Uniqueness And Individualism In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

I had feelings of affection, and they were requited by detestation and scorn,’” (Shelley, 20.11). Victor denies the monster humanity because he is appalled by his features, and that’s what makes Victor the true monster. He made early judgement on who the monster was before the monster could speak because he was terrifying, and society had made him believe that if it were different it was dangerous. Even when the monster promised to leave society forever if he were only given someone to love, to feel normal, the idea that anything outside their realm of societal norms being allowed to continue existing was just too much for Victor.

While they obtained different knowledge for different reasons, both were led to unhappiness through it. Frankenstein, in the creation of his monster, brought upon himself a terrible fate of loss and anguish. The monster, upon learning to speak, found only that no matter how hard he tried this world would not welcome him, he found his reflection in Lucifer and felt the weight of his existence. Both were ultimately lost, falling into their own forms of

13) Since Victor played God in the creation of the monster the monster had the right to despise Victor. (Shelley) 14) Since Victor denies the monster social acceptance, the monster is left to self educate himself which leads to isolation issues which cause violence. 15) Victor began to think, “When I reflected on his crimes and malice, my hatred and revenge burst all bounds of moderation.

From the very beginning Viktor’s creation was on his own. Viktor felt no attachment to his creation and felt no need to support him. Because of this, Viktor’s monster was on his own and soon found itself confused and quickly overwhelmed by the various new sensations and experiences. The monster encountered struggles from the basics such as the need for food and shelter to the feeling loneliness and disdain from those around him.

Frankenstein creates the murderer of

Although he comes with friendly intentions, the Monster is treated violently and with contempt, essentially being forced into his alienation to survive and becoming the “monster” he is already thought of as a result. The Monster’s actions are a response to the treatment he has received from others, everyday villagers and Victor alike. With little known about his origins and no way to explain himself, there is no hope for the Monster to assimilate himself. This is present in other characters of the novel as well, for example, Richard Walton, who has self-alienated in order to gain distinction and knowledge. The Monsters origins and appearance develop these themes of alienation throughout the novel, themes that are further developed by other characters and play an important role in delivering the message of

Was I then a monster, a blot upon the earth, from which all men fled, and whom all men disowned” (138). Through the knowledge he acquired from spying in on the Felix family, he gained the understanding that his grotesque look doomed him to be marginalized within human society; therefore, his understanding of human history destined himself to be a monster. Although, this self-realization of a monster identity plays a huge role in the general plot and character development of Frankenstein’s Monster, it hints at a subtler interpretation of the nature of knowledge.

Simultaneously, Victor failing to take responsibility for his own creation leads the creature down a path of destruction that manufactures his status as a societal outcast. The creature's dissolution from society, his search for someone to share his life with, the familiarity with intense anguish, his thirst for retribution, each of these traits coincide with Victor as he is depicted throughout the novel. Victor unknowingly induces his own undoing through his rejection of the creature. Shelley foreshadows his downfall by stating that “the monster still protested his innate goodness, blaming Victor’s rejection and man’s unkindness as the source of his evil” (Shelley 62) The creature essentially places Victor at fault for the creature becoming an outcast of society, by expressing this Shelley constructs a very austere portrayal of man’s contact with outsiders.

An eye for an eye or the law of retaliation is the principle most people live their lives by. For the characters in Frankenstein, this concept is apparent as the main character, Victor, creates a monster and instantly abandons him which sets off the chain of events revolving around revenge. However, as Gandhi once stated, “an eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind” (Gandhi). Throughout the novel, the creature and Victor engage in a recurring cycle of vengeance, but these acts of revenge are bittersweet as in the end it destroys both of them. In the novel Frankenstein, Mary Shelley reveals how revenge consumes and destroys those who surrender to it.

(pg. 47) To pursue this knowledge and then seek revenge after his creation, controlled Victor mentally. He is a monster because not only his actions showed it, but his mind was consumed as well. Victor Frankenstein is the true monster in this novel, because he obtained this knowledge that only God should possess, he was not capable with his actions to fulfill this knowledge, and allowed his self-ambition and revenge to control him. Victor became a monster by allowing this knowledge of creation to consume his actions and mind and in the end, it destroyed him and everyone that he loved.

He was raised according the morals of society on the reservation, which could not be more different from the way people are conditioned in the Brave New World. The conditioning makes the citizens of Brave New World absolutely disgusted by old age, injuries and families (153). In the same vein, John was disturbed by the science of the Brave New World such as all of the twins created through the Bokanovsky process. Simple differences such as these between John and the people of the Brave New World guaranteed that he would never be able to truly belong in that society. This is reflected by the fact that John was always referred to as “the Savage” or “Mr. Savage”.

Along with the aforementioned characteristics, he also demonstrates peripeteia, anagnorisis, and catharsis. Peripeteia is a sudden shift in plot line which is shown through Victor creating monster and how he almost becomes fatally ill. Frankenstein runs into his old friend Henry which gives him relief and hopes of sanity which could also be seen as forms of catharsis. The shift of Frankenstein’s gloomy outlook to this joyful relief shows the frustrations and trouble Frankenstein had with creating his monster. Later in the novel Frankenstein finds out that his brother has been murdered.

Throughout history, mankind proclaims a future world close to utopia; however, the results of the present day veers far from ambitions. Repeating the words from The Great Gatsby’s, Nick Carraway, “ No amount of fire or freshness can challenge what a man will store up in his ghostly heart,” reveals that the vivid imaginations of humans always surpass the true extent of the situation. Furthermore, evidence proves Carraway’s assertion through classic novels such as, The Great Gatsby, Frankenstein, and Jane Eyre. Each of these storylines’ characters fall into an optimistic reality compared to the tangible society surrounding them.

Frankenstein a dark tale about a Doctor, who became obsessed with creating life to bring back his dead mother and solve the mortality of man. Fate however had another plan. When the creature the doctor had created awoke and showed signs of life,he became detested at the sight of his creation. The monster then fled from his creator into the wilderness, but soon returned initiated his plans to force his creator to make him a companion. Victor refused to commit the act again and the monster began to slaughter his family once again.

Psychoanalysis of Victor Frankenstein. Victor Frankenstein suffers from Pathological narcissism. Victor has a physical disregard for life and the feelings of others. Victory has a deep desire to be at “the center of things and is served by extreme self-confidence, a combination that makes narcissists attractive and even charming” (Vogel) .