Frankenstein Monster Language Analysis

In this extract, Shelley uses language and descriptions to present Frankenstein's Monster as a naturally innocent and curious individual. The extract is taken from the early stages of the monster's narrative so it gives the reader a good idea of what the original personality of the monster is like and tells of his first encounter with fire.
Initially, the monster is presented as intelligent and resourceful. After discovering the fire left by beggars, the Monster "watched the operation of the fire" and "examined the materials" of it, trying to find the cause of the flame. He saw that the wet wood wouldn't burn but dry wood "itself became inflamed" and, after coming to this conclusion, collected a "great quantity of wood" so he had a "plentiful
supply of fire". Shelley uses verbs such as "discovered", "examined" and "reflected" to describe the monster's actions. The terms are scholastic and create imagery of an inquisitive student who is learning something new – this is further enhanced when he refers to the fire as an "operation". This shows that the Monster regards fire as an unknown item, and through the process of examination and reflection, he is learning and gaining knowledge of the unknown.
This knowledge that he has gained is also bringing him closer to civilisation, as "the discovery of this element was useful [to him] in [his] food" and gave him "warmth". Here, the fire also represents the intertextuality between the novel of ‘Frankenstein" and the myth of ‘Prometheus' – a story that Shelley was influenced by when writing the book. In the myth, the Titan Prometheus stole fire from the Gods and gave the valuable gift to mankind. He taught them how to use this gift, in food and metal work, which helped them to advance from their original vulnerable state. Similarly, in ‘Frankenstein', the monster is in a weary and helpless condition when he first leaves Frankenstein's lab: he suffers from the cold nights and feeds off of raw berries and nuts when he is starving. However, when he finds the stray fire left by the beggars, he has a source of heat and a place to cook his food and becomes stronger than he was before. There is a huge change of tone from the beginning of the narrative (where a fast-paced introduction created a confused, lost and miserable tone) to the tone in this extract, where he is hopeful, proud and delighted by his discovery. His character development mirrors that of the humans in the ‘Prometheus', both who benefit largely from the qualities provided by the fire.
The monster also regards the fire with joy upon discovery.
He is "overcome with delight at the warmth" provided by it. The word "overcome" suggests that he was completely taken over with delight when he saw the fire and that the joy he experienced was extreme. This gives the reader an idea of his circumstances at that point in the narrative and also how simple he is. The phrase also suggests a sense of childlike wonder: he was delighted by the warmth he felt because he hadn't experienced it before. In his delight, the monster touched the glowing hot coal in the fire but "quickly drew it out again with a cry of pain", which shows his innocence as he did not think the fire would harm him. The phrase "cry of pain" implies that he was hurt when he touched the flames, but the word "cry" also suggests that the pain he experienced surprised him, causing him to exclaim when he was burned because he was oblivious to the consequences. The simplicity and innocence of the monster here create imagery of a curious child and portrays him in a sympathetic light which makes him endearing to the readers. It also contrasts much from the descriptions of him provided by Frankenstein and how he behaves later on in the novel. Through this, Shelley shows that the monster was actually born good but his experiences made him evil. This shows Shelley being influenced by the philosophy at her time, particularly by Jean-Jacques Rousseau, a Genevan philosopher who believed that society corrupts humans as it creates inequality and jealousy. This influence can be seen in the character of the monster as early on in his life: when he was separated from any organized society (in his natural state) he was "benevolent and good"; but later, after observing the De Lacey's and experiencing their repulsion when they saw him, he became vengeful and jealous, and consequently became a "miserable fiend". By showing the monster as happy and innocent in this passage, Shelley agrees with Rousseau's argument that
humankind would be happier in a natural state where everyone is free and equal. Rousseau felt that someone abandoned at birth with no guidance growing up would be distorted to an extreme by society's prejudices – a danger that the monster is faced with and conforms too.
However, people learn from their experiences with danger, for example, the Monster learns that touching the fire would harm him. Nonetheless, he is confused by this and says, "How strange…that the same cause should produce such opposite effects". This shows that the monster still thinks with childlike simplicity – he thinks the fire is good because it provided him with warmth, so he did not expect it to also be bad and harm it. Here, Shelley uses fire as a symbol for dangerous knowledge – he was "overcome with delight" at finding and learning about it, but then let out a "cry of pain" when he got burnt. The knowledge of fire both benefits and harms the monster, hence producing "opposite effects" which puzzles him as his childlike innocence at this stage of his life does not know that something good can also be equally as bad.
This extract enforces the idea onto that by nature the monster was good and innocent. Through the events and language used, Shelley shows that in the early stages of his life the monster was curious, unknowing and inquisitive, much like all people are at the beginning of their life, which humanises the monster and makes him more relatable to the readers who can now sympathise him. The descriptions offer a different perspective to the character rather than Frankenstein's derogatory descriptions (Frankenstein describes him as a "wretch", "demon" and "devil"), as the reader knows that, before exposed to the prejudice of society, the monster was originally an intelligent and simple creature, who lacks any evil within him.