Who Is Victor Frankenstein A Tragic Hero

Frankenstein is a tragedy in which there was an immense amount of potential in the characters, but it was all wasted on revenge. Dr. Frankenstein was a brilliant doctor but was oblivious the to harmful effects creating life would have on himself and those close to him. Throughout the story rejection and escalating revenge turn Dr. Frankenstein and his creation against each other bringing about death and destruction. Mary Shelley uses Victor Frankenstein from Frankenstein as a tragic hero to bring suffering on himself and others through his work, rejection, and revenge. Dr. Frankenstein’s work, although ingenious, only succeeded in creating a doomed and imperfect creation. Because Victor Frankenstein was only human, his work at best could only …show more content…
The monster’s flawed appearance caused his rejection, and his rejection brought about his revenge. The monster was abandoned by Dr. Frankenstein when he was first created. Because of Victor’s failure to accept the monster and raise him in a caring and nurturing environment, the monster was quickly harden by the rugged environment he was forced into. The villagers of the first village he encountered and the family he tried to befriend in cottage drove out the monster because of his grotesque appearance. Because humans “had spurned and rejected me [the monster]”, it burns the cottage and later strangles Frankenstein's nephew William. His envy of the beauty and society humans share leads him to frame the innocent Justine for William’s murder. Justine is executed because of the monster. Although the monster is performing the destruction, Victor is the stem of all this destruction. He created, abandoned, and rejected the monster. The monster accused Frankenstein saying, “You are the cause of this excess.” Because of Dr. Frankenstein’s failure to address the issue it