The Rise and Fall of the Creature Within Frankenstein

Victor Frankenstein, a man obsessed with scientific oddities since his youth, finds a way to reanimate the dead. Hoping to create “a new species [who] would bless me as their creator,” (33) thus leading to, what he hopes to be, “the creation of a human being;” (33) however, his attempt produces merely a living being. A being which Victor grows to despise and fear, despite Victors initial claims that “darkness had no effect upon [his] fancy” (31). Later within the novel he describes his experiment as a catastrophe when he “saw the dull yellow eyes of the creature open” (Shelley 35). The attempt the creature makes to join the society is met with violent rejection; leading him on an endeavor to humanize himself through knowledge and language. As the creature grows, intellectually speaking, he comes to the realization that the humans will never allow him to be part of society nor will Victor ever accept the being that he created. Leading to the deterioration of the educated image the creature painstakingly created for himself. Due to the reactions of society, the creature goes through a paradigm shift when he is faced with the realization that due to his outward appearance, he will never be recognized by society as human, therefore being denied the rights of man. The creatures growth, which ultimately leads to deterioration, could be depicted within four steps; Victors view of his creation, the Villagers reaction to the creature, the creature at the cottage, and the eventual deterioration of the creature through murder.

The initial exclusion which the creature is objected to is presented within the opening scene; at first Victor is in awe of his creation, even calling it beautiful. However after further and more in depth scrutiny...

... middle of paper ...

...cked me, until, grievously bruised by stones and many other kinds of missile weapons, I escaped to the open country. 73

However, this is not the first encounter the creature had with humans. Before that, while still in the forest, he came across

A small hut… [which]I examined the structure with great curiosity. Finding the door open, I entered. An old man sat in it, near a fire, over which he was preparing his breakfast. He turned on hearing a noise; and perceiving me, shrieked loudly, and, quitting the hut, ran across the fields with a speed of which his debilitated form hardly appeared capable. 72

This incident was one which the creature thought was an isolated incident and a reaction which “somewhat surprised me” (72).

Works Cited

Shelley, Mary W. Frankenstein. Ed. J. Paul Hunter. New York: W.W. Norton, 2012. Print.