Ying and Yang

Author of Frankenstein Mary Shelley

The monster in Frankenstein regards himself as both Adam and Satan as he subject to the cruelties of mankind and neglected by his creator. Just like Adam he is the first of his kind alone and isolated.  In every human being there is the ability to do great evil and this evil prevails when people are neglected. The monster just wants friendship and to be able to communicate with his creator but he is denied this right. Adam wants to gain knowledge of the world and gives in to temptation by taking the apple. Similarly Frankenstein sets out to educate himself so he can wreak revenge upon his creator. This is how he regards himself as Satan as well as Adam. He began his life with good intentions but the desertion of his master drove him to rebel against him just as Satan fell from grace rebelling against God and falling from heaven to hell. Frankenstein examines the human condition and how good and evil are interconnected. The monster starts out like Adam with good intentions but concedes to sin becoming like Satan in rebellion leading to his downfall.

     Evil can grow within the good and vice versa. It is our socialization that shapes us into who we are and how we are treated by others. Primary socialization is normally enforced through parents or guardians. It is how we are trained to act, our mannerisms, morals, etc. The monster in the story was not offered this education and he was maltreated by his creator which I feel sparked the growth of evil within him. It’s just like racism in that it creates a vicious circle. If someone is slandered by someone stereotyping him/her, than that person is going to react in a negative way and perhaps fulfill the stereotype. This doesn't necessarily mean the stereotype is true. If the same person is addressed in a positive way, these stereotypes may never reach the surface. The monster in Frankenstein I feel is a human being deprived of a human life and treated like a monster which eventually turns him into a monster. The monster himself even says if he is treated right he will be good: “[m]ake me happy, and I shall again be virtuous” (103)

     I think ‘Frankenstein’ demonstrates how evil is present in many ways and sometimes evil is falsely perceived. For example both Frankenstein and the beast become evil but this evil is perceived differently. Frankenstein refers to the beast as being evil in character solely based on its looks: “demoniacal corpse” (59). This may also be a reference to the monster having become like Satan being a demon. There is a thin line between good and evil. Satan was an angel and Adam was free of sin but evil could still grow within them. However they both had the ability to remain good. It seems that the cruelties of mankind drove them to commit great evils but if given the chance they could have proved that they could be good.

     It is interesting in the scene with the blind man that he sees this good in the monster. As he is blind he is not discriminative towards others based on looks and he judges the monster based on his conversations with him. He is blind but he sees through words who the monster really is- a human being: “there is something in your words which persuades me that you are sincere….. it will afford me true pleasure to be in any way serviceable to a human creature” (136). The monster wants the friendship of Frankenstein: “[w]ill no intreaties cause thee to turn a favorable eye upon thy creature, who implores thy goodness and compassion?” (103). However Frankenstein’s wicked human nature in playing God and abandoning his creation (Adam) to a miserable life of solitude by animating him with ugly deformed looks; lead the monster to revolt against mankind just as Satan revolted against God.

     As the monster begins to gain knowledge of the world he sees the close link between good and evil: “[w]as man, indeed, at once so powerful, so virtuous, and magnificient, yet so vicious and base? He appeared at one time a mere scion of the evil principle, and at another as all that can be conceived as noble and godlike” (122). He knows he has become evil but wants to be good. Loneliness and abandonment drove him to do evil deeds but he seeks to be good again as he once was if only Frankenstein will accept his friendship: “Believe me, Frankenstein: I was benevolent; my soul glowed with love and humanity; but am I not alone, miserably alone?” (103). Frankenstein continues to neglect the monster and so the monster continues to play the role of Satan falling from grace where he once lived a pure and sinless life like Adam.

Works Cited

Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein. Rev. ed. London: Penguin Books, 2003. 59-136. Print.