholar, Marilyn Butler, also maintains this by noting, "It can be a late version of the Faust Myth"(302). Shelly uses the story of the main character, Victor Frankenstein, to produce the concept of a dooming human characteristic of which Frankenstein states, "I have . . . been blasted in these hopes"(Shelley, 152). The reader finds, as a result of his thirst for knowledge and infatuation with science, Victor creates a living being by whom he has "suffered great and unparalleled misfortunes"(Shelley, 17). Eventually, Victor realizes this self-destructive trait, but he is not able to save himself stating, "I have lost everything, and cannot begin life anew"(Shelley, 16). Although everything in his life that is dear has been lost, Victor is able to convince one in his same position--Robert Walton--to not "lead [his crew] unwillingly to danger"(Shelley, 151). While addressing the concept of characteristic and self-discovery, it is possible to realize that the monster also possesses the characteristics held by both Victor and Walton; except in his learning, the monster is driven to continue to cause destruction. Most important about the thirst for knowledge is that, as a form of human characteristic or downfall, it leads to large, critical pieces of self-discovery. In obtaining these critical pieces, Frankenstein finds satisfaction in j...
It is not arduous to find meaning in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein but the more complex part is trying to find one definite feeling in the novel. Allied with references to other Romantic Period works and Greek mythology is a portion of a poem that seems out of place – “Mutability,” by Percy Shelley. The reader will feel it irrelevant with the sudden introduction of the poem “Mutability” in chapter 10, when Victor is enjoying his encounter with nature. It is only when the reader analyses the poem , does one realize the significance of the intertext. Mary Shelley includes the last two stanzas of Percy Shelley’s “Mutability” in chapter 10 of Frankenstein to reflect a correlation between nature and Victor’s actions and thoughts, and to showcase
Mary Shelley’s novel, Frankenstein, illustrates the Romantic idea of the sublime naturalworld as an emotional experience for the characters of the novel. Within the text, Shelleyutilizes an allusion to the John Milton’s biblical story, Paradise Lost, to make a parallel betweenthe characters. Within the passage, the monster compares himself, as well as his creator, Victor,to the characters Adam and Satan. He comes to realize that he is more similar to Satan;ultimately, leading him to his reign of terror and the revenge he wishes to impose on Victor. Themonster realizes that he is similar to Adam in Paradise Lost in that they both do not want to bealone. The monster also realizes that there is good in the world that is deeply contrasted with
Victor’s cruel and hostile actions toward his creature demonstrate his monstrous characteristics. One example of Victor’s inhumane cruelty is when he decides to abandon his creature. When Victor realizes what he has created, he is appalled, and abandons his creature because he is “unable to endure the aspect of the being [he] had created” (42). This wretched action would be similar to a mother abandoning her own child. Victor’s ambition for renown only fuels his depravity; he brings new life into the world, only to abandon it. This act of abandonment accurately depicts Victor’s cruelty because it shows his disgust toward his own creation, as well as his lack of respect for life. An example of a hostile action is when Victor destroys the creature’s
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.
Although “Frankenstein” is the story of Victor and his monster, Walton is the most reliable narrator throughout the novel. However, like most narrator’s, even his retelling of Victor’s story is skewed by prejudice and favoritism of the scientist’s point of view. Yet this could be attributed to the only view points he ever gets to truly hear are from Victor himself and not the monster that he only gets to meet after he comes to mourn his fallen master.
In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Victor Frankenstein and the monster that he creates are very similar. For example, Victor creates the monster to be like himself. Another similarity is that the anger of both Victor and the monster is brought about by society. One more parallel between Victor and the monster is that they both became recluses. These traits that Victor and the monster possess show that they are very similar.
This truly is remarkable, two novels of different time periods, with characters of startling resemblance. God and Frankenstein's creations stunningly resemble each other. The monster relates to Satan, Adam, and Eve. Victor quotes, "You may render me the most miserable of men, but you shall never make me base in my own eyes," this is when the monster asks for a companion, Victor refuses. The monster also shows that he will go to any extent to be happy and complete vengeance when he goes on a murder spree.
The monster of the novel is often misattributed with the name, “Frankenstein.” However, Victor Frankenstein can ultimately be considered the true monster of this tale. His obsession would lead to the corruption of his soul and the creation of two monsters—one himself, and the other, the creature. In attempting to take on the role of God, nature would become a monster to Victor and destroy his life. These elements of monstrosity in Frankenstein drive the meaning of its story.
In the Romantic novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelly, the selection in chapter five recounting the birth of Dr. Frankenstein’s monster plays a vital role in explaining the relationship between the doctor and his creation. Shelley’s use of literary contrast and Gothic diction eloquently set the scene of Frankenstein’s hard work and ambition coming to life, only to transform his way of thinking about the world forever with its first breath.
In Mary Shelley’s novel, Frankenstein, many similarities can be seen between the creature and his creator, Victor Frankenstein. While Victor and the creature are similar, there are a few binary oppositions throughout the book that make them different. The binary oppositions in the novel serve as thematic contrast; and some of the most illustrative oppositions between the two characters are on the focus of family, parenthood, isolation and association with others.
Victor has a lack of respect for the natural world that leads him on the path to becoming a monster. In creating the monster Victor is trying to change the natural world. He is trying to play the role of god by creating life.
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.