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Essay Comparing Frankenstein 'And The Picture Of Dorian Gray'

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The theme that looks can sometimes be deceiving is apparent in both Frankenstein by Mary Shelley and The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde. In the book Frankenstein, Frankenstein’s monster is persecuted by everyone he meets, being treated as a monster only because he looks like one, when he actually has a good heart and feelings. In the book The Picture of Dorian Gray, the opposite is true with Dorian getting away with many crimes simply because he looks innocent when he is not. While both books show this theme, Frankenstein portrays the theme more fully. The monster from the book Frankenstein was made in a lab by a scientist named Frankenstein. Trying to figure out the secret of how to make or bestow life, Frankenstein made a monster. Frankenstein’s Monster looked hideous and deformed and was thus treated as monster by everyone who looked at him, including his own creator. In the book, the monster shows that all he actually wants is to be able to love someone who will also care for him. (Shelley 79-80) His good personality is also shown when he is talking with a blind man who, unable to see the monster’s ugliness, treated him with kindness. Despite setting a good impression upon the blind man, the blind man’s family reacted with anger and fear when they …show more content…

Dorian Gray had a portrait of himself made and, accidently, infused it with a special power. This power caused the painting to take all the damage of age and sin for Dorian Gray, leaving him looking exactly the same as he did when the painting was made. Dorian abused this power and performed and crimes and sins with none of the repercussions falling on him. At one point he was about to be killed in an alley by James Vane, the brother of Sibyl Vane who was lead to suicide by Dorian, but James stopped after seeing Dorian’s face and thinking that he looked too young and to innocent to be the one who “killed” his sister. (Wilde

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In Mary Shelley novel called Frankenstein, the character of the Monster is shown as a true monster. A real monster is someone who withholds information, lack of remorse, and avoid responsibility, lying and many more. Victor Frankenstein created the monster, but Victor is also a very complex character in the novel. Victor created the monster for scientific researched; he was studying the dead and wanted to be the first person that brought the dead back to life.

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1218 Words | 5 Pages

The use of the word monster in the book also correlates to appearance, and when the creature is called a monster, he feels forced to act like one. After being rejected by society because of his appearance the creature cries to Frankenstein, “Accursed creator! Why did you form a monster so hideous that even you turned from me in disgust” (Shelley 93). This shows that the creature internalized all of the hate he received from his appearance, to the point where he viewed himself as a monster. When he internalizes all this negativity about himself that stems from his appearance, and begins to see himself as a monster, he then begins to behave as one.

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The Creation of Human Life The laboratory from where the creature in Frankenstein was created, to the DHC in Brave New World , and the creation of humans by God in Paradise lost all share one thing in common. They both share the common theme which the art and science of creating a human life. All three of the novels want to have pure human beings free from disease and distress. But the novels also want to have social stability. As the plot begins in Frankenstein we are introduced to a group of explorers of which Victor is part of on a journey to a new world .

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224 Words | 1 Pages

“All men hate the wretched; how, then, I must be hated, who am miserable beyond all living things” (92). This quote, in Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein, is very moving. The monster feels rejected by everyone who sees him and more importantly by his creator, Victor Frankenstein. They are appalled by his appearance and cast him away. People are often judged by their outward appearance.

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1097 Words | 5 Pages

In Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, Victor used the things he was learning to create something new. Although Victor created the creature, the creature in Frankenstein is more monstrous because he chose his path which was revenge. Since the creature was not accepted by society it led him to destroying many people's lives so he could take revenge on Victor. The reason the creature is a monster is because a monster is someone/something that has an abnormal appearance, cruel actions, is inhumane, and lacks empathy.

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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.

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1136 Words | 5 Pages

In both The Picture of Dorian Gray and Frankenstein, Shelley and Wilde offer an insight to British people in the nineteenth century; they focus too much on outward appearance versus the character of a person. Dorian asserted that “[e]ven those who had heard the most evil things against him . . . could not believe anything to his dishonour when they saw him” (Wilde 111). Dorian’s acceptance from society comes from his looks, not his actions. Oppositely, Victor Frankenstein’s creation receives rejection from society for his looks, not his actions.

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779 Words | 4 Pages

That all the deeds done by the monster in the novel is totally the fight towards beauty and ugliness. This throws light upon the idea it is not always simple to know about goodness and evilness with regard to outer beauty but it’s the beauty of the soul as the victor was projected as a good and loving human being and the monster evil but we can realize throughout the novel that this might be up turned for both victor and the monster Mary Shelley depicted the phenomena of beauty vs. ugliness of the soul very prominently in the novel Frankenstein .

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Beauty and ugliness is often used to justify the reaction of others in the novel, Frankenstein; in which the relation between external appearance and internal desires are shown to be related. The theme of how appearance affects judgement is often demonstrated through the characters response to the monster’s physical being. Shelley depicts this situation through Dr. Victor Frankenstein, the Delacey family, and through the monster himself. The use of appearance to determine judgement is shown to be a negative habit. By automatically associating ugliness with evil, and beauty with innocence, society unintentionally develops a negative being in those considered ugly, while at the same creating an illusion of innocence over beautiful individuals.

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1261 Words | 6 Pages

In The Picture of Dorian Gray Oscar Wilde uses the beauty of Dorian to communicate appearance is meaningless when it comes to monstrosity. Mary Shelley utilizes the actions of Victor and the creation to equally judge monstrosity rather than have the appearance of one cloud it. In the book when the creation discovers that victor abandoned him because of his appearance he realizes that he will never be loved. After the monster’s failed attempt at making friends with the people in the cottage he becomes vengeful. Because of the creation’s relentless rejection he declares; “If I cannot inspire love, I will cause fear!”(Shelley 17).

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Whereas the real monster throughout the story is no other than Victor Frankenstein. Frankenstein displays many of the characteristics any monster would have. He was cruel and manipulative in order to become and valued like God. However, the odds were not in his favor after rejecting the monster the minute he came to life, "A flash of lightning illuminated the object, and discovered its shape plainly to me; its gigantic stature, and the deformity of its aspect, more hideous than belongs to humanity, instantly

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"Human vulnerability." "Irrational fears." "Hypothetical reasoning. " In Stephen T. Asma's article "Monsters and the Moral Imagination", Asma uses these words to describe the reasons behind the creation of and belief in monsters.

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675 Words | 3 Pages

In Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, Victor Frankenstein spends two whole years toiling to create a being which is comprised of the body parts of various dead corpses, for the purposes of science. Finally, he creates the “monster”, who commits a multitude of crimes, resulting in the deaths of many innocent people. These horrific murders raise many questions concerning who is to be held accountable. Victor walked away from the situation he created instead of facing his actions. If he had chosen to stay this could have prevented the heinous crimes committed by the monster as a result of Victor’s mental and emotional Neglect.

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750 Words | 3 Pages

Dorian Gray is a handsome, narcissistic young man enthralled by Lord Henry 's new enjoyment. He satisfies in every pleasure of moral and immoral life ultimately heads to death. Henry tells

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1363 Words | 6 Pages

The Picture of Dorian Gray provided a narrative in which Oscar Wilde was at his moral crossroad, but would not realize it until his unfortunate time in jail. Although Wilde had not yet realized he was morally confused, The Picture of Dorian Gray is still about how its characters kill the their own love. When Dorian watches Sibyl’s horrible performance, Sibyl causes the connection that Dorian felt between them to die. “You have killed my love. You used to stir my imagination.

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