The Sympathetic Monster

The Sympathetic Monster in “Frankenstein” After being dared to write the scariest story one could think of, Mary Shelley wrote the beginning of her now famous novel, Frankenstein, at a campfire with friends. Shelley decided to keep writing, and the classic literary work was born. In the story, Dr. Frankenstein creates a monster in his laboratory, and then abandons it. So my question is, who is the real monster in the story? Mary Shelley used irony, symbolism, and allegory in order to characterize the monster as sympathetic. Mary Shelley uses irony to portray the monster as sympathetic. Shelley uses books as key symbols of irony in the sense that they are dark and evil, while the monster is kind. “I found on the ground a leathern portmanteau containing several articles of dress and some books… Fortunately the books were written in the language, the elements of which I had acquired at the cottage; they consisted of Paradise Lost, a volume of Plutarch’s Lives, and the Sorrows of Werter,” was one quote showing the books of evil that the monster was reading (Shelley 114). Paradise Lost uses irony to show characters in the book as being all-powerful when the monster has little power over humans. Plutarch’s Lives taught the monster to think outside the box and learn to love, which had “surpassed my understanding and experience” (Shelley 115). Sorrows of Werter taught the monster about “Werter’s imaginations [of] despondency and gloom” (Shelley 115). Werter taught the monster an idea of gloom and sadness when it did not know what emotions were. Mary Shelley uses symbolism to show the monster as being sympathetic. The author uses Dr. Frankenstein’s letter from his cousin to symbolize the kind, although hideous, face of the monster. “Little alteration, except the growth of our dear children, has taken place since you left us. The blue lake and snow- clad mountains—they never change; and I think our placid home and our contented hearts are regulated by the same