ipl-logo

The Theme Of Nature Vs. Nurture In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

549 Words3 Pages

In the relevant debate topic of Nature vs. Nurture, the Monster’s character in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is heavily influenced toward the nurture side of the argument. The Monster’s nurture is how he was raised. The Monster wasn't raised by anyone or anything, and had no experience with loving and affection. The Monster was the depressed creation of Victor Frankenstein. Pleased with his accomplishment, Victor states, “No one can conceive the variety of feelings which bore me onwards, like a hurricane, in the first enthusiasm of success…..”(50). Not knowing what was to come, Victor had no thought of how the Monster was going to be like in his actions, Victor didn’t know the Monster would end up killing William and frame Justine for it. During the tragic event such as the killing of William the Monster executes this task by stating, “Urged …show more content…

The creature was as helpless as a baby, he had no sense of right and wrong. His nature did not help him very much, by making him feel dreadful about himself, the people around him felt the same exact way he felt about them. The themes nature and nurture fit into the argument of the growth and actions of the Monster, they both play a crucial role in the Monster's murderous temper. The Monster’s general personality was all he sees and hears around him, which connects to the concept of nature . He copies what others do around him; like a baby, he can only act in ways he has been self-taught. If Victor Frankenstein had spent more time with the “baby”, the monster would not of done the evil and devastating things to mankind. Showing Victor’s love, and make the monster feel safe and secure would have made the Monster less barbaric in his actions. Victor could have prevented the Monster’s turn towards a murderous future and protect him from the people of the world around him. Both Nature and Nurture fit into the Monsters wretched attitude and abominable

Show More
Related
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
1530 Words | 7 Pages

First, the creature reveals emotions of his “Accursed creator! Why did you form a monster so hideous that even you turned from me in disgust. God in pity,

Read More
830 Words | 4 Pages

When one is born, they have no experiences, no lessons learned, and no opinions or prejudice. Their slate is clean. In the novel Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, a monster is brought into the world to experience nothing but hate and fear. The monster is rejected by society and cast into the world alone. Victor Frankenstein was the creator of the creature and he did little to assist the monsters acclimation to society.

Read More
738 Words | 3 Pages

The monster then later acts upon these violent thoughts when he happily “lighted the dry branch of a tree and danced with fury around the devoted cottage” (Shelley 126). Character’s internal conflict is reflected in their actions because their internal conflict acts as motivation for their reaction. The internal conflict that the characters are going through interests the reader because now they are able to enjoy the story more since they now understand the character’s

Read More
1036 Words | 5 Pages

Creation of a Monster “Monsters exist because we create them”(Packard). What some people don't realize is that monsters are not just born. Someone is not born with the desire to cause harm and destruction. It is outside elements that cause this. Mary Shelley conveys the themes of parental duty, alienation, and nurture vs nature in her novel Frankenstein through characterization.

Read More
1134 Words | 5 Pages

From Son to Satan: Parenting in the 17th century Often in a novel, an author will make the relationship between a parental figure and a child be one of conflict to emphasize their relationship to each other. However, in the 1818 Gothic Romantic novel Frankenstein, author Mary Shelley uses the father and son relationship between scientist Victor Frankenstein and the creature as a tool to demonstrate that one must take responsibility for their actions and that monsters are not born monsters visualized through Victor’s abandonment of the creature, the monsters reaction to being shunned and Victor’s failure to comply with the creatures request to create a partner. The inception of the conflict between the two characters began when Victor became

Read More
1120 Words | 5 Pages

In the novel Frankenstein, the author Mary Shelley shows the everlasting power of nature by limiting the knowledge man can learn about it. Throughout the book there are many times when Victor yearns for nature in order to heal him from the misery and violence in his life. This misery and violence are caused by his determination to learn more about the natural world. The monster Victor creates, due to his loneliness, defies the unwritten rules of nature and exemplifies the supernatural aspect of the novel. Victor’s mood completely shifts when he is around nature and he instantly feels calmer when near it.

Read More
987 Words | 4 Pages

The moment Victor Frankenstein successfully infuses life into his creation he is overcome with horror and disgust. Without further examination he is certain to have created a monster, not a human being (Shelley 35-36). However, despite his grotesque appearance, Frankenstein’s creature was not born malicious. During the first stages of his existence, unbeknownst to Frankenstein himself, his acts are motivated by innocence and virtue, which even earns him the title “good spirit” (79). Frankenstein did not create a monster.

Read More
825 Words | 4 Pages

Maybe Mary Shelley wants to show that if you take over God's work something bad may happen. Since there are a lot of people who have had a difficult childhood where they didn't feel loved, who didn't become killers, it makes one wonder what makes these people different from this monster? The answer might be that 'natural' people have morals. Their conscience tells them that it's wrong to kill, that's why they don't do it. The monster however wasn't given life by God, but by Frankenstein, so he might lack this part of the creation.

Read More
395 Words | 2 Pages

Childhood is a time in a person’s life where the most growing occurs, not only physically but also mentally. The human brain is nourished and maintained by the love and affection children receive from both parents and it continues to do so for the rest of their lives. The creature’s inability to build up courage and try to interact with society as well as his constant questioning of his existence is a direct result of an inexistent childhood as well as the absence of a loving family. Frankenstein’s mother and Elizabeth were both orphans so he was well aware of the importance of love and nurturing for people of all ages, yet he denied the creature the opportunity to receive affection of any sort. “No father had watched my infant days, no mother had blessed me with smiles

Read More
1032 Words | 5 Pages

He pulls at the heartstrings of Victor’s emotions, but Victor can see the true evil that is within him. “But it is true that I am a wretch. I have murdered the lovely and helpless; I have strangled the innocent as they slept and grasped to death his throat who never injured me or any other living being,” had mentioned the monster after Victor’s death (197). The monster claims that he was unloved, and he was right in that regard, but that does not form evil. Evil forms by the weakness of one’s mind, not neglect.

Read More
1191 Words | 5 Pages

Numerous research has concluded that several emotional bonds exist between humanity and nature that can impact everything from attitude to anxiety. Novels of the romanticism period, a significant literary era that encompassed most European works written in the early 1800’s, are most known for describing the impacts that nature has on people and implying that unexpected consequences can arise out of this relationship; Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is a prime example of such a novel. The prime conflict of this 1818 science-fiction story occurs between the titular character, Victor Frankenstein, and a monster he creates through his own scientific innovations. Because of Victor’s abandonment of the monster, it becomes intent on destroying the scientist’s

Read More
833 Words | 4 Pages

The Monster’s Nature “For while I destroyed his hopes, I did not satisfy my own desires. They were forever ardent and craving; I still desired love and fellowship, and I was still spurned. Was there no injustice in this? Am I to be thought the only criminal, when all human kind sinned against me?” (Chapter 24, 240)

Read More
766 Words | 4 Pages

Mary Shelley shows the endless amount of revenge and that it is driven by pure hatred and rage. The monster was not created to be vengeful, he was kind hearted but when he was poorly treated by Victor and then by the Delacey family, he turned cold. In her novel Frankenstein, Mary Shelley displays the immorality and destructive effects that revenge can have through Frankenstein and his pursuit of the creature. Immediately after the monster had awoken, hatred thickened and would drive the plot to be all about revenge. The creature illustrates this hatred as he says to Victor, “Everything is related in them which bears reference to my accursed origin; the whole detail of that series of disgusting circumstances which produced it is set in view;

Read More
929 Words | 4 Pages

A plethora of instances depicted in the novel bolsters the reader's understanding of the monster's development of empathy which originated during

Read More

More about The Theme Of Nature Vs. Nurture In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

Open Document