- The following is a character analysis of Frankenstein's protagonist, Victor Frankenstein. The assignment objective is to compose a 500+ word character analysis identifying his heroic, anti-heroic, and villainous qualities as well as any internal or external conflicts the character faces.
Upon completion of reading Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein: The Modern Prometheus, it is safe to label the novel’s protagonist, Victor Frankenstein, as a tragic hero. A tragic hero is defined as a literary character who makes a poor judgement call that eventually leads to that character’s downfall. Victor most certainly fits the guidelines of the tragic hero. However, he also shows resemblances to that of an anti-hero as well as a villain.
Victor has qualities of a tragic hero in the sense that he started from the top in a position of respect and power, and lost it all due to his misjudgment. Victor was well respected among his community, was born into a wealthy family, and was well loved by his family. Victor’s ignorance and blind ambition led him to create the monster that would eventually murder his brother, his best friend, his wife, and his father indirectly. Aristotle described the tragic hero as someone who falls to the bottom “not through vice or depravity but by some error of judgment” (1).
Although Victor can be defined as being a tragic hero for causing his own downfall, he is unique in the sense that he possesses multiple qualities resembling those of the anti-hero and the villain. He can be considered an anti-hero (Byronic hero) due to the fact that he has good intentions but maintains his own agenda. He is rebellious in the sense that he indulges himself in the aspect of natural science that is deemed useless and blasphemous. Victor also shares qualities with those of the traditional villain. He is responsible for creating a monster that leads to destruction and death, and he toils with the supernatural and the undead. It is safe to assume that Victor is the protagonist and that the monster is the story’s antagonist. However, Victor created the story’s villain, so what does that make him? He has protagonist and antagonistic characteristics.
Victor is a dynamic character. He is complex, he changes, develops, and grows. He changes moods in the novel, initially being a well-off, inspired, eager, pleasant man, to ultimately become “wretched beyond expression” (Shelley 69). This change indicates the fact that he is dynamic and not static, and that he fits the role of the tragic hero by negatively declining from good to bad. It believe that in the end of the novel, after all the harm has already been done, Victor’s desire for revenge upon the monster can be translated into a sense of “intends to do well again.” He confesses to his wrong doings to Walton and shows an immense level of remorse towards the destruction that he has caused. I felt that this leads the reader to regain a palpable amount of sympathy towards Victor, or at least dislike him less.
Mary Shelley’s protagonist Victor is among the more unique characters in literary history. He fits the description of the tragic hero, yet he shares similar qualities to the anti-hero, or Byronic hero, the villain, and can also be deemed the protagonist and the antagonist at the same time.
Works Cited:
1. Philipp Lensenn ed. Authorama. The Poetics: Aristotle On the Art of Poetry. Public Domain Books. 2004. Web.
2. Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein: The Modern Prometheus. New York, W. W. Norton & Company. 2012. Print.
Victor has qualities of a tragic hero in the sense that he started from the top in a position of respect and power, and lost it all due to his misjudgment. Victor was well respected among his community, was born into a wealthy family, and was well loved by his family. Victor’s ignorance and blind ambition led him to create the monster that would eventually murder his brother, his best friend, his wife, and his father indirectly. Aristotle described the tragic hero as someone who falls to the bottom “not through vice or depravity but by some error of judgment” (1).
Although Victor can be defined as being a tragic hero for causing his own downfall, he is unique in the sense that he possesses multiple qualities resembling those of the anti-hero and the villain. He can be considered an anti-hero (Byronic hero) due to the fact that he has good intentions but maintains his own agenda. He is rebellious in the sense that he indulges himself in the aspect of natural science that is deemed useless and blasphemous. Victor also shares qualities with those of the traditional villain. He is responsible for creating a monster that leads to destruction and death, and he toils with the supernatural and the undead. It is safe to assume that Victor is the protagonist and that the monster is the story’s antagonist. However, Victor created the story’s villain, so what does that make him? He has protagonist and antagonistic characteristics.
Victor is a dynamic character. He is complex, he changes, develops, and grows. He changes moods in the novel, initially being a well-off, inspired, eager, pleasant man, to ultimately become “wretched beyond expression” (Shelley 69). This change indicates the fact that he is dynamic and not static, and that he fits the role of the tragic hero by negatively declining from good to bad. It believe that in the end of the novel, after all the harm has already been done, Victor’s desire for revenge upon the monster can be translated into a sense of “intends to do well again.” He confesses to his wrong doings to Walton and shows an immense level of remorse towards the destruction that he has caused. I felt that this leads the reader to regain a palpable amount of sympathy towards Victor, or at least dislike him less.
Mary Shelley’s protagonist Victor is among the more unique characters in literary history. He fits the description of the tragic hero, yet he shares similar qualities to the anti-hero, or Byronic hero, the villain, and can also be deemed the protagonist and the antagonist at the same time.
Works Cited:
1. Philipp Lensenn ed. Authorama. The Poetics: Aristotle On the Art of Poetry. Public Domain Books. 2004. Web.
2. Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein: The Modern Prometheus. New York, W. W. Norton & Company. 2012. Print.