In Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein”, the “monster” that Victor Frankenstein creates is everything but monstrous. Victor made him feel monstrous because he was disgusted by the inhuman being that he created. Victor says to his monster, “you have made me wretched beyond expression; Relieve me from the sight of your detest form”(Shelley 52). This type of verbal abuse can make any person feel monstrous and will eventually believe that everyone will view him/her as a monster. Even when the “monster” had little hope in making friends with the family in the cottage, the family was so shocked and frightened at the monster’s form that the father beat him to the ground and it made the “monster” feel even more sickened by his own appearance.
Victor Frankenstein’ and his “monster” reminded me of the relationship between the characters Shelley Godfrey and her mother Olivia Godfrey from the Netflix series, Hemlock Grove. In a show where every character is monstrous in nature, Shelley is the only character that is physically monstrous, but gentile in nature. Shelley died when she was a baby and was brought back to life horribly deformed. Because of her deformation, only her family and a couple close friends know about her delicate and kind nature. Even with the couple friends she has, she still believes she is monstrous because everyone else outside her circle makes her to believe she is a monster. Just like Victor Frankenstein, Shelley’s mother, Olivia Godfrey despises her and both creators want no happiness for the monster they have created.
“Shelley Godfrey.” Hemlock Grove Wiki. Web. 16 Feb. 2015. <http://hemlockgrove.wikia.com/wiki/Shelley_Godfrey>.
I’m really interested in this hemlock grove character. I think though it’s a hard comparison because Shelley seems to be a strong allusion to Mary Shelley and thus Frankenstein. I know you asked about TV characters but this might count as an adaptation. Still it’s very interesting, and I am glad you brought it to our attention.