Monstrous Natures in Frankenstein and

Monstrous Natures in Frankenstein and Dracula The stories of Mary Shelley and Bram Stoker in Frankenstein and Dracula, respectively, have been continuously frightening readers and audiences since they were first published. Frankenstein was first published in 1818, and later revised and republished in 1831; Dracula was published in 1897. Both novels have been in print since they were first published and have been adapted several times for theatre and film. Though both writers employ the use of a monster to convey and criticize Victorian themes.

Monsters in these novels are not only created as such, but are also victims of their environments. In Frankenstein, Shelley exploits the Victorian fear of change and technology and subsequently questioned religious beliefs of creation and evolution. In Frankenstein, it can be argued that there are two distinct monsters, Frankenstein and his creation. Frankenstein's monstrosity comes from his desire to have control over the creation and destruction of life. Furthermore, his attitude towards the Monster also demonstrates the type of person that Frankenstein is.

The Monster, on the other hand, is a victim of his environment, reacting to situations instead of rationalizing them because he lacks the social education that Frankenstein refuses to teach him. Frankenstein's education, and thirst for knowledge encourage him to study the works of "natural philosophers," such as Cornelius Agrippa, Paracelsus, and Albertus Magnus. Frankenstein states that guided by these philosophers, he "entered with the greatest diligence into the search of the philosopher's stone and the elixir of life; but the latter soon obtained [his] undivided attention" (Shelley 47).

Driven by this desire to create like, and in the process acquire God-like power, Frankenstein states that "[a]fter days and nights of incredible labour and fatigue, [he] succeeded in discovering the cause of generation and life; nay, more, [he] became…capable of bestowing animation upon lifeless matter" (63). Frankenstein, upon realizing what he has created, abandons his offspring. Plagued by horror and guilt, Frankenstein "rushed out of the room…traversing [his] bedchamber…threw [himself] on the bed…endeavouring to seek a few moments of forgetfulness" (70).

By abandoning the Monster he has created, he leaves a fledging, confused, and ignorant creature to fend for itself. Frankenstein deliberately creates a monster that is cursed to be ostracized, and is not willing to help ease its transition into society, nor is he willing to create a mate for him because he fears the repercussions. Though Frankenstein is hesitant to create another monster, he proceeds to do so, but stops short of bringing it to life.

Frankenstein does not fear that his second creation will be less destructive, or as destructive, as the Monster, rather he fears that the female monster will be more destructive and believes that she "ten thousand times more malignant that her mate, and delight, for its own sake, in murder and wretchedness" (217). Furthermore, he considers the possibility of her rejecting the monster and turn to the "superior beauty of man" (218).

Even if she does accept the Monster, Frankenstein fears that his "Adam and Eve" will quit Europe and breed, creating a new species of monstrous children. Frankenstein's unwillingness to give in to the Monster's demands subsequently destroys everyone around him. Because he destroyed the Monster's potential mate, the Monster in turn, will destroy anything and everything that Frankenstein holds dear. The Monster fulfills his threat by killing William, but is also a factor in the deaths of Justine, Henry Clerval's murder, and the death of his father, Alphonse.

The most haunting threat dealt by the Monster to Frankenstein is the echoing promise, "I WILL BE WITH YOU on YOUR WEDDING NIGHT" (221). The Monster, on the other hand, is a monster through no fault of his own. He was created as such, and has been treated as such. Frankenstein's subsequent rejection of the Monster has led him to question his existence and role in society. The Monster was forced to teach himself about the nature of humans through the observation of the De Lacey family living in a cottage.

Though the Monster tries to refrain from interfering; "What chiefly struck me was the gentle manners of these people, and I longed to join them, but dared not…[remembering] too well the treatment I had suffered the night before from the barbarous villagers" (142). The Monster learns how society behaves through the observation of the family, and through the reading of books. Much like Frankenstein, the Monster is greatly influenced by what he reads including Plutarch's Lives, Sorrow of Werter, and Paradise Lost.

The Monster's innocence and ignorance, at this point, does not allow him to fully understand or relate to any of the characters in the books (166). The Monster eventually relates to Adam in Paradise Lost, not considering himself a monster, because even "Satan had his companions, fellow devils, to admire and encourage him" (169). As Adam was created in God's own image, the Monster is a "filthy type of [Frankenstein's image], more horrid from the very resemblance" (169). The Monster is the embodiment of Frankenstein's monstrous, creative, and destructive nature.

The Monster resolves to make Frankenstein as miserable as he, following him to the ends of the Earth, and being there at the time of his death. Dracula, on the other hand, the Count, much like both monsters in Frankenstein, has become ostracized from society, in part to the passage of time, and because of his vampirism. In addition to superstition, much of the "monstrous nature" of the Count is derived from Victorian fears of sexuality and sexual freedom.

In the story, the Count is repeatedly penetrating and exchanging bodily fluids with others, including men. The Count also "seduces" Lucy Westenra, taking advantage of her and turning her into a vampire in the process. Death and the disease of vampirism follow the Count wherever he goes. It is unclear what drives the Count to action, though he vows revenge for an unnamed offence (271). The Count claims to long for the days in which brave races "fought as the lion fights and how "the warlike days are over.

Blood is too precious a thing these days of dishonourable peace, and the glories of the great races are as a tale that is told" (30). Because of his vampirism, he must consume blood in order to survive, and subsequently seeks to pass on his condition to a suitable companion, and possibly relive his past. "The blood.