Victor Frankenstein abandons his creation shortly after it awakens, which causes all the tragic events to take place. Instead of taking care of it and being a friend to the monster, Victor is “[unable] to endure the aspect of the being [he] had created, [he] rushed out of the room” (Shelley 45). Victor admits the creature filled him with horror and disgust, but he was the one who made it that way. Each time Victor addresses the monster, he calls it a fiend, devil, or daemon as if it is the monster’s fault for its appearance. The monster knows “[its] form is a filthy type of [Victor’s], more horrid even from the very resemblance” (Shelley 100). Victor does not seem to realize that because he made the monster ugly other humans would also be terrified by it and ostracize it from society, forcing the monster into evilness. In the same fashion, Ambrosio blames Matilda and Antonia for his lust instead of holding himself accountable. He calls Matilda a prostitute for “[glutting him] with enjoyment even to loathing, forces [him] to her arms, apes the harlot, and glories in her prostitution” (Lewis 209). After he rapes Antonia, he asks her who he has to blame for this. He curses her, demanding “[what] seduced me into crimes, whose bare remembrance makes me shudder? Fatal witch! Was it not thy beauty?” (Lewis 330). He continues his interrogation, blaming Antonia for his soul being damned and for becoming “a perjured hypocrite, a ravisher, an assassin” (Lewis 330). He uses the classic
Character Analysis: Give your ideas about the main characters(s). Include what you like and dislike about the characters and why they deserve praise or criticism. Does the author intend for you to like/dislike them? How do you know?
The reader can immediately see this because the Monster says, “I am malicious because I am miserable. Am I not shunned and hated by all mankind?” (Shelley 124). He begins to murder members of Victor’s close friends and family. His first victim is William Frankenstein. The Monster has no intentions to kill William, but he says, “Cursed, cursed creator! Why did I live? Why, in that instant, did I not extinguish the spark of existence which you had so wantonly bestowed” (Shelley 116). The Monster shows his frustration with Victor creating him in this way and for making him into an outcast. After Victor breaks his promise of creating a female monster, the Monster murders Henry Clerval. The Monster’s anger continues to build up over time and he believes the only way to face it is by taking the lives of those who have a close relationship with Victor. The Monster kills Elizabeth Lavenza on her wedding night. He takes the lives of the people who are in a close relationship with Victor due to the anger he feels toward him. The violence the Monster uses is his way to try and seek revenge on Victor because he feels that he set him up to fail, to be an outcast, and to be unacceptable to
Friends will determine the direction and quality of your life. Loneliness is a battle that all people will once face at a certain point in their life; it is how they handle it that determines the outcome of that battle. In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein loneliness is the most significant and prevailing theme throughout the entire novel. Shelley takes her readers on a wild journey that shows how loneliness can end in tragedy.
In Frankenstein, Mary Shelley combines three separate stories involving three different characters--Walton, Victor, and Frankenstein's monster. Though the reader is hearing the stories through Walton's perspective, Walton strives for accuracy in relating the details, as he says, "I have resolved every night,...to record, as nearly as possible in his [Victor's] own words, what he has related during the day" (Shelley 37). Shelley's shift in point of view allows for direct comparison and contrast between the characters, as the reader hears their stories through the use of first person. As the reader compares the monster's circumstances to those of Victor and Walton, the reader's
In Mary Shelley’s 1831 novel, Frankenstein, there are several smaller characters that help to move the plot forward. Perhaps the most influential character to Victor Frankenstein’s life is Elizabeth Lavenza, his doomed fiancé. By the end of the novel, her character serves as the final tool for Victor Frankenstein to be able to understand his creature.
Alienation is a product of society’s inherently discriminatory bias, catalyzed by our fear of the unknown in the realm of interpersonal conduct. Mary Shelley, in her novel, Frankenstein, dissects society’s unmerited demonization of individuals who defy—voluntarily or involuntarily—conventional norms. Furthermore, through her detailed parallel development of Frankenstein and his monster, Shelley personifies the tendency to alienate on the basis of physical deformity, thereby illustrating the role of the visual in the obfuscation of morality.
In the religion Taoism, the Yin-Yang represents all the good and evils within humans. However, it is often difficult to tell the difference as good and evil is only based on perspective. In literature, writers and authors use the technique of having morally ambiguous characters to have this effect on readers. These characters are used to discourage readers from being able to distinctly identify if the character is either purely good or purely evil as a way to allow the story become more complex and be based on the reader’s perspective. In Mary Shelley’s classic gothic novel, Frankenstein, the Monster is seen as a morally ambiguous character through Shelley’s use of identity, references to Paradise Lost, and multiple perspectives within the narrative structures to suit the overall theme of good and evil where it is based on morals and beliefs.
Critic Northrop Frye once commented that "Tragic heroes are so much the highest points in their human landscapes" (Frye 1). Few characters illustrate this characteristic of a tragic hero better than that of Victors Frankenstein, the protagonist of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. His story is one of a brilliant man whose revolutionary ideas brought suffering to himself, his family and friends, and his creation. Victor is an instrument as well as a victim to this suffering throughout his story.
The word “knowledge” was recurring many times throughout Frankenstein novel and attracted or forced the reader to find out the true definition of it. Curiously, I decided to look up the definition of knowledge from the Webster 's Dictionary. It defines, “Knowledge: n. Understanding gained by actual experience; range of information; clear perception of truth; something learned and kept in the mind.” (Merriam-Webster Dictionary) I realized this word is very straightforward, but has many useful and different meanings to all of us. It is also powerful tool to determine and control the result of our judgment. “Knowledge consists in recognizing the difference between good and bad decisions”. (Knowledge Intellectual
Fictionally, the greatest-written villains in history possess attributes that give them cause for their behavior, with the most universal and essential of these core traits being a deep, personal backstory behind their acts. For instance, in classic stories like Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, the Monster presents thorough reason to its Creator in terms of why it has turned to wickedness. The Monster does not kill purely for the sake of being evil, its actions are resulted from its desire to be loved by man, yet failing at every attempt to achieve it. Motivation behind monstrous acts is necessary in works of fiction because non-fictionally, people labeled as monsters by society possesses motivation behind their actions as well, whether it be
A family is the most important and fundamental processes of development in childhood. There are many examples of works that deal with family. In Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, the reader sees how neglection from a family setting can invoke horrible events. In The Fifth Child by Doris Lessing, presents how Isolation and dislike can and will lead to unfortunate events. In Macbeth by Shakespeare, shows the betrayal of a family and how it affects the mind by playing with it in several different ways. Before a person can see effects of isolations, neglection, and betrayal of a family he/she must “climb into his skin and walk around in it.”
Ambition is the foundation of success, it drives people to strive for something better, gives them the dedication to improve themselves and their circumstances. Mary Shelley’s character Victor Frankenstein in “Frankenstein” started off as a very ambitious kid yearning for knowledge. However, the line between ambition, obsession, and pride is oftentimes blurred as Victor’s was. Once ambition turns into obsession and pride, it can be a downwards spiral that leads to misfortune and isolation.
In the chapters that Shelley divides up about the story if Victor Frankenstein reveals his perspective. These chapters are written in the perspective of Victor and that is important for the reader to know the true and honest opinion and feelings of the character. Victor went through many ups and downs in his journey of life and he does not seize to leave any of it out. The chapters that it is broken apart help the reader understand in detail who Victor is as a character. If the work was not separated up into letters and chapters the reader would not get a full feel or understanding for Victor’s life, because it is so complex.
In the novel Frankenstein, written by Mary Shelley, the characters have been portrayed effectively. Much of the interactions between characters, and characteristics of the characters have been based on events which have occurred in Shelley's own life, or they represent what she believes is important. For example, Victor is portrayed as having a strong passion for science, and a poor understanding of relationships. Elizabeth is shown as a stereotypical woman of the time, who is also very powerless. The monster is depicted as being both beautiful and ugly, and someone who the reader feels sympathetic towards. Through the portrayal of her characters, Shelley has created a very effective
Victor Frankenstein is a young man in his early 20’s who has a wide range of intellect and possesses refined manners. He is a scholar of the physical sciences and has become obsessed with cheating death. He is the creator of a monster that ruins his life and leaves him stranded Elizabeth is his cousin, adopted sister and future wife Justine is the family maid and is great friends with victor. Elizabeth is a fair haired graceful kind and beautiful young woman who is in love with victor and Justine’s great friend.