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The Role Of The True Monster In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

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How is a monster defined? In Frankenstein, the author, Mary Shelley depicts Victor Frankenstein as the true monster by emphasizing his irresponsibility, hostility, and isolation. Accordingly, Frankenstein starts focusing only on his work and chooses to stay isolated when his family reaches out to him. However, immediately after he creates this creature, he shows hostility towards it and abandons his creation. After Frankenstein’s mother’s death, he starts living a more isolated life away from his family and friends to focus on bringing his creation to life. His strong desire to create this creature eventually leads him to become very unhealthy psychologically and physically. Even Frankenstein himself admits that,"Every night I was oppressed …show more content…

He is “Unable to endure the aspect of the being I [Frankenstein] had created” (Shelley 35). As a human, the creature yearns for care and love of his creator. Nevertheless, Frankenstein deprives his creation of any companionship and abandons him right away. Additionally, when Victor Frankenstein’s brother dies, Frankenstein is well aware that his creation murdered William, but he does not take responsibility for his death. Although he had this knowledge, he kept it a secret, which eventually led to the death of an innocent woman, Justine, who “...was a girl of merit and possessed qualities which promised to render her life happy; now all was to be obliterated in an ignominious grave, and I [Frankenstein] was the cause!”(Shelley 66). This exemplifies Victor's lack of concern for the lives that he has destroyed, Instead of warning people about the creature he had created and then abandoned, he keeps everything to himself. His irresponsibility further shows that he is the true monster. In conclusion, the creature is a victim of Victor’s ambitions and these ambitions have converted Victor into the real

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