Sympathy in Mary Shelleys Frankenstein Essay - 2937 Words

Sympathy in Mary Shelleys Frankenstein In her novel, Frankenstein, Mary Shelley employs many innovative literary techniques to invoke feelings of sympathy for the monster. Sympathy is created by the author both by making the readers pity the monster’s loathsome existence and by leading them to understand his violent and cruel actions. We pity the creature because of the way he is treated by mankind and we can identify with his feelings and reactions and understand why he behaves as he does. Shelley uses different narrators throughout the novel and the reader sympathises with the views of these people to differing degrees. The language used when describing the physical appearance of the monster and his feelings is very†¦show more content†¦The setting in the Arctic wastelands is harsh, cold and alien. Walton appears to be a very decent and trustworthy person and the reader is led to believe his initial impressions of Victor Frankenstein as the innocent victim of terrible circumstances to be correct. Later Victor Frankenstein tells his story to Walton and the reader is introduced to the world of Victor, the privileged child of loving parents who goes to university and becomes a passionate, introverted young man. He became utterly single-minded in his quest to create ‘an animal as complex and wonderful as man’. We feel his sense of despair and horror when he first views his creation, which he calls a ‘catastrophe’. The descriptions the author uses are very strong and powerful, ‘yellow skin’, ‘watery eyes’, ‘dun-white sockets’, ‘shrivelled complexion’ and ‘straight black lips’. This truly seems to be a horrific sight. Victor tells of the ‘demoniacal corpse to which I had so miserably given life’. Yet we know that this is indeed Victor’s creation and we feel sympathy for the creature that through no fault of its own had been brought into existence. The more Victor tells of his loathing and disgust for the monster, the more the feelings of pity and sympathy are stirred in the reader for this poor, hideous, unloved creature. The setting was very important for the scene of when the monster was brought to life - it wasShow MoreRelated Sympathy in Mary Shelleys Frankenstein Essay3354 Words   |  14 PagesSympathy in Mary Shelleys Frankenstein Mary Shelley was born in 1797. She had a difficult life with many family upsets’, miscarriages and suffered personal depression; she died aged 53. Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein firstly as a short ghost story but it was published as a novel in 1816. Frankenstein is a Gothic novel and it deals with two genres, Gothicism and science fiction. Gothicism is part of the Romantic Movement that started in the late eighteenth century. The Romantic MovementRead MoreEssay Readers Sympathies in Mary Shelleys Frankenstein1587 Words   |  7 PagesReaders Sympathies in Mary Shelleys Frankenstein Frankenstein a gothic horror, written by Mary Shelley in 1818, can be interpreted as a subtle autobiography; whose narrative reflects on the characters throughout the story. It was written at the time where the Romantic period replaced the age of reason, the time where dreams and ideas replaced logic and science. The two main characters in the story, Victor and the monster are used as metaphors for this. Shelley usesRead MoreEssay about Sympathy in Mary Shelleys Frankenstein986 Words   |  4 PagesSympathy in Mary Shelleys Frankenstein Frankenstein for many people is a huge fiendish monster, a brainless oaf with a couple of neck bolts, who is a horrible murderer. This image has been created by Boris Karloff and other television/film images. I also thought like that, believing Frankenstein to be a monstrous murderer, so when I was met with the text I was surprised to find as a mad scientist who creates a monster. This changed my opinion greatly at first. Read MoreSympathy For The Monster In Mary Shelleys Frankenstein887 Words   |  4 Pagesseveral times I had sympathy for the monster in the novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. Victor came from a privileged family and decided he wanted to play god, which is when he created the monster. It was selfish of Victor to create the monster and leave without explaining the world it. After reading this essay I think you will also have sympathy for the monster. Sympathy is when you have feelings of pity or sorrow towards someones misfortune (Oxford Dictionaries, 1998). I had sympathy for the monsterRead MoreFrankenstein: Mary Shelleys Ability to Create Sympathy for the Monster1851 Words   |  8 PagesMary Shelley’s Frankenstein is ‘one of the pioneering works of modern science fiction’, and is also a frightening story that speaks to the ‘mysterious fears of our nature’. Mary Shelley mocks the idea of â€Å"playing God†, the idea that came from the Greek myth of Prometheus, of the Greek titan who stole Zeus’ gift of life. Both the story of Frankenstein and Prometheus reveal the dark side of human nature and the dangerous effects of creating artificial life. Frankenstein reveals the shocking realityRead MoreCreation of Sympathy For The Monster In Vol Chapter 5 and Vol Chapter 7 In Mary Shelleys Frankenstein820 Words   |  4 PagesCreation of Sympathy For The Monster In Vol Chapter 5 and Vol C hapter 7 In Mary Shelleys Frankenstein Sympathy is created for the monster in chapter five and chapter seven in Mary Shelleys Frankenstein by a variety of methods. These methods are utilised and explored deeply throughout the novel. Initially, Shelley introduces the creation of Frankensteins monster, through the viewpoint of Dr Frankenstein himself. This first interpretation of him is very descriptive andRead MoreSympathy And Sympathy In Frankenstein1525 Words   |  7 PagesTo be able to feel sympathy, humans first must be able to read into and understand another’s emotions. Mary Shelley uses this human aspect in her novel Frankenstein, as readers’ emotions are played. Set in the early 1900s, the novel is a recount of Victor Frankenstein’s life as he tells it to Robert Walter, a man leading an exploration to the North Pole. Frankenstein starts his narrative explaining how he was a very curious child, and eventually went off to college and conducted an experiment onRead More The Role of Women in Mary Shelleys Frankenstein Essay1434 Words   |  6 PagesThe Role of Women in Mary Shelleys Frankenstein Whether an author is conscious of the fact or not, a fictional work cannot avoid reflecting the political, social, economic, and religious background of the author. Therefore, regardless of Frankensteins categorization being that of science fiction, Mary Shelley reveals her own fears and thoughts, and, as a result, reveals a great deal about the time and place in which she wrote. She mentions specific geographical locations throughoutRead MoreThe Most Sympathetic Character in Mary Shelleys Frankenstein1336 Words   |  6 PagesMost Sympathetic Character in Mary Shelleys Frankenstein Frankenstein was written in 1816 by Mary Shelley when she was eighteen years old. Her early life mirrored some of the main parts of the story. For example Victor Frankensteins mother died when he was seventeen of scarlet fever and Mary Shelleys mother died in childbirth. This shows a correlation between their pasts as both of their mothers died when they were quite young Mary Shelleys fathers second wife discardedRead MoreThe Tragedy Of Frankenstein And His Creature1158 Words   |  5 PagesAlejandra Guevara Ms. Garcia AP English Lit 3 12/14/16 The Tragedy of Frankenstein and his Creature Ever since its inception in 1818, Mary Shelley’s ‘Frankenstein’ has fueled the imaginations of thousands of readers through its portrayal of conflicted scientist Victor Frankenstein, and his neglected creation — referred to as the Creature in its first appearances, and later called the Monster. Though rich in storytelling, perhaps ‘Frankenstein’s most enduring quality is its wide array of themes