You've now read the entirety of the Creature's story, so I'd like you to weigh in now on a classic debate: who is the real monster? While Victor calls the Creature a "wretch" and "daemon" from its awakening, should everyone agree? Or has Victor, through his own actions, descended into monstrosity himself?
10 Comments
Mitchell Johnson
11/17/2014 04:52:53 am
Present in both the creature and victor are qualities of both monstrous acts as well as tendencies of innocence. To me its unfair to label either of them as monster or not, but it is fair however to claim that both can, and have been monsters at certain points in the novel, and perfectly innocent beings at other times. Victor is a monster for creating the creature, and then abandoning it, and the creature is a monster for killing William. At the same time, Victor is a passionate man of science, who loves his family, and the creature is a curious intelligent being who just wants a friend. So to me its not a question of who is the monster, but a question of who is the monster during given situations.
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Jared Fogarty
11/17/2014 09:31:58 am
After going through the whole story, I believe that the creature is still the true "monster". As the novel goes on, it is apparent that the creature does not think and act like a normal human does. He is very opportunistic in his actions and is even attributed supernatural qualities of speed and stamina. Beyond this, the creature also seems to be very selfish. Although he has gone through a lot of maltreatment and was at one point fond of the DeLacey family, the creature turned into a monster after he was shot in the shoulder. The fact that the creature demands a companion for his exile shows his odd nature. While the creature recognizes that his life is miserable and that his creation was a mistake, he is willing to inflict that same pain on another creation just so he himself will not be the only lonely being.
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Faith Anderson
11/19/2014 12:45:54 am
I agree with you, Jared. The creature is still the "monster" and so is Victor. Neither of them think or act like humans; their morals and actions are messed up. I believe the creature is capable of doing good, especially since he learned it from the DeLaceys. However, the creature is acting selfishly because he wants others to be a miserable as he is. This can be related back to Victor. If we follow the allusion of Victor being God and the creature as Adam, God made Adam in his own image. I think Victor unconsciously did the same thing; he projected his bad qualities into the creature, and the creature has amplified them.
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Natalie Carlberg
11/17/2014 09:50:27 am
I disagree with you Jared for the fact that I do not think that the creature turned into a monster after he was shot. He was run out of the village by humans but then he kept trying to fit in with humanity and it did not work for him. I do not consider the creature the monster at all because he tried to get along with humanity and it is not his fault that he has not been accepted and turned down time after time. Also, if you were rejected by humanity and not accepted wouldn't you want somebody exactly like yourself so that you would have a companion? Everything I feel leads back to Victor because he created the creature and decided to leave him which has lead up to the creature being disappointed to the point of murdering a child. If Victor would have raised the creature right and broke it to him early that humanity would not like him and that it would just be him and Victor the rest of his life then nothing would have happened...it is all the monster's fault, the monster being Victor.
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Elizabeth Anderson
11/18/2014 05:11:04 am
Natalie, I agree completely. The creature is very childlike, and as a "child", is in a very influential phase of his life. The cruel treatment he receives, starting the very beginning of his life, shapes his beliefs and impacts him greatly- and not necessarily in a good way. The creature is naturally so hopeful and open to love. The treatment he receives as he stumbles his way through his infant life extinguishes those feelings and replaces them with thoughts of revenge. Naturally, a child without parents is going to be more influenced by society. This is the case with the creature, again going back to Victor as well. The creature only wants love and companionship, going so far as to spare the De Lacey's food and chop wood for them. He doesn't kill out of sheer desire to kill. It stemmed from repressed feelings of anger after being broken by humanity. He is naturally an innocent child and an optimist. The hardships he endures as a result of Victor's abandonment of him are what changes him.
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Taylor Leach
11/18/2014 06:29:43 am
I believe that the creature is definitely not a monster in this situation. A monster would be a person or thing that acted terrible and wretched without being influenced; they would be born terrible. The creature was treated so poorly and all he longer for was to be loved. It was not until humanity lashed out at the creature and misjudged him his intentions based on his looks that he began to show "monster" qualities. I think humanity and namely Victor are the real monsters for failing to understand the creature and see what a compassionate thing he can be. The real monster is the one who brings out the negative sides of others.
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Sara King
11/18/2014 11:57:36 pm
I totally agree with Taylor; the creature is not the monster. Considering the background in which the creature came from, not having anyone to love and care for him, creates a sense of pity toward the creature. The fact that Victor created such a creature and just totally neglects him and hates him, makes him the monster, not the creature. Also, humanity comes into play when everyone who sees the creature just automatically assumes he is bad because of the way he looks: humanity is the monster as well. Humanity and Victor are the monsters in this book without a doubt.
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Alison Von Haden
11/19/2014 12:14:35 am
I completely agree with Taylor and Sara. The real monster is not the creature. Even though the creature may at some points in his life have monstrous actions that were influenced by his abandonment and not being loved by anyone, he is still not the monster. Humanity and Victor are to blame for how the creature reacts to life. Victor's abandonment and not wanting to do anything with the creature is monstrous itself. Humanity acted quickly to judge the creature for the way that he looks, calling him a monster because he looked different than everyone else. In my opinion the true monsters are humanity and Victor for their continuous monstrous actions against the creature.
Faith Anderson
11/19/2014 10:36:55 am
I disagree; I think the creature is just as much as monster as Victor is. This is sort of similar to Estella's situation in "Great Expectations." Estella would have been capable of changing her ways and treating Pip better; the creature is also capable of showing mercy to the people who have mistreated him. The creature and Victor are true monsters because they want to blame others for how they turned out instead of taking responsibility for their actions.
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Pearl Davis
11/23/2014 10:26:51 am
I definitely think the situation goes half and half. Victor is the monster in regards to how he treats the creature. He brings into being something which probably shouldn't exist in the first place-- though I will say that these actions never mean harm, he is just ignorant. Then, upon finishing his creation, he leaves it to fend for itself when Victor knows nothing of its intelligence or strength. He takes no time to learn what his creation is capable of or how it acts. If he were to spend some time with it, he would learn that the creature was actually quite gentle and kind in its early days. Though this was definitely irresponsible and unkind on Victor's part, this does not give the creature the right to run rampant killing people. His first murder of William seems like something of a hasty decision however, driven by a sudden bout of rage. I think he should have thought it through and then maybe try talking to Victor. Victor isn't so much a monster on society as he is an idiot who mistreats his "son". The creature is a dejected outcast who sees humanity as his enemy since they never show him any kindness despite the kindness he shows them. Leave a Reply. |
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