Frankenstein, By Mary Shelley

Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein” is a book with a deep message that touches to the very heart. This message implies that the reader will not see the story only from the perspective of the narrator but also reveal numerous hidden opinions and form a personal interpretation of the novel. One of its primary statements is that no one is born a monster and a “monster” is created throughout socialization, and the process of socialization starts from the contact with the “creator”. It is Victor Frankenstein that could not take the responsibility for his creature and was not able to take care of his “child”. Pride and vanity were the qualities that directed

The human consciousness is closely tied to the role of suffering, and one can even say it causes suffering. We can see that this is true in the creature’s case because his suffering first started when he was betrayed by his own creator. At this point, he was subconsciously aware of the rejection, however the creature still had hope that he will one day be accepted. His pain was further intensified when the cottager’s chased him away with a stick. This was the climax of the creature’s story because he was able to come to the realization that he was different. “From my earliest remembrance I had been as I then was in height and proportion. I had never yet seen a being resembling me, or who claimed any intercourse with me. What was I? The question

Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is ‘one of the pioneering works of modern science fiction’, and is also a frightening story that speaks to the ‘mysterious fears of our nature’. Mary Shelley mocks the idea of “playing God”, the idea that came from the Greek myth of Prometheus, of the Greek titan who stole Zeus’ gift of life. Both the story of Frankenstein and Prometheus reveal the dark side of human nature and the dangerous effects of creating artificial life. Frankenstein reveals the shocking reality of the consequences to prejudging someone. The creature’s first-person narration reveals to us his humanity, and his want to be accepted by others even though he is different. We are shown that this ‘monster’ is a ‘creature’ and more of a human

Unfortunately for the creature, the need for friendship and love is not met by the people he longed to receive it from. He is cast out by his “friends”. This halts his progression up the ladder. This does not stop the creature though. He decides to try again to gain love and recognition from human beings. As he is walking along a river he sees a young girl slip and fall into it. “I rushed from my hiding-place, and, with exreme labour from the force of the current, saved her … when I was suddenly interrupted by the approach of a rustic … on seeing me … he aimed a gun, which he carried, at my body and fired3 (143).” Unlike the previous two attempts, as the creature is deprived of reaching the next need. Yet all hope is not lost for he believes that there might be one last opportunity to get his need of love met.

He longs for a companion who will understand him and who will not mistreat him. The last moments of compassion dies within the creature when his creator destroys the companion he promised to create, and the revenge continues from there. Even though the creature commits awful crimes, he also commits acts of kindness.

The creature began to converse freely with the blind father who addressed him with kindness. However, when his two children returned, the daughter fainted and the son "dashed me to the ground and struck me violently with a stick" forcing the creature to "quit the cottage and escape unperceived to my hovel" (115). These acts of cruelty emphasize how often humanity stereotypes individuals. Just because a creature looks monstrous does not mean his intentions match his appearance. After this heartbreaking event, the monster decides to stop seeking love and instead to seek revenge against his creator and attempt to force Victor to create a companion for him. The creature attempts to explain his cruel ways when he exclaims, "There was none among the myriads of men that existed who would pity or assist me; and should I feel kindness towards my

The Creature symbolizes the war between passion and responsibility with the effects of society. Victor abandons his responsibility for his passion, the creature, this begins when Victor goes away to ingolstadt to increase his knowledge in the field of anatomy and gets lost in his project of piecing together a non-living creature. When he finishes with his Creature victor states “I had worked hard for nearly two years, for the sole purpose of infusing life into an inanimate body” (Shelley 43). “-For this i had deprived myself of rest and health. I had desired it with an ardour that far exceeded moderation” (Shelley 43). Victor says he has deprived himself of sleep thus causing his health to decrease, this is an example of victor abandoning responsibility for for his passion “by being connected with the favourite projects and passions of the times Victors health declined rapidly ( Baldick).” When Victor begins his creation in ingolstadt, he locks himself away from his social life. Inside his apartment he is away from family and any social ties, causing his mental health to decline rapidly. Victor abandons his passion, the Creature, when he thinks through the eyes of society causing his responsibility for the Creature to fall to next to nothing. Victors first impression of his creation is, “Now that i had finished, the beauty of the dream vanished, and breathless horror and disgust filled my heart.”(Shelley 43). Victor judges his creation based off of its appearance instead of its thoughts much like society has always done. Victor doesn't give the Creature a chance and instead abandons it, leaving it to its own devices. Here in the story the Creature is depleted of all its rights simply because of its appearance, this throws shade on society simply because society shapes who we are as

Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein has undoubtedly withstood the test of time. Frankenstein’s direct association with fundamental Gothic literature is extremely renowned. However, the novel’s originality is derived from the foundational thematic values found within the relationship (or lack there of) between Victor Frankenstein and the monster he had created, in combination with a fascinatingly captivating plot. Understandably, Frankenstein can often be associated with a multitude of concepts; however, in this particular instance, the circumstances in the book seemed remarkably coherent with Shelley’s Romantic beliefs in preserving the natural world, and one’s natural existence. These values present themselves as metaphorical symbols that

The creature does not receive affection. Despite these unfortunate beginnings, the creature asserts that he was good, despite the absence of guidance and parenting until he encountered society. The monster first encounters physical sensations such as hot, cold, dark, and hunger. This period is the creature’s infancy state. He later learns through experience to distinguish, understand and handle these physical sensations. His sensitive experiences enable him to learn to care and sustain his being.

Knowledge is given to those that understand the power it holds, this power could either destroy or help one in their path to success. In Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, we see this idea being practiced by individuals in the novel. However, they are incapable of seeing the dangerous potential outcomes of misunderstanding knowledge and the power it offers, leading to their ruin. We see the suffering as a cause of knowledge through Victor Frankenstein’s creation of life, The Monster’s dream of fitting the norm, and Robert Walton’s dangerous journey to the North. The characters in Frankenstein pursuit of knowledge leads to certain destruction, showing us the potential negative outcomes of misusing knowledge.

As a result of Victor's neglect and rejection of the creature, society also denies the creature acceptance which creates a life of loneliness for it. The creature, after being rejected by Victor, is left helpless, wanders into a forest, and experiences what hunger and pain are for the first time in life. The creature longs for acceptance, especially from Victor, but is denied. For example, the creature first learns of its rejection from society when it enters the house of an old man that is cooking; it as at the sight of the creature that the man "shrieked loudly" (90) and runs out of his hut. From that moment the creature realizes it is deformed and unlike anyone else. While the creature is roaming through the woods one day it comes upon a cottage. The creature notes the inhabitants of the cottage, the DeLacey family, as being beautiful in comparison to its

After this, the creature describes the melancholy, sadness and bitterness he felt toward his own situation and to his creator (a very much repeated theme throughout the novel) as he passed his time watching the family that lived nearby. However, soon

Hiding behind the trees in a forest he sees some cottagers who live in a house and for a time he had been observing them and learning their language. After learning the language of the cottagers the creature seeked the understanding, togetherness and compassion, which he expected his creator to give to him after he accepts the creature. The creature says, “ I was dependent on none, and related to none… and there was none to lament my annihilation. My person was hideous and my stature gigantic. Who was I? What was I? Whence did I come? What was my destination? These questions continually recurred, but I was unable to solve them”(91). The creature at this point shows that he longed for fellowship which was why he wanted to be part of the same communion of the cottagers but that didn't work because they ran away from the place they lived and so the creature had no one and questioned himself as a being that will never be seen as a living thing which led to him feeling very lonely in this human dominated world. Through this solitude he became very mournful and seeked one’s guidance most importantly from Victor Frankenstein. The creature in chapter 16 said that, “I became fatigued with excess of bodily exertion, and sank on the damp grass in the sick impotence of despair. There was none among the myriads of men that existed who would pity or assist me;..”(97). The creature was

When first reading the book of Frankenstein does one just think of a mythical science fiction book that really has no meaning? Frankenstein can have numerous meanings depending on how a person perceives it. Frankenstein can be analyzed into many themes; some say religion, feminism, or scientific symbolization, it all depends on ones own perception. When one analyzes further into Mary Shelly’s life and then interprets the novel it is obvious that is a sociological theme. One can simply assume that Mary Shelley creates Frankenstein through on her own life experiences and the sociological symbolism shows that. Mary Shelley experiences many tragic events throughout her life that are synonymous with the monster in her book Frankenstein. Mary

What purpose does it serve to have multiple narrators telling a story? In Mary Shelley’s gothic novel, Frankenstein, three main narrators tell the story about the creation of a monster and the events that follow. The job of narrator shifts between Robert Walton, Victor Frankenstein, and the monster that Victor creates. As each narrator shares his own recollection of the events that occurred, new facts are introduced to put the pieces of the puzzle together. Although Frankenstein uses multiple narrators to tell the story, it is important to look at the effects it might have on the stories accuracy. In this essay, I will closely examine the motives, differences, and similarities of each narrator to see what influences, if any, they have on the narrative.