The Lack of Family Ties in Frankenstein

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Recommended: Family, friendship, companionship in frankenstein

If there was ever a story advocating the fair treatment of children, it is the tale of Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley. Victor Frankenstein is to blame for his child’s poor behavior. Frankenstein, like many other soon-to-be-parents, irrationally sought to create life, without any conceptualization of the work it would be to rear the child. From the birth of baby, Victor refuses positive nurture of his toddler in favor of friends and his own selfish needs; his unreasonable expectations for baby, give cause to his distance from baby, he ultimately dooms his own child to a life of crime and misfortune.

Immediately after the delivery, Victor catches the baby blues, and feels overwhelmed by the situation he has rendered himself with. Birth, under normal circumstances is viewed as a blessing; Victor elucidates the event a catastrophe and labels his child a creature and a wretch. Losing all self-control, he goes into a fit of egotistical rage, describing the painstaking effort, which caused the being into life. His disappointment is evident as he rushes from the room in horror of that which he calls monster. Victor forgets the newborn is not yet a man he can blame for his own imperfections. His ardor goes sour and lacking a support group of family and friends around him who conjugate around every new parent for this exact reason; Victor begins to resent the thoughtful cultivation and aspirations, which he sought for his child. Parenting guru’s tells new parents to adjust expectations to fit the baby; Victor is unable to do this. He views his child under a romantic guise until the spark of life enters baby’s lifeless yellow eyes, after which, Victor loses rational thought and abandons his blessing to the hands of an apathetic society. H...

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...creature must not have hated Frankenstein during the whole chase and later, depressing times in Frankenstein’s life. The boy only wanted attention from his father.

The scene of greatest depiction of Frankenstein’s gluttonous, self-indulgent negligence is that of his child’s first moments of life. It takes but a night to steer his creature to the path of destructive apathy. Frankenstein has no care for those around him, and should never have been given the secret to life, considering his lack of interest in family and his obvious disregard for the laws of nature, creating life; and of man, withholding information of a dangerous being. Victor abuses his son with words and neglect and then wonders why his creature acts out harmfully towards others. The seventeen hundreds were primitive, but those from the era should have recognized the need for parenting classes.

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