In the story of Frankenstein, Viktor worked for two years on creating a life form in an inanimate body. After completing his experiment, he was highly dissatisfied with his results saying that “breathless horror and discuss filled my heart”. At this point in the story it would be ideal for Viktor to fix the imperfections of Frankenstein. However, he quickly abandons his creation after realizing that he failed to produce the vision of which he had dreamed. Frankenstein was left to learn by himself and find his way of living without the help of Viktor.
There were many scenes in the story which reflect how Frankenstein had no guidance in learning how to interact in the real world. He did not know right from wrong and did several horrible things without completely knowing any better. For example, Viktor says “Could he be the murderer of my brother? No sooner did the idea cross my imagination, than I became convinced of its truth; my teeth shattered, and I was forced to lean against the tree for support.” Viktor is overwhelmed with the thought
One idea is that Viktor could have designed his brain to have specific traits and habits that he would be born with. The obvious reason is that Frankenstein learns with observation over time. If someone studies a group for a specific period of time then the interactions between the individuals will be memorized eventually. That is how new knowledge is learned even in modern society. As humans are born, they already have a basic knowledge of survival and form tight connections with their mothers. If they are lacking certain things or if something is wrong they will communicate that message usually by crying or screaming. An important note to make about Frankenstein is that he did not have a “mother”, or in this specific case, a creator. Throughout the story, Frankenstein is angry at Viktor for abandoning him and relentlessly tried to get
As Frankenstein is enroute to his pursuit of gaining more knowledge, he states, “I wished, as it were, to procrastinate all that related to my feelings of affection until the great object, which swallowed up every habit of my nature, should be completed” (Shelley 41). Frankenstein’s decision in allowing his intellectual ambitions to overpower everything else in his life leads him to be blinded to the dangers of creating life. He isolates himself from his society when creating the monster, letting himself be immersed in his creation while being driven by his passions, allowing nobody to be near him. The fact that he allows this creation of a monster to consume his total being reveals how blinded he is to the immorality of stepping outside the boundaries of science and defying nature. His goal in striving to achieve what wants to in placing man over nature makes him lose his sense of self as all he is focused on is the final product of his creation. He starts to realize his own faults as after he has created the monster, he becomes very ill and states, “The form of the monster on whom I had bestowed existence was forever before my eyes, and I raved incessantly concerning him” (48). His impulsive decision to make the monster leads him to abhorring it as it does not turn out to be what he has expected. Because he chooses to isolate himself in creating the
Mary Shelley’s gothic novel Frankenstein is a novel narrated by Robert Walton about Victor Frankenstein and the Monster that he creates. Frankenstein grew up surrounding himself with what he loved most, science. He attended Ingolstadt University where he studied chemistry and natural philosophy, but being involved in academics was not enough for him. Frankenstein wanted to discover things, but did not think about the potential outcomes that could come with this decision. Frankenstein was astonished by the human frame and all living creatures, so he built the Monster out of various human and animal parts (Shelley, 52). At the time Frankenstein thought this creation was a great discovery, but as time went on the Monster turned out to be terrifying to anyone he came in contact with. So, taking his anger out on Frankenstein, the Monster causes chaos in a lot of people’s lives and the continuing battle goes on between the Monster and Frankenstein. Throughout this novel, it is hard to perceive who is pursuing whom as well as who ends up worse off until the book comes to a close.
Due to Frankenstein's abandonment at birth he first learns how to do the basic “human” requirements to live all on his own. He learns how to see, feel, hear, walk, find food, sleep, and even make fire. He learned all of this from his environment and by how he felt. Later on the creature finds the cottagers and would “remain quiet in my[his]
” …She presented Elizabeth to me as her promised gift, I, with childish seriousness, interpreted her words literally, and looked upon Elizabeth as mine-mine to protect, love, and cherish…” – and from that instant Elizabeth became a life-toy for him, only his toy [p.35]. So one of the reasons of was the parent’s “love” connected with the incapability to give anything to their child except providing joys for him. There was nothing little Viktor could do. The other reason is having Elizabeth as his property. Could be that the “outright” that Viktor’s parent left in his head about the true things around him made him study too much and everything at the same time which later led him to the “wrong path”: “…My temper was sometimes violent, and my passions vehement; but by some law in my temperature they were turned, not towards childish pursuits, but to an eager desire to learn, and not to learn all things indiscriminately…” [p.37]. “…After days and nights of incredible work and exhaustion, I succeeded in discovering the cause of generation and life; nay, more, I became myself capable of bestowing animation upon lifeless matter… “[p.51] – Viktor finds a grown-up toy and creates a monster that is doomed to be lonely and never be loved by anybody. The creature that was doomed to suffer without even understanding
He toils endlessly in alchemy, spending years alone, tinkering. However, once the Creature is brought to life, Frankenstein is no longer proud of his creation. In fact, he’s appalled by what he’s made and as a result, Frankenstein lives in a perpetual state of unease as the Creature kills those that he loves and terrorizes him. Victor has realized the consequences of playing god. There is irony in Frankenstein’s development, as realized in Victor’s desire to destroy his creation. Frankenstein had spent so much effort to be above human, but his efforts caused him immediate regret and a lifetime of suffering. Victor, if he had known the consequences of what he’s done, would have likely not been driven by his desire to become better than
Throughout the book of Frankenstein, the creator of the being Frankenstein, Victor, is experienced as a suffering being. He recalls from the very beginning a time during his childhood where he was happy and surrounded by love, a time when his mother lived. Victor’s downfall or the beginning of his disgrace, initiates with the death of his mother. Victor leaves his family to start a new stage in his life, he leaves on quest for answers a true quest for knowledge. Personal motivation will lead Victor to take on the challenge of overcoming death, or to be more specific, give life to a dead body.
Victor Frankenstein is originally a happy character that loves to learn and read a large variety of books. He was a fiery individual who sought to understand all knowledge; regardless of how practical the information was. Evidence of this is when his father tells him not to worry about fictional writers like Cornelius Agrippa. Yet, Frankenstein states, “But here were books, and here were men who had penetrated deeper and knew more. I took their word for all that they averred, and I became their disciple” (21). Frankenstein embodies the movement in science to understand everything, and that is not necessarily a good thing (Storment 2). Frankenstein only understands that this train of thought is bad when he reaches the pinnacle of knowledge and produces the creature. The fruits of Frankenstein’s labor end up costing him the lives of his friends and family, as well as his own sanity. The feeling of guilt thrives in Frankenstein because he knows his work was the direct cause of the chaos in his life. In Frankenstein’s case, his goal of total enlightenment led to his pitiful demise. Frankenstein’s creature was not originally a monster. He is born with good intentions and is a gentle- although atrocious looking- being until he learns of the sins of the human race. The ultimate factor in the creature’s progression from harmless to
As a child he grew up in a loving family surrounded with siblings. As a young adult he went to college to pursue the study of the science, nature and philosophy. Consequently, his passion for education grew rapidly and soon his studies consumed his life. Eventually he began to study how the human body functions while a person is alive and how it reacts at death. This interest was his inspiration for his desire to create a person that would be born not from a womb. Initially, Frankenstein appears to be a very well education, intelligent and passionate individual. Because of his upbringing one could easily assume that he would innately feel a conviction to nurture a living being. However, when he creates his “Creature” and is successful in bringing it to life, instead of feeling joy and admiration for this remarkable achievement, he is terrified and flees in absolute horror. “I remembered also the nervous fever with which I had been seized just at the time that I dated my creation, and which would give an air of delirium to a tale otherwise so utterly improbable. I well knew that if any other had communicated such a relation to me, I should have looked upon it as the ravings of insanity.” (pg. 85) What is interesting to note is that he reacted in a cowardly way and instead of taking responsibility for his creation and educating this creature he leaves it in a helpless situation. This proves that although he appears to be a well-educated, responsible man, his true character is that of a coward and in many ways a neglectful
...ime, such as reading, speaking, and how to find shelter. More importantly however, he learns something that affects his entirety of his short life: how humans truly are. Frankenstein learns that humans can be kind and moral, but more often are cruel, brutish, unfair, and unsympathetic. He learns that he will never be accepted, and learning this drives him to do rather evil human-ish acts. Even as he does these bad things though, he still experiences regret, longing for companionship, and the drive to do good things and be a good person. This inner conflict is present in all humans, as we struggle to do the right thing and avoid temptations and violence. This struggle is what causes the creature to truly be human, encompassing all of humanity’s aspects, including both the good and bad.
He created a life, and then spontaneously he quickly decided to run away from his creation. Victor’s actions after creating what he created were really irresponsible, and did not correctly took care of the circumstance’s he put himself in. The creation was never actually evil, but he felt abandoned by what could had been called his father. Frankenstein, the monster, was only a seeker for companionship. He strongly desired to feel loved, rather than abandoned. Society’s evil behavior toward the monster is what altered the monster’s conduct and followed to how he acted.
We first view Frankenstein’s ignorance while he is busy in his work. He had not visited his family for two straight years. These are the people that love and care about him, yet he does not go home. Not even to visit his own father, the man who pays for his schooling and necessities.
All the events and misfortunes encountered in Frankenstein have been linked to one another as a chain of actions and reactions. Of course, the first action and link in the chain is started by Victor Frankenstein. Victor’s life starts with great potential. He comes from a decently wealthy family whose lack of love towards each other never existed. He is given everything he needs for a great future, and his academics seem to be convalescing.
Victor Frankenstein is innocent. There is no doubt in my mind that Victor Frankenstein is innocent for the murder of Justine, Elizabeth, and William. They were in fact killed by a man named, “The Creature.” He in fact killed the two of them to get revenge on the man who created him. The Creature was angry that everyone thought that he was ugly, and hated to be around him. It all started when Dr. Henry Clerval told Victor Frankenstein not to make the Creature because he would be one that destroys everything. Victor then got Dr. Clerval’s Journal after he had died, and he started to make the Creature. Once the Creature was all assembles and born he was brought to life by Frankenstein. Frankenstein was then afraid of his own creation and fled the lab. The creature then got out and found some clothes and made his way to the country side where he then found his way to the little house in the woods where the De Lacey family lived.
Frankenstein dislikes the creature because of its hideous demeanor, and his actions are the cause of his ultimate downfall. Although hideous, the monster still has feelings and emotions similar to regular people. As the creature examines the world around him, he begins to develop the need for a companion, which parallels the situation Adam had in the Garden of
In Frankenstein, Shelley creates two very complex characters. They embody the moral dilemmas that arise from the corruption and disturbance of the natural order of the world. When Victor Frankenstein is attending school, he becomes infatuated with creating a living being and starts stealing body parts from morgues around the university. After many months of hard work, he finishes one stormy night bringing his creation to life. However, “now that [Victor] had finished, the beauty of the dream vanished, and breathless horror and disgust filled [his] heart” (Chambers). Right after Victor realizes what he has done, he falls into deep depression and must be nursed back to health by his friend. Victor spends the rest of the story facing consequences and moral problems from creating unnatural life. When he realizes that the ‘monster’ has killed his brother, even though no one believes him, he feels responsible for his brother’s murder because he was responsible for the existence of the ‘monster’. Also feeling responsible, Victor...