The Tragic Monster In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

Frankenstein’s close-mindedness can definitely cause the reader to think of the creature as a “demon” and a “monster.” From Frankenstein’s perspective, the creature is ugly and vile. However, when the reader finally gets to understand the creature’s struggles, he or she is able to empathize with the creature. For instance, when the creature exclaims “’All men hate the wretched; how, then, must I be hated, who am miserable beyond all living things!’” the reader is able to comprehend that people continuously judge him based on his appearance (113). The creature wants nothing more than to be loved and accepted, but instead he is “miserable” because of the “barbarity of man” (123). The creature cannot foster relationships with people because society

From the start of Mary Shelley's novel, the monster is identified as this psychotic murderer, abnormal. The gigantic, grotesquely horrid creation of Victor Frankenstein, like Frankenstein himself, had only positive intentions at first. He was a delicate, smart monster attempting to alter to human behavior and social skills. From beginning to end, Shelley made sure to target how the monster had to learn everything solo in order to live. As the creature's creator, Victor's role was to provide and teach the creature, taking responsibility instead of running away. The fact that the monster was left unattended in the world led to his raw actions. For instance, Shelley suggest the consequences of isolation when the monster says, "You can blast my other passions, but revenge remains -- revenge, henceforth dearer than light of food! I may die, but first you, my tyrant and tormentor, shall curse the sun that gazes on your misery." (Shelley 153) The Monster is talking in rage after Victor Frankenstein rejects his proposal to create a mate for him. The Monster is so secluded that he, himself, had to ask for a friend. This, however, was not the end of this conversation. In counter play for being deserted, Shelley writes that the Monster went off

However, when Frankenstein realizes that he has just looked at the body as individual parts, for example the “pearly teeth”, “blue eyes”, “lustrous black hair”, but he had not looked at the body as a whole. When he did, he realized he had created an abomination, “Beautiful-Great God! His Yellow skin barely covered the work of arteries and muscles beneath!” When Frankenstein comes to this realization, he flees, “now that I had finished, the beauty of the dream vanished, and breathless horror and disgust filled my heart”. Frankenstein regarded the creature as ugly, evil, inhuman, unflattering to the eye, and vulgar, like a monster.

Frankenstein shares many of the same characteristics with monsters, such as his appearance, his selfishness, and his aberrant desire to be Godlike. Victor Frankenstein is described as grotesque, almost demon-like, during the scene in which Frankenstein laments his fury on

Frankenstein's creation is subject to cruelty ever since the minute he was brought to life. This is evident when he was abandoned by his creator and left alone. His admirable curiosity resulted in him being mistreated by frightened villagers. In addition, when he demonstrated his innate goodness by saving a young girl from drowning, he was “rewarded” with a gunshot

There is a myth that every creature on this planet is one half of a whole and must be completed by another half. Sometimes it takes that other half coming into their life to make them realize the truth about themselves and to see hidden parts of their unconscious minds that they otherwise would not have noticed themselves. Mary Shelley, an accomplished writer during the Romantic Era of English Literature, is the author of Frankenstein. Victor Frankenstein is a young man with a hunger and passion for knowledge and science. He wants to do what no one has ever done before- create human life all on his own. Victor creates an eight foot tall, grotesquely terrifying monster that after continuous rejection from society, decides to take revenge on the man that gave him life. Shelley shows throughout this novel how two mortal enemies can be surprisingly similar and even act as mirrors of each other.

Mary Shelley’s, Frankenstein, symbolized a person’s necessity for acceptance by society. Society labels everything as good or bad, right or wrong, rich or poor. Although some of these labels may be correct, many are misconceptions. The monster, needed to be accepted by society, but instead was scorned, attacked, and shunned because of his outward appearance. The treatment of the monster was on the assumption that he was actually a monster. The only justification of this treatment was his outward appearance.

Frankenstein is just plain cruel and neglectful to his creation. He does not care for it, shelter it, provide it with food or love, nor teaches his creation. This neglecting truly shows that Frankenstein is a self-absorbed monster. Upon Frankenstein's return to his castle he tells how he searched his house for his creation but found him not, "I could hardly believe that so great a good fortune could have befallen me; but when I became assured that my enemy [his creation] had indeed fled, I clapped my hands for joy,". Frankenstein already refers to his creation as his enemy when is has done nothing to him at all. Frankenstein takes no responsibility for his creation and acts like nothing has happened when he doesn't find it in his house. A decent, responsible person would not "clap for joy" but rather start looking for his creation. Frankenstein even states that, "A human being in perfection ought always to preserve a calm and peaceful mind, and never to allow passion or a transitory desire to disturb his tranquility" yet when he thinks about his creation, "my hatred and revenge burst all bounds of moderation…I wished to see him again, that I might wreak the utmost extent of abhorrence on his head". Now does that sound like some one who has preserved a calm and peaceful mind? Frankenstein's irresponsibility leads to the death of three innocent people, "I called my self the murdered of William, of

In addition to being rejected by his creator, Frankenstein’s monster is also treated very violently by humans, leaving him alone and feeling like he did something wrong, even though their reactions are based solely on his appearance. The monster does not want to be thought of as a monster at first, but as he comes to realize from human interactions, no matter what his actions are, people will always judge him by what he cannot control. The monster explains the first interaction he had ever had with

The monster that Frankenstein created was only considered a monster because he did not look like a human. If he had not looked scary he would have been accepted as a member of society. Though had I myself seen him in real life I would most likely have been afraid of him, getting to know him from his point of view, by reading the book, helped me to understand how human-like he was. He was not evil, but kind and just wanted to be loved and accepted. The monster was kind, intelligent, he understood the value of love, and had his own thoughts and values, and for these reasons I believe the monster did not deserve to be destroyed.

Mary Shelley’s ‘Monster’ in Frankenstein presented primarily through the eyes of Victor Frankenstein is mostly described with many negative attributes, mostly directed only at his physical appearance by Victor is arguably just as monstrous, if not more so. From his conception, the creature comes across many humans who act inhuman and immensely ignorant towards him, but none more so than Victor, his creator. Victor's initial idea for such an experiment can be viewed as monstrous in itself; the act of taking body parts from the dead in order to assemble a brand new creature is from the outset a horrific and very Gothic image, as well as an example of a Gothic protagonist going to extreme lengths to achieve a certain goal or aim. However, it is Victor's rejection of his own creation that presents him as such a monster. Upon seeing the creature, alive for the first time, Victor notes that "a breathless horror and disgust filled my heart".

Out of resentment Frankenstein aims to harm his creator, Viktor Frankenstein, by murdering those close to him. Frankenstein’s monster would strive to murder innocent people closest to Frankenstein as revenge for abandoning him and for his grotesque appearance. His lust for revenge is further exploited when Frankenstein breaks his promise of creating the monster a partner, therefore the monster retaliates in vengeance by murdering Elizabeth “leaving a murderous mark of his grasp on her neck” (Shelley, 242). The monster’s murderous intent is fueled by his lust for revenge against his creator. Blaming Frankenstein for all of his misfortunes, such as his horrific appearance and not relieving him of his solitude by not granting him a partner. Revenge forged Frankenstein’s monster from a compassionate giant to a vengeful monster. Dracula and Frankenstein’s monster share the same attribute that all monsters possess which is murdering innocent human beings.

this in such a way that the reader feels sorry for the monster, but we

What is a monster, really? Is it really a Creature that has three eyes instead of two, with pus seeping out of every crevice in his face and an abnormally large form? Or is it someone with a mind so corrupt it rivals that of Satan? Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is a story within a story that centers on the tale of a man with an immense thirst of knowledge and a fetish to imitate the Creator. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is a lot like the Greek mythological tale of the Greek God, Prometheus, and his brother, Epimetheus, who were assigned the task of creating man. The story captivates the theme of monstrosity. Mary Shelley wrote the novel in a form so the reader’s opinions never stray far from sympathy for the monster and apathy for Victor

Frankenstein stands as a victim, along with the very people he treasures most, to his own deeds. Victor noted, "For this I had deprived myself of rest and health. I had desired it with an ardour that far exceeded moderation; but now that I had finished, the beauty of the dream vanished, and breathless horror and disgust filled my heart" (42). The fruit of his experimentation, his monster, murders many of those close to the scientist. He loses his long time friend, Henry Clerval, as well as his wife, Elizabeth, to his creation. His younger brother William and his beloved servant Justine were also brought to their sad ends at the hands of the creation. The monster brings fear and suffering to all those he meets, if not by cold blooded murder, then by the sheer horror of his corpselike appearance. Though not