How much of a human is Frankenstein’s monster? Is he a pseudo-human? Does Frankenstein’s monster contribute to our understanding of what it means to be a human? These questions floated around my mind as I read Frankenstein. Immediately, I was fascinated by the Monster’s interest in books, specifically when he reads Paradise Lost, Plutarch’s Lives, and Sorrows of Werter. The Creature’s reaction to the books, however, I think is similar to my own reaction to novels in general, which somehow both complicated and reassured my understanding of humanity throughout Frankenstein. The humanity the readers perceive within the Creature raises an epistemic question: What constitutes a human? In Chapter 7 of Volume II, The Creature laments,

I can hardly describe to you the effect of these books [. . .] as I read, however, I applied much personally to my own feelings and condition. I found myself similar, yet at the same time strangely unlike the beings concerning whom I read, and to whose conversation I was a listener. I sympathized with, and partly understood them, but I was unformed in mind [. . .] what did this mean? Who was I? What was I? Whence did I come? What was my destination? These questions continually recurred, but I was unable to solve them.”

(Shelley 142-143).

To react with honesty, I frequently ask myself these questions. I don’t think people can deny their own feelings of alienation, isolation, and difference; at least I certainly can’t. These books and their relation to the reader, in any case, highlight the conflicting feelings the creature feels about his own humanity– and has the readers question how they belong in a world that frequently rejects them based on differences. In relation, an essential feature of Romanticism, as I’ve learned in Professor George’s “The Romantics,” is its reaction to the Enlightenment period. The Enlightenment Period is characterized by its limitations of freedom, industrialization, and organized authoritative attitudes; examples include Rousseau’s The Social Contract and Hume’s “Of the Origin of Government.” Much of the Enlightenment Period attempts to create an organized society with societal roles and stricter ways of thinking, while the Romantic Period reacts with rebellion, rejection, individualism, and the freedom of each person

Moreover, the characteristics of each novel that the Creature listed reflect the historical impact on Romantic ideals. According to Romantic-Circles, Plutarch’s Lives was praised by Rousseau in his book Confessions. Additionally, the footnotes in Romantic-Circles note that “the accounts draw [the Creature] forth from his own isolation to imagine a larger cultural sphere of action in which he might participate.” Just as with the Enlightenment period, Plutarch’s Lives draws the Creature to think about the societal significance of individuals at a large scale since the book tries to compare Roman and Grecian leaders in order to bring the two empires together (Briticanna, “Parallel Lives”). Ultimately giving the Creature an understanding of humanity at a societal level, and as Frankenstein later reveals, begins to resent for rejecting him.

Sorrows of Werter, on the other hand, brought new ideas to the Creature. According to Briticanna, Sorrows of Werter is about “a sensitive, artistic young man who demonstrates the fatal effects of a predilection for absolutes,” showing the philosophical endeavors of Geothe. The Creature claims that he was moved by the philosophical endeavors of Geothe, but in the end, the Creature says “I did not pretend to enter into the merits of the case, yet I inclined towards the opinions of the hero, whose extinction I wept, without precisely understanding it.” (Shelley 142). Here the readers are introduced to the Creature’s understanding of sympathy, where he does not understand the hardships of Werter, but feels bad for him for suffering and eventually committing suicide. 

The most profound book that the Creature read, however, would have to be Paradise Lost. Not only was the book well-known and well-read at the time of Shelley’s Frankenstein, but Paradise Lost captures the Romantic period ideals because of its heavy religious and individualistic characteristics. Percy Shelley, for example, wrote The Necessity of Atheism, which highlights how humans unwillingly, subconsciously follow organized religion, and he himself cannot help but be an Atheist and resist religion. In a similar manner, the cover of Frankenstein quotes Paradise Lost: “Did I request thee, Maker from my clay / To mould me man? Did I solicit thee / From darkness to promote me?” (qtd. in Shelley 47). The imposed existence of man in Paradise Lost reflects the rebellious nature of the Romantic Era, hence why Mary Shelley quoted John Milton in her story. Paradise Lost captures the uncertainty of existence, how it is sprung upon each individual and how conformity attempts to shape our understanding of the world. In a similar manner to Percy Shelley, the Creature feels as if his own existence was forced, and that he did not choose to be the being that he is. As it seems, there are references to books within a book in comparison to another form of literature written in the Romantic Era. In the end, Paradise Lost, The Necessity of Atheism, and Frankenstein share a similar characteristic: rebellion against conformity. 

Because the Creature feels so isolated, it is obvious why he might feel comforted by Paradise Lost. As stated before, reading Paradise Lost lead the Creature to ask many questions about his own existence, why he was there and what his purpose was. The Creature also states, “Like Adam, I was created apparently united by no link to any other being in existence,” followed by “Many times I considered Satan as the fitter emblem of my condition” (Shelley 143). Here, the Creature relates to the characters, such as the isolation Adam feels and the outsider, outcasted feelings that Satan expresses as he watched Adam and Eve. Additionally, the Creature states, “Satan had his companions, fellow-devils, to admire and encourage him; but I am solitary and detested’” (Shelley 144). In contrast to Satan, Frankenstein is reminded of his isolation. Naturally, the readers have empathy for his unfortunate, forced creation, followed by his isolated state and undesired intellectual abilities.

All of these books are much more complex than the understanding Briticanna, Romantic-Circles and Sparknotes provided. However, with a simple understanding of each novel, the Romantic period, and its influencers, it is clear how the Creature gains a sense of humanity through books. In its own way, the novels reflect the way that humanities can intensify our own understanding of humanity: there is a reason why English is a Humanities rather than a science. Just as Frankenstein grapples with the question of ‘What does it mean to be a human?’ it’s important to remember that we, as readers, do as well. 

Works Cited:

Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. “Parallel Lives”. Encyclopedia Britannica, 4 Feb. 2018, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Parallel-Lives.

Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. “The Sorrows of Young Werther”. Encyclopedia Britannica, 22 Oct. 2013, https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Sorrows-of-Young-Werther.

“Paradise Lost.” SparkNotes.com, SparkNotes LLC, 2005, https://www.sparknotes.com/poetry/paradiselost/summary/.
Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein. Edited by D.L. Macdonald and Kathleen Scherf, 3rd ed, broadview editions, 1818.

Wollstonecraft Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein. Romantic-Circle, Edited by Stuart Curran, Published by Romantic-Circle 2009, https://romantic-circles.org/editions/frankenstein.