The Wrath of a Monster
THE WRATH OF A MONSTER Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein†is a classic novel that depicts the horrible truths of a monster’s sorrow and sourness toward the brilliant but cowardly scientist that gave him life. When Frankenstein’s monster learns the basics of human emotion, he learns that he has been denied the emotional support that he was entitled to by his creator. This brings out the worst in him; he vows that he will either be loved or get his revenge on Victor Frankenstein, the scientist, for leaving him all alone in a world so cold, that he was forced to live isolated from the rest of humanity. Not knowing the rules that go along with life, the monster decides that it is either kill or be loved. He allows his overwhelming sense of anger and sadness take him over, and he makes it his mission to make Victor own up to his responsibilities. The consequences that victor must endure for his poor judgment of his creation not only wrecked havoc on his life, but the innocent lives of everyone that he loved. The pain that others experienced because of Victor’s abandonment of the monster was what bothered me the most about this story. Even before she was murdered, Elizabeth was impacted a great deal by Victor’s refusal to take responsibility for his creation. Before Justine was accused of the murder of William and put to death, Elizabeth believed in people and in happiness. She loved William like a child and she loved Justine as a sister. The tragedy that struck when William was murdered was more than Elizabeth could bear. She lost her faith in people and in her happiness, which is something that is very hard to be replaced. “Alas, Victor, when falsehood can look so like the truth, who can assure themselves of certain happiness?†(96) These words clearly explain the betrayal Elizabeth felt and the feeling she had of never trusting happiness again. The question I repeatedly asked myself was; who is really responsible for this despair? Who is really the monster in Shelley’s story? Shelley does an excellent job of depicting the different emotions that both Victor and the monster feel throughout her story. At one moment I felt anger toward Victor and the next towards the creature. My mind went back and forth through all of the different scenarios. The anger and frustration the creature felt towards Victor was explained the best when Shelley wrote “Cursed, cursed creator! Why did I live? Why in that instant, did I not extinguish the spark of existence which you had so wantonly bestowed?†(138). This shows the wonder and hopelessness the creature felt towards Victor for bringing him to life. The creature did not understand why Victor would create him only to curse him with sorrow and loneliness. The only part in the book where I felt that Victor understood the pain he caused his creation was when the creature tried to persuade Victor to make him a companion. “I was moved. I shuddered when I thought of the possible consequences of my consent, but I felt there was some justice in his argument. His tale, and the feelings he now expressed, proved him to be a creature of fine sensations; and did I not as his maker, owe him all the portion of happiness that it was in my power to bestow?†(148) This thought from Victor, made me feel as if finally, Victor understood that his creation was more than a creature; he had needs, emotions and feelings and he owed him some type of redemption. Refusing this redemption to the monster is where it not only cost Victor his happiness but his family their lives. While researching numerous essays about “Frankenstein†I find that the same question arises to a lot of different readers. Who is right, the monster or the creator? There are countless arguments which are both sympathetic for the monster and for victor. In one of those essays, Jean-Phillipe Pellet put it best when he says “But even if he does manage to reach God like powers, he doesn’t have any God-like knowledge or experience or responsibility†(Pellet) The absence of this knowledge is the reason why Victor’s creation turns out to be a complete disaster for him when it truly was a great and amazing accomplishment. Victor’s brilliant mind created life from the tools that he had to work with. In my opinion, there is no achievement that can compare to this. What Victor’s mind lacked was the knowledge that with every great accomplishment comes even greater responsibility. It was his responsibility to nurture his creation just as a mother or father does to a newborn baby. With that being said, I do not place all blame on Victor for the devastation that occurred. With the great human sense that the monster acquired from observing Felix and his family and reading the literature that he acquired in the forest, I can’t help but to think that the monster understands the grief and pain he has caused to others in Victors name. How could he want or expect to be accepted by the very same people that he terrorized?, I feel he gave up on all hope of cohabitating with humans after he rescued the little girl from drowning and the man attempted to shoot him. His rage and aggression took over from that point on. It was no longer just about his vengeance with Victor but about his vengeance on all the people in the world he knew would never accept him. As Susan Coulter states in her essay titled “Frankenstein- A Cautionary Tale of Bad Parenting†“It could be suggested that his education and intellect have betrayed him. They have only served to highlight his misery.†(Coulter) What this says to me is that if the monster would have been oblivious to human emotion he would not have created such mayhem to try to capture it himself. It cannot be argued that Victor Frankenstein’s creation was unprecedented. The genius he possessed in order to bring something to life is amazing and unheard of even in our day and age. The true battle of this story is the moral obligation that Victor had to his monster. The monster refused to give up on his pursuit for companionship and Victor refused to give up on denying the monster that right, even though it meant that in the end he would die as lonely as the monster lived, and every person that he loved would fall victim to the horrible wrath the monster vigilantly pursued. Works Cited Coulter, Susan. Mary Shelley and Frankenstein. 26 03 2010 . Pellet, Jean-Phillipe. 21 May 2001. 26 march 2010 . Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein. Penguin Group, 1818.
