"I was benevolent and good; misery made me a fiend. Make me happy, and I shall again be virtuous."
~ Frankenstein, page 69
One of the thematic elements of this novel is "nature vs. nurture" - are people born a certain way, or does society make them what they are? Obviously, Victor and his creature disagree on that matter, and we see that from the start. Victor always thinks that people are who they are, and that can't be changed, which is why he immediately rejects his creation. The creature thinks that environment determines personality and disposition, which is his excuse for acting horribly towards humans. However, this isn't just an opinion - the idea translates into each person as a whole. I don't necessarily think one is right, but I think that both ideas ended up being true because of how much the characters believed them.
Victor is so adamant on how the creature can't change - while Victor was moved by his story, he still thought the creature was an evil Satan thing. He always thinks the creature is out to get him (and he is toward the middle-end), so he freaks out and gets sick all the time. He doesn't give himself the chance to accept other people, but that also means he doesn't get the chance to change himself. Think about it - how does Victor change during the story? He doesn't. His lack of progress is reflected in his "nature" perspective.
Throughout the novel, the creature says that he was really good, but because of the wretched ways he was treated, he became bitter, lonely, and malicious. The creature goes through extreme emotional oscillations and actually makes some progress at the end of the novel - he understands his faults and experiences that guilt that reflects personal growth. He definitely flip flops for a while, and I think it's because of his "nurture" views.
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