Who was the real monster? Frankenstein
November 25th, 2013
THE REAL MONSTER
The monster rose from the table. He stared at the creature whom he had created, then ran away in terror. He ran away because the monster looked nothing like anything he had ever seen before; it was monstrous and utterly terrifying. He thought it would harm him as monsters are commonly portrayed to do. What would any human do in a situation like that? Prejudice is not an emotion in itself; it is an offshoot of fear. He feared the monster, which is why he acted out of prejudice and judged the monster simply based on its appearance.
Prejudice is an opinion formed beforehand or without knowledge based often on physical appearance. In Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein, readers often ask who the real monster is. Is it the monster himself for looking like a monster and killing many innocent people? Or is it Victor for creating such a terrible monster? The answer is neither. When examined closely, it becomes clear that the real monster in Mary Shelley’s novel is prejudice. Because of prejudice, Victor is scared of his own creation and disowns the monster. Because of prejudice, everybody is scared of the monster and never even gives him a chance to get to know them simply because of the way he looks. Because of prejudice, the monster kills his first victim. The prejudice against the monster is so great that it even convinces the monster himself that he is a monster and is not worthy of life. There are no characters in Frankenstein that are truly monsters; the only real monster is the prejudice instilled in these characters who do bad things.
Victor Frankenstein created the monster with good intentions. In fact, he “had desired it with an ardour that far exceeded moderation. . .” (Shelley 43). When the monster awoke, Victor feared his own creation. Victor prejudges his creation because he fears what it is capable of and runs away. Victor expresses his fear of his creation when he says, “. . . but now that I had finished, the
THE REAL MONSTER
The monster rose from the table. He stared at the creature whom he had created, then ran away in terror. He ran away because the monster looked nothing like anything he had ever seen before; it was monstrous and utterly terrifying. He thought it would harm him as monsters are commonly portrayed to do. What would any human do in a situation like that? Prejudice is not an emotion in itself; it is an offshoot of fear. He feared the monster, which is why he acted out of prejudice and judged the monster simply based on its appearance.
Prejudice is an opinion formed beforehand or without knowledge based often on physical appearance. In Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein, readers often ask who the real monster is. Is it the monster himself for looking like a monster and killing many innocent people? Or is it Victor for creating such a terrible monster? The answer is neither. When examined closely, it becomes clear that the real monster in Mary Shelley’s novel is prejudice. Because of prejudice, Victor is scared of his own creation and disowns the monster. Because of prejudice, everybody is scared of the monster and never even gives him a chance to get to know them simply because of the way he looks. Because of prejudice, the monster kills his first victim. The prejudice against the monster is so great that it even convinces the monster himself that he is a monster and is not worthy of life. There are no characters in Frankenstein that are truly monsters; the only real monster is the prejudice instilled in these characters who do bad things.
Victor Frankenstein created the monster with good intentions. In fact, he “had desired it with an ardour that far exceeded moderation. . .” (Shelley 43). When the monster awoke, Victor feared his own creation. Victor prejudges his creation because he fears what it is capable of and runs away. Victor expresses his fear of his creation when he says, “. . . but now that I had finished, the