ipl-logo

Character Foil In Frankenstein

935 Words4 Pages

Frankenstein by Mary Shelly is many things.It is horror, romantic and well,science fiction.The story dwells into the ugly of not only science but of man and lonilesness as well. All in all the novel is a classic , adored by many and an inspiration to modern culture, all forms of media, literature , art and so much more.The novel mainy centres around Victor Frankenstein [the young student scientist] and his 'monster creation. '. There are many characters in the novel- Victor [the main character], the monster creation [main focus], Robert Walton [the narrator] , Henry Clerval [Victor 's best freind], all are just a few examples. Though from the many characters-the creation is the foil to our main character.A foil according to the defination provided- "A …show more content…

Victor is a man surronded by love and affection by friends,family and society.He was raised by tolerant parents;

"No human being could have passed a happier childhood than myself.My parents were possessed by the very spirit of kindness and indulgence."

".....and gratitude assisted the development of filial love." [2.3].

He grew up to be arrgont with a slight god complex [evident when -wanting and creating life, not taking responsiblities for his actions].Victor wants nothing but power, knowledge-he pursues the knowledge.With Victor 's want for more ,he tempts faith and the natural order of things-wanting not only knowledge but glory as well.Victor 's desire for this knowledge is evident;

' '....exclaimed the soul of Frankenstein-more,far more, will O achieve ; treading in the steps already marked, I will pioneer a new way, explore unknown powers, and unfold to the world the deepest mysteries of creation. ' '

"It was the secrets of heaven and earth that I desired to learn; and whether it was the outward substance of things or the inner spirit of nature and the mysterious soul of man that occupied me,still my inquuiries were diricted to the metaphysical, or in it highest sense, the physical secrets of

Show More
Related
839 Words | 4 Pages

Character Foils: Victor and The Monster Often in a literary work, authors use minor characters to emphasize specific traits and characteristics of a main character. In Mary Shelley’s best selling novel Frankenstein, the monster is a minor reflection of Victor Frankenstein. Victor’s personality traits from when he was a child, and as an adult, are carried over and placed into his creation unintentionally by Victor himself.

Read More
272 Words | 2 Pages

Victor grew up to become a very loving, affectionate and humane individual, due to the love and

Read More
1857 Words | 8 Pages

Whenever an author tries to use character growth and personality traits to stress a point or emphasize a theme, a common literary device to use is a foil. This is normally done between a main character and an important side character. In the novel Frankenstein, written by Mary Shelley, such a device can be found and is used to its utmost potential. The two major characters that act as foils to the main character are Robert Walton and the monster. Each one adds a unique element to the story and truly help illustrate Victor Frankenstein as a character.

Read More
1845 Words | 8 Pages

Victor’s creation is described as a “monster” in the story of Frankenstein. He is immediately considered to be evil because he has committed murder, even though he meant no harm. He wrongfully forges his identity according to how others see him; as an evil monster. He forges his identity on how others view him, which is an evil monster (Lall 36). At this point, he is growing out of the mental stage of an infant and is beginning to learn how to take care of himself.

Read More
798 Words | 4 Pages

(171). Victor describes the creation as “devilish”, but the “devilish” nature is a direct result of Victor’s actions. He agrees to deliver happiness, but accomplishes the opposite. Victor knows

Read More
672 Words | 3 Pages

He uses the little that he knows to fuel his hatred towards humans and his creator. This shows the exponential growth of the problems that Victor has created as a result of his desire for knowledge. Not only did he create the destructive monster, but now the monster is using a hunger for knowledge, the very thing that created it, to do even more damage. This root cause is linked to everything that is causing Victor’s suffering. The monster also compares his relationship to Victor to that of God and Adam, wishing that he had the same supplication to his creator that Adam did, “I remembered Adam’s supplication to his creator.

Read More
1056 Words | 5 Pages

In Frankenstein and also in Dr Jekyll there is a great deal of secrecy and deception throughout the book. In Frankenstein, Mr. Utterson doesn’t know the truth about the relationship between Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and he desperately wants to find out. Also, by withholding the scenes of Mr. Hyde’s supposedly crazy revelry, Stevenson allows our imaginations to run to wild and bizarre places. In Dr Jekyll, betrayal in the form of secrecy is one of Victor’s worst flaws. His inability to share his secret about the monster brings the destruction of those he loves.

Read More
1487 Words | 6 Pages

The novel Frankenstein, written by Mary Shelley depicts certain ideas that can not be described or written within novels. For example, the telling of the story between three different narrators can teach the reader about putting together “pieces of a puzzle” in order to understand the plot of the story. The three narrators in Frankenstein are Victor, Walton, and the Creature, all with very distinct personalities and character traits. Of these storytellers, Victor could possibly be debated as the most extraordinary. The qualities that make Victor pictured as this unique character, that the fact that he is a dynamic character, and that he is an unreliable narrator.

Read More
1380 Words | 6 Pages

A writer named Nikita Gill once said “When you see a monster next, always remember this. Do not fear the thing before you. Fear the thing that created it instead.” This quote can be related to the novel Frankenstein where instead of the actual creature being perceived as the monster, the person who created it deserves to be called one. Using the archetypal lens, Victor can be seen as the real monster in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein from his cruel characteristics, continuous patterns of monstrosity, as well as symbols and themes involving nature.

Read More
1309 Words | 6 Pages

Victor’s parental figures in Frankenstein poison him by surrounding him with countless indulgences. From childhood, Victor was given all of his desires without question and this led to him becoming self-centered and dependent on the service of others. Victor describes his childhood with

Read More
974 Words | 4 Pages

Dr. Victor Frankenstein is a fascinating character, perhaps to most others he could come across as an uninteresting, one note or just an arrogant jerk, however when one looks further one can see that he is one of the first examples of a character with a god complex. A god complex is defined as; an unshakable belief characterized by constantly inflated feelings of personal ability, privilege and infallibility. It is made very clear in “Frankenstein” that Victor has an inflated view of himself which leads to his failure and ultimate death. He thinks much to highly of his own abilities which is very much displayed in his second creature attempt, in which he believes undeniably that his first attempt could not have been a mere fluke, he believes

Read More
901 Words | 4 Pages

Frankenstein is a book written by Mary Shelley about a man named Victor Frankenstein and his life and how it came to be. He had created a monster and brought it to life by studying and learning natural philosophy. Mary Shelley brought the emotions forward from the main characters by the amount of detail she put into the book. Most of the detail was brought in by the suffering that happens throughout the book caused by Frankenstein’s monster. The monster in this story is a tragic figure that is the main cause of suffering that occurs to everyone.

Read More
1921 Words | 8 Pages

Such passion is seen in Victor’s ‘noble intent’ to design a being that could contribute to society, but he had overextended himself, falling under the spell of playing ‘God,’ further digging his grave as he is blinded by glory. His creation – aptly called monstrous being due to its stature, appearance, and strength – proved to be more of a pure and intellectually disposed ‘child’ that moves throughout the novel as a mere oddity, given the short end of the stick in relation to a lack of familial figures within his life, especially that of parents. Clearly, Victor Frankenstein had sealed his fate: by playing God he was losing his humanity, ultimately becoming the manifestation of Mary Shelley’s hidden desires, deteriorating into The Lucifer Principle by which the author Howard Bloom notes social groups, not individuals, as the primary “unit of selection” in human psychological

Read More
790 Words | 4 Pages

In the novel, Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, the two main characters, Victor Frankenstein and his creature, both display a sense of moral ambiguity. Each character has committed both good and evil alike, and neither knew the consequences of what they had done. However, Victor Frankenstein is generally the morally ambiguous character by his treatment of his creation and his own imperious personality. He wanted to be able to help science by recreating life or bringing it back, but at the same time, he did not want to consider the consequences of doing so. Victor tries to prove himself as a good moral character in the relationship between his creation and himself.

Read More
1073 Words | 5 Pages

Victor created a monstrous and deformed being that was feared and rejected by the society; this made the society to shun away from the creature leaving him all alone. Both the creature and his creator were outcasts and lived in isolation from the rest of the

Read More

More about Character Foil In Frankenstein

Related Topics

Open Document