Walking through the streets of nowadays’ Prague, I became acquainted with an example of the very vivid traditions and legends of the Jewish population during the medieval times. My tourist guide took me to see the Jewish cemetery and the Jewish alley, which back then was a part of the Ghetto in Prague. “You know, the Jews in Prague suffered from a lot of accusations which had to do with their way of living, and which had their roots in the traditional behavior of the Christian central European society,” my guide told me. “That’s why, one day, a rabbi created a creature to help the Jews against those incriminations, the Golem.” According to my guide, the rabbi – much like God – formed the Golem out of clay; a creature that looked like a human but was not able to speak, only to take orders and fulfilled them. When the Golem was not needed anymore – and because it caused some troubles that seemed to scare people – the rabbi took away life from his creation and the Golem returned to be the clay he had been before. My guide showed me the little lot of clay in the synagogue that is believed to be the rests of the Golem. Later I became aware of the many adaptations this story had in literature and film. Often the image of the Golem was rendered into a vicious creature that cannot be controlled by his inventor anymore, causing death and illnesses where ever he appears. In this sense the story of the Golem has many parallels with Frankenstein’s creation: the Monster1.
Table of Contents
1. The Doppelganger motif of Victor Frankenstein and the Monster in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein
Research Objectives and Themes
This paper aims to examine the psychological connection between Victor Frankenstein and his creation, proposing that they function as a single character entity representing the conscious and subconscious mind. It explores the novel through the lens of the "Doppelganger" motif to argue that Victor Frankenstein is the true villain and that the Monster serves as his shadow-self.
- The Doppelganger motif and its psychological implications.
- Victor Frankenstein’s responsibility and the concept of playing God.
- Comparative analysis of the Golem legend and Frankenstein’s creation.
- The novel interpreted as an archetype and Gothic work.
- The symbiotic destruction of creator and creation.
Excerpt from the Book
The Doppelganger motif of Victor Frankenstein and the Monster in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein
Actually, reading the novel as a romantic novel, it is Victor who is solely responsible for all the death and destruction caused by his Monster, “[a]s a romantic novel Victor is responsible, because he abandoned his creation” (Anonymous (8)). But the text can also be read differently. “As an archetype novel, Victor is the villain, because he was trying to play god [sic]” (Anonymous (8)). Nevertheless there is an even more interesting way of understanding the novel: “as a Gothic novel, Victor is at fault, because, he and the creature are two different parts of the same person” (Anonymous (8)). Bearing in mind that the creation of the Monster is very similar to the Biblical creation of Adam, and also bearing in mind the allusions and the intertextuality to Milton’s Paradise Lost, the Monster can be seen as the copy of his creator, just as God formed Adam according to his own image. He is a kind of Doppelganger to Victor Frankenstein.
Summary of Chapters
1. The Doppelganger motif of Victor Frankenstein and the Monster in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein: This chapter analyzes the interplay between creator and creation, utilizing the Golem legend as a parallel to argue that Victor and the Monster are inseparable, mutually destructive aspects of the same identity.
Keywords
Frankenstein, Mary Shelley, Doppelganger, Golem, Gothic Novel, Victor Frankenstein, Monster, Creation, Psychology, Archetype, Paradise Lost, Subconscious, Responsibility, Villain, Symbiosis
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this academic paper?
The paper explores the structural and thematic connection between Victor Frankenstein and the Monster, specifically focusing on the Doppelganger motif to suggest they are two halves of one character.
What are the primary thematic areas covered?
It covers literary analysis, psychological dualism, comparisons to the Golem myth, and moral responsibility in the context of Gothic and Romantic literature.
What is the main research question?
The research questions whether Victor Frankenstein and the Monster can be interpreted as the same person and if Victor, rather than the Monster, is the true villain of the story.
Which scientific method is applied?
The author employs a literary and comparative analysis, utilizing intertextual references to Milton's "Paradise Lost" and the Jewish Golem legend.
What is discussed in the main body of the work?
The body examines the act of creation, the abandonment of the Monster, and the argument that the Monster acts as the subconscious executioner of Victor's suppressed desires.
Which keywords best characterize the work?
The most important keywords include Frankenstein, Doppelganger, Golem, Subconscious, Gothic Novel, and Identity.
How does the author connect the Golem legend to the novel?
The author draws a parallel between the Rabbi who loses control of his clay creation and Victor Frankenstein, who similarly loses control over his life once he plays God.
Why does the author argue that the Monster is not solely responsible for the killings?
The author posits that because the Monster is an extension of Victor's subconscious, the deaths of characters like William and Elizabeth are ultimately facilitated by Victor’s own vanity and actions.
- Citar trabajo
- Katja Buthut (Autor), 2006, The Doppelganger motif of Victor Frankenstein and the Monster in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Múnich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/134719
