Birdyline Book Blog

Is the creator of a living being directly responsible for the care of the creature after birth and are they indirectly responsible for the creature’s mistakes? I was thinking of what the central theme of Frankenstein could be, and I settled on this. In Mary Shelley’s novel the central character, Victor, after years of studying to create artificial life, makes the informed decision to do so. While working on the task, Victor does not stop to consider the consequences. However, as soon as the monster takes its first breath, he is filled with revulsion at the “wretch whom with such infinite pains” he had created- and rejects the creature. Throughout the rest of the novel, Mary Shelley indicates that, by denying the creature crucial relationships, Victor’s rejection is not only morally reprehensible but also, in part, responsible for the creature’s actions.

The portion of the book narrated by the monster itself makes clear that  Mary Shelley considers the concepts of love and companionship as intrinsic for a person’s (or monster’s) quality of life. For a while the monster hides from humans but watches a family with awe from the sidelines. The monster’s fascination with the De Lacey family illustrates the almost instant and natural desire for love that the monster was born with. When he first escapes, he discovers that he is “tormented by hunger and thirst,” and then finds something to eat. That natural behavior is fundamentally similar to the monster’s fascination in the family. Soon after watching their daily life he recognizes that he “longed to join them,” but because of his previous rejection he does not dare. The cottagers become part of the monster’s daily sustenance. He eats, he drinks, and he watches them everyday, fueled by his desire for connection. He “long[s] to discover the motives and feelings” of this family and ultimately tries to establish ties.

Victor is the closest thing to a family that the monster has, and as the monster’s creator, he failed to provide any sort of parental guidance to  protect the creature from solitude. In the time after leaving Victor’s lab, the monster explores his own need for food, water, warmth, and of course, companionship. None of these are condemned by Victor or by the tone of the text. However, when the creature finally seeks out Victor and requests that a female monster be made for him to fill that hole in him, the one basic desire that the monster failed to find, Victor eventually refuses. While creating a new monster could end catastrophically, the important part is that the monster’s need for a companion is never condemned. The monster is not wrong in asking for a companion, Victor is simply against the creation of a second monster because he has realized too late  “the wickedness of [his] promise.”  The creation of life does not mean one can control life, and it is a huge responsibility that if shunned turns sour quickly. However, even now Victor fails to take full responsibility as a creator. A second monster is not what was needed to fill the Creature’s need for companionship—Victor, as the parent-creator was.

The death and tragedy that follows Victor’s family and friends is a direct result of Victor’s repeated rejection of the monster. Although he does not commit any murders, he is, in fact, the one who drove the monster to commit those crimes in the first place. When the monster was still in the woods exploring his new found sense of life, he mentions how he is shocked and disgusted that any human would hurt another. Unlike his desire for love, violence is not in his nature, but rather it is a symptom of his abandonment. After the monster reads Paradise Lost he finds a kindred spirit in Adam as the first of his kind. Unlike Adam, however, the monster was despised and spurned by his maker. In the most formidable moments of his life, the monster learns to think of himself as something despicable in nature. When he eventually begins being violent, it is after repeated rejection that Victor has within his power to stop. His first fit of rage is spurred on by the discovery of the journal in which Victor wrote so much about his hatred for the monster. Had Victor shown his own creation a shred of respect and care, the fatal events of the story may well have not happened. Victor failed in his duty as a creator and as a result is the indirect cause of the monster’s crimes.