Mary Shelley's Frankenstein: Is the Monster Man or Beast?

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I Samuel 16:7 says "Man looks by the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the Heart." Society tries to place labels on individuals based on the physical attributes that they can see with their own eyes, but inside every individual there is a moldable perception of his/her own identity. In Frankenstein, the creature’s perception of himself is the only accurate way to discover who he actually was, and to follow the changes of his identity throughout the book as he is rejected by society during every attempt at interaction. The creation was abandoned at birth and left to mature alone and educate himself. He does so by reading Frankenstein’s notes, studying several classic books, specifically Paradise Lost, and observing society. Milton’s Paradise Lost is studied by the creation as a guide to his own beginnings; he is torn between the two identities that it reveals, Adam and Satan; although he longs to be Adam, he is pushed by society to accept that he is Satan. Adam, man, was the desired creation, while Satan, the beast, is the hated monster.

Victor Frankenstein is fascinated with natural philosophy and decides to step across the gender barrier and supernatural boundaries by "giving birth" to a new man. This passion drives Victor into the solitude of his laboratory until he completes his task. Just like the Biblical account of creation where God forms Adam out of the dust of the ground Victor, labors to "animate lifeless clay" (Shelley 32). He also urns to create something out of nothing and be the supreme being worthy of his creation’s eternal gratitude. Success in his laboratory would result in "a new species that would bless him as creator" (Shelley 32). The human birth process is achieved through the union of a mother a...

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...t that he is a monster after every attempt to integrate himself into society fails miserably.

The creation of Frankenstein who was supposed to be the first of many in his new species was never accepted into society and was left to lead his life alone. His many attempts to tie himself into society and begin living his life as Adam were ignored by others. As a result, the creature took on a life as Satan, a monster, determined to physically harm mankind as retribution for the enormous agony and misery it had placed on his own life. Life as a monster was the only way that the creature could gain any recognition from society, and at the same time it gave him an outlet for all his anger. The creation of Frankenstein was a monster, but only as a result of exclusion from society.

Works Cited

Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein. Ed. J Paul Hunter. New York: W. W. Norton, 1996.

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