The De Lacey family Essay Example

The De Lacey family Paper What does Mary Shelley reveal about human relationships and society in Frankenstein? Mary Shelley has revealed many different aspects of human relationships and society in the novel. She has based the novel around three narrators, showing different perspectives. Society at this time was going through a period of radical reform, which is shown in the novel. She includes the treatment of outsiders, which leads us to consider why they are classed as an outsider? In Frankenstein there is portrayal of authority, of the family and abuse of power. There is a comparison between Victor Frankenstein and the creature, how one of them wants to be part of a community and the other does not. But there is a similarity between Walton and Victor Frankenstein. In this novel, Mary Shelley shows how Walton and Frankenstein are very similar. This relationship that Mary Shelley created show us that people who are a like get on well with each other. When they first met, they like each other immediately and Walton loves him as a brother. Both characters are intellectual; they studied many books, mainly physics. They are both lonely people who do not mind being isolated from the world outside, they do not have friends that are intellectual enough to be on the same wavelength as each other. Prohibitions: both go against their fathers wishes. They want to prove themselves and live up to the role model presented by their fathers. In Frankensteins narrative, we find out that he does not want to be part of society. He is too buried up in his work and fails to think of anyone else. He forgets his family, abandons daylight and does not consider what he will do with his creation once its brought to life. We will write a custom essay sample on The De Lacey family specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on The De Lacey family specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on The De Lacey family specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Alphonse Frankenstein, the father of Victor is a rich, noble, well respected man, he had filled several public situations with honour and reputation. He was respected by all who knew him. He showed loyalty to his friend Beaufort, by his determination to seek him out and his willingness to give him money and assistance. Alphonse also found a home for the orphaned Caroline, whom he married. Victor sees his father as a good parent, but we notice he is a distant man. He sends Victor away to university in another country. Victor can not approach his father and tell him his real problems. Alphonse wants to see Victor and Elizabeth married quickly. Mary Shelley makes Alphonse have a split personality. He appears to all the other characters (except Victor) as a wonderful man, but they dont see how he gets his own way most of the time, e. g. Victor marrying Elizabeth. Victor Frankenstein introduces the creature to us. Mary Shelley has set the scene on a dreary night of November, which means it is dark and cold. The creation is set in a damp and dingy basement. Victors description of the creature changes. First he is described as beautiful, but then when the creature reaches out to Frankenstein, he is horrified and describes him as a daemoniacal corpse and a daemon. Frankenstein then runs away from the creature in horror. He has left the creature on its own not knowing what to do in life, as Frankenstein has not carried out his parental duty. The creature is left on its own to fend for its self, without no parents to teach him. His first experience is when he finds shelter in a forest, he wakes in the night. Cold, alone and cries. This makes us the reader feel pity for him. During the creatures narrative, we see how he is evolving, he learns about himself and gradually begins to distinguish his sensations. He starts learning about the world, he discovers fire and tries to cook his food. The creature is like a child, but his progress is much more rapid and at a fast rate. The creature learnt how to speak from the following books: Sorrows of Werther, Plutarchs Lives, Paradise Lost and Ruins of Empires. The De Lacey family Essay Example The De Lacey family Paper This essay will be an exploration of the causes of Victor Frankensteins downfall, and eventually his tragic fate, from the famous Mary Shelley novel Frankenstein. There are several aspects of this novel that I need consider when writing about this tragedy, for example the style that Mary Shelley uses when producing the novel and the old English format of writing. At a first glance of the novel I feel that Victor is solely to blame for his own tragic death, as he was the man who put together the creature who eventually killed him because of the lack of emotion Victor had shown towards his creation. This novel deals with Victor Frankensteins love of modern science, which he uses to construct a monstrous creature. As victor first sights his creature, he is quickly to reject his unsightly appearance. The monster become increasingly frustrated with his creator (Victor), and ultimately begins to murder the friends and family closest and dearest to Victor Frankenstein. The creation begins to feel a tremendous hatred towards the human race because of there prejudice. This hatred turns towards Victors younger brother William, as he captures and kills his brother in cold blood. The creature uses his knowledge gained from the De Lacey family to frame Justine (a family servant of the Frankenstein family) for the murder of William. Soon after the murder Justine is hung for murder and the creature approaches Frankenstein and demands he creates another being to become his companion. At first Victor agrees to create the monster a companion, but at the last minute changes his mind and stopped creation the new being. We will write a custom essay sample on The De Lacey family specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on The De Lacey family specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on The De Lacey family specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer This was the final straw for the creature, which showed his creator was truly against his him, and as a result the monster killed Victors only true love Elizabeth. And later Victor was to die of natural causes in his sleep; the creature and the creator were both burnt together, just as they were at the start of the novel, together. Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein in 1816, at a time when there was a tremendous advance in science and technology. These advances had wide spread affects on society. New manufacturing techniques were developed, which affected cost of the traditional development of products. These developments in technology and science may have affected the thoughts that Mary Shelley has used in producing this novel, for example the technological advances were both exciting and frightening. Exciting because of the venture into the unknown, and the possibility of new discoveries. But on the other hand frightening as the true unknown is ahead of them. The Gothic and Science Fiction genre may have also been a factor, which has led to certain aspects of this book. Gothic novels were very popular in the nineteenth century and Frankenstein was one of the first Science Fiction novels. Mary Shelleys experiences of summer 1816 may have supported this gothic genre as during her stay in the Swiss Alps, she, and some of her friends began to entertain one another with ghost stories, and these stories were used to complete the plot for the novel Frankenstein. Science Fiction novels show the consequences of new discoveries, which have clearly been reflected in this novel.