ipl-logo

Betrayal In Frankenstein Essay

1016 Words5 Pages

Thesis Frankenstein by Mary Shelly and the Bible’s Book of Genesis both portray the negative relationship between creator and created through betrayal. The difference between Frankenstein and the Bible is shown by human error warning that the pursuit of knowledge will bring man’s downfall. Frankenstein and the Bible both contain a negative relationship between creator and created, which is based upon the betrayal of the created. In Frankenstein, betrayal from Victor’s monster is violent. The monster kills Victor’s younger brother, as an act of revenge against his creator. The monster wants to hurt his maker, and he declares this once William tells the monster who his older brother is, ““Frankenstein! You belong then to my enemy – to him …show more content…

Later killing Elizabeth Victor’s new wife, For example, when the monster kills Elizabeth, Victor’s new wife, it is portrayed as: “A grin was on the face of the monster, he seemed to jeer as with his fiendish finger. He pointed towards the corpse of my wife.”(Shelly 190). The monster's actions are at first considered a betrayal because Victor never expected for his creation to hurt him through other people. Even later in the story, Frankenstein does not expect the monster to go after Elizabeth, instead he believes the monster only wants him. This contributes to the betrayal as well, since Victor doesn’t think the monster would go so far. Through the murderers of his wife and brother, Frankenstein is betrayed by something he made, showing the negative relationship between the two …show more content…

He expresses his hatred towards the monster after his brother’s death by confessing, “My abhorrence to this fiend cannot be conceived”(Shelly 58). Victor has a normal human reaction to betrayal, he’s upset and wants to make things even. However this will only cause him more pain. When Victor seeks revenge, the monster feels the effects of Frankesntein’s actions and only becomes more scorned, “I accurse my creator. Why did you form a monster so hideous that even you turned from me in disgust”(Shelly 111). The monster blames his creator for leaving him in misery and seeks to avenge himself;, this will cause a greater rift between the two characters. If Victor didn’t distance himself, perhaps things would have turned out better for his character, but Victor is only mortal which is shown through contrasting this situation with that of the Bible. When the humans in the Bible betray God, he doesn’t seek revenge, instead he continues contact with them and their children, “In the course of time Cain brought to the Lord an offering of the fruit of the ground”(Gen. 4:3). The humans still offer and pray to God, showing that they are in communication and that God still cares for his creations. This is in contrast to Frankenstein where Victor either runs away from the monster or seeks to destroy it. Victor is a mortal and for this reason he finds himself trapped in mortal emotions, revenge

Open Document