Victor Frankenstein is a man driven by a passion. That passion has motivated him to work very hard in an effort to understand the origins of life.
"So much has been done, exclaimed the soul of Frankenstein—more, far more, will I achieve; treading in the steps already marked, I will pioneer a new way, explore unknown powers, and unfold to the world the deepest mysteries of creation." (Shelley)
When you think about Victor's ambition, he longs to be a creator, he longs to hold the power of creation in his hand, not like a father, but like a god. However, what he gets is the responsibility of a father, and not the reverence of a god, which is what he hoped would be the outcome of his experiments.
Through Victor's relentless efforts, even to the point of breaking the law, to rob graves for boby parts, he never gives up on his pursuit. Finally, Victor is successful, creating a living being, but he is desperately disappointed at the "monster" he created.
When Victor looks at the patchwork quilt of a human that he created, he is repulsed, reviled and rejects his creation like a father abandoning a child. And, like a newborn child, the creature can't cope without his parent. The creature with the needs of an infant and a teenager at the same time, is a walking time bomb, he knows nothing about the world, and he is very angry.
"Shelley wants us to feel sympathy for the Monster – she seems to be saying that Victor is the true monster of the novel – and she does so by giving him a gentle, eloquent nature. He assists a group of poor peasants and saves a girl from drowning, but because of his outward appearance, he is rewarded only with beatings and disgust. Torn between revenge and his natural impulses, the monster is destined to be lonely and guilty over the deaths he has caused."
Victor and the monster both share an innate curiosity, they both feel isolated from society and left out of the mainstream.
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