Discrimination in Frankenstein
Have you ever discriminated against someone or been discriminated against because you were different? Frankenstein is a book that explores society and human behavior when someone different is introduced. It says that humans are not always willing to introduce someone new to their society and that sometimes they tend to discriminate against the different one. To show this, the writer used a monster which was introduced to a human society. This monster is rejected everywhere he goes because of his difference. He is rejected by his creator, and then he is rejected by the villagers, by the farmers who the monster had so long admired and in the end by the reader himself.
“Unable to endure the aspect of the being I had created, I rushed out of the room”.
The writer uses this quote to show that the creator, in this case Victor Frankenstein, is the first to reject the monster as he rushes out of the room. Victor had worked day and night trying to create an individual that would be and would look like a human. Once Victor had finished creating this monster he realized how not human-like the monster was and decided to reject him as the book states: “I had desidered it with an ardour that far exceeded moderation; but now that I had finished the beauty of the dream vanished, and breathless horror filled my heart”.. This
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The book states:“The whole village was roused; some fled, some attacked me”. Wherever he goes, the monster cannot find a person who accepts his way of being. This is shown in the different villages the monster visits. We see that the monster is attacked and harassed by the villagers. The rejection of the monster by the villagers symbolizes the rejection of people that belong to a different culture and that may show discrimination when someone new is
While reading the novel “Frankenstein” by Mary Shelly and the excerpt “Problems of Perception” by Anne K. Mellor, I came quick to notice that most of characters in the novel judge the creature by his outward appearance and never gave him a chance to show himself good. As we all know, the creature turns out to be a vicious killer of the ones that are dear to his creator. I believe the creature is this way because he is always criticized and rejected by everyone and has never been accepted in mainstream society.
Manfred tells us how he perceives his fate and expresses feelings similar to those of Victor. Manfred feels doomed in his cruse and after several attempts to escape it sees no other option than death itself. Victor perceives the same for himself in the later half of Frankenstein.
“No human being could have passed a happier childhood than myself. My parents were possessed by the very spirit of kindness and indulgence. We felt that they were not the tyrants to rule our lot according to their caprice, but the agents and creators of all the many delights which we enjoyed. When I mingled with other families I distinctly discerned how peculiarly fortunate my lot was, and gratitude assisted the development of filial love.”
person to unleash such a terror on the world to benefit only himself and his
"It was dark when I awoke; I felt cold also, and half-frightened as it were instinctively, finding myself so desolate" (Shelley 68) For the monster it is the constant rejection and its abandonment by Frankenstein at birth that leads it to loneliness and extreme anxiety. "In all probability, the creature was reaching out, as a small child does to their mother, but his ugly appearance only frightened Victor into running away" (Coulter) The main reason for its rejection is the monster’s outward appearance. The rejection by humans in general and specifically by its creator only increases the monsters feelings of loneliness, emotional abandonment, and, as a result, anger.
Every encounter the creature had with mankind resulted in violence towards him. His isolation and rejection from society created his violent persona, “[he] is violent, because [he] is miserable” (104). The creatures rejection from society left him - what he believed - one option, to become a plague to the society that exiled him. Rejection from the rest of society is perhaps one of the most difficult challenges a being can face. Interaction is an essential “human” need, as much as food, water, and shelter, and isolation can destroy a person’s psyche. Frankenstein’s creature is a prime example, he lived his whole life in the shadows, afraid of others. He had four conversations with other people! Because society rejected him, he became violent towards them, which only distanced him further from the ones he sought to
In the book Frankenstein by Mary Shelly, we discover that the search for now knowledge has a good and a bad side. Suffering is something we all go through at some point. We try to avoid it but our search for knowledge will always lead to suffering. In Frankenstein Victor had set out on a search for knowledge, he was relentless. His search consumed all his time, destroyed relationships, and lead to the death of not only himself but his friends and family. All of those negative effects originated from the monster Victor had created on his search for knowledge. Although Victor may have achieved his end goal, at what cost did this come to? Victor’s search
Mary Shelley's novel, Frankenstein, sheds light on the importance of appearance through the tale of an unwanted creation that is never given a chance by society. Ironically, the supposed beast was initially much more compassionate and thoughtful than his creator, until his romantic and innocent view of the human race was diminished by the cruelty and injustice he unduly bore. Not only does the creature suffer the prejudice of an appearance-based society, but other situations and characters in the novel force the reader to reflect their own hasty judgment. The semi- gothic novel includes several instances of societal prejudice that include the isolation and outcast of Frankenstein's creation,
Interpretation of the quote: “Another task also developed upon me, when I became the instructor of my brother. Ernest was six years younger than myself, and was my principle pupil. He had been afflicted with ill health from his infancy, through which Elizabeth and I had been his constant nurses… William, the youngest of our family, was yet an infant…” (24).
Thesis Statement: In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, the creature’s identity as a monster is due to societal rejection, isolation, and misinterpretation.
"What can stop the determined heart and resolved will of man?" This question, posed by Captain Robert Walton on page 22 of Mary Shelley's immortal Frankenstein, lies susceptible to interpretation to mean the ambition of man in one sense, but in another, the collective persecution and prejudice inherent in mankind.
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley has many main ideas, whether it's about injustice, feminism, parental responsibility, the danger of too much knowledge, the cost of revenge, the relationship between man and God, etc., they all serve a certain purpose. Out of all of those main ideas, the one that sticks out the most is injustice. Injustice comes from the Latin phrase that represents “not right”, and it is the practice of being unjust or unfair (Injustice - Dictionary Definition). Throughout the book, Mary Shelley wanted to show that injustice is caused due to the fear of what is different (“Shelley, Mary - Justice and Injustice”). Many characters in this story all have different characteristics, whether it is due to their look, personality, childhood, current situations, and more. A lot of the characteristics that differ from each other have led to many injustice situations. Even though injustice might not always be bad, many examples of unnecessary injustice are shown throughout “Frankenstein” due to undeserving punishment, violating the rights of others, and unfair treatment.
Although humanity prides itself on its continuous societal improvements, superficial judgment continues to thrive, especially between those who differ in looks. The art of physiognomy dates back to the beginning of mankind and has continued to evolve with humanity, negatively impacting those who are categorized into unfavorable stereotypes. In Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, there are flagrant displays of the upsetting role appearance plays in society, as modern-day racism parallels the prejudice the monster experiences due to his exterior. Despite its publication year of 1818, the novel is still pertinent, especially as the world struggles to override unconscious biases correlating to race or unorthodox physicality.
Beauty and prejudice have become commonplace in today’s society; the tiring cycle of living up to impossible beauty standards and facing the constant criticism of one’s image seems never-ending. However, this incessant obsessiveness over image has been around for thousands of years. In Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein, a prominent struggle between beauty and hideousness occurs throughout the book. Shelley uses the motif of undesirable appearances and the constant praise of beauty throughout Frankenstein to establish the theme of prejudice.
In the novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, Victor Frankenstein puts the monster in a predicament that victimizes the monster. Victor creates the monster to be an “ugly wretch”(Shelley 141) therefore causing the monster grief for his entire life. The monster experiences severe loneliness for being an outcast. The monster is the greatest victim in this novel because of his creation, his loneliness, and everyone’s general fear or lack of concern for him.