Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

The major aspect of Shelley’s Frankenstein that surprised me was the eloquence and depth to the monster’s character. I was always familiar with the basis of the Frankenstein tale, but never did I expect the monster to speak so fluently and to be so humanized. It was very intriguing to see how Shelley developed the monster’s character and the dynamic between the monster and civilization around him caused me to develop a love-hate relationship for him.

            The monster is like an orphaned new-born adult, thrown into the cruel world of man and forced to try to assimilate with others around him. It is no surprise that every human the monster encounters reacts in fear and disgust upon looking at him because practically anyone in modern day would react the same. The blind old man that speaks to the monster says a lot about humanity. This instance is practically the only time the monster is not immediately judged and feared – simply because the man cannot see the monster’s appearance. To the old man, he is just like any other human. This scene emphasizes how society is prejudiced and tends to outcast anything that deviates from normality.

            It was honestly sad to read the monster’s story and see how every act of kindness and innocence was shot down without even a question asked. Nobody tried to talk to him or even give him a chance to speak. The monster was isolated from the very beginning, making him an easy character to sympathize with. People throughout history have been treated unfairly for their skin color, religion, sexuality, weight, disability, etc. I saw a lot of parallels with the issues real people face with the treatment of the monster. I was pretty mad at civilization for most of the novel, but no one made me as furious as Victor did.

            Victor is an incredibly selfish character who creates this grotesque creation and abandons it immediately. Although the monster kills everyone in Victor’s family, it is completely Victor’s fault for not taking responsibility at any point in the novel. Victor’s carelessness causes the monster to become very sinister and violent and I am convinced he could have avoided so much death and suffering if only he had kept his promise.