Frankenstein: To Volume III

How does the monster's story make you feel about him?

I do sympathize quite a bit with the monster and his story. While I was lying in bed last night, I started wondering whether I would give the monster a chance if I had seen him. I decided that I would be absolutely terrified at first, but that if he was standing in the doorway and tried to talk to me I would listen, but that if he was on the inside and I was in the doorway, I would probably run away. I think it would be very hard to embrace the monster as he wishes to, but I also understand Frankenstein's initial fear that they would only wreak more havoc together. However, I do believe that one is the loneliest number and empathize with his need to have a friend and partner, even if it is a partner in crime.


How does the monster represent the theory of raising children properly or contributing to their development? The monster is in a sense Victor's child, and, as his father-figure and creator, Victor abandoned him which made him feel rejected. The monster is a child, and was fortunately able to learn good behavior from the cottagers but every human he has interacted with since then has been violent toward him. It's sad actually, because he wants to be included in the world of his father but can't be. According to this philosophy, nurture could have played a much larger and beneficial role in the monster's life. However, there are many choices the child must make between what is easy and what is right. One example of these moral decisions is when he chose to frame Justine for William's murder, which shows his bad nature or possibly his lack of nurture and of controlling his emotions.

The monster, like a neglected child, wants attention from Victor even if it is negative attention. This is what happens when he murders William. Initially, he only wants to have a friend with the blind man and then with William, but they both reject him. Parents, like Victor, owe their children the potential and opportunities to make their own happiness. This is what, in essence was denied to the monster.