In her introduction to the 1831 edition Mary Shelley states-.
"And now, once again, I bid my hideous progeny go forth and prosper".
-A clear indication that she indeed sees the novel a her creation and the fact that t is described as "hideous" shows how she considered it a monster. Also in her introduction, she condemns Victors project of creating life as it-.
"Mocks the stupendous mechanism of the creator of the world" .
A comment added to the 1831 edition supporting the fact that Shelley intended to relax the offensive aspect of her novel in order to attract a more conservative reader.
Shelley also tries to offload responsibility of the creation of the creature. She ascribes its creation to a dream, over which she had no conscious control. This way she feels no guilt as she would if she had thought about and fabricated the creature in great depth.
Shelley's Frankenstein does however subtly imply some morals, obviously believed by Shelley. It would suggest that creation does not stop at birth and a balanced upbringing is required in order to gain a balanced individual. Too much affection can be as damaging as too little. Victor himself was-.
"so guided by a silken cord that all seemed but one train of enjoyment to him".
And this indeed could have been one reason why he was so selfish as to create a being and then not face up to the consequences of its existence.
Some people may argue that Mary Shelley created a monster- when referring to the creature made by .
Victor Frankenstein. This is not necessarily true however, the "Being" created by Victor can be seen as a tragic figure, not simply as a "monster". It is almost ironic the author refers to Victors creation as "the monster" or "demon" when the being appears to be almost more human, more pitiful and better guided in his objectives than many humans, and it may also be claimed that the creature has more humanity than his creator. When we are told of the creatures tale- we see another side to him, other than the demonic character which had previously been portrayed to the listener by Victor.
