he author of Pygmalion, George Bernard Shaw, and the author of Frankenstein, Mary Shelley, both integrate the theme of creation into their novels. Henry Higgins the creator in, Pygmalion, and Dr. Frankenstein the creator in, Frankenstein, utilize new and innovative techniques to transform their victims into a new creations. They attempt to play the role of divine creator by making breakthroughs that are immoral and unprecedented. In the process they neglect the needs of their victims and focus on self-interest. The Monster in the novel, Frankenstein, and Eliza Doolittle in the novel, Pygmalion, are similar in the way that they both regret their creation and feel rejected by their creators; however, Eliza is able to be integrated into society …show more content…
The monster depicts his otherness when he wonders: “Was I, then, a monster, a blot upon the earth, from which all men fled and whom all men disowned” (Shelley 85). The monster evidently remains in isolation and is dehumanized. The monster attempts to get integrated into his society but his appearance and lack of social skills hinder his success. The monster strives to be accepted but is incapable of acceptance. The monster reiterates this feeling of isolation as he says: “I felt as if I were placed under a ban- as if I had no right to claim their sympathies – as if never more might I enjoy companionship with them” (Shelley 108). The monster explains that he has worked hard to try to break the communication barrier with humans. He attains social skills that are similar to those of his human counterparts and is able to adequately communicate when speaking to a blind man, however, when the monster communicates with people that are not blind, they can only see his flaws in his appearance and are afraid of this monster. The monster is unable to conform to society and is prevented from being accepted by his peers. Conversely, Eliza is able to conform to society and is accepted by most of her peers: “I shall always be a flower girl to Professor Higgins, because he always …show more content…
Frankenstein, the monster, are very similar to one another. They both face the challenges of creation which include regret and resentment. They were taken from their lives and forced to become someone else. They don’t idolize their creators and are extremely frustrated with their creators. However, Eliza is more capable of becoming a functioning member of her society and is successful in receiving respect from her peers. The monster is not respected despite his efforts and faces discrimination. Both creations were set up for failure by their creators and were not expected to be successful. They were utilized by their creators in an effort to achieve a new scientific breakthrough and prove their original hypothesis. Due to their inhumane origins they will never, despite any progress they make towards becoming more human, be considered human or successful creations by their
The story Frankenstein by Mary Shelley has been molded and shaped to create many different types of story plots and characters. There are many different types of media that relate back to the original but then add their own little twist into the mix. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is a story about a scientist who created another human being, who he then abandons, and now the monster is getting revenge on Frankenstein by inflict havoc on his family. An example of this would be the movie Marvel’s The Avengers: Age of Ultron and the relationship between Ultron and his main creator Tony Stark.
Contrasting Grendel and Frankenstein Grendel and the monster Frankenstein are contradictory in their individual philosophies and actions, although they are both isolated and lonesome, they come from different origins, think differently, and take significantly different actions, and their very fates were catastrophically no unique. Grendel is mortified with his purpose in life and driven by emotions which makes him plead for his purpose. “I had determined at the time that the memory of these evils should die with me; but you have won me to alter my determination” (14). He has to face the purpose he was told to behold since he was born and lived in Dane Kingdom. Ever since that he roamed around killing, “But deer, like rabbits and bears and even men, can make, concerning my race, no delicate distinctions.
The creature is wretched from the moment he is given life, and is immediately abandoned by his creator (34). He is rejected and hated, for no reason other than the fact that he exists, by no choice of his own, but rather as the result of Frankenstein’s obsession with knowledge. The first time he is even privy to any show of kindness is after he has fled and hidden himself in a cellar. He has no capacity for language and has only known fear and disdain. He receives his education by watching a poor, but gentle family as they interact with one another.
Though the being has the physical characteristics of a monster, it is only after he is repeatedly rejected by society that he adopts the personality and behavior of a monster. With that being said, society plays a large role in shaping
In his attempt to assimilate, the Creature begins to learn language and admire the concept of a family and forms the same human desires that people possess: a family, a companion, a home, and an identity. However, as he tries to interact with people, he learns that his ugly appearance prevents him from integrating into society. The elements of the Gothic are present here, as the Creature's isolation is a principal trope of Gothic fiction. According to Ashley Craig Lancaster’s text, “From Frankenstein's Monster to Lester Ballard: The Evolving Gothic Monster,” “…the Monster drifts away from society as a creature driven first by kindness, then by hatred, and finally by desperation, only to continue to live alone” (Lancaster 139).
Society is well-known for pushing those who are outsiders or strange away from society. This is prevalent to the examples in Mary Shelley’s novel, Frankenstein. The monster who was created by Victor Frankenstein who wanted to be the first to create life was appalled by the sights of the his creation. Frankenstein’s monster is judged based on his appearances and is often ostracized by society, just as anyone in modern day society can be shunned or pushed away due to their looks or how they think. The most outstanding example of ostracism that occurred throughout the novel is based on the monster’s physical features and structure.
The gothic fiction novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley centralizes on humanity and the qualifications that make someone human. The content of the novel Frankenstein depicts a monster displaying human traits that his creator Victor does not possess: empathy, a need for companionship, and a will to learn and fit in. Throughout the novel Shelley emphasizes empathy as a critical humanistic trait. The monster displays his ability to empathize with people even though they are strangers. On the other hand Victor, fails to show empathy throughout the novel even when it relates to his own family and friends.
Parents are everyone 's first role models. Regardless of biological relation, those who raise us have a profound influence on the way we perceive and interpret life. Parents lay the foundation of our first sense of morality and empathy, and usher us to the path of our development of social skills. No matter how consciously one may attempt to have no resemblance to their parents, it is an inevitability of life that we will harness aspects of their influence and carry them through our lifetime. In Mary Shelley’s, “Frankenstein”, the influence of parental figures is displayed by the morals and values instilled in the monster.
From the minute he was born to the minute he died he never had a friend he could talk to, all he could do was watch other people socialize, or read his book. One cannot learn how to socialize through a book, to learn how to socialize one needs to go through the steps of approaching a person and starting conversation with them which the monster was never able to do because of his looks. This was another hidden criticism that Shelley had towards The Enlightenment, she believed that people relied too much on formal education, and that people needed to go out and experience things for themselves (Willinksy ). The enlightenment that the monster experiences here is that he had to accept the understanding that he will never have a friend to talk to or share feeling with. Although he read in his book that he would not be accepted, it was not until the cottage rejection that he came to the realization that he would not actually be accepted in
Frankenstein In most fiction stories, there are always two characters that do or do not represent different sides of the same character. Frankenstein is a short gothic horror story written by Mary Shelley. Shelley writes about a scientist who created a being from dead body parts. Victor Frankenstein as the protagonist of the story created a monstrous character that was a reflection of himself.
The unjust treatment that the creature received from humankind was harsh and unreasonable as he wasn’t allowed the opportunity to prove his intentions were far from malicious. His loneliness, isolation and injustice from those he tried to befriend turned him into an actual monster, evidently his perspective and personality changed after being excluded. The monster had been treated unfairly by humanity “I desired love and fellowship and I was spurned. Was there no injustice in this? … Am I to be thought the only criminal when all human kind sinned against me?”
Once the creature begins to go out on his own and learn about life and society, during his first interaction with other people he learns that he will be immediately judged based on how he looks. To start, when Frankenstein first sees the creature, he quickly runs away without any interaction and exclaims “no mortal could support the horror of that countenance” (Shelley 36). This interaction made the monster realize that even his creator could not avoid the habits of the society he lived in, and immediately ran away from him in fear because he didn’t believe he was attractive. Then after that, the creature still has enough hope to go into a village and meet other people, but he is immediately met with children that “shrieked” and one woman who “fainted” just at the sight of him (Shelley 74). In every situation where the creature attempts to interact with others, he is shunned immediately, before even being able to say a word.
Frankenstein’s Monster is not categorized as evil by his malicious behavior and is sympathized with due to his creator abandoning him and the role of nature versus nurture taken place II. Monster’s Nature and alienation A. Monster originally had an inquisitive nature yet gentle nature a. Information on the German family was “each interesting and wonderful to one so utterly inexperienced as [he] was” (105) B. With the rejection and alienation from society, the only interactions the monster experiences, he becomes full of hatred a. Rejected by De Lacey family by his looks and labeled a monster b. Tries to save a child but is shot by child’s father C. Reader may feel sympathy towards the Monster’s actions because the readers know that his true nature was not evil and he was misjudged III.
reasoning except for Frankenstein, whom of which was created by
In the novel Frankenstein,by Mary Shelley, the mysterious and unnatural origins of the character of Frankenstein’s monster are an important element. The Monster, having been created unethically and haphazardly, is at odds throughout the novel, resulting in his alienation from society and prolonged feelings of anger, desertion, and loneliness. Shaping his character, his relationships with other characters, and the meaning of the work as a whole, the Monster’s origins are what define him. The Monster faces rejection and violence every time he attempts to make contact with the new, foreign world he has been thrust into.