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Frankenstein Nature Vs Nurture

934 Words4 Pages

While both nature and nurture are essential in the development of a person, I believe that it can be seen that often times nurture is more often than not the more important of the two. In the story of “Frankenstein” by mary Shelley, the theme of nature vs nurture is shown through the character of the monster created by Victor Frankenstein. In the beginning, the monster is innocent, but as he ventures through the world and is rejected by society due to his appearance, he becomes violent, this demonstrates how the environment and people around the creature can shape an individual's behavior. The monster was born innocent, but with the treatment, he received from the people around him, he began to have evil intentions even going as far as to go …show more content…

While the novel does not present a direct argument for one side or the other, it does provide evidence for both the influence of nature and nurture in shaping an individual's behavior and personality. One of the main arguments for the influence of nature is that the monster's physical appearance is a product of Victor Frankenstein's scientific experimentation. The monster is created from dead body parts, then reanimated by electricity and this is what makes him different from other human beings. The monster is rejected and shunned by society due to his appearance, which demonstrates the power of nature in shaping his experiences and ultimately his behavior. On the other hand, the monster's behavior and personality are shaped by his experiences and the way society treats him. The monster starts as innocent and kind, but as he is rejected and shunned by society, he becomes violent. This demonstrates the power of nurture in shaping one's behavior and personality. The monster's own beliefs also emphasize the role of nurture in his development, as he describes his initial feelings of love for the natural world and his change to corruption and hatred as a result of being rejected and mistreated by …show more content…

During an experiment with 3 groups of children, one with a male role model, one with a female, and one with no role model, the children are shown the role models assaulting a bobo doll differently, one with physical abuse, and the other with verbal abuse, the children are then lead to a separate room that has the same bobo doll in it. When left by themselves the children treat the doll the same way that the role model did, but the group with no role model chooses to leave the bobo doll alone and played with something else. This illustrates the role of nurture in the development of a child, with the children that were shown aggression choosing to become aggressive towards the doll, and the children who were left to themselves never learned to be aggressive and choose to avoid the doll rather than assault

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Nature vs Nurture Society can create and destroy a person. Charles R. Swindoll states that, "Prejudice is a learned trait. You're not born prejudiced; you're taught it. " This quote perfectly depicts what the creature in Mary Shelley's book Frankenstein goes through because society abandoned him because of his appearance. Victor Frankenstein the creator of the creature is so terrified of the creature he made that he abandons the creature in hopes that it will never find him again.

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