Frankenstein is a novel written by Mary Shelley. The novel is about a creature that is created by a scientist named Victor Frankenstein. The creature is made from different parts of dead animals and humans. Frankenstein’s creature is ugly and monster-like, which leads to him being rejected by society. This causes the creature to become angry and revengeful, leading to a series of tragic events.
The theme of appearance vs reality is explored in Frankenstein through the character of the creature. The creature is ugly and feared by everyone who sees him, but he is actually kind and gentle. He only becomes violent when he is rejected and mistreated by others. Frankenstein’s creature shows that looks can be deceiving, and that should not judge others based on their appearances.
Appearance versus reality is one of the primary thematics in Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. This theme is prevalent throughout the book, particularly during Shelley’s examinations of the characters and how they are frequently judged on their appearance rather than their personalities, such as Elizabeth being accepted into Victor’s family.
Frankenstein himself is an excellent example of this, as he is often misunderstood and deemed a monster due to his appearance, although he is actually very kind-hearted. This theme is also evident when Frankenstein creates the creature in his lab, as the creature is initially horrified by his own appearance and believes that Frankenstein has purposely created him to be ugly.
However, as the novel progresses, the creature begins to understand that appearances can be deceiving, and he eventually learns to accept himself for who he is. This theme is ultimately a commentary on society’s obsession with looks and the way that people are often judged unfairly based on their appearance. Frankenstein is a timeless novel because it speaks to this universal issue in a powerful way.
Certain settings also have an impact on how the characters in the book feel, most notably Victor since the book follows him and provides excellent detail into his thoughts and feelings at all times. Despite Frankenstein’s creation being dubbed a monster, he does not always appear to fit that definition, and he might be more human than some of the other characters. When the monster is interacting with people who seem to be irrelevant to Victor or those he knows, his real personality comes through.
Frankenstein’s creation is not given a name throughout the entire novel, which could be for a number of reasons. The most likely reason is that Mary Shelley wanted to show how he is seen by others and how they react to him. Frankenstein’s monster is constantly rejected and ridiculed because of his appearance, even though he did nothing wrong.
It could be argued that Frankenstein himself is responsible for the way people see his creation, due to the fact that he designed him to be “monstrous”. However, it is also possible that Shelley deliberately wanted to create sympathy for the creature, as she may have felt that society was unfair to those who were different.
One example of this theme is when Victor Frankenstein first sees his creation. Frankenstein has been working on creating this creature for a long time and is very excited to see it, but when he finally does the creature is not what he expected. The monster is huge and Frankenstein is terrified of him, which causes the monster to feel very rejected. This creates a cycle where the monster starts to hate Frankenstein because he’s constantly being rejected, and Frankenstein hates the monster because of his appearance.
Appearance vs reality is also evident when the monster confronts Frankenstein about creating him. The monster asks Frankenstein why he made him the way he did, and Frankenstein responds by saying that he was mad at God and wanted to create something that was opposite of Him. The monster then asks if Frankenstein thinks that he’s ugly, and Frankenstein says yes. The monster is hurt by this, but he doesn’t understand why Frankenstein would think that since he’s never seen himself.
He asks Frankenstein to make him a mate, so that he can have someone who will love him for what he is, but Frankenstein refuses. The monster decides to take revenge on Frankenstein by destroying everything he loves, which again shows how different the creature is from humans. Humans are capable of love and compassion, but the monster only knows how to feel anger and hatred.
The theme of appearance vs reality is important in Frankenstein because it helps to create sympathy for the creature. It also serves as a reminder that looks can be deceiving and that we should not judge people based on their appearance.
Despite the fact that Victor and his family had never met Elizabeth, they picked her based on her appearance alone. When Victor has gone off to school and collected the components needed to make life as we know it, he begins to describe “the lifeless thing that lay at [his] feet” (57). Shelley uses Victor’s thoughts to convey the mood in the room, and he describes how “shel saw the creature’s dull yellow eye open; it breathed hard, and a convulsive motion shook its limbs” (57).
Frankenstein is an interesting story because it takes on the appearance vs. reality theme in a number of different ways. Appearance can be deceiving and often is in Frankenstein. As Victor works on creating life, he has no idea what he is actually creating. In fact, Frankenstein is not even sure if the creature is truly alive or not.
The appearance of the creature is ghastly and Frankenstein’s family are all terrified of it but, as we come to find out, there is more to the creature than just his appearance. His soul is actually good and he eventually becomes a victim himself. Another example of appearance vs. reality can be seen when Frankenstein decides to abandon his creation. The creature approaches him later on and begs for Frankenstein’s help.
Frankenstein is so disgusted by the creature’s appearance that he rejects him and the creature is left to fend for himself. Frankenstein feels guilty about this later on and recognizes that he should have looked past the creature’s appearance and helped him. Frankenstein is a story that cautions us against judging things (or people) by their appearances. We should always look deeper and not be so quick to judge.
