We encouraged to understand things from the creatures perspective because of the way he is just abandoned by Victor and the way in which the Delacey’s deserted him and we also sympathise with him when he is shot by the father of the young girl that he saved from drowning. We are made to understand the creature’s anger and frustration because for all the good he did for humans he only got treated badly in return.
After knowing that he could not continue living with humans any longer, the creature asks victor to create him a companion, someone that he could interact with someone as hideous as him and someone that he could be happy with.
In chapter 17 victor takes over telling the story. He is asked by the creature to create a companion for him. At first victor refuses at the creature’s request because he thinks that creating a second monster may only bring joint wickedness and that both creatures may desolate the world.
We sympathise with Victor at this point because at that point the creature had killed most of his family, the creature was very malicious at this point.
Victor began making the companion for the creature when he saw the creature’s ghastly grin wrinkled lips gazing at him through the window that was when it triggered victor, making the companion was the wrong thing to do and that’s when victor tore to bits the creature that he had been working on. The creature’s response when he saw victor destroy the thing that could have brought him happiness was a howl of devilish despair and revenge. The monster crept into the laboratory where victor did his work and said to victor “you are my creator, but I am your master.” The creature also threatened victor “ I will be with you on your wedding night”.
The creature in a way is the victim at this point because he victor had destroyed his only chance of happiness. I disagree with victor’s decision of not continue with his work because the creature had been rejected several times, victor had no right of withholding the creature the small portion of happiness that he could have had with his companion that could have been given to him by victor.
The creature begins acting like a real monster towards the end of the novel when he murders the rest of victor’s family and the way he makes victor pursue him. At this point our sympathies shift to victor because he becomes the victim at that point and the creature becomes the villain. We have sympathy with victor because of the way the creature had killed most of his family, the creature already killed William, indirectly killed Justine when he planted William’s locket in her pocket and got her hanged, the creature killed Elizabeth and Henry clerval.
The creature decides to take out his revenge on victor’s family because of victor’s decision to not continue with his work.
Victor decided to not continue because he thought that the creature and the companion may come back to Geneva the next time they are rejected by humans.
The murder of Henry Clerval encourages us to sympathise with victor again because Henry Clerval was Victor’s best friend and Henry and victor had just gone to Scotland together just before he was murdered. We also sympathise with victor when he is held responsible for the death of Henry Clerval but is then found innocent. The creature is shown to be monstrous when he kills Elizabeth, the wife of victor. He killed Elizabeth because he wanted to take away victor’s female companion just like how victor destroyed his companion. The creature destroyed his companion in an act of revenge and jealousy knowing that he’d never have the same happiness that Victor and Elizabeth. Mary Shelley portrays victor as the victim because he’s lost everything at this point and all because of one of his creations. We see victor at his lowest in the final chapters victor is very saddened by the death of Elizabeth and the rest of his family. I think that victor really did not deserve all what he got from the creature, victor didn’t deserve to have his wife killed or his family and best friend, the creature just needed to let him know that he was so desperate for companionship and love and that he was a caring person on the inside. Victor towards the end is truly sorry for what he has done and knew that the one mistake he did by playing god and creating the creature caused so much damage to his life that could never be fixed.
In my opinion I think that both the monster and victor were victim’s and villains. The creature is the victim when he is rejected several times and is denied a companion by victor. The creature is the villain when he pursues victor and starts taking out his revenge on his family. Victor is the victim when his family is killed by the creature and best friend Henry Clerval. Victor is the villain when he rejects the creature at the beginning and when he destroys the companion for the creature.
It’s difficult to say who is the victim and villain because the both are the victim and villain.
My sympathies are split between the two characters but im more sympathetic towards victor because he’s so weak at the end that he dies because he’s so distraught about everything that happened to him.