The question "What makes us human?" is so fundamental. In this short essay response to Frankenstein that I wrote for my Brit Lit II survey, I examine whether or not the "creature" is a human being. To do so, we have to think about what exactly the criteria for humanity is. Read on for short exploration of the topic:

Despite his hideous appearance, Viktor Frankenstein's creation isn't actually a monster, it is really a human being. We can see his human qualities shine through primarily in his complex emotions and his reasoning.



Throughout the entire book, the creature exhibits complex emotions that are anything but monstrous or animalistic. While animals do display emotions, they aren't truly capable of feeling emotions of a complex nature, or of feeling two conflicting emotions at the same time. One of the first emotions that we observe in the creature is his desire to belong. During the many months that he spends watching the family through a crack in their window, the one thing he desires is to belong to a family like that. He knows that he is different and ugly, but he still wants to do everything he can to belong. In order to achieve this acceptance, the creature desires to be beautiful. This is truly a universal human desire, and he shows how much his horrid appearance affects him when he has trouble even looking at himself in a pool. Thirdly, we see his desire for romantic love. He wants to be loved by someone like him, and also wants to have an object to bestow love on. In order to try to fulfill this urge, he approaches Frankenstein, and requests that he craft him a mate.

While the complexity of his emotions does point toward humaneness, one of the greatest characteristics that sets humans apart from all other animals is their ability to reason. When the creature approached Frankenstein to ask him for a mate, he first tried to reason with him. The creature noted that all humans and other animals have a mate, or at least a friend, but that he was entirely alone in the world. He reasoned with Frankenstein and told him that it wasn't fair for him to be alone; this was an appeal to Frankenstein's emotions. Finally, the major card that the beast played was the promise that they would leave humanity alone and go reside in the wilderness. For all intents and purposes, this was a pretty well-constructed argument—the creature showed excellent reasoning and persuasion throughout the course of his conversation with Frankenstein. It was only after Viktor refused that the beast resorted to blackmail and intentional cruelty. Indeed, to even think of blackmailing someone requires sound reasoning and logic. But it is of vital importance to note that he only threatened evilness and cruelty when he felt he had no choice, and that he only carried out his threats after Frankenstein destroyed the body of his mate-to-be.

When the creature finally went on a killing rampage, it was truly an angry act of revenge. In no way was it senseless violence for violence's sake, he wanted Viktor to feel how truly miserable he was, all alone in the world with no one to love or to love him. Even when he killed Frankenstein's family, the beast was emotionally conflicted. He felt incredibly angry and alone, and yet even at the end of the book, he felt sorrow for Frankenstein's demise

In conclusion, Frankenstein was truly a human being. He exhibited complex emotions that are really reserved only for humans, and he used logic and reasoning to try to persuade Frankenstein to make him a mate. It was only after Frankenstein refused that he blackmailed him, and it was only after Frankenstein destroyed the body that the creature resorted to violence as an act of revenge. However, even the way he calculated his revenge goes to show just how human he really is.