Frankenstein's monster
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Frankenstein's monster (or Frankenstein or Frankenstein's creature) is a fictional character that first appeared in Mary Shelley's novel, Frankenstein, or The Modern Prometheus. In the novel, it has no name but is variously referred to as "the creature," "the fiend," "the dæmon," or "the wretch." After the novel was adapted to film, the monster became best known in popular imagination as "Frankenstein". However this was incongruous with the original novel — Frankenstein was the name of the creature's creator, and not the monster itself.
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[edit] In Shelley's novel
In the novel, Victor Frankenstein, eldest son of Alphonse and Caroline Beaufort Frankenstein , builds the creature through methods of science (he was a chemistry student at University of Ingolstadt, but dropped out) and alchemy (largely Paracelsus, Albertus Magnus, and Cornelius Agrippa) which are not clearly described. Immediately upon bringing the creature to life, however, Frankenstein flees from it in horror and disavows his experiment. Abandoned, frightened, and completely unaware of who or what he is, the monster wanders through the wilderness searching for someone who would understand and shelter him.
He finds brief solace by hiding out in the wood shed of a remote cottage inhabited by the DeLaceys, a family of peasants. While they are unaware of his existence, he learns every part of their lives by eavesdropping on their conversations; he comes to think of them as his own family, calling them his 'protectors'. He develops the power of speech from listening to the family teach their language to an Arabian daughter-in-law, and very quickly becomes eloquent, educated and well-mannered.
One day, he musters the courage to finally make his presence known. He introduces himself to the family's patriarch, their blind father, and experiences kindness and acceptance for the first (and last) time; the blind man can not see his "accursed ugliness," and so treats him as a friend. When the rest of the family returns, however, they are terrified of the creature, and drive him away. Bewildered but still hopeful, he rescues a peasant girl from a river. A man arrives and shows his gratitude by shooting the creation in the shoulder. Heartbroken, he renounces all of humankind and swears revenge on his creator, Frankenstein, for bringing him into the world.
The monster searches for Frankenstein relentlessly, guided by some papers which were in the pocket of the clothing he took from his creator's rooms. From these he not only discovers Frankenstein's whereabouts, but he also discovers the horrific details of his birth. Upon arriving near Frankenstein's village, he meets and tries to befriend a small boy, William, hoping that the innocent youth will not be prejudiced against him. The boy is instantly frightened and threatens to get his father – Monsieur Frankenstein – and thus the creature learns that the boy is related to his enemy. The creature kills him, and, in a further gesture of hatred against humanity, frames the murder on a girl sleeping nearby by pinning a locket on her person. The girl happens to be the Frankenstein family maid, Justine Moritz. She goes to the gallows because Frankenstein decides it would be futile to confess his experiment, as no one would believe him.
Intent on his own revenge, Frankenstein hunts the creature, and finds him in a remote ice cave. Here the monster tells Frankenstein his story and pleads with him to create a female creature so he can flee from humanity with one of his own kind. Frankenstein agrees, but relents just before finishing the mate, aghast at the possibility of creating a race of monsters. Enraged, the creature swears he will destroy everything Frankenstein holds dear. The creature's final words before fleeing are "I will be with you on your wedding night!"
He makes good on his promise by killing Frankenstein's best friend, Henry Clerval, and his bride, Elizabeth Lavenza. Frankenstein's father, Alphonse, then dies of grief. With nothing left to live for, Frankenstein dedicates his life to hunting his creation down and destroying him. He scours the country, unaware that his creation is stalking his every move. The search ends in the Arctic Circle when Frankenstein loses control of his dogsled and falls into ice cold water, contracting severe pneumonia. He is rescued by a ship exploring the region, and relates the entire story to its captain, Robert Walton, before succumbing to his illness and dying. The creature boards the ship intent on taking his final revenge, but is overcome with grief and remorse upon finding Frankenstein dead, having lost the only family he had ever known. He pledges to travel to "the Northernmost extremity of the globe," and there commit suicide. He leaps from the boat and is never seen again.
[edit] Appearance
In the novel, the creature is described as being about eight feet in height, with translucent yellowish skin that "barely disguised the workings of the vessels and muscles underneath", glowing eyes, flowing black hair, black lips, white teeth and is hideous. A picture of the creature appeared in the 1831 edition, made during Mary's lifetime, although it is unknown if she had any influence in creating the picture.
The most well-known image of Frankenstein's monster in popular culture derives from Boris Karloff's portrayal in the 1931 movie Frankenstein. In that film, the creature is a lumbering, mute, flat-headed giant with bolt-like electrodes in his neck and a suit and turtleneck several sizes too small. Though the film was made in black and white, the character's skin is usually depicted as green, possibly because it was the color of Karloff's makeup. Glenn Strange played the monster in the last three Universal Studios films to feature the character; Strange's likeness was therefore the most contemporary version of the character when images were licensed by the studio to mask, toy, and novelty companies in the decades that followed.
[edit] Personality
As depicted by Shelley, the creature is a sensitive, emotional creature whose only aim is to share his life with another sentient being like himself. The novel portrays him as innately intelligent and literate, having read Paradise Lost, Plutarch's Lives and The Sorrows of Young Werther during his time as the DeLaceys' "guest". When his first attempts at communicating with the world are met with fear and scorn, however, he turns against humanity.
While these subtleties occasionally surface in film portrayals of the character (1935's The Bride of Frankenstein being perhaps the most notable example), the "monster" of the Universal franchise is more typically portrayed as a menacing, lumbering mute with little comprehension of the world around him.
[edit] Metaphor
The creature has often been portrayed as a metaphor for various social, environmental, and psychological themes. Interpretations include "the danger of humans playing god" and "the dangers of toying with what one does not understand". The novel was written just at the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, the critics of which claimed that scientists and businessmen were using the natural world in perverse, destructive ways. He has also been cited as a metaphor for personal responsibility; Victor Frankenstein errs in giving the creature life without consideration for the consequences, and is destroyed by his refusal to acknowledge and deal with his mistake.
[edit] In popular culture
The Monster has grown into a symbol for science run amok, black-and-white monster movies, and lumbering brutes with their hands stretched out, among other things, and is now one of the most famous movie characters in history, perhaps the most famous and visually memorable of the Universal Monsters. The Monster's face has become very well known, especially for the electrodes sticking out of his neck, and the square-shaped head. He has starred in numerous films, book spin-offs, games, and has appeared on shirts and lunchboxes. To this day, the Monster is the only true rival for Dracula in terms of fame and reputation.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Frankensteinfilms.com - Comprehensive site on Frankenstein movies, comic books, theatre plays and the original novel
| Iconic Horror Characters in Cinema | |
|---|---|
| Classic: | Creature from the Black Lagoon | Count Dracula | The Fly | Frankenstein's monster | The Invisible Man | The Mummy | Count Orlok | The Phantom | The Wolf Man |
| Modern: | The Alien | Norman Bates | Chucky | Ghostface | Jigsaw |The Fisherman| Freddy Krueger | Leatherface | Hannibal Lecter | The Living Dead | Regan MacNeil | Michael Myers | Pinhead | Kayako Saeki | Damien Thorn | Jason Voorhees | Samara Morgan/Sadako Yamamura |
