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Duggan 1
Mark Duggan
Mrs. Compton
EN 207
28 September 2016
Playing God
“Then God said, ‘Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may
rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild
animals,[a] and over all the creatures that move along the ground.’ So God created mankind in
his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them” (New
International Version Genesis 1: 26-27). {God made everyone in his image.
In Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, Victor plays the role of a human god. Supposedly, he
creates a monster for the best interest of mankind; however, truly, his intentions were out of pure
arrogance and were used to boost his reputation in the upper class in Europe (The Devaluing of
Life in Shelley’s Frankenstein). Victor was always fascinated in the works of science, chemistry,
and the balance and contrasts between life and death; even with these three components, Victor
still fails as a creator. God said that everyone was made in His image and had a purpose in the
universe. Victor’s creation, on the other hand, is not only hideous, stitched up from dead corpses,
its rejected, and serves no purpose to its existence. God made man and women to rule the world.
Victor created the creature, merely for the thrill to be a human god. In this paper, I will examine
the novel along with well supported reasoning from the bible and other resources to determine if
the creature was made in Victor’s image, his true intentions in creating the monster, similarities
and differences of God and Victor, and repercussions of being a human god. Though the creation
Duggan 2
in Frankenstein can be compared to the creation in the Bible, Victor’s rejection of his creation
and failure to give it a purpose showed the true repercussions of being a human god.
Lewis in the article, Victor Frankenstein and Owen Warland the Artist as Satan and as
God explains on page 280, that the real villain of Marry Shelley’s novel is the student that
sacrifices his life and the lives of his loves ones to the lust of knowledge and power. The monster
compares himself to the fallen angels and accuses Frankenstein for creating him as a failed
Adam. If the monster was created in Frankenstein’s image, it would not be based on the
appearance but based on his actions. Victor’s actions are what created the monster. At first
Victor was deeply passionate about creating life; however, when his creation became animated,
he was disgusted with its ugliness and fully rejected it. The creature was kind and passionate at
first but after being rejected his emotions took over.
