Nature vs Nurture
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein: Nature vs. Nurture
In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein the creature is born peaceful, but because of society and Victor he becomes violent. It was the duty of Victor to protect, love, and nurture the creature after he brought it to life just as those would be a parent’s duty to their children. Society shuns the creature in every situation because of his external appearance which shapes the perceptions of the creature. Victor’s first reaction to the creature is to abandon it, and like children that are abandoned, this turns the Creature violent.
The nature argument states that everything a person will ever become, their physical appearance, personality etc., is already decided since their developmental information is in their genes. Genes are activated at appropriate times during development and are the basis for protein production. The nurture argument, on the other hand, argues that although inherited genes make up the person, they do not limit the potential a person can achieve if the right environment is provided. In reality, it is most likely an interaction of genes and environment, nature and nurture that affect the development of a person. Nature isn’t really part of Frankenstein’s case because he wasn’t really born he was created. When Frankenstein first started walking the streets you could see that he was watching the people around him to kind of learn how to react to the world around him. For example, when he saw the woman sniffing the bread to see if it was fresh he started doing the same thing. When he started to pick it up he was brutally attacked by the people and that taught him the unfortunate lesson of violence. Also, when he went to the people’s house he saw the man and wife trying to pick the crops out of the frozen ground. After they gave up he went out and picked all of them for the people.
Mary Shelley also uses education as an essential tool for nurturing the creature. The creature’s education is based on
In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein the creature is born peaceful, but because of society and Victor he becomes violent. It was the duty of Victor to protect, love, and nurture the creature after he brought it to life just as those would be a parent’s duty to their children. Society shuns the creature in every situation because of his external appearance which shapes the perceptions of the creature. Victor’s first reaction to the creature is to abandon it, and like children that are abandoned, this turns the Creature violent.
The nature argument states that everything a person will ever become, their physical appearance, personality etc., is already decided since their developmental information is in their genes. Genes are activated at appropriate times during development and are the basis for protein production. The nurture argument, on the other hand, argues that although inherited genes make up the person, they do not limit the potential a person can achieve if the right environment is provided. In reality, it is most likely an interaction of genes and environment, nature and nurture that affect the development of a person. Nature isn’t really part of Frankenstein’s case because he wasn’t really born he was created. When Frankenstein first started walking the streets you could see that he was watching the people around him to kind of learn how to react to the world around him. For example, when he saw the woman sniffing the bread to see if it was fresh he started doing the same thing. When he started to pick it up he was brutally attacked by the people and that taught him the unfortunate lesson of violence. Also, when he went to the people’s house he saw the man and wife trying to pick the crops out of the frozen ground. After they gave up he went out and picked all of them for the people.
Mary Shelley also uses education as an essential tool for nurturing the creature. The creature’s education is based on