Parenting is needed in every child’s life. It is one of the most important things that will help a child grow. In the same way though, children need good parenting. Parents need to love their children and show them right from wrong. Without care from a parent, children may feel lost or lonely like the monster did in Mary Shelley’s novel, Frankenstein. Shelley analyzes the psychology of parenting through Victor Frankenstein and his creation, the monster, by comparing their behavioral and psychological development as a result of the parenting they receive in their childhood. Because Victor was loved and had a great childhood, he was able to grow as a person, psychologically and emotionally. As though Victor had a good childhood,
Once noted, the parallels between Frankenstein’s fears and desires and the reality the monster experiences are many. Now that Victor is in university, he no longer has family and friends to fall back upon in the unknown territory of his university. Frankenstein voices is that “[he] believed [himself] totally unfitted for the company of strangers,” irrational as it may be, and believes himself solely dependent on his family and childhood friend for companionship. Without the love guaranteed to him by his family, Victor believes he is unfit to make companions by himself and destined to a life of loneliness. He places much importance on the fact that his father and Elizabeth love him and are concerned with his well-being. "I will write instantly, and relieve them from the anxiety they must feel," he says, when he recovers from his illness. The fact that they feel anxiety over his well being is a large part of their value in his eyes. Frankenstein wants to be loved and desired and fears being alone, whether through rejection or some other means of isolation. Plunk “[He] loved [his] brothers, Elizabeth, and Clerval; these were ‘old familiar faces;’” that kept him away from solitude. If he were to lose them, he would lose his safety net and fall into the terrifying void of potential societal scorn and solitude. Whether this fear is reasonable in the beginning of the book, before the
One of the repeated themes in Frankenstein is the feeling recalled when Victor or the creature think of their fathers. Victor’s father, who is Alphonse Frankenstein, and the monsters father, which is Victor. “No father watched my infant days” (Shelley 106) the monster needs a father figure to guide him and teach him like Alphonse did for Victor, but instead the monster is left too his own devices and eventually teaches himself how to talk and how to take care of
Shelley’s novel strongly connects with the act of parenting. It is clear that Victor Frankenstein did not complete his role as a parent. Due to this, it further led the monster to misbehave and feel as if he does not have a purpose in life. Parents should be there to express love and care towards their newborn. Within the novel, Frankenstein disregards the monster, which brings out the violence and turmoil within the monster. If Frankenstein were to give proper parenting to the monster, which he created, the monster would have not acted the same.
When a child is created and brought into this world, it is the parent’s responsibility to nurture, guide, and teach he/she how to develop and strive socially, mentally, and emotionally in this world. Human beings have to be taught everything. Without someone teaching them right from wrong and how to survive, they could end up feral. It is the parent’s responsibility to teach their child socially and morally to help them survive. Mary Shelley uses her novel Frankenstein to analyze the idea of parenting. She compares the two main character's, Victor Frankenstein and his creature, social, mental, and emotional development throughout their childhood. Victor Frankenstein was raised in what he described as
This brings us back to Frankenstein, Victor 's relationship with his parents friend, and Elizabeth translated by good words, Shelley uses quotes to emphasize the importance of human relationships (especially, family 's relationship) and how important they are to a person 's well-being “My children, my firmest hopes of future happiness were placed on the prospect of your union. This expectation will now be the consolation of your father. Elizabeth, my love, you must supply my place to my younger children. Alas! I regret that I am taken from you; and, happy and beloved as I have been, is it not hard to quit you all? But these are not thoughts befitting me; I will endeavour to resign myself cheerfully to death, and will indulge a hope of meeting you in another world”(24).
Mary Shelley was twenty-one years old when she wrote Frankenstein. Therefore, the effects of her parents were still fresh. That, combined with inspiration from her literary husband, created a large theme in her novel, the role of parents. Through the lack of caring progenitors in Frankenstein, Shelley is arguing that detached parents allow for a negative upbringing, therefore urging them to be present in one's life.
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.
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 this novel, we learn the views of the creature that Victor Frankenstein created. His views on society, justice, and injustice. When he is first created, he seeks to be accepted by society despite his appearance. However, the events he experiences shape his views. Victor Frankenstein, the DeLacey family, and the father and daughter he meets throughout his journey do not accept him. Why? Because society always judges one thing: appearance.
The fictional horror novel of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is driven by the accentuation of humanity’s flaws. Even at the very mention of her work an archetypal monster fills one’s imagination, coupled with visions of a crazed scientist to boot. Opening her novel with Robert Walton, the conduit of the story, he also serves as a character to parallel the protagonist’s in many ways. As the ‘protagonist’ of the story, Victor Frankenstein, takes on the mantle of the deluded scientist, his nameless creation becomes the embodiment of a truly abandoned child – one left to fend for itself against the harsh reality posed by society. On the other hand, Walton also serves as a foil to Victor – he is not compulsive enough to risk what would be almost
Frankenstein’s creature initially shows no signs of ill will or malice when first encountering human beings (Shelley 72-73). On the contrary, through careful observation he is able to learn more about human society and personal relationships. He begins to admire the close connection between the people he observes and respects their virtue. This, however, makes him realise what he is missing. Observing the love and affection between others only increases the effect his own solitude has on him. He is aware of his otherness and knows that he is “shut out from intercourse” (84) with the people he holds so dear. It can be argued that this is the point where the creature’s humanity is the strongest throughout the course of story. He has a basic understanding of human societies, he speaks and reads their language, shows compassion and, most importantly, seeks their company and friendship. In his knowledge that social belonging is the missing component to his own happiness, he confronts the people he secretly observed only to, once again, be met with fear and anger (94-95). He comes to realise that he
Victor’s parental figures in Frankenstein poison him by surrounding him with countless indulgences. From childhood, Victor was given all of his desires without question and this led to him becoming self-centered and dependent on the service of others. Victor describes his childhood with
Frankenstein and his monster begin with opposite lives: Frankenstein has everything and the monster has nothing. However, in creating the monster, Frankenstein’s life and feelings begin to parallel that of the monster’s life. Frankenstein is incredibly intelligent with a fascination for science, but ultimately his thirst for knowledge leads to his undoing. Similarly the monster is determined to understand the society around him. But once he does, he understands that he will never be able to find companionship, which leads him to pain and anger. Following this both characters feel sorrow and regret in their own ways, the monster through guilt for the people he hurt and Frankenstein because his family were hurt by the being he created. By the
In the story Frankenstein by Mary B. Shelley, the creation’s most significant realization thus far in the story is that he is alone and abandoned because of his looks which causes him to feel the emotion of hatred and causes him to do irrational things. The main character, Victor Frankenstein, is a scientist who reanimated the dead. Immediately after seeing his creations horrible countenance, the scientist runs away in fear and the creature grabbed Victor’s clothes and made his way out. With no knowledge of the outside world he seeked refuge from those who attacked him because of his appearance and spied on some cottagers. He soon becomes familiar with the local language and after a few months he learns to read and write. He then rediscovers