Final frankenstein essay

A monster is often described as: “ an inhumanly cruel, or wicked person”, “ A child who is typically rude or misbehaved”, or “ large, ugly, and frightening”. With these points in mind is this how our world views a monster and if so who is truly the monster, the creator or the creature? In both Frankenstein and Hanna two creations are put on display, both different from society, both setting out to kill. Are they murderous by nature or by survival? Do we sympathize with them or take their creators side? Who is really the monster?

When first laying his eyes on Frankenstein, Victor describes his creation’s appearance as “ too horrible for human eyes to behold” (Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein) causing him to immediately flee from the scene of his experiment. Once he returns to his study he finds the creation to have vanished. He is shook up by this matter of creating such a dreadful figure, he then goes into shock, not even trying to find Frankenstein. After months of recovery, Victor is once again brought back to his reality when his father informs him that their servant, Justine, has murdered Victors youngest brother. Victor knows this is not the work of his beloved servant, but one of his creation. He claims to have created a monster.

But why did Frankenstein set out to kill someone his creator cherished? Does he not hold his ‘ father’ close to his heart? Some may say this killing was because of his nature, he is a monster after all. However, that is just surface thinking. Frankenstein must have set out to kill for a deeper meaning, no beings first instinct is to kill. Humans were ‘ made’ for companionship, every single person on this earth is looking for a companion, whether that be a friend, spouse, or family. Our “ Monster” lacked any of those three components from the beginning, from the moment he was created he has been alone. His creator did this to him, all he wanted was affection from the one who birthed him.

Affection is worldwide, everyone craves it. Even our young killer, Hanna. Hanna follows a teen who is brought into this world solely to kill, however she is not aware of her purpose. She is trained to fight from age two until she declares she is “ Ready” to go after the ones against her former CIA agent, father. Just like any child she wishes to please her father. Just like Frankenstein she wants her creator’s attention and admiration. Along her journey to kill Marrisa, a woman out for her father, she meets Sophie. Sophie and her family take in Hanna as their refuge. Still seeking companionship, Sophie and Hanna share a kiss.

Shortly after Hanna realizes they are being followed and goes out for blood. Though she does have companionship right in front of her, she continues to stay loyal to her creator. This shows that she stays true to the one who made her, no matter the stakes. Unlike in Frankenstein, Hanna is loved by her creator. Gifting her the loyalty that Frankenstein does not have. Though the two are both created, they are both seeking something different, but somehow the same. Hanna already has her father admiration, she just desires to keep it. Whereas our ‘ monster’ wants his creators attention and admiration, but knows he cannot earn it, so he seeks out for revenge.

So, whose side do we take? The two ‘ orphans’, Hanna and Frankenstein, or the creators. Who is guilty? Both are guilty by Association. Cause and effect shows that if neither were created, the murders wouldn’t have happened. However, both could have lived a different life too. If Frankenstein was giving the attention and admiration he seeked out from the start he would not have had to kill to get his creators attention. Hanna could have been a normal girl if Erik raised her as his own daughter, and not personal assassin. It is true, everyone has blood on their hands, but some wounds go deeper than just the surface.

Our monsters are not the hideous, wicked, misbehaved, chaotic creations/kids, they are the creators. Each creator had a path to take. Each creator chose for the worst outcome. If either Hanna or Frankenstein were given the proper companionship and upbringing murderous intentions would never have been bought into play.

Who is truly the monster? Frankenstein or Victor? Hanna or her beloved father, Erik?

By definition some may argue Hanna and Frankenstein are both monstrous killers. However, we know it is in Hanna’s nature to kill. Erik admits to once recruiting women from abortion clinics and taking DNA just to create “ Super Soldiers”. Victor refuses his own creation by appearance alone. Selfish and power hungry, scream monstrous traits to me.

Two of the seven deadly sins are vanity and power. Victor desires all things beautiful, example being his lover Elizabeth, who he has always viewed as his “ Pretty present” (Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein). And when he saw that his own creature would never be glorified by society he turned him away, trying to find all the flaws in his own creation. As for Erik, his desire to build the super soldier, overshadowed his love for the girl he raised. He loved her abilities, not Hanna herself. He loved the soldier in her, not the girl. He claims to view her as his daughter, but a father would never put his daughters life on such a high stake. He trained her to kill for his own power-hungry intentions. It is clear that monsters come from within, the old myth that a monster is ugly, is just that a myth. Monsters lurk all around us. Monsters can be your father, your creator, anyone really. It is up to us to remove the rose tinted glasses and look with open eyes.

Once again everything comes with price, cause and effect. Victor went against the laws of nature and created his own being. Erik went against the CIA and hid Hanna from them, knowing his creation was not legal. Each side has a consequence. Frankenstein kills the ones closest to Victor. Hanna loses her trust towards her ‘ father’. Each creator pays the ultimate price for going against nature’s laws of creation, to give one life is to take another. Both lose things they hold close to them. Victor watches the ones he loves suffer. Erik watches the one he trained slip from his grasp in a moment’s notice, the truth set her free.

Frankenstein is the ego of victor, perhaps that’s what makes Mary Shelley’s story truly haunting, always up for recreation. Hanna is also part of Erik’s ego, going after the woman he cannot kill. Whereas Hanna was taught to kill for another man’s revenge, Frankenstein learned for his own. Revenge is evil. Evil is on all the hands, the creators and creations. One cannot walk away, it will follow.

When Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein, she set out to write a ghost story, but what she got was an eye opener. She began the trend, or even truth, that the monster is the creator. Evil is not born, evil is created. Evil is all around us. Take a look at your favorite monster movies and books, it all begins with a creator. Someone does not wake up and decide to be destructive, they must be taught, there must be motive. Everything has a cause and effect. Everything has a motive. By nature we all decided to take the Creators side, sympathizing with them. As readers we want to feel Victor’s pain as he sees that his creation is far from beautiful. We want to feel for Erik as we learn that his dreams of creating were put to an end, but once those rose-tinted glasses are removed we can see that they are not the ones hurting. Hanna and Frankenstein both suffer from the actions of their creators.