Frankenstein Research Paper

Sage Thebault What makes a monster Frankenstein 1818
English 8

People in this world are constantly judged by others. Judged based on their skin color, their body type, or whether they have a disability or not, but some of the people who really deserve to be judged, some of the true monsters, are those who are able to walk away free because of what they look like. While those who are innocent are put away just because of who they are. In Frankenstein, the novel by Marry Shelly the theme of monstrosity is portrayed throughout. Victor Frankenstein’s creation is labeled as a monster not only by Frankenstein but by other humans around him. Though it is arguable that the being is a monster it cannot be because of

Humanity's unjust beauty standards affect whether someone is or isn't treated as a human being and whether someone is or isn't a “monster" merely based on their appearance and physical attributes. The evidence of this is first presented in the novel when Frankenstein describes the physical features of his creation. He says that the things that made his creature beautiful “only formed a more horrid contrast with his watery eyes, that seemed almost of the same colour as the dun white sockets in which they were set, his shrivelled complexion, and straight black lips'' (45). Frankenstein's first thought of what he had created was a judgment, he looked at the being and immediately felt disgusted and fearful, so much so that he ran away. His abandonment of the being then leads to further issues that make the being the monster that he is. If Frankenstein had not judged the being upon first look then the majority of deaths that occurred could have been avoided. The being just wanted to be treated like a human, which we see later in the book, and yet Frankenstein treated the being like a monster just because of his appearance. Frankenstein

After killing William the way the being describes how he feels shows the beginning of his becoming a monster. He “gazed on [his] victim, and [his] heart swelled with exultation and hellish triumph” (134). These feelings after murdering a child prove that he is a monster but the thing is, it has absolutely nothing to do with how he looks. The reason that the being is a monster is that he doesn't feel human empathy after taking someone's life. His not feeling empathy is not something he was born with but something he learned through a life of others not showing him empathy. The fact that he is unable to feel empathy makes it so that when he kills someone, such as William, he doesn't feel the remorse that humans do. When Frankenstein is describing why he is creating a glimpse of the monster within him is shown when he explains how “A new species would bless me as its creator and source; many happy and excellent natures would owe their being to me” (). Frankenstein resurrecting human body pieces fused together already had horrible moral connotations but for him to explain that part of the reason he was doing it was that he wanted to be the creator of a species that would then “owe” him is even more terrible. It isn't monstrous to pursue a scientific career, but it is