Introduction
Frankenstein is the most famous piece of literature by Mary Shelley. The novel tells the story of Victor Frankenstein, a scientist, who decided to make a living creature on his own. He successfully coped with the task, but the obtained result was terrible, which made Frankenstein reject his artificially created son. Consequently, the creature had to live in isolation and became the real monster for society since he committed many crimes. However, viewing the creature as a child will reveal that he is a victim rather than a monster because he needed assistance to meet social norms.
Revealing a Child
To begin with, one should state that specific behavior is one of the most characteristic features that allow readers to compare the creature’s development and actions to those of a child. Childish and good nature manifests itself in the creature’s initial efforts. Firstly, when he describes himself, he mentions that his dreams are to talk to amiable and lovely animals (Shelley 129). Secondly, he says that his “life has been hitherto harmless and in some degree beneficial” (Shelley 131). Finally, the most significant example of the creature’s positive behavior happens when he saved a girl from a rapid stream (Shelley 140). These examples demonstrate that the character under analysis has a gentle heart that is a typical feature of children. It is so because they diffuse kindness since they are not familiar with the vices of the world. Thus, the creature resembles a child because he cannot understand and predict the consequences of his actions, and harmless intentions lead to adverse outcomes. A suitable example of this claim happened when the creature entered a cottage in search of food. In the building, he met an older man, who saw the beast, shrieked loudly, and “ran across the fields with a speed of which his debilitated form hardly appeared capable” (Shelley 102). That situation occurred because the creature was not familiar with social norms and standards since nobody taught him. Consequently, he was unprepared for the world’s cruelties, just as children are when they start getting acquainted with society.
In addition to that, the creature has limited experience and knowledge of the world, which leads to a few issues for him. For example, it relates to the situation mentioned above when he rescued a girl. After that, he was shot by the girl’s father because the latter was scared by the creature’s appearance. As mentioned in the book, his “sufferings were augmented also by the oppressive sense of the injustice and ingratitude” (Shelley 140). Like a child, the creature could not understand when the man fired on him since the creature could only consider his point of view. The absence of this experience results in the fact that the character resembles a child because the two cannot control their negative emotions. However, if an angry child does not have sufficient power to harm others significantly, the creature can impress with this ability. When Frankenstein refuses to make a female companion for the character, the latter becomes irritated and kills Elizabeth, Frankenstein’s wife (198). This scenario resembles a case when a child is upset because they do not obtain a promised toy. There is no doubt that the consequences for Frankenstein are more tragic, but motives are generally identical.
Finally, the creature’s inner world is another feature that contributes to similarities between him and a child. It refers to the fact that he is sensitive and delicate, which becomes revealed when the character suffers and cries over Frankenstein’s dead body (Shelley 224). This event indicates that the creature has a fragile soul irrespective of its brutal and terrifying appearance. This fact allows readers to understand that he is a controversial character who combines different and even opposite features. Thus, if one considers all the examples above, it is possible to see that the creature has a few childish features, which does not allow readers to view it as a monster. These facts and events demonstrate that his scary appearance hides a gentle heart that is well familiar with kindness and helping others. However, the creature is lonely because both he is unique in the world and his father refused him. Consequently, he does not have anybody to teach him how to behave in society. That is why the creature often experiences problems that result in his image of a dangerous monster.
Conclusion
It has been shown that reconsidering the development and actions of the creature can help better understand his true motives. It relates to the fact that the character has many shared features with a child. They include a gentle heart, inability to predict or understand the consequences of his actions, limited life experience, failure to control negative emotions, and fragile soul. These features demonstrate that it is not reasonable to blame the creature for committing crimes because a social norm difference was the underlying reason for all the offenses. It is possible to conclude that depicting the creature as a child will show that the responsibility for the crimes rests with all the people who did not provide him with the necessary assistance.
Work Cited
Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein. ICON Classics, 2005.