Background
Before going into depth, One must understand the characteristics that make up this controversy. The genes, that one is born with, is known as nature. Individuals are very unique and complicated to understand, and DNA is what makes individuals who they are. It is the code for our physical being, such as appearance, personality, and even …show more content…
Two of the main characters, Victor Frankenstein and the creature that he creates, both have an inborn nature that is part of their personality and way of life; however, both Frankenstein and the creature have different types of environmental styles. Even though nature and nurture play an important role in this novel, the nature part is mostly shown in the fall of Victor Frankenstein, while the nurture part is mostly shown in the fall of the creature. The author, Mary Shelley, makes this idea of nature vs nurture very clear in this story by describing the personalities of both of these characters. Not just this, but the author uses the symbol of light and fire to support the nature vs nurture debate in the …show more content…
Victor describes being born “a Genevese,” and having a family that “is one of the most distinguished of that republic”(Shelley, 33). He also goes and talks about his ancestors being for many years, “counsellors and syndics” and his father filling up every situation with” honour and reputation”(Shelley,33). Victor also explains how his father was respected by everyone that knew him for “ his integrity and indefatigable attention to public business”(Shelley,33). Shelley’s description of the family suggests that the family were known to be leaders in their society. These traits have been passed on to Victor, making this his nature. However, these traits are too strong for Victor to handle. This can be shown when Victors gives life to his creature and later sees that he has done a mistake in creating it. His desire to create a human being, as said in page 79, can be seen as a form of his traits due to the fact that his family was known to have power and control society how they want.
Throughout this story, Mary Shelley also talks about Victor’s curiosity on science. She uses lightning in her novel to show Victor’s mental curiosity. For example, Victor said, “ I remained, while the storm lasted, watching its progress with curiosity and delight… The catastrophe of this tree excited my extreme astonishment”(Shelley, 47). The use of lightning helps show how curios Victor was. He found a new