The creature wants to connect with people and form relationships but the people he wants to connect with are the very ones that drive him away. He becomes endeared to the De Lacey family even before he knows who they are. He looks at them with wonder, notices their "gentle manners" (Shelley 95), and wants to be with them. While he is afraid to interact with them, he still watches them intently learning all that he can. The creature even learns kindness from the De Lacey family. While he watches them eat dinner, he notices that sometimes the "younger cottagers" (96) gave their food to the blind man. The creature admits, "this trait of kindness moved me sensibly" (96). It moves him so much that he cannot take food from them for himself because he knows that it would cause them to be hungry. Instead, he decides to do things to help the family such as gathering wood and leaving it at the door for them to find in the morning. He comes to refer to them as his "beloved cottagers' (112) and when he finally decides to approach them, he is met with "horror and consternation" (119). Felix even proceeds to beat the monster with a stick. Instead of tearing Felix apart "limb by limb" (120) the creature retreats. Here we...

The monster cannot fully comprehend why people are reacting to him the way they do just yet and admits that he is miserable from the "barbarity of man" (91). Rejection takes its toll on the creature and he reaches a point where he cannot deal with it anymore.
Shelley's position is obvious - we should not judge others by what they appear to be on the outside. The monster is by far a better "person" than Frankenstein could ever be because he never experiences the narcissism that Frankenstein does. In addition, there is no real resolution to the conflict in the novel - the monster does get his revenge but he does not find the solace for which he is searching. He never comes to terms with his situation in life and, in the end, he finds that death is the only way in which he can escape his miseries.

Works Cited

Bloom, Harold. "A Study of Frankenstein: or, the New Prometheus." Partisan Review. 1965. GALE Resource Database. Site Accessed March 08, 2008. http://www.infotrac.galegroup.com

Johnson, Diane. Frankenstein: Introduction. New York: Bantam Classics, 1981.

Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein. New York:…