Many critics have commented that the creature is ultimately a character with whom we sympathise. Explore Mary Shelleys presentation of the creature in light of this

the creature meant no harm yet he was “attacked” unjustly. The need to be love is a basic human need, and rejection is a painful experience, perhaps the readers understanding of rejection will create sympathy for the creature because they will have an understanding of the desire to be loved, and can begin to imagine the pain of having no-one in the world, “I was a poor, helpless, miserable wretch; I could distinguish, nothing, but feeling pain invade me from all sides, I sat down and wept”. Perhaps also it is the outline not only of the creature’s desire for basic human needs such as food, warmth and to be loved, but the expression of human emotions and the sympathy is created through the knowledge that he is in pain and suffering from emotional torment. Scenes such as this one ultimately create sympathy for the creature through Shelley’s creation of a child-like persona with the creature’s apparent learning of concepts of the world such as “I found with pleasure that the fire gave light as well as heat” and his child-like fear of the dark. The creature is almost forgotten as un-human because of all his human qualities, but is thought of as an orphan child, with his dreaming and longing to be accepted into a family, “I looked upon them as superior beings, who would be the arbiters of my future destiny”, additionally, his idealistic world he imagines is quite child-like too, as he does not understand that he will never be accepted. This sense of isolation from which the creature is forced into, creates sympathy towards him because he did not act for this life. “Did I request thee, maker, from my clay to mould me man? Did I solicit thee from darkness to promote me?” This extract from paradise lost links with the creature’s consciousness of himself as being in a tragic condition, and links with the character Adam who bemoans his fallen condition. Another contributing factor to the sympathy we feel towards the creature is that he strives to be good, “I was benevolent; my soul glowed with love of humanity… but I am alone, miserably alone.” This quotation also outlines the unjustness in the creatures exile from humanity and the consequences of his good actions, for example when he was shot for saving a drowning girl “this was then the reward of my benevolence,” which overall give the creature a reason behind his cruel actions, such as the murdering of a child, and allowing the reader to maintain a sense of sympathy for the creator because, “inflamed by pain, I vowed eternal hatred and vengeance to all mankind.” This is an important feature within the novel, as the murders and the callousness of the creature pose a threat to the sympathy of the readers; however it is salvaged by the knowledge that “I [the creature] is malicious because I am miserable. Am I not shunned and hated by all mankind.”