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Examples Of Nature Vs Nurture Frankenstein

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What motivates and creates the patchwork of experiences that make up people? In her pinnacle of writing, the gothic horror novel Frankenstein, Mary Shelley explores various themes and motifs among them nature versus nurture. She does so through a man attempting to create life named Victor Frankenstein and the Creature he creates. In Frankenstein, Shelley gives examples of the consequences of a spoiled upbringing, the effect on people of their surroundings, the idea of innate goodness, and the idea that people are blank slates upon which their experiences are etched. In the debate of nature versus nature over why people are good or bad, nurture is by far the more influential. A privileged and unrestrained upbringing by overly indulgent parents …show more content…
Nature in particular can provide some treatment for negative emotions like depression. When a depressed Victor is traveling through the mountains and valleys near his home he remarks that “maternal nature bade [him] weep no more,” (Shelley 82). Victor’s depression at the death of Justine and his brother is somewhat alleviated by the calming presence of nature. This calming of the soul is experienced because nature’s tranquility seeps into a person’s soul much the same way disdain and hatred from other people do. However, nature alone is not enough to heal someone as they also need the presence and comfort of the people close to them. Misery and mistreatment from the people around them can influence them to become bad. The Creature explains this aptly when he explains to Victor that “misery made [him] a fiend,” (Shelley 87). The Creature’s mistreatment is what drove him to hate his creator which in turn cause him to murder someone close to his creator, forever tainting the Creature. This mistreatment, courtesy of human society, stems from the Creature’s disfigured appearance which leads to his rejection by all, even his own creator. Anne Mellor put it well in her critical article Making a Monster where she explains that “a rejected...child can become a killer,” (Mellor 47). The child of course is the Creature who readers often forget is in fact quite young and impressionable. The Creature’s rejection by the society around him is ultimately what drove him to become a bloodthirsty murderer. The mistreatment of someone sometimes makes them wish to inflict that mistreatment on others, particularly those who are the cause of their mistreatment. The Creature is a great example of this concept when he exclaims that he is miserable and that his “enemies,” shall “share [his] wretchedness,” (Shelley 87). His enemies being those people who mistreat him and especially his creator Victor Frankenstein.

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