Melissa DeClue
Honors English 4
3rd Hour
November 15, 2012
A Look At Archetypes Present in Frankenstein
An archetype is a constantly recurring theme, setting, character, symbol, or motif in many art forms and
in all cultures. In nearly any piece of literature you can find a common image that has been used in stories over
and over again. Almost every protagonist can fit into some version of an archetype. These archetypes could
range from many things such a hero, a villain, or even a damsel in distress. The reason we have archetypes in
literature is because they derive from unconscious thinking and thoughts that have been passed down by
generations.
Carl Jung proposed the scientific hypothesis of the archetype and collective unconscious after
researching the subject for decades. The word was first used in 1919 by Jung with the help of students over
many years of examining case studies and investigations of myth, religion, esoteric practices, and other forms of
writing. The archetype is not directly related to the experience; meaning the same archetype can show up in
different scenarios but always follows a certain pattern or path. Archetypes are embedded images linked to our
unconsciousness thinking that are seen in virtually every culture and society throughout time.
Joseph Campbell is another influential man on the subject of archetypes. His work was dependent on the
works of Sigmund Freud and chiefly on the works of Carl Jung. He came up with the concept of the heroes
journey; a pattern of narrative that appears in drama, storytelling, myth, religious ritual, and psychological
development. The hero of the story follows a path of twelve stages. A simple Diagram:
MAKE SURE TO CITE YOUR SOURCES IN TEXT—WITH IMAGES TOO (SINCE OTHERWISE
YOU ARE SAYING YOU DESIGNED IT
In the book Frankenstein, C written by Mary Shelley, almost every single character can be categorized
into a specific archetypal figure. Each plays a role in developing the theme that Mary Shelley is trying to
convey. The book also follows the path of the hero’s journey.
Victor Frankenstein could be classified under the mad scientist archetype. He has a purely scientific and
materialistic view of the word and if necessary might drift away from moral obligations. When morality comes
into question and is inconvenient for him, Victor has no problem violating it. A mad scientist has thirst for
knowledge and will stop at nothing to achieve the answer. The moral of recreating life Victor defies. The word
mad might also mean eccentric and unorthodox, everything Victor does falls into one of these two categories.
The type of character who searches for a new finding or answer to a problem. In the book, Victor stumbles upon
the power to control life. He is able to even recreate life such as when he reanimates the creature. He worked
hard and studied to find the answer just like any scientist. “The different accidents of life are not so changeable
as the feelings of human nature. I had worked hard for nearly two years, for the sole purpose of infusing life
into an inanimate body. For this I had deprived myself of rest and health, I had desired it with an ardour that
exceeded moderation.”(35 Frankenstein)Victor stopped at nothing to find an answer that was defying human
nature. Victor does not consider the consequences associated with recreating life, and eventually causes harm
to others. The mad scientist can almost always be found spending their time in a lab; Victor spends years
studying and being in a lab trying to find solutions to his questions. Mad scientist’s social circles normally
involve close confidants that are part of the scientific community. Victor’s own father was a scientist as well as
his close friend Henry, showing that he associated with the company other scientist. The old legend that
involves Faust gives the basic concept that with knowledge comes a terrible price, like say selling your soul to
the devil. He tries to recreate life for his own advantage and not for the wellbeing of the greater good, many
consequences follow his actions. Victor fits every characterization of a mad scientist archetype.
Another archetype present in the novel is that of a hero. The first step of the journey is Victor’s wish to
recreate life through science. He established his goal early on in the book, when he speaks of his education of
alchemy and his reason to study life.
“No one can conceive the variety of feelings which bore me onwards, like a hurricane, in the first
enthusiasm of success. Life and death appeared to me ideal bounds, which I should first break though,
and pour a torrent of light into our dark world. A new species would bless me as its creator and source;
many happy and excellent natures would owe their being to me. No father could claim the gratitude of
his child so completey as I should deserve theirs. Pursuing these reflections, I thought, that if I could
bestow animation upon lifeless matter, I might in process of time (although I now found it impossible)
renew life where death had apparently devoted the body to corruption.” (Frankenstein 32)
Victor wanted to figure out how to fix the effects of life. The call to adventure takes place when the
unconventional, abnormal birth of the creature into the ordinary world. This is a life changing situation to
Victor because the creation of the monster is the first step of many unfortunate consequences. Victor is
supposed to be there and help care for the monster but ultimately he runs away from his creation like a coward.
“… I escaped and rushed downstairs. I took refuge in the courtyard belonging to the house which I inhabited;
where I remained during the rest of the night, walking up and down in the greatest agitation, listening
attentively, catching and fearing each sound as if it were to announce the approach of the demoniacal corpse to
which I had so miserably given life.” (Frankenstein 36) Victor is refusing his call to action to help the monster
of which he created. The monster encounters the small cottage in the woods and spies on the young man,
woman, and elderly man learning from his observations. “My thought now became more active, and I longed to
discover the motives and feelings of these lovely creature;” (Frankenstein 80) The De Laceys’ are his mentors
that he meets and learns the values of life and family through his journey. MELDING THE 2
CHARACTERS? W/ CAMPBELL’S MODEL, THERE IS ONE PROTAGONIST. YOU CAN MAKE THE
CASE VICTOR AND THE CREATURE ARE THE SAME BUT YOU’LL HAVE TO MAKE IT The monster
decide to unveil himself to the family hoping for a good reactions is the crossing the threshold step. The
monster is leaving the ordinary world and is trying to enter a new life. “The more I saw of them, the greater
became my desire to claim their protection and kindness; my heart yearned to be known and loved by these
amiable creatures; to see their sweet looks directed towards me with affection was the utmost limit of my
ambition.” (Frankenstein 94) The creature wanted acceptance into a new world. The test in this story is when
the monster asks Victor to create him a mate. The test is if Victor is willing to go aginst his moral judgment and
create another monster. Victor’s approach to this is to agree but then eventually realize his mistake and destroy
his work on the new creature. The ordeal takes place when the monster informs Victor he will get revenge for
not creating him a mate. The reward for Victor’s actions is anything but good. The monster gets his revenge on
Victor the night of his wedding to Elizabeth. The ordeal is when the monster kills Elizabeth. The road back of
this story is when Victor goes on hunt to kill the creature. He searches high and low for the monster, chasing
him. When Victor realizes that he must die for the greater good of himself, the creature, and all of mankind.
Victor making the ultimate sacrifice of his own life to save everyone else is the resurrection step. The monster
returns to his creator’s body when Victor died. He transformed from ignorance to knowledge; after trying to be
a part of a world he did not belong in. This is the return with elixir and final step of the hero’s journey in
Frankenstein.
In this novel there is not a set hero. Both Victor and the creature switch roles as the hero, each fulfill a
step in the hero’s journey. For classification purposes it falls under tragic hero, the story doesn’t have a happy
ending. Many steps aren’t the typical hero storyline you hear. Victor and the creature create together the hero
archetype. THIS PAR. BEFORE PREVIOUS MIGHT HELP CLARIFY
One theme that is repeated throughout history is being punished for your sins. In the novel Victor is
punished over and over again for creating the unnatural creature. The creature kills Victor’s brother in order to
upset Victor for abandoning him. Victor also allows Justine, who is practically his sister to be accused for the
crime the creature committed. She is found guilty and loses her life because of Victor’s actions. The monster
also seeks revenge on Victor for not creating him a mate. Victor loses his beloved wife on their first day of
marriage because the monster kills Elizabeth. Victor is again punished for his sins he has committed. In the end
when Victor dies after trying to chase down the monster could also be considered a punishment. Mr. Walton
says it best, “How all this will terminate, I know not; but I’d rather die that return shamefully,-my purpose
unfulfilled. Yet I fear such will be my fate; the men, unsupported by ideas of glory and honour, can never
willingly continue to endure their present hardships.”(Frankenstein 160) I believe this is saying if someone does
not fix their mistakes, punishment will follow soon follow them. Centering around the theme of being punished
for your sins.<--good paragraph
Another archetypal main theme of Frankenstein is one of companionship trying to gain it and losing it.
Victor struggles to gain companionship, which is the reason he created the monster. He also struggles with
finding love, such as it taking him so long to realize Elizabeth when she waited patiently for him for years. The
monster also struggles with companionship, he longs for anyone. In the beginning he wants his creator to be
there for him, who deserts him. He wants to be a part of a family, feel what it is like. “I looked upon them as
superior beings, who would be the arbiters of my future destiny. I formed in my imagination a thousand pictures
of presenting myself to them, and their reception of me. I imagined that they would be disgusted, until, my
gentle demeanor and conciliating words, I should first win their favour, and afterwards their
love.”(Frankenstein 81)The monster just wants acceptance with someone in the world, he longs to find a place
he can be a part of anything. He asks Victor to create a mate, someone he could share life with. Victor gives
him hope but crushes it when he decides to follow morals. In the end the monster shows back up when his
creator dies. His whole life he searches for someone to be there and help, but he never receives companionship.
Throughout the novel you see repeated characters in literature. Every character fits some role of an
archetype figure. There are even repeated themes or lessons that are seen in the novel Frankenstein. The hero’s
journey is present throughout the whole novel. Mary Shelley created an amazing book using creative literary
techniques.
Bibliography
"archetype." Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition. HarperCollins Publishers. 15
Nov. 2012. <Dictionary.com http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/archetype>.
Stein, Murray. "Archetype (Analytical Psychology)." International Dictionary of Psychoanalysis. 2005.
Encyclopedia.com. 15 Nov. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.
Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein. New York: Dover Publications, 1994. Print.
Schoene-harwood, Berthold, ed. Columbia Critical Guides Mary Shelley Frankenstein. New York: Columbia
UP, 2000. Print.
Google images: the hero’s journey
MELISSA: Many great ideas here revealing application of archetypal criticism. One revision for organization
away from being a definitive statement on the archetypes w/in the book. For clarity, see if you can map out
Victor as following the hero’s journey separately from the creature. The theme will be the lesson the hero
learns and brings back to the community, what they have learned as a result of their journey—sin par. works
well here. That means organization looks like:
INTRO TO ARCHETYPES
VICTOR ON THE JOURNEY
THE CREATURE ON THE JOURNEY
THEMES
The mad scientist archetype might not fit since there’s no real archetype referred back to in comparison, but I
don’t think you need it. See how Victor and the Creature fit. See how the message of their journeys are similar
and/or different and you’re golden.