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In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, many lessons were embedded into the story on how society acts towards the different. Modern society has set an unbreakable code that individuals must follow to be accepted by others. Those who do not follow the rule of being standard would be hated and left alone, solely due to the fact that they are different. The monster was the victim of this system commonly used to characterize or judge a person or a being, only by their outer appearance.
In contrast, the monster started out like an innocent child that was eventually shattered by society, by constantly being rejected by society time after time. After the monster realized that people did not like his appearance, he thought that people might like his personality. However, his later attempt turned into a tragedy as old man's family came home. Victor Frankenstein his creator, rushed out of the laboratory after looking at the appearance of the monster he had created.
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Though people thought that he was supposed to be a mother figure as he created this monster. Furthermore, Frankenstein's ignorance of the monster ultimately resulted in his creation slowly destroys his life. Which untimely resulted in his early death. Lastly, these rules in modern society are clearly reflected onto the monster, it is responsible for the transformation of the once childlike creature into a true monster.Firstly, the monster was characterized by society just on his physical appearance. After the monster escapes after he was created, he found a hut an enters it in search of food.
The old man inside of the hut screams and runs out of the hut in fear, because of how hideous the monster looked. Unexpectedly, the monster ventures into a town. Though he had hardly placed his foot within the door before the children shrieked, and one of the women fainted (93). As a result of the two incidents, the monster understands that people are afraid of his appearance and he resolves to stay away from humans. The old man and the villagers were so terrified by the monster's looks and appearance at first glance, their only objective was to either run, faint, scream or to throw things at him. They were feared by the monster because he looked different and appeared bigger and taller. This was a clear reflection of modern society as people in the modern world judge others based on their looks and appearance. Considering that he was different, he was hated and bullied by others without him even speaking. As these two events were just after the monster have been created, he did not know how to speak or express his emotions. Given these points, the monster was hated by others based on his looks, which is a clear reflection of the different in today's world. Furthermore, the monster was accepted for his personality but his physical form overwhelms it, which still got him rejected by the general public. The monster finds shelter in a shed built up against a cottage. Through a crack the monster was able to learn about basic vocabulary, speaking, reading, writing, the history of human societies and European culture. As the cottager Felix teaches these things to Safie. The monster wishes to be accepted as he targets the blind old man De Lacey on a perfect opportunity when the others were gone. He approaches De Lacey and begins to explain his situation, as De Lacey treats him as a normal human being. This event ends tragically as the others came back and were horrified by his appearance; Felix drives the monster away by violently hitting him with a stick. The Monster could have killed everyone there as he stated: I could have torn him limb from limb, as the lion rends the antelope (115). However, he did not do that as he begged for peace and acceptance from the others. In this passage, the monster speaks and acts like a normal human through his conversation with De Lacey, but others simply judged him off of his physical appearance and did not want to listen to him. In summary, this event reflects modern society as even though people could act perfectly normal, they could be categorized and ignored depended on their physical form.Never the less, the monster's source of hatred toward humans originates from his first experiences with humans. In a way, the monster started out as an innocent human child figure what was eventually shattered, by being constantly rejected by human society. His first encounter with humans was when he opened his yellow eyes for the first time and witnessed Victor Frankenstein, his creator. Victor Frankenstein was so disgusted by his own creation, he rushed out of his own laboratory and ran away. Frankenstein should have made him less offending if even he, the creator, could not stand his disgusting appearance. If physical appearance were not important, then the creature would have had a chance of being accepted into the community with love and care. Though, society does believe that physical appearance is important and it does influence the way people act towards each other. There was a moment however when Frankenstein was moved by the creature. He felt what the duties of a creator towards his creature were (126). and decided that he had to make another creature, a companion for the original. Thus, the monster could have fitted into society if people did not push the monster aside, or if his creator had raised him up instead of running away. Ultimately, the hatred from society and the ignorance from his creator turned this innocent little child figure into a true monster.The society is the one responsible for the transformation of the once childlike creature into the monster that we all know. The public does not realize that society has flaws and that they must be removed before our primal instincts continue to isolate and hurt the people who are different. The monster in the book was a clear example of this. He never meant to be the evil, but he suffered physical and mental abuse from the society which eventually turned him into a villainy character. Even though he could talk and act perfectly normal, he did not escape the weight on how people judge others based on physical appearance. Which was clearly shown in the interaction between the monster and the De Lacey family. The monster was born different, instead of giving him help and care to help him; the society as a whole bash and curses the monster, including his creator. In conclusion, the monster in the book Frankenstein by Mary Shelley was a reflection of a victim to the flaws in society. Without the help of others, the different in society would be targeted and left alone by others that would treat them differently and another normal person.
Society Problems in Frankenstein. (2019, Aug 20). Retrieved from https://studymoose.com/society-problems-in-frankenstein-essay
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