Theme Of Evil In Frankenstein

Evil resides in all human beings. It excites. It compels. Most people try and ignore their feelings of evil and hide them. At best people keep their evil thoughts to themselves. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein explores evil by having the protagonist create a monstrous alter-ego. This ultimately shows that if people do not keep the evil side of themselves in control then they will fall victim to it. Delving into Frankenstein I will be looking at the approach Shelley took in showing the evil side of her main character and how that evil is not another being but in fact her characters alter ego.
Victor Frankenstein is a well-educated, wealthy man of science that challenged nature and nurtured his curiosity. Frankenstein was driven to madness after
. .” (170). Soyka also reminds us that the creature was never given a name he was only known to Victor as “fiend or devil” (170). In fact Shelley dedicated many chapters to the creation speaking to Victor. However we must remember to keep in mind that we are being told this story through Robert Walton’s interpretation of Victor’s story in letters to his sister. Much can be lost in translation. I disagree that the monster spoke at all. Victor Frankenstein, yet again isolated himself from those he loved by going to Mont Blanc. The pattern emerges again that he is surrounded by water and is laden with guilt which spurs a conversation with his other self. In Victor/alter-ego’s conversation the monster states that he can remember the moment he was born, “A strange multiplicity of sensations seized me, and I saw felt, heard and smelt at the same time” (Shelley 70). There is not a being on this earth that has ever or will ever be able to remember the moment they took their first breath or opened their eyes for the first time. In Keese’s research he found two professors of psychology that both agree, “there is no scientific evidence proving the ability of people to remember their birth” (6). We also must keep in mind the credibility of the narrators when involving the De Lacey family. The creation/alter-ego tells of all the good deeds he performed for the family. If an eight foot tall monster was living in a small enclosed space attached to their time home it would come to reason that it he would be noticed eventually. Not to mention that he was able to cut wood and clear snow without ever drawing attention to himself. Food for thought from Keese, “Can all of this be plausible, or are all of these descriptions