The State Of Mind In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

Victor Frankenstein, blinded by ambition or driven by madness? In Frankenstein, Mary Shelley embodies a cloud of characteristics that follow Victor along for the entirety of the novel. As a young scholar, Victor was driven to invest in his interests of chemistry and science. Hence, Victor soon became enamored with the ideas that lie in between life and death. Further pondering led Victor to become obsessed with the idea of bringing inanimate objects to life. The death of his mother leads Victor into denial. As a result of his mother 's death, Victor’s emotions falsely lead him to believe that he could have some control over the fate of peoples lives. Thus, Victor’s beliefs soon equated to a set of rules that he himself must follow. Consequently,

Frankenstein’s mother, a character who’s non-existent for most of the novel, plays a big part of Victor’s ultimate demise. Soon after her death, Victor felt as though he could 've done more as if he could 've saved her. The absence of his mother drove Victor to invest into his interests and go to Ingolstadt. While at Ingolstadt, Victor became interested in the studies of science. “But this state of mind had place only in the first steps towards knowledge: the more fully I entered into the science, the more exclusively I pursued it for its own sake.” (30). Victor becomes enamored with science and ideas that come with the subject. Victor wants to unlock all of the knowledge that science brings for the sake of his own enrichment. This leads Victor to become obsessed with the idea of creating life and soon finds a way to do so. “ It was with these feelings that I began the creation of a human being.”(33). His drive to create a human being circulates around the idea that he wants to preserve life and keep loved ones alive. On the night of the creatures creation, Victor was at a loss for words. “How can I describe my emotions at this catastrophe, or how delineate the wretch whom with such infinite pains and care I had endeavoured to form?” (35). Catastrophe? This is everything that Victor Frankenstein wanted and more. He created life, he beat death, but was that worth the monstrosity that he created? Victor did nothing but question his belief and sacrifices he made. “I had

The deferment of death and the promotion of self-supremacy within Victor has backfired. The creature not only craved attention from Victor but also craved a female counterpart. After a further argument between Victor and the creature, Victor agrees to create a female creature. Stunned, and lost in his own doings, Victor asks himself if what he is doing is truly for the betterment of mankind. “Even if they were to leave Europe, and inhabit the deserts of the new world, yet one of the first results of those sympathies for which the daemon thirsted would be children, and a race of devils would be propagated upon the earth, who might make the very existence of the species of man a condition precarious and full of terror.” (119). While agreeing to create a female counterpart, Victor comes to his senses and ultimately realizes that his initial creation was wrongful. Victor realizes the level of insanity of his work and feels