Comparison Of Victor And The Creature In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, both Victor and the creature have qualities that make them resemble “humans,” or “monsters.” A monster finds joy in bringing harm to others, and does anything to get what they want. They do this without thinking of the consequences, and may not feel regret afterwards. The creature repeatedly demonstrated this quality throughout the novel. The creature resembles a monster because he makes Victor suffer after feeling rejected. The creature finds William, Victor’s brother, in the woods and kills him. After murdering William, the creature informs Victor, “I gazed on my victim, and my heart swelled with exultation and hellish triumph: clapping my hands, I exclaimed, ‘I, too, can create desolation; my enemy is not impregnable; this death will carry despair to him, and a thousand other miseries shall torment and destroy him’” (170). The creature is pleased with himself and his newfound strength. He tells William that his brother is the creature’s enemy and swears revenge on

The creature kills Victor’s wife, Elizabeth, after he fails to provide the creature with a female companion. Victor spots the marks of the creature’s hand on her neck and fills with rage. The creature lingers outside the window and Victor observes, “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” (242). The creature murders Elizabeth as a punishment after Victor breaks his promise. The creature wants a companion and shows Victor that breaking his promise has consequences. By murdering Elizabeth and lingering to savor Victor’s despair, it is evident that the creature wants to bring pain to Victor, and finds pleasure in it. The creature also seems to “jeer” (242) through the window, exhibiting no remorse for killing Elizabeth. Someone who finds pleasure in inflicting pain upon another is a