To start my argument, I’m going to present evidence that would counter my argument about Victor being Satan. The following passage is an example of how one might make the case that Victor is indeed Shelley’s interpreted form of God. Later in this essay, I will prove why this argument is incorrect.
Victor can be seen as God from the start of the creation process to the end. He takes up the role of God and creates life, without a mate. From a scientific standpoint he would be an asexual reproducer. From a Biblical one, he would be creating miracles. This creation of his was Shelley’s play off of the creation of Adam by God. This so called “God” was trying to create a work of beauty. And, in the novel’s start, prior to Frankenstein’s downfall, you feel that this creature will be in his image. In the Bible, Adam is created in the image of his creator, God. And, it’s is easy to argue that the creature is Victor’s Adam, a living being with compassion and rational thought created in the image of it’s maker. Victor, though flawed, is well intentioned in the beginning. While never clearly stated as the reason for his fateful choice to create life, the death of his mother, and his suffering from the loss, may have driven him to experiment with the reanimation of the dead. Had he been a Satanic figure, he would have never attempted such a task. And, reanimation and rebirth are similar ideas, if not synonyms for each other. Jesus, as popularly accepted in the New Testament, rose from the dead. One can argue that this was transferred into the body of the creature, making his creator a Jesus figure, able to give life a second time. The difference is that instead of giving life to himself again he used this second life to create the being that he later will call his “creation”.
While in some respects, as mentioned above, Victor does indeed play God’s role, he is not at all God-like. He is an evil and flawed man. Perhaps evil is too strong a word, but he is far from the benevolent saviour that is the Lord. Shelley created Victor to serve the role as Satan, even if initially one suspects the creation as serving this purpose. But it should become apparent to the reader that, despite his malicious behavior in the middle part of the novel, the real monster is the one who created this evil being. Victor, the real Satan, brought and created the evil monstrous counterpart into the world. He had made a mild mannered being but through his cruelty he turned it into a violent and horrible creature to be despised by all. If this isn’t evil, frankly, I don’t know what is. The creation’s actions, though terrible and severe, were all by products of the hatred produced by Victor Frankenstein. This will be discussed in more depth in a later part of the essay.
To change subject for a moment, I am going to skip ahead to talking about the creature’s role as a protagonist. It is not to say that Victor isn’t a protagonist but as I view the protagonist as being a good being, as opposed to an evil one, I’m going to use the creature to play this part. And, since the case has been made that Victor isn’t God, we need a God-like character. The creation isn’t God either, but instead plays the product of the Lord. And, if you were to believe that the Lord made us in his own image, then this image would be a humanized form of God. This would be, naturally, Adam.
The Monster, or Creation as it should justly be called, is more of an Adam than a Satan. He is referred to as a “demon” by his satanic creator, Victor. Despite the fact that it is described as a demon or devil, Victor is the actual mortal enemy of his own child, the being he brought into the world. Victor also plays the role of Lucifer, fighting to destroy his mortal foe. Just as Adam is the object of Satan’s hatred, his target or victim of his devilishness, the Creation is the unfortunate victim of his creator’s loathing. And, just as Satan is predisposed to destroy and utterly ruin his enemy, God, in the only form he can attack him, Adam, Victor is equally set on the destruction of his “Adam”, the Creation. Despite his downfall and transformation into a monster, the creation never once says that he hates Victor. Victor, being the true monster in the novel, states his hatred for his creation many times. This is roughly comparable to Adam’s lack of hatred towards any being, whereas Satan completely abominates anything related to the Lord.
Ignoring, for just a moment, the above argument, the creature actually has an unclear role in Shelley’s book. Perhaps I should clarify, she makes one think that the creature is both Adam and Satan. There are times when it is easy to see the creation as both characters simultaneously. I personally believe that he is the Adam figure in the novel as I will explain below. An interesting passage in the book supports my argument. On pages 116 and 117 of the novel, the creation questions whether he is Satan or if he is Adam:
“….Like Adam, I was apparently united by no link to any other being in existence; but his state was far different from mine in every other respect. He had come forth from the hands of God a perfect creature, happy and prosperous, guarded by the especial care of his Creator; he was allowed to converse with, and acquire knowledge from, beings of a superior nature: but I was wretched, helpless, and alone. Many times I considered Satan as the fitter emblem of my condition; for often, like him, when I viewed the bliss of my protectors, the bitter gall of envy rose within me.
Following the discovery and reading of Paradise Lost the creature begins to question his identity, as Adam does. But the fact that he is able to distinguish between his situation and that of Satan’s shows that he is not pure of spirit, or at least doesn’t think he is. As the creature will later learn, he has reason to be unsure of his position as he’ll do unspeakable things that can make him appear to be a Satan figure. The creature is, as mentioned above, Adam. He is the being that has been created by his “God”. To stray from track for a moment, one can argue that the creation might even be the personified Jesus, as he was reborn. For the intent of this argument however, this issue will not be discussed. Like Adam, the creature is basically good. Later in the novel, like Adam, the creature asks for a female companion, implying that the creature is a male, a fact never explicitly mentioned. And, the female companion is made in a similar manner, though not from the rib of it’s “Adam”. To add to the Adam and Eve story, the female companion is destroyed by the creator. This destruction can be looked at two different ways. The first is the sadness felt by the creature could rival Adam’s feeling when cast out of Eden. The monster, or creature, feels betrayed by Victor upon learning that his “mate” was destroyed. Adam, though not explicitly, feels like Eve is responsible for their eternal banishment from Eden and Paradise. Also, the destruction could symbolize the forced removal from Eden, following the eating of the forbidden apple. While Eve wasn’t destroyed, the world of peace and perfection was destroyed for them. It was destroyed in the sense that they could never have it again. And Victor’s creation, the creature, could never have a partner or a romantic link. The second way is how the creature’s world unravels after his mate is destroyed. Like Adam, the paradise he knew was permanently taken from him, his Eve was to be his Eden, or his retreat from the abuses of the world. Following the exile from Eden, or the destruction of a partner, the Adam figures start to live a much more difficult life. Instead of having all they wanted, Adam and Eve’s mecca and safe haven; the monster’s troubles eased by having someone to share them with, they are left bereft and bare. The creature is left to fend for himself without any other being to share his misery. He is forced into the cruel world alone and without anyone of his kind. Adam and Eve are kicked out of a life of ease and luxury and are sent to the rest of the world, where hardship and suffering exist.
From another standpoint, the creature could be described as Satan. This is because he suffers a downfall. Arguably, Victor can be described as Lucifer as well, which will be addressed shortly. The creation starts out the story as a kind and benevolent being. Satan, or Lucifer as he is known, was too a kind being. He was, according to both the Bible and Milton, an arc- angel. This is like calling him God’s right hand man, a very important and respected being. As it is commonly known, Lucifer tried to rise up against God and rivaled him for power. The creature even challenges the creator directly. On page 146 in the novel the creature says this: “You are my creator, but I am your master;–Obey!” This utterance foreshadows the creature’s development into Satan. Some argue that he is more powerful than the Lord, who was unable to destroy him. Regardless, Lucifer, or Satan, was cast from Heaven along with his followers and sent to the pit of eternal suffering, Hell. This dark and fiery wasteland became the home of Satan and is where he began to plot the revenge he’d extract against the Lord himself. The creation has his own downfall. He asks his creator, demands really, for it is a stronger word, to create a mate for him. It also rises against Victor indirectly, by killing his brother and later fiance. The creator casts him to hell right away. In fact, he casts the creature to “hell” before it even rises against him. When he abandons his creation, leaving it at the mercy of humankind and the brutal reality of the real world, Victor has, in theory, sentenced the creation to Hell. It is in response to this abuse faced at the hands of the world, mostly due to Victor’s abandonment, that the creature rises against his master and becomes “Satan”. The creature becomes the demon that his master describes him as. And, like the Biblical Satan, it does unspeakable things to get a reaction from the “God” figure. In this story, he kills Frankenstein’s friends and family. In Paradise Lost Satan destroys Adam and Eve a different way. He tricks Eve into eating the forbidden fruit, an apple, knowing that she’d be cast out of Eden. Once this event took place, Adam and Eve became mortal, meaning that, eventually, they’d die. So in essence, Satan killed them in a response to his casting out of Heaven. As both the Bible and Milton show, Satan begins to thrive in this “Hell”. And Shelley’s Satan figure, the creation, also does quite well in his miserable hovels in the mountains of Germany and Switzerland.
It seems to me, however, that despite the valid argument made above, the creature is mostly good. It has feelings and regrets. It is more like the Adam, making mistakes but unlike Satan, not deriving pleasure from the sins. The creation feels terribly when it behaves in the monstrous manner, something that Satan wouldn’t feel. In fact, the Satan in the novel, Victor, seems more intent on destruction than the creation ever did. In the end it forgives it’s mortal enemy, Victor, and helps Victor out by destroying itself at the novel’s end. It proves to be a benevolent being in the final chapter, as it begins it’s life in the novel upon it’s initial creation. Had Shelley intended the creation to be a true monster, she would have written a different ending, an ending with a violent malicious creature, the monster, living it’s life out in the northern ice flows, preying upon passers by. This may not be accurate but essentially, Shelley wouldn’t have made the creation a being that one can emphasize with had she wanted it to be truly evil. In fact, towards the end, one feels more for the creature than for Victor. And, unless I’m greatly mistaken in my reasoning, one does not tend to sympathize with the evil figure.
Working from the need of a Satan figure in a novel that forwards Paradise Lost, as the creation is Adam, Shelley may have used Victor to represent Satan instead of the creature to play the role. As mentioned earlier on, Victor is also playing God’s role, though he is far from the God that is in the Bible. Unlike the benevolent Lord written about in both the Bible and in Milton’s work, Victor is a malevolent being with a God-complex. God complexes are like any other type of complex, a psychological problem. Complexes are often seen in people who are obsessive about one thing. In this case, Victor is obsessed with the idea that he can create life. In the book, on page 53, this can be seen when Victor says: “…. more, far more, will I achieve: treading in the steps already marked, I will pioneer a new way, explore unknown powers, and unfold to the world the deepest mysteries of creation.” To stray from track for a moment, it can also be said that Victor represents a Greek tragic hero. He has excessive hubris, thinking that he can play God, and therefore is punished for it. The above quote is also representative of his large ego.
As for the aspect of him being Satan, Victor became the devil, he didn’t start out this way. This brings us to the issue that perhaps God and Satan are one and the same, as Victor is shown as both. However, due to the complexities of this argument, it will remain untouched. Victor can be the Satan figure, corrupting the innocent Adam, and creating a less savoury being in his place. Or one can look at how Victor started out good, trying to create life to bring his mother back, as is implied, never stated; and then suffered a downfall, his exile from Heaven, and became a monster himself. The second idea is more logical and will be treated as the reason for why Frankenstein may be Satan. He starts out, as previously stated, a good person. The reasoning behind his creation of life is never stated but it is implied that he may want to bring his mother back from the dead. His downfall occurs when he sets about his task of creation. When he does this, it represents his challenge to God, as he tries to become just as powerful as Him. As mentioned earlier, the quote from page fifty three, where Victor says he is going to achieve new levels, supports this. By saying how he will go where no man has gone before, he is saying that he is above man and that he is treading on materials that aren’t meant for mortal men. This is almost like Victor being subtle while directly challenging God. Satan says in Milton’s work: “…better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven.” To me, as the reader, this is Satan’s challenge to the Lord’s authority. Victor lives in a self created Hell and it seems that he’d rather defy the laws of nature and of God than just accept them. Victor creates life as only the Omnipotent could, and makes himself rival God in power, perhaps even making a statement that he is more powerful than the Lord. In turn, Victor is cast from his proverbial Heaven. His Heaven, a home by the calm gentle waters of the lake where he lives at peace with his family, this idyllic life, is shattered by his brash actions and my his attempt to play God. This downfall is when Victor’s loved ones start to suffer the wrath of the creation. His beloved younger brother and finally his fiance are murdered by the creation, though it can be argued that Victor killed them himself, but obviously not directly. In the end, Victor is left dejected and monstrous, setting his life upon the destruction of his creation. Like Satan, Victor wants nothing more than to destroy his mortal enemy, (God in the form of Adam; the creation) and will stop at nothing to do so. The creation, unlike Victor doesn’t share these sentiments. In fact, Victor is pleased with himself following his destruction of the creation’s mate. On the contrary, the creation never once feels any joy, at least any lasting joy, from the destruction of the lives he took. In Milton’s book, Satan dedicates his life to trying to extract his revenge upon God, playing the theory that perhaps the monster is God. An interesting theory no doubt but one that is saved for another time perhaps.
There are certainly flaws in my argument. As I showed above, there are many arguments than can be made against mine. That said, for the reasons I showed I feel that I am correct in my interpretation. And part of creating an argument is setting up for someone to disprove it at a later date. So, regardless of what you as a reader feel is correct, I have simply presented my case in a manner that I feel serves my opinion justice. In fairness, Shelley created a work that is open to interpretation by a variety of means and that there is no one exact answer.
As mentioned earlier, there is no correct answer to this problem. This is partially why Mary Shelley’s work is still being discussed and analyzed to this day. No one is able to figure out who is the God figure and who is Satan, though as I have explained, the roles are easily disputed but I think that I am in the right. Likewise, there are many other characters from other novels referenced and alluded to that they could be instead. The whole story it can be argued, as based on the supporting evidence from the above argument, is a forwarding of both the Bible and Paradise Lost. As mentioned earlier, forwarding is the act of taking one writer’s work and putting it into your own words, with your own twist and analysis of it. In this case, Shelley took two great religious books and changed the story into her own interpretation of it. By simply changing the character’s names and story slightly, she retold Genesis in her own unique manner. She may have had strong religious opinions and this was her way to safely express them without simply questioning who is God and who is Satan. She may even have been implying that God and Satan are the same or that they can be interchangeable, as can be seen when Victor and the creation switch roles of who plays Satan’s figure. And Shelley works these plots into her story. She puts a story within a story and lets the reader do the work of unravelling the various scenarios. A major theme of this novel is confusion and chaos and by writing in this twisting and unclear manner she is able to create this illusion. This way she intentionally incorporates famous works into her story for a result that can be read to this day. And by forwarding her opinions, she is able to create debates, discussions, interpretations, and also, allow herself to be published by the stricter Victorian censors. Above all, the story’s confusing character roles, the questions of who is who leads to a story that draws in the reader’s attentions and adds to the mystique and legend of the Frankenstein novel.
