Nature Vs Nurture In Frankenstein
Is Frankenstein's Creature Inherently Evil?
For centuries, the question of nature versus nurture has been a topic of much debate and controversy. Despite much speculation, there is no simple answer to this question as nothing is really ever that black and white. In Mary Shelley’s classic novel, Frankenstein, this theme of nature versus nurture is very prevalent. Victor Frankenstein's creature is born innocent but the story shows how he is abandoned, mistreated and unloved. The creature is not inherently evil rather it is nurture, or lack thereof, that made the creature cruel.
Victor is essentially a father figure for the creature and by abandoning him, Victor leaves the creature to fend for himself in a world that is just as horrified by …show more content…
“This was then the reward of my benevolence! I had saved a human being from destruction, and… I now writhed under the miserable pain of the wound...” (Shelley, 130). People were unnecessarily malicious to the creature but this event was what pushed him over the edge and caused him to vow “...eternal hatred and vengeance to all mankind.” (Shelley, 130). Considering the treatment the creature was faced with throughout the entirety of its lonely existence, his out lash is, in many ways, …show more content…
“Why did you form a monster so hideous that even you turned from me in disgust?” (Shelley, 119). The creature’s need to make Victor feel the same kind of pain he has felt his entire life due to Victor leads to him vindictively killing all of his creator’s loved ones. By doing so, the creature transforms into the terrifying monster he was always believed to be. In some twisted sense, it is a cycle. The creature is abused to the point where he loses what was good about him and morphs into what his abusers believe he is. Murdering everyone Victor loves was the final step in the creature becoming the product of all he has been through.
The complicated notions behind nature and nurture are discussed through the creature and his journey in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. The novel has many themes including the pursuit of knowledge, the dangers of technology, among others but the debate of nature versus nurture is definitely prevailing, The creature is a fascinating subject for the discussion as is a product of both nature and nurture, at least to some extent, yet nurture is clearly more evident in who he becomes by the end of the story. Frankenstein sparks many timeless questions, one of them being, “are individuals inherently
For centuries, the question of nature versus nurture has been a topic of much debate and controversy. Despite much speculation, there is no simple answer to this question as nothing is really ever that black and white. In Mary Shelley’s classic novel, Frankenstein, this theme of nature versus nurture is very prevalent. Victor Frankenstein's creature is born innocent but the story shows how he is abandoned, mistreated and unloved. The creature is not inherently evil rather it is nurture, or lack thereof, that made the creature cruel.
Victor is essentially a father figure for the creature and by abandoning him, Victor leaves the creature to fend for himself in a world that is just as horrified by …show more content…
“This was then the reward of my benevolence! I had saved a human being from destruction, and… I now writhed under the miserable pain of the wound...” (Shelley, 130). People were unnecessarily malicious to the creature but this event was what pushed him over the edge and caused him to vow “...eternal hatred and vengeance to all mankind.” (Shelley, 130). Considering the treatment the creature was faced with throughout the entirety of its lonely existence, his out lash is, in many ways, …show more content…
“Why did you form a monster so hideous that even you turned from me in disgust?” (Shelley, 119). The creature’s need to make Victor feel the same kind of pain he has felt his entire life due to Victor leads to him vindictively killing all of his creator’s loved ones. By doing so, the creature transforms into the terrifying monster he was always believed to be. In some twisted sense, it is a cycle. The creature is abused to the point where he loses what was good about him and morphs into what his abusers believe he is. Murdering everyone Victor loves was the final step in the creature becoming the product of all he has been through.
The complicated notions behind nature and nurture are discussed through the creature and his journey in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. The novel has many themes including the pursuit of knowledge, the dangers of technology, among others but the debate of nature versus nurture is definitely prevailing, The creature is a fascinating subject for the discussion as is a product of both nature and nurture, at least to some extent, yet nurture is clearly more evident in who he becomes by the end of the story. Frankenstein sparks many timeless questions, one of them being, “are individuals inherently