Creation is defined as the act of bringing something into existence, and is normally attributed to procreation or an act of some divine being. Humans have for a long time marveled over the act of creation and its many varying concepts, not the least of which includes the prospect of creating another in their own image. Despite being fictional, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein showcases both the wonder and the downfall of creation. The fascination with creation leads only to revelation of the self.
As illustrated by author Robert Horton the story of Frankenstein is a perfect example of how human beings can suffer from a god-complex gone wrong (2014). Ever since self-realization came about there have been those that have wondered what it might be like to be able to create life in the same manner as God. While most have never dared to attempt such an undertaking as Victor Frankenstein, the lack of humility before the essence of creation is nothing new. The awe, wonder, and fascination with how life is created lends a cover to the madness that lies underneath. In a sense such reactions mask the horror in a manner that allows for the innocence of such pursuits to bear up under the intense scrutiny and skepticism that would normally accompany such a questionable undertaking.
Life is meant to be precious and revered in a way, but taken as it is, not as people would
have it. The lesson imparted by the character of Victor Frankenstein is that hubris eventually
becomes the ruination of those who suffer from such a condition. The lack of humility towards a
force of nature that is essentially responsible for the existence of life in all its varied forms
swiftly becomes his downfall as he is reminded full force of the madness that lies within his actions. In the creation of his own unique being he swiftly becomes aware of the madness that lies within his own heart (Higgins 2008), and thus sees the reflection of his inner monster in the features of the beast he brings to life.
In order to truly understand how Victor Frankenstein became the deluded and maniacal character he is so often portrayed as it is critically important to remember one very crucial fact: he was not always the villain. Some might argue that he never truly became the villain, that he was a victim of his own unfortunate circumstances, and that had his experiment not gone so horribly wrong that he might have been seen as a type of revolutionary. While it can be argued that the creation of life should best be left to the divine, the essence of mankind as proven by the tale is to find curiosity in every aspect of life and to wonder over its humble origins. Victor Frankenstein, creator of one of the most notorious monsters throughout history, has long since become the lightning rod to the cautions that every individual must take to insure their own morality.
However innocent he might have been in the beginning of the story however the young
scientist eventually became the antagonist in that he could not be seen to own up to his own
mistakes, seeking perfection despite his status as an imperfect being. Always there is something
else to blame, some force that works against him, until finally the reader may well begin to
believe that the fates in fact are attempting to save Frankenstein from his own misguided
machinations. Written as a man who seeks to know as much as possible and to master that
which no one else has ever before dared, Frankenstein is the epitome of a mad scientist, not
because he is crazed or in any way disillusioned, but because his lack of humility knows
absolutely no bounds.
This illustrates the downfall of mankind when knowledge is not tempered by wisdom. Thinking himself superior to others Frankenstein valued knowledge over wisdom, seeking to prove he could do what others said was impossible without thinking as to whether he should. While some might call the moral code of science a hindrance and even childish in its fear of upsetting a sense of natural order, men such as Frankenstein not only laugh in the face of such sentiment, but often disregard it entirely. Thus when hubris becomes the most dangerous weapon they find that the blame, no matter where it is laid, still comes to settle squarely on the shoulders of those who perpetrate such acts.
In failing to take blame for his actions Victor Frankenstein becomes the madman that so many have called him, and enacts the chain of events that cause his creation to become so infamous in the eyes of readers and moviegoers alike. In the manner of any individual that denies blame for their own actions the scientist creates his own hellish nightmare. What is different from most in the case of Frankenstein is that his mistakes are not just deadly to himself and to others, but his greatest and most ill-conceived mistake swiftly becomes a nightmare from which none can awaken. In denying his responsibility he condemns both himself and all those around him as the creature continues its path of destruction. In this Frankenstein sees the price of his pride and arrogance.
Had Frankenstein created a mindless brute more akin to the creature played by Boris
Karloff in one of the earliest movie adaptations it might have been possible to reason that the
mad scientist had no knowledge of what might happen. Yet in Mary Shelly’s original
manuscript the creature was quite intelligent and on par almost with its creator in terms of
eloquence and even wisdom. The first rendering of the creature was no simpleton despite being
horrid in appearance, thus Frankenstein, being of the intelligent sort as well, could have easily
deduced what a thinking individual would do when spurned in such ways as his creation endured. Even the monster’s creator couldn’t stand the sight of it, further insuring that it would become even more threatening in its attitudes towards Frankenstein.
The legend of Frankenstein has been replayed over and over again throughout its long history among the literary world, with many different renditions appearing throughout the years as it is reviewed and idolized by those who wish to place their own mark upon the story. While the broader and more interchangeable ideas as written by Mary Shelly have been adapted to the time and mood of the generation, the essence of Frankenstein has kept firm throughout. The story of a man who thought himself smart enough to fancy that he could divine the secret of creation is a thrilling lure to the tale, though the tale becomes complete when the created turns upon the creator and thus completes the circuit. The tale of Frankenstein is a story of introspection in a way, a look to the inner self that is rarely noted and hardly ever truly realized.
In this case the ego of the creator, Frankenstein, was such that he went forward without bothering to wonder why. His knowledge allowed him to place himself so highly above others that the concerns of humanity no longer seemed to apply until they were needed, as has been shown through several renditions of the story. Almost always in the portrayal of the character of Frankenstein it is seen that he is haughty, arrogant, and even a bit off in terms of morality and ethics. While his domain is knowledge and the quest for what makes life possible, it is often seen that his deficits are that of moral character and any redeeming ethical qualities having to do with the logic that should define his actions. He acts without thinking, and in doing so foregoes the emotional content that might otherwise lend him the wisdom he would need to think twice upon his actions.
The question of creating another life is one that has dipped into and out of human culture
for generations, though hardly ever with any serious consideration. As a cautionary tale, as well as a work of fiction, Frankenstein reveals the hubris of mankind and what it means to defy nature. In creating a mockery of human life Frankenstein effectively thumbs his nose at tradition and nature alike, trying his hand at harnessing a force that is not to be controlled.
The fact that Frankenstein is written by a woman is rather interesting in that between men and women only one gender knows what it is like to truly give birth to another living being, no matter that men contribute to the act. From her own viewpoint Mary Shelly is an intriguing author in that she describes so well the madness of a man who, thinking himself leagues above others in his own field as well as others, cannot see the horror of his own machinations until they are finally beyond his control. The author goes into great detail describing how elation swiftly turns to horror and then absolute disgust. Despite having created the creature, Frankenstein becomes repulsed by what his science has wrought, and eventually spurns the construct. The correlation between men, women, and children can be seen in a vaguely distorted manner, though it is evident in how men view the fruit of their loins as opposed to women.
Frankenstein’s monster is not only the lumped together heap of flesh that it was created as, but it is also the abortion of a young scientist’s bungled attempt to flirt with the divine using science as his go-between. So horrified by his own creation is Frankenstein that he turns upon his own creation, his own child in a sense, and thus sets off a chain of events that eventually end in his own demise. Human beings are often the cause of their own destruction, and in fiction it is often no different. With the dismissal of his own creation Victor Frankenstein also dismissed his final vestige of morality, destroying the few scant principles he had left.
Ethics and morality are a touchy subject amongst human beings, as many believe they
have a great deal of both but are found lacking when the moment comes to prove the existence of
such traits. Frankenstein is among those who seek knowledge for the betterment of his own curiosity and little else, and ethics and morality are seen as mere words, cautionary labels that he all but shreds as he goes about his misguided deeds. Within the tale of Frankenstein the young scientist is not an evil man per se, but instead a fellow who seeks to deny any and all limits that are set in front of him. In doing so he manages to cross several dangerous moral and ethical lines that most human beings would never dare to approach.
There is no doubt that Frankenstein did not set out to make a monster, but circumstances being what they colluded to be he was successful in creating a life, but not that which he wished. The creature, knowing what it was and how unnatural its life was, and as well possessed by the defiant spirit of humanity that creates both individualism and personal freedom, is reviled by its creator. It is left alone to wander in the wilderness, where it by chance alone learns to speak and become educated enough that it can communicate. When it becomes reviled and chased by the rest of humanity however it turns upon its creator, all but begging an answer from Frankenstein as to why it was created. To make matters worse, Frankenstein disavows his creation entirely, calling it such things as wretch, devil, and even ogre.
In truth Frankenstein is very much like a gifted child that has been spoiled their entire life
and led to the idea that they are somehow entitled to that which they have no right. The effort to
create life was a promise in his mind that he might one day become a father to a new race, a
creator of a superior type of being that might improve upon the otherwise flawed and outdated
nature of mankind. What he received was a monstrous reminder of how pride can stain even the
best of intentions. In finding that his best efforts had been foiled by a variable he’d thought
inconsequential Frankenstein was forced to face the reality of his failure, and was unable to do
so.
His decisions create a cascade of torment that the creature unleashes upon him as it begins to plague his life in a manner that is most befitting. A human being’s sins often come back to haunt them until they are resolved in some manner, or until that individual is no more. In the case of Frankenstein, his sins eventually become his ruination. While he loses a friend and a brother it is the loss of his bride that finally sends him over the edge, vowing revenge upon his creation in an ironic twist of fate. In a very real sense what Frankenstein strove to create became the very thing that destroyed him in every possible way.
Humanity is often awed and driven to create in ways that invite both caution and danger. The act of creation, though largely biological (Yousef 2002), is also a product of emotion and psychological need in all beings. Where humans differ from the other creatures upon this world is in the act of seeking to fulfill a legacy that begins and ends with their own desires. Humans seek immortality through creation in one form or another, and are just as capable of turning upon their own creations when said individuals do not perform as expected.
Victor Frankenstein is a man who sought knowledge and a means to unravel the mystery
of life through death, and in doing so discovered the reason why no man before him had dared to
look beyond the veils that divide the two. In disturbing the natural order he not only discovered the consequences of dabbling in such dangerous territory (Lunsford 2010), but he found out a great deal about himself that he’d not known prior. What others had seen plainly he only came to witness when the gravity of his mistake came crashing down upon his life, creating such havoc that in the end he could not help but seek the eradication of his own creation. What he sought to gain in the name of science he lost in the pursuit of revenge against the creation that had taken so much from him.
The story of Frankenstein often serves as a means of analyzing human behavior and how it can be both destructive and introspective. Victor Frankenstein is one of the perfect characters to study as he displays many different character quirks and a superiority complex (Nandrea 2007) that many people can relate to or at least understand. His is a character that at heart is not a demon or a devil, but is far from a saint as he shows with his actions. Intelligence is a virtue to Frankenstein, while most other emotions are secondary and at times expendable.
There is no question that Victor Frankenstein was a man obsessed by one pursuit after
another, or that he was unable to see what might come from his decisions. The reasons behind
why he created a monster, why he then spurned it, and then why he sought revenge all have one
common thread, and it is the man who perpetrated the crime believed himself smart enough to
assume the role of creator without the foresight to see what could happen. Frankenstein was
shown the reality of how his hubris affected the world around him and could not handle the truth,
and therefore attempted to spurn it and send it away. When it did not react in the manner he
expected, he sought less to understand it than he did to eradicate it. He saw his own failure in his
creation, and could not tolerate the blow to his precious ego.
Works Cited
Horton, Robert. Frankenstein. New York: Columbia University Press, 2014. eBook.
Higgins, David Minden. Frankenstein: Character Studies. London: Continuum, 2008. eBook.
Lunsford, Lars. “The Devaluing of Life in Shelley's FRANKENSTEIN.” Explicator 68.3 (2010):
174-176. Web. 2 April 2016.
Nandrea, Lorri. “Objectless Curiosity: Frankenstein, The Station Agent, and Other Strange
Narratives.” Narrative 15.3 (2007): 335-356. Web. 2 April 2016.
Yousef, Nancy. “The Monster in a Dark Room: Frankenstein, Feminism, and Philosophy.”
Modern Language Quarterly 63.2 (2002): 197-226. Web. 1 April 2016.
