Lies And Deception In Frankenstein

From a young age children are taught that lying and trickery don 't come without consequences. A common theme in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is also one of Victor Frankenstein’s fatal flaws: lies and deceit in the form of secrecy. Victors biggest secret was his attempt to cover up the creation of the creature. His choice to keep this secret not only affected him and the people around him, but also affected the creature in a negative way. Victor began to keep his work hidden after he started to talk with the philosopher at Ingolstadt. He describes this professor of natural philosophy as “an uncouth man, but deeply imbued in the secrets of his science” (26). It is here where Victor learned that it is socially acceptable to cover up mistakes, …show more content…
The monster had been abandoned by Victor and had tried to integrate himself into the society for many years but had been rejected universally. On the inside, he is a humanlike creature with a kind heart searching for acceptance, but because of his grotesque appearance, the creature is rejected by society. Thinking that revenge was going to make him feel better, the creature kills Victor’s younger brother. Instead of helping, his creator discontinues work on the female monster meant to ease the monsters depression caused by extreme seclusion. Right after this when the monster is trying to persuade Victor into continuing work on the monster, he says to Victor, “I’ll be with you on your wedding night” (123). Later on in the novel in retaliation against Victor, the monster goes on to brutally murder Victors best friend and his wife Elizabeth on the night of their wedding just like he said he would. Although he murders for revenge, the creature does inherit some human-like characteristics throughout his life. When he was “living” with his adopted family, the Delacy’s, he began to learn more about himself. Victor had given the creature his lab coat to wear for clothing. When the monster was exploring one day he discovered that Victor’s diary was in the pocket of the lab coat. After learning to read and eloquently converse, he was able to read the diary of how he was created. After reading these pages he desires more for kindness, protection, and company of other humans. He goes on the say that he felt that he was “ united by no link to any other being in existence” (92). This is significant because had Victor not kept the creatures existence a secret, he wouldn 't have had to deal with the overwhelming emotional pain and turmoil. He ended up the same place as Victor, in a cold place with no happiness left in their