Examine the presentation of the male characters in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

Shelley presents her protagonist Victor Frankenstein as being entirely innocent throughout his youth, as he claims about his parents, 'I was their plaything- their child, the innocent and helpless creature...'(pg 33),. However Victor's later failure to take responsibility for his creation is immoral and ironically mirrors the development of the monster, who is born innocent, but does evil things due to society’s prejudices. Victor isolates himself from the world in his desire to attain the god-like power of creating new life; his ultimate flaw being his lack of provision for the monster he has created.  Victor's monster is not a purely evil being- his eloquent narration of events reveal his sensitivity and benevolence as well as his goodness. Although he helps the De Lacey family, due to his outward appearance he is rewarded only with beatings and disgust. Torn between vengefulness and compassion, the monster ends up lonely and tormented by remorse. Shelley refers to the monster as both Adam and Satan in Paradise Lost in order to signify his duality, as his innocence turns to evil.

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Answered by Grace I. English Literature tutor

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