Through her gothic novel Frankenstein, Mary Shelley forces her audience to consider whether Victor Frankenstein should be considered a monster. Through her exploration of the romantic idea of the complexity of the human persona, as well as ideas of good and evil, Shelley reveals the monstrous characteristics of Victor, while also highlighting his redeeming features. Shelley provides an alternative villain in the character of Frankenstein’s creation. Shelley forces her audience to question what it is that makes a person a monster, whether it is Frankenstein, who is internally flawed, or outward appearances as with the Creation.
Through displaying his many flaws, Shelley often depicts Victor Frankenstein as the overarching villain in the novel. Shelley condemns Victor’s “ardent desire” to “penetrate the secrets of heaven and earth” through biblical references to the “serpent” and thus the temptation and corrupting force of …show more content…
Despite his many shortcomings, the audience is urged to somewhat praise him for his redeeming features, which are highlighted by Walton’s positive portrayal of him as a “Hero”. Indeed, Victor contains many of the romantic qualities of intelligence as well his high regard for human connection as demonstrated through his clear bonds with his family and the “noble” Clerval. This is evidenced by the fact that the deaths of Clerval and William render him “a shadow of a human being”; “a mere skeleton”. Shelley also calls us to admire Victor for his ability to accept culpability for the actions of the “hellish fiend”, and recognize his partial responsibility for the deaths, calling himself “the true murdere”. He shows this through his acknowledgement of his “duties towards the beings of [his] own species” by destroying the female creature. These positive aspects of Frankenstein’s personality encourage the audience to sympathize with Victor, and see beyond his villainous
Through displaying his many flaws, Shelley often depicts Victor Frankenstein as the overarching villain in the novel. Shelley condemns Victor’s “ardent desire” to “penetrate the secrets of heaven and earth” through biblical references to the “serpent” and thus the temptation and corrupting force of …show more content…
Despite his many shortcomings, the audience is urged to somewhat praise him for his redeeming features, which are highlighted by Walton’s positive portrayal of him as a “Hero”. Indeed, Victor contains many of the romantic qualities of intelligence as well his high regard for human connection as demonstrated through his clear bonds with his family and the “noble” Clerval. This is evidenced by the fact that the deaths of Clerval and William render him “a shadow of a human being”; “a mere skeleton”. Shelley also calls us to admire Victor for his ability to accept culpability for the actions of the “hellish fiend”, and recognize his partial responsibility for the deaths, calling himself “the true murdere”. He shows this through his acknowledgement of his “duties towards the beings of [his] own species” by destroying the female creature. These positive aspects of Frankenstein’s personality encourage the audience to sympathize with Victor, and see beyond his villainous