Nature Of Evil In Frankenstein

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The monster’s soul, designed to be human-like, corrupts as his acts of kindness are treated with hate and malice. In Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein, the monster causes suffering and harm to others due to the injustice and harm inflicted upon the monster’s well intentioned actions. Since the monster’s creation, he isn’t guided through what is right or wrong, and his appearances prevent him from establishing rapport with other humans. When the monster tells Victor about his first feelings upon being created, he states “I saw, felt, heard, and smelt at the same time; and it was, indeed, a long time before I learned to distinguish between the operations of my various senses” (Shelley 70). The monster is similar to a child since …show more content…

Although the monster acts as a creature of evil, this evilness resulted from the neglect he received from humans. As the monster continues to experience abuse, his soul fully corrupts when his last few attempts to establish a bond with humans fails. When the girl in the river is drowning, he saves her, but “when the man saw [the monster] draw near, he aimed a gun, which he carried… and fired” ( Shelley 101). The monsters last chance to establish a friendly connection with another human has been rejected, signifying the the monsters loss of belief in humans judging an individual by their personality rather than appearance. Even the act of saving a human's life fails to establish the monster’s desire for benevolence between himself and others which makes him plunge into a malicious being. As the monster falls victim to hatred resulting from abuse, his “grasp was on her neck, and the breath had ceased to issue from [Elizabeth’s] lips (Shelley 145). Since the monster is forced to suffer while Victor enjoys happiness, jealousy overpowers the monster's guilt, and he kills Elizabeth, signifying how his soul has been corrupted to a point where he can never enjoy happiness. The lack of loyalty, trust, and sympathy for the monster inadvertently causes him to turn evil and inflict harm upon others. The monster’s failure to establish a bond of love or friendship causes his benevolent actions to turn wicked and

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