The two words imperative to focus on within the quote ''I was benevolent and good; misery made me a fiend'' are “misery” and “made.” Firstly, the reader must identify the speaker as the creature, because both the syntax and diction are unique to his character specifically. The creature speaks in concise, powerful sentences, frequently describing himself in a deprecating fashion. Additionally, the creature insists that his nature was originally pure and kind; he was created with a “clean slate”. Circumstances, primarily the creature’s feelings of self-loathing, bitterness and rejection, have rendered (“made”) the monster cruel. The sadness and isolation (“misery”) which the creature experiences immediately upon being reanimated alters his perspective from gentle and good to murderous and evil. The monster ultimately blames Victor’s disgust towards and rejection of his creation as a justification for his malevolent behavior. For the creature, Victor represents all that is unfair, hypocritical and reprehensible about humankind. Victor repeatedly denies the creature the opportunity to feel happy, thereby he is to blame for all of the havoc the creature wreaks on mankind.
This quote holds immense weight in the underlying meaning of Shelly’s novel. The juxtaposition of essentially “good” and “evil” is displayed in the character’s attempt to explain, if not justify, his behavior. As potent as the words “misery” and “fiend“ are in the latter half of the sentence, I think that analyzing the words “benevolent“ and “good” will yield a more powerful message. At first glance these two words are seemingly synonymous, essentially stating “I was kind and good.” However, the word benevolent represents the character’s actions while the word good represents a deeper and more inherent moral compass. The character is ultimately stating that not only were his actions initially good, but he was intrinsically good-natured. This is important because the character is not simply stating that he acted benevolently but misery unvieled the evil within. The character is stating something much more powerful in that the misery was so immense that it turned an inherent goodness into an evil that was therefore released into the world.
There are several key words in this quote from Frankenstein, but if I had to choose two, I suppose I'd pick "benevolent" and "fiend." These two words, when paired, really highlight the contrast in the creature's character.
Victor Frankenstein's creature, sometimes referred to as his monster, is appalling to look at, as he is assembled out of a collection of dead body parts and brought to life. Victor himself is horrified by what he has made. Nonetheless, the creature is stating in this quote that he is inherently good, that he was "born" as a "benevolent," or kind-hearted and well-meaning creature. He was not made evil; on the other hand, it is circumstances around him ("misery") that have lead him to become murderous and vengeful, a "fiend."
Soon after he is abandoned by Victor, the creature tries to save the life of a drowning child, but he is met with horror when seen by the child's parents. Later, he camps outside the DeLacey home and grows to admire their family dynamic, their kindness and respect for one another. He believes he can appeal to the blind father of the family, who will not be able to judge him based on appearance. However, when the other family members come home during this conversation, they are horrified and the creature realizes that all his hopes have been dashed. He blames Victor, of course, for making him in this way and for leaving him on his own. If the creature is a "fiend," or an evil being, he argues that it is only because Victor has created him to be so.
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