Eric Burdon, a famous singer-songwriter and member and vocalist of rock band, The Animals, and the funk band, War, once wrote, “Inside each of us, there is a seed of both good and evil. It’s a constant struggle as to which one will win. And one cannot exist without the other.” Both good and evil are inherent in humans, however it is up to man to discover which trait will be displayed dominantly. William Golding, a witness of the destruction of humanity during World War II, has the ideology that man is inherently evil. Through his novel “The Lord of The Flies,” Golding introduces the thoughts of evil in society. To exemplify that man is inherently evil, a variety of characters, allegory, and metaphors are used to convey the occurrence
William Golding’s Lord of the Flies portrays the lives of young British boys whose plane crashed on a deserted island and their struggle for survival. The task of survival was challenging for such young boys, while maintaining the civilized orders and humanity they were so accustomed too. These extremely difficult circumstances and the need for survival turned these innocent boys into the most primitive and savaged mankind could imagine. William Golding illustrates man’s capacity for evil, which is revealed in man’s inherent nature. Golding uses characterization, symbolism and style of writing to show man’s inhumanity and evil towards one another.
At first, The Monster is very kind and sympathetic. He has a good heart, as shown when he collected firewood for the family on the brink of poverty. Like every other human creation, he was not born a murderer. All the Monster wanted was to be accepted and loved by Victor Frankenstein and the other humans but instead he was judged by his appearance and considered to be dangerous. The Monster says, “like Adam, I was created apparently united by no link to any other being in existence…many times I considered Satan as the fitter emblem of my condition; for often, like him, when I viewed the bliss of my protectors, the bitter gall of envy rose within me” (page 105). This line is an important part of the novel because the Monster lets it be known how like Adam he was created into this world completely abandoned and like Satan he is angry with those people who have found contentment and satisfaction in their lives. The rejection and unwelcome feeling he is faced with, is the main reason the Monster becomes a killer. Watching another family show love towards each other made the Monster realize how alienated he truly was. He did not know how to deal with his pain and emotions so he murders as
In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, the creature is portrayed as the antagonist of the story; a murderous scientific experiment gone wrong. At the moment of his creation, he does not posses any negative personality traits, it is only the hideousness of the creature that causes Victor Frankenstein to abandon him. Frankenstein is unable to accept the creature as it is different from himself. The abandonment of the creature by Victor Frankenstein causes the creature to venture out into the world without any knowledge or nurturing to protect him and set him on a righteous path. Frankenstein’s monster encounters many unpleasant and emotionally damaging interactions with society which harden him. The creature craved love and acceptance from a creature
The monster was thrown blindly into the world with no one to look to for support. He was left to fend for himself, wandering the countryside. The entire time his hatred for Victor, who is responsible for his miserable existence, grew. The monster was continuously rejected by society due to his horrifying appearance and the way he reacted to such rejections. He was not created evil; he was shaped into the monster society sees him as. The monster has a personality that cares for others and longs for acceptance and a family. His personality really showed when he stayed in hiding near a small cottage owned by the De Lacy family. The monster observed the family for a long period of time, growing attached to their lives. He was able to learn how to read and speak as well as how to act properly. The monster began to feel like the he could trust the family. The monster confronted the family and, as expected, the family reacts negatively. The monster felt that he had been created out of hatred and, believing that the entire human race believes the same, swears vengeance on Victor Frankenstein. All he wanted was for someone to accept him, and his only chance of getting someone to make him happy was destroyed in front of his eyes. The monster was able to threaten Victor, forcing him to create a female companion, but before she was complete, Victor changed his mind and destroyed the second creature.
Picture a primordial world, covered in water and the algae of evolution. Even in the deepest corners of nature’s past, monsters lurk in unknown shadows. Mary Shelley’s Franken- stein and John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men share both similarities and differences, but perhaps the most important similarity can be expressed even at nature’s most basic levels. In Franken- stein, one main theme which Shelley promotes is that nothing can overcome or deny nature. Steinbeck uses a different type of theme throughout Of Mice and Men, that friendship requires sacrifice. Through the comparison of these themes to Riordan’s famous quote, “The real world is where the monsters are,” a common theme can be found in both works of literature, of worlds made of monsters and sinister consequences.
The monster in Mary Shelley's novel, Frankenstein, is isolated from humanity due to his frightening appearance. This isolation causes him to become vengeful towards his creator Victor Frankenstein for creating him. The monster goes on a killing spree, targeting everyone that is close to Victor attempting to make Victor feel as lonely and isolated as the monster. It is Society's inherent judgement of someone's appearance that isolates the monster and turns the innocent yet ignorant monster into a rage that turns fatal towards his creator, Victor Frankenstein.
The monster in a way is warm hearted and kind but as we observed he is still dangerous. That is because he's always killing people who has a very close relationship with Frankenstein. Now what makes a monster created by man act in such a harsh manner ? What makes Frankenstein even want to make a monster from different dead body parts ? Well in everyday human life if a person feels as if they are being abandoned it brings a different kind of hate in their heart. They don't feel or get the love that they seek, and in some cases that turns them into a heartless monster. Back in chapter twenty-three Victor wouldn't create the monster a mate so the monster murdered his love. Now the twist is that Frankenstein created the monster and now wants him dead. Everyone that Frankenstein loves or someone that is close to him gets killed, and the key fact about the book is that Victor quotes the monster first- person narrative ; in addition the lesser characters Elizabeth Lavenza and Alphonse Frankenstein narrate parts of the story through their letters to Victor. Also, the murder of Elizabeth on the night of her wedding to Victor which takes place in chapter twenty-three. The point of view shifts with the narration, from Robert Walton to Victor to
“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself” said FDR, but too often people fail to realize that and costs them dearly. Fear is a trait of all living creatures and is what H.P Lovecraft calls the oldest and strongest emotion and due to the nature of the world and the amount of unknowns around us influences all of our actions and thoughts. These influences of fear are shown throughout The Lord of the Flies a novel by William Golding and published in 1954 during the Cold war, a time where fear was rampant throughout the world due to the enormity of so many WMDs. However in the lord of the flies, a group of british schoolboys stranded on an island, without any rescue in sight are left to fend for themselves, and ends up as a reflection on
“How can I describe my emotions at this catastrophe, or delineate the wretch whom with such infinite pains and care I had endeavoured to form?” (Shelley, 42) In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Victor Frankenstein, who has spent two long years laboring in Ingolstadt to create this scientific marvel known only as “the monster,” wrongly assumes that his creation is pure evil. Frankenstein reaches this conclusion without even allowing the monster to demonstrate his kind heart. Eventually, the monster goes on a mass killing spree because of Victor’s detrimental psychological neglect. Victor’s neglect is caused by his hatred of anyone who is unlike himself. Victor also disregards the monster’s right to a true name, only referring to him using despicable names, such as “wretch,” “thing,” and “catastrophe.” Thus, the monster’s humane qualities, including compassion, loyalty, and intelligence contrast to the wretched traits of his creator, making the horrible references much more suitable for Victor. Unlike Victor, the monster shows great compassion despite his appalling appearance.
Despite loathing themselves for different reasons, Frankenstein and the creature both face many internal conflicts. Frankenstein despises himself for creating a creature that is threatening all of mankind. “I shuddered to think that future ages might curse me as their pest, whose selfishness had not hesitated to buy its own peace at the price perhaps of the existence of the whole human race.” (315) Victor destroys the half-finished creation of a female monster and feels disgusted with himself that he ever thought to create another creature. “I shall be with you on your wedding night.” (149) When the female monster
In Frankenstein, it is clear the “monster” was good by nature and it was a human that turned him bad. Just like a child, the monster woke up wanting his creator to care for and nurture him. Victor Frankenstein denied the parental responsibility he had and the monster had no chance to make it into society. When the monster ventured outside and was seen by people, it was yelled at, called names, and chased out of town.
In Mary Shelley’s eerie story of the mad scientist Frankenstein and his creation, it is easy to recall the violent crimes the creature perpetrated. It is a common misconception of the reader to deem him as evil based on a few, crucial actions and by his monstrous appearance, but is he the real monster in the story? The creature is created by Victor Frankenstein, who leaves him without any remorse. Victor’s lack of any concern for others allows for the creature to poison his family and friends, bringing death and disaster. Victor Frankenstein’s antagonistic role in the story is supported by his narcissism due to his way of being oblivious to putting his loved ones in danger, his inability to admit his faults, and his refusal to take any responsibility
In the words of Eric Burdon, “Inside each of us, there is the seed of both good and evil. It's a constant struggle as to which one will win. And one cannot exist without the other.” In William Golding’s novel, Lord of the Flies, a group of schoolboys are marooned on an island with little to no chance of escape. The boys are in a seemingly endless battle within themselves and each other as they fight to decide what should be done. Golding’s symbol of the beast conveys his belief that there is a clandestine evil that corrupts humanity.
In the book, the reader comes to find that Victor Frankenstein emulates this human nature, to betray. Victor shows his betrayal by creating life out of death, and by leaving his creation as soon as it is brought into the world- just for being displeasing to the eye. Although the Monster was considered the pinnacle of betrayal, the real monster was Victor Frankenstein himself, and the human nature that he universally