The Doppelgänger In Frankenstein

The myth of a doppelgänger is prominent in both Frankenstein and The Picture of Dorian Gray being seen in gothic literature across time. The phenomenon of being in two places at once goes against the natural order, and thus we see how hubris is linked to the idea of a doppelgänger in the defiance of God leading to death. A doppelgänger is viewed as an omen. Seeing one’s own doppelgänger is an indication of imminent death. The gothic element to the doppelgänger remains a terrifying ordeal, suggesting aspects of ourselves that we otherwise would not know perhaps even acting out repressed desires, this fear suggested in both novels.

In Mary Shelley’s novel the monster is known only as the ‘fiend’ and ‘demon’ yet in the modern world he adopts

After close reading of the text critics and readers alike question whether it is possible that Victor Frankenstein and the monster come to mean the same thing, or that Frankenstein’s monster represents Victor’s monster within? One critic suggests "The boundaries between the human and the monster in Frankenstein remain problematically blurred.” Notably, Shelley draws parallels between the two antagonists by emphasising how they both have monstrous capabilities. Victor recognises that the two are deeply intertwined stating: ‘My own vampire, My own spirit let loose from the grave…’Shelley creates a psychological bond between monster and creator, the creature