The Use Of Grotesque Appearance In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

287 Words1 Page

Mary Shelley’s uses a supernatural subject to enlighten the readers with a simple message that humans are prejudice and make conclusions about other people based on frivolous things such as appearance, rather than personality or heart.The quote “the hearts of men, when unprejudiced by any obvious self-interest, are full of brotherly love and charity” (Shelley, 121) explicitly states the message readers are supposed to receive from the novel. The grotesque appearance of the monster causes characters in the novel to believe he is evil and corrupt, however, if they had spoken to the monster they would realize he originally had a kind heart and good intentions. When the monster saw a young girl drowning in a lake he was passing by, he saved her,

Show More
Related

  • Creature or Monster? How does Shelley's presentation of the Creature

    2032 Words  | 5 Pages

    The creature was also misguided, his treatment from others led to him becoming a monster but he realized this and did the right thing in the end, showing that he was just misunderstood.

    Read More

  • Comparing and Contrasting the Book and Play Version of Shelley's Frankenstein

    1628 Words  | 4 Pages

    ...derstand, but he did everything within his power to fit in. He tried his best to help others, wanting nothing but acceptance in return. Yet he was cursed with a monstrous appearance. This was the one characteristic he had no control over, but it was the one that negated all his good intentions in the eyes of society, causing him a tremendous amount misery and eventually leading him to do some terrible things. If his monstrous appearance is just one example of any characteristic looked down upon by society, then his story is a powerful lesson for any reader. It brings to light the misery and pain inflicted – possibly unknowingly – by society onto those that do not fit in. Taking that into consideration, there remains a simple question: who really was the monster in the novel?

    Read More

  • Appearance And Reality In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

    922 Words  | 2 Pages

    Phaedrus once stated, “Things are not always as they seem; the first appearance deceives many.” Appearances can deceive people because humans are so prejudiced against people that do not look, talk, walk, or act like them. Appearances and reality are two very distinct things, with one being a blindfold to one’s judgment and the other being a wake up call. In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Victor, a scientist; The monster, Victor’s creation; and Justine Moritz, who is accused of murder; all appear to be something they are not. Victor, Justine, and the creature are all examples of the struggle between appearances and reality.

    Read More

  • How Mary Shelley creates a sense of horror in Frankenstein

    1358 Words  | 3 Pages

    How Mary Shelley creates a sense of horror in Frankenstein. Frankenstein Introduction In this essay, I will be writing about how Mary Shelley creates sense. of horror in Frankenstein. Horror stories are usually dark and sinister.

    Read More

  • The Theme Of Degradation In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

    1253 Words  | 3 Pages

    Society has become known for turning people who are not physically attractive into social outcasts. Movies, television shows, and even books portray the popular and well-liked characters as attractive and the smart and unattractive as the socially awkward. This problem has not just appeared out of nowhere, it has been included in novels dating back to the 1800s. In 1818 Mary Shelley, wrote Frankenstein a gothic novel that discusses rejection due to appearance. In Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein, the theme of rejection is portrayed throughout the book in numerous elements such as setting, tone, allusion.

    Read More

  • Analysis of the Monster in Mary Shelley´s Frankenstein

    802 Words  | 2 Pages

    This philosophical analysis focuses on the main character of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, the Monster, and how his crime of killing a young boy and framing an innocent bystander is explained through the arguments made by Mengzi concerning evil natures. This parallel will be made by showing the progression of the Monster from good to evil nature and how his motivation to ruin his creator’s life tainted his fundamental heart. I will first briefly address the action as portrayed in Frankenstein and then discuss how Mengzi’s ideas explain the change in the Monster’s nature.

    Read More

  • Frankenstein: Don't Judge a Monster Based on His Appearance

    1505 Words  | 4 Pages

    The book goes into greater detail regarding the monster’s hardships, has a more eloquent and persuasive monster and has a more heartbreaking ending. As a result a reader feels greater sympathy towards the monster in the novel rather than in the play. The monster begins his journey a purely innocent and kind being, but because he has to suffer the misfortune of having such a monstrous appearance he is condemned by society. Frankenstein tells the story of a benevolent being persecuted by man, and has the reader questioning who the real monster is.

    Read More

  • Misjudgment In Frankenstein

    758 Words  | 2 Pages

    Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein displays how one can be judge by his appearance. In her story, Victor Frankenstein, a scientist who challenge nature and discovered the secret of life, created a hideous monster whom everyone fears. Frankenstein’s monster in the book is assumed to be dangerous and heartless because of his image. People misjudgments create a feeling of rejection in the monster which leads to violence in the plot.

    Read More

  • Who Is the Real Monster in Frankenstein?

    1708 Words  | 4 Pages

    middle of paper ... ... Generally in the novel, most readers tend to sympathize with Frankenstein because of the way in which he is mentally and physically harmed by his creation. However, one must also realize that while Frankenstein is a victim in the novel, he also exhibits features that make him a monster. These monstrous qualities, however, stem from his passion for science and his desire to create life. Not only does the reader criticize and pity Frankenstein, but the reader also empathizes with Frankenstein’s creation.

    Read More

  • Comparing Frankenstein To James Whale's

    1170 Words  | 3 Pages

    Although it is the same monster we see in the previous film, more depth is added to the character. The first major breakthrough for the monster was the scene he encounters the blind man. This is the first time we see him be kind. The air between the two is light and friendly, creating hope for the monster. They even solidify themselves as friends, the first big stepping stone to the transformation of the monster we soon will see. Another big plot revolves around the monsters want for someone “like him”. This suggests deep down in that conscious of his, he has realized how different, and unaccepted, he truly is. When he finally gets his wish, he soon realizes it was never meant to be. Another big breakthrough for the development of his conscious. He makes the courageous, even humane, decision to end both of their lives. The monster knows they were never meant to live, because death was always their calling. We even catch a glimpse of a lone tear stream down his cheek because of his valiant

    Read More

  • Identity In Frankenstein Essay

    397 Words  | 1 Pages

    As Victor Frankenstein gazes upon his creation, he finds that his deliberately beautiful choices in proportions, hair, and teeth are horridly overshadowed by the sheer ugliness of the monster’s skin. The “yellow skin” and “shriveled complexion” become barriers from the rest of the world. Shelley’s use of the skin as a barrier is fitting with societal convention: skin has always been an anthropological interest, a visible way of defining identity or cultural difference, sometimes a preoccupation, and in recent years, a scholarly discourse. Our obsession with skin comes from its natural role as boundary – between the psyche, the body, the self, and others. But who defines the boundaries that one’s skin represents? Who has the authority to inscribe

    Read More

  • Frankenstein Appearance Essay

    1257 Words  | 3 Pages

    Throughout every individuals life there are experiences of unfair judgments based on someone’s appearance. While this is never a good thing, it is an action that everyone takes part in, whether it is purposeful or not. In Frankenstein, Mary Shelley’s message is very clear as she illustrates the cruel events that take place in a society focused only on outside beauty. The central message that Shelley communicates with Frankenstein, is that while appearance is just one of an individuals many characteristics; it is always a factor they are judged on regardless of all the other qualities they may possess.

    Read More

  • Romanticism in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

    2058 Words  | 5 Pages

    Mary Shelley, with her brilliant tale of mankind's obsession with two opposing forces: creation and science, continues to draw readers with Frankenstein's many meanings and effect on society. Frankenstein has had a major influence across literature and pop culture and was one of the major contributors to a completely new genre of horror. Frankenstein is most famous for being arguably considered the first fully-realized science fiction novel. In Frankenstein, some of the main concepts behind the literary movement of Romanticism can be found. Mary Shelley was a colleague of many Romantic poets such as her husband Percy Shelley, and their friends William Wordsworth and Samuel Coleridge, even though the themes within Frankenstein are darker than their brighter subjects and poems. Still, she was very influenced by Romantics and the Romantic Period, and readers can find many examples of Romanticism in this book. Some people actually argue that Frankenstein “initiates a rethinking of romantic rhetoric”1, or is a more cultured novel than the writings of other Romantics. Shelley questions and interacts with the classic Romantic tropes, causing this rethink of a novel that goes deeper into societal history than it appears. For example, the introduction of Gothic ideas to Frankenstein challenges the typical stereotyped assumptions of Romanticism, giving new meaning and context to the novel. Mary Shelley challenges Romanticism by highlighting certain aspects of the movement while questioning and interacting with the Romantic movement through her writing.

    Read More

  • Physical Appearance in Mary Shelly's Frankenstein

    1265 Words  | 3 Pages

    In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein we are introduced early in the story to one of the main characters Victor Frankenstein and subsequently to his creation referred to as the monster. The monster comes to life after being constructed by Victor using body parts from corpses. As gruesome as this sounds initially we are soon caught up in the tale of the living monster. Victor the creator becomes immediately remorseful of his decision to bring the monstrous creation to life and abandons the borne creature. Victor describes his emotions and physical description of his creation as follows:

    Read More

  • The Monstrous In Frankenstein

    1362 Words  | 3 Pages

    Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein or; The Modern Prometheus, published in 1818, is a product of its time. Written in a world of social, political, scientific and economic upheaval it highlights human desire to uncover the scientific secrets of our universe, yet also confirms the importance of emotions and individual relationships that define us as human, in contrast to the monstrous. Here we question what is meant by the terms ‘human’ and ‘monstrous’ as defined by the novel. Yet to fully understand how Frankenstein defines these terms we must look to the etymology of them. The novel however, defines the terms through its main characters, through the themes of language, nature versus nurture, forbidden knowledge, and the doppelganger motif. Shelley also shows us, in Frankenstein, that although juxtaposing terms, the monstrous being everything human is not, they are also intertwined, in that you can not have one without the other. There is also an overwhelming desire to know the monstrous, if only temporarily and this calls into question the influence the monstrous has on the human definition.

    Read More

More about The Use Of Grotesque Appearance In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

Open Document