Frankenstein :: essays research papers

How do people change in times of crisis and tragedy? In the novel â€Å"Frankenstein† by Mary Shelley, Victor learns a lesson in thinking before acting. Before creating the monster, he only cares about his studies and is relatively happy. After his creation, his studies become his phobia and his creation (which, while constructing him, used to be his love) became his tormentor. In the end, he learns his lesson and stops himself before committing the same mistake again. In creating life, one learns to live life a little wiser.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  IN the beginning, Victor has a happy and almost carefree life. His home seems a place â€Å"†¦from which care and pain seemed for ever banished† (36). With a family such as his, no burdens seem to exist on his back. He has an entertaining mother, a father as a teacher, affection demanding brothers, and a gentle Elizabeth. He simply has no concerns. When Catherine (on her deathbed) joined the hands of Elizabeth and Victor saying, â€Å"†¦my firmest hopes of future happiness were placed on the prospect of you union† (37), it shows that Victor’s love life is also worry-free. Allowing him to further pursue his primary love, his studies. In stating, â€Å"I ardently desired the acquisition of knowledge† (40), Victor shows that his first priority is his studies. Even in leaving all he has ever known (family and friends), he only wants learn. Before creating life, his world is dandy†¦ with only the amount of knowledge he acquire s being his worry.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Furthermore, after his creation breathes its first breath, Victor already despises it, which leads to his health’s deterioration and hatred of his previous love. His love quickly changes to despise when he says, â€Å"I had worked hard for nearly two years, for the sole purpose of infusing life into an inanimate body. For this I had deprived myself of rest and health. I had desired it with an ardor that far exceeded moderation; but now that I had finished, the beauty of the dream vanished, and breathless horror and disgust filled my heart† (53). His statement shows how his heart does a complete 1800 and stops loving the monster the moment it lives. When Victor’s â€Å"†¦heart palpitated in the sickness of fear†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (54), it proves how his monster tormented his creator without having to be near him. Which also leads to the teaching of the lesson â€Å"think before you act†.