ipl-logo

Pathological Narcissism In Frankenstein

1375 Words6 Pages

In the novel “Frankenstein” by Mary Shelley, the main character Victor Frankenstein is portrayed as a pathological narcissist throughout the entire story, he has this personality trait because of a traumatizing event that occurred in his youth changing his ideology to pursue a way to be better than death itself and play as a god. What a pathological narcissist is, is a “Personality Disorder is a disorder that is characterized by a long-standing pattern of grandiosity (either in fantasy or actual behavior), an overwhelming need for admiration, and usually a complete lack of empathy toward others. People with this disorder often believe they are of primary importance in everybody’s life or to anyone they meet” according to an article written by Dr. Steve Bressert. These are the base traits of a pathological narcissist, but in order to see how this affects Frankenstein in his life, a closer look needs to be taken to see how his actions reflected on his personality. First, we can see that he was traumatized by his mother passing and this death was the seed that would …show more content…

“My ardour was indeed the astonishment of the students, and my proficiency that of the masters. Pg 49” this quote is a very clear example of how Frankenstein is seeing himself as much more important than the other students and even as good as a master already at the college. It is not stated how long he has been attending the college, but it is an assumption that it has not been a long amount of time at all and he is saying how amazing he has gotten already that he is the equivalent of a master who has been teaching for years and years. “Narcissistic Personality Disorder is a disorder that is characterized by a long-standing pattern of grandiosity” the quote by Frankenstein fits this characterization well because he is exaggerating his own abilities and

Show More
Related
1845 Words | 8 Pages

Jacob Opalka Mrs. Ramey 4 April 2016 English 12 CP Victor Frankenstein: a Deadbeat Father Figure (Rough Draft) One out of every three children living in America lives without a father figure in his/her lives. Children growing up without a father figure can develop emotional and/or behavioral problems. In some cases, these children even become aggressive and get into trouble with the law (“Statistics on the Father Absence” n.p.). Frankenstein, written by Mary Shelley, occurs in Geneva and Ingolstadt, and portrays Victor Frankenstein as a deadbeat father figure to his creation because he does not take responsibility for him, and he must ultimately deal with the consequences of his creature.

Read More
687 Words | 3 Pages

The novel Frankenstein brings to light many problems and situations that shed light on the faults of mankind. Cruelty was a huge factor in the novel; throughout Frankenstein is cruel to his body and to his creation. When he first makes the creature he runs from it, leaving the creature to fend for himself; even when reuniting with the creature he continues displays cruelty. The creature, in turn exhibits Victor cruelty right back. Within Frankenstein cruelty can be attributed, often affecting both Victor and the creature; serving as a crucial motivator and revealing their anger, pain, frustration till eventually both die.

Read More
1021 Words | 5 Pages

“At first I started back, unable to believe that it was indeed I who was reflected in the mirror; and when I became fully convinced that I was in reality the monster that I am, I was filled with the bitterest sensations of despondence and mortification”(Shelley 80). The Creation of Frankenstein woke up in a world of hate. Since he looked different, the Monster never fit in with normal people. He would become isolated and feared because of his looks. Because the Monster was a hideous creation from Frankenstein, he was isolated and hated by his looks and behaved in an ethical manner when he began his path of vengeance.

Read More
798 Words | 4 Pages

Fighting a Mirror In Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, self deception eclipses Victor Frankenstein and clouds his judgment. Victor’s passion in breaking the bounds of nature guides him in making the creation, but when Victor regrets giving life to the hideous creature, he deserts it. The abandonment is just the first step Victor takes to introduce the creation to malevolence followed with Victor’s assumptions of evil and lost responsibility in the results of his own zeal. Victor Frankenstein’s self deception not only forges evil into the creation, but also incriminates him for the consequences of Victor’s ambitions.

Read More
825 Words | 4 Pages

There are many signs that happen in Frankenstein’s early life that’ll deflect him from pursuing his original studies, such as, his father not explaining why Victor shouldn’t read the book by Agrippa, the storm that he’s fasciated from and after he discovers the tree that was struck by lightening the night before. While, the Monster is traumatized after being abandoned by Victor. The Monster wants to be validated and loved by Victor. His need for validation leads him to seek it out whenever he can, though it proves to be disastrous.

Read More
1380 Words | 6 Pages

Throughout Frankenstein, most readers will notice how egocentric Victor appears from messing around with his own monstrous creation as well as the people he cares about. Victor doesn’t realize what

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
838 Words | 4 Pages

From the dawn of time to the present day, humanity has built its philosophy based on the individual. The lack of empathy has been seen as the common root when pinpointing what causes one to act selfishly. Psychologist Sonja Lyubomirsky believes "Selfish behavior is not only immortal, but it is also bad for your psychological well-being" ("Psychology Today"). Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, tells the tale of Victor Frankenstein creating a hazardous "monster" who is painted as a scapegoat for the town's troubles. However, lurking in the shadows is a potential prospect whose selfish demeanor causes many individuals' downfall.

Read More
1088 Words | 5 Pages

In Jeffrey Jerome Cohen’s Monster Culture (Seven Thesis), Cohen analyzes the psychology behind monsters and how, rather than being a monstrous beast for the protagonist of the story to play against, “the monster signifies something other than itself”. Cohen makes the claim that by analyzing monsters in mythology and stories, you can learn much about the culture that gave rise to them. In Thesis 1 of Monster Culture, Cohen proposes that “the monster’s body literally incorporates fear, desire, anxiety, and fantasy”, specifically the fear, desire and anxiety of the cultures that gave rise to it;; fFor example, vVampires, undead, represent a fear of death. Monsters are born of an intense fear, desire, or internal conflict, “at this metaphorical

Read More
1511 Words | 7 Pages

In life there are many evils that will try to defeat a person but the key to living a happy, fulfilling life is learning to have empathy for others who are facing their own evils. Empathy is hard to have if a person has not endured any real struggles in their life. Being able to know firsthand how it feels to go through difficulties helps create a level of empathy that leads to compassion for one another. Victor Frankenstein is a prime example of someone who has faced evils in their own life but in the end did not find compassion for others, instead he found his own hell. In the novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, Victor’s lack of empathy opens the door into his world of selfishness, cruelty, and unhappiness.

Read More
1056 Words | 5 Pages

Frankenstein is a classic by the awesome author Mary Shelley. The story follows Victor Frankenstein as he makes a Monster. The monster ends up kill people from Victor’s family and even his best friend. All the monster wants is for Victor to make him a wife so he is not so alone in the world full of humans. He is tired of being the only one of his kind and having no one to share his life with.

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
1135 Words | 5 Pages

Victor Frankenstein is selfish. The novel portrays Victor as a selfish character who is only concerned about his own well-being. Frankenstein wanted to manipulate the power of life. He abandons his creation because of the creature’s appearance and also withholds information or lies about his creation. Due to Victor 's selfishness, readers feel sorry for his creation.

Read More
1023 Words | 5 Pages

In Mary Shelley’s novel, Frankenstein, Frankenstein’s Monster experiences a sense of self-actualization after coming to terms with his “monster” identity. In chapter 13, after Frankenstein’s Monster learns about human history and social norms, he conducted a self-analysis of his current self. He stated, “I possessed no money, no friends, no kind of property. I was, besides, endued with a figure hideously deformed and loathsome”. Moreover, when he “looked around, he saw and heard of none like [himself].

Read More
929 Words | 4 Pages

The gothic fiction novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley centralizes on humanity and the qualifications that make someone human. The content of the novel Frankenstein depicts a monster displaying human traits that his creator Victor does not possess: empathy, a need for companionship, and a will to learn and fit in. Throughout the novel Shelley emphasizes empathy as a critical humanistic trait. The monster displays his ability to empathize with people even though they are strangers. On the other hand Victor, fails to show empathy throughout the novel even when it relates to his own family and friends.

Read More

More about Pathological Narcissism In Frankenstein

Open Document