#i thought to be thy adam but i am rather the fallen angel

[levitanias]

thinking about frankenstein's monster again, not anything in particular just kinda brain rotating him like he's the well liked side character of a bad shonen anime

[ozzgin]

Is it just me or can I imagine a yandere with a darling who’s immune system and possibly everything about them just screams weak and pathetic, BUT their darling is actually very strong mentally and has and will create the most fucked up, batshit crazy inventions from what used to be harmless to something that can help them escape and possibly destroy everything in its path.

But at the end of the day, they become sleepy koalas who hug whoever is near them and fall asleep :)

This could be a request or rant, whatever you can think of! I just wanted to see how different yandere writers would interpret this small imagination of mine <3

But as always, stay safe and take care! everyone needs a break some time to time~

Sorry, but the moment I read the Darling's description, I instantly thought of Dr. Finkelstein from Nightmare Before Christmas. You know, Sally's inventor. 😭 So let me quickly write this down while I'm in my Shelley vibes, because I like the idea a lot. With a little twist, if you don't mind. :)

Yandere! Monster x Inventor! Reader

A frail inventor, and their affectionate rag doll that has been carefully stitched together for the purpose of a caregiver. An artificial existence, trapped within the confines of your lonely tower. Or so you might think.

Content: gender neutral reader, monster romance, obsessive behavior

"I ought to be thy Adam, but I am rather the fallen angel..." [Frankenstein]

You dangle an old, rusty bell for a good minute before leaning back in your chair. The barely audible chimes are quickly swallowed by the loud, mechanical groans of the gears and engines occupying most of this room. No matter, his ears are good. You picked them yourself. And surely enough, within moments, the door to your laboratory opens and someone cautiously walks in.

A tall, slender man. Or rather, something meant to resemble a man. The skin is a clumsy patchwork of blues and grays - you're no talented seamster, sadly - gathering together the body parts in what feels like a parodic attempt at mimicking God and his image. You gaze at the creature approaching you with a tray of tea and sweets. Scarcely your best work, if you must adhere to honesty. Regardless of the quality of your labor at the time of creation, you are proud of the result. How could you not be? You know this man better than you know yourself. Every organ, every artificial nerve cord, every blemish and stitch of his body was placed according to your intentions. A masterfully detailed project that took you years to complete; not an easy feat considering the lamentable state of your health.

"Here's your deadly nightshade tea." The man places a small, porcelain cup on the desk. "Do let me know when I should take you to bed, (Y/N)." You wave your hand dismissively and stretch out your limbs. "Not yet. I am almost finished", you respond, returning to the mound of metal scraps and pipes before you. "Can I ask what you're making?" The pale creature lowers himself to your level, a curious smile plastered on his face. "It's a mechanical heart", you reveal boastfully. "Like the one I have?" You run your hand through the creature's hair affectionately. "Almost. I'm testing out a different way to build the valves, for a more efficient pumping cycle." You continue to explain the intricacies of your novel mechanism, occasionally sipping on your tea. "Who knows, you might have a sibling in the near future."

The man's smile drops in an instant, and his sunken eyes widen at your statement. "What? Am I- am I not enough?" You glance at the creature as he becomes increasingly frantic. "Don't speak nonsense. If it comes out alright, I'll upgrade your own parts as well. I'm a disciple of scientific virtue, of continuous improvement." Nonsense? Vile treachery! You might've chiseled the brain that throbs within the walls of his skull, but his mind is his alone, and you seem to lack a fundamental understanding of his feelings and thoughts. His ardent confessions of love are met with mockingly pitiful grins, in the way a parent soothes a needy child. Even now, your eyes reflect nothing more than sympathy towards his protest. A childish tantrum is what you're most likely thinking. You've no time for emotional bagatelles. He can read you like an open book.

You simply won't understand. There is no place for a stranger in the life he's crafted with his very own hands: you, and him, and the evening tea with a side of butterscotch biscuits, and the bedtime talks, and the stripped branches of the decaying tree that rap at the windows on stormy nights. You might be the Inventor, but he is not just a mere, humble servant, a rag doll to be tossed around or toyed with. As you will soon discover, after all.

You awaken in the midst of night with your temples burning from a much too familiar headache. Although it's not just the pain that has disturbed your slumber. You can hear rattles and thuds coming from the upstairs laboratory. An intruder? Oh, your creations! The sound of glass breaking and metal scraping sends you into spiraling despair. You fumble to reach the nightstand, patting the surface in search for the bell and keys. You shake the handle in a panic, unable to find anything else in the darkness.

The chaotic rustle abruptly stops, followed by descending footsteps. You hold your breath as the chamber door opens, but it's none other than your creature. "Another flare-up? Shall I bring you some medicine?" the man asks with monotonous courtesy. "What have you been doing? What's all that noise?" you demand, agitated, but upon lifting yourself off the mattress you discover your legs are numb and uncooperative. The man hurries to your bed with a worried frown, and you hear the familiar clatter of the keychain coming from one of his pockets. "Have you taken my keys? Cease this foolishness at once!" Indifferent to your reproach, he places a firm hold on your shoulders and forces you back down, tucking you in effortlessly.

"You must forgive my impertinence." he says in a pleading tone. "I do not wish to impede the works of your genius. As your partner, however, it is my duty to prevent you from making mistakes." You furrow your eyebrows at his words. "What mistakes? My invention was flawless!", you argue fervently. "Indeed it was, but not its purpose. What need have you for another being?" It is the creature's turn for a passionate speech. He stands up with a confidence you don't recognize and continues: "You should know by now that I am fit to perform any role. That of your servant, your caregiver, your lover, or anything else you may desire. You can resume your tinkering starting tomorrow, but such blasphemies to our bond as the one today will not be tolerated." He straightens his vest and reaches for the door handle. "I will prepare some tea to help you rest."

Inconceivable. Your own creation, built with your own hands...Has something escaped your attention? His dialogue is deranged, tainted by madness. "Have I done something wrong?" you mumble to yourself, deep in contemplation. "Nonsense." the creature turns to face you briefly. "It was you who created me after all. Everything is perfectly splendid."

[certifiedfreec]

“It seems as though Shelley insists the true monstrosity lies in humanity rather than Frankenstein’s creation.”

“Well, yeah, the monster was left completely alone because the doctor couldn’t bear to look at him after he brought him to life.” You vigorously wipe down one of the tables in the nearly empty coffee shop as you answer the sole guest that’s left. “It upset him a lot. He even says something to him like, ‘I ought to be thy Adam, but I am rather the fallen angel.’”

“Hm.” A thoughtful pause. “‘Satan had his companions, fellow-devils, to admire and encourage him; but I am solitary and abhorred.’” Grey eyes skim the quote’s faded page, large hands clasping the worn cover. A prized first-edition print he had quietly boasted about earlier that evening. “It’s as if the doctor was so blinded by his need for recognition that he failed to recognize the potential consequences of his experiment. Such hastiness. I’m curious as to what inspired him, or rather pushed him, to play God like that in the first place.”

Tossing the rag into a bucket of cleaning solution, you sigh amusedly. “Probably just entitlement. But anyway, Boss, shop’s closed. I’ll be happy to hear your musings again at 7 o’clock tomorrow morning.”

Truthfully, you didn’t mind this guy’s presence at all; he did this often, at least a couple of times a week when he could, staying for hours on end to delve into his books and pick your brain on their contents while sipping your coffee. It started a good bit ago, and the second he silently breezed through the shop’s door you had an inkling that you’d be seeing him a lot. He made note of a classic piece resting behind the counter that you’d brought from home that day, and the slow parts of your shifts were soon filled with rich discussion about the stories you’ve both read- a welcome break from the monotonous routine of pulling shots, steaming milk, and taking complaints from the middle-aged women who insisted they ordered their drink “extra hot.” Quickly, he grew to become your favorite regular; he had quite the heart for literature and art, and he was fairly easy on the eyes too.

He lets out an appreciative chuckle. “Well, I’ll be sure to remember my alarm, then.” His low voice has the heaviness of sincerity as he teases you, and you could almost swear it was flirting. He carefully closes the book before tucking it under his arm, standing to his full height. Albeit not the tallest, he’s still able to look down at you. “I’d quite like to hear your thoughts on Dr. Frankenstein’s innate motivations.”

You fight the blush that threatens to tinge your cheeks, halfway tempted to keep the doors unlocked just to talk to him some more. However, this could be a double-edged sword for you; you’d be here all night chatting with him if you allowed that discrepancy. Then you’d be too tired to comprehend all his reasonings the next morning when he’d want to debate all over again.

“I mean, I’ll be off in about fifteen minutes,” you blurt out, not fully realizing the forwardness of the unspoken invitation. An invitation that is met with surprise from your normally nonchalant regular.

There’s a small smirk tugging at the corners of his fine lips as his eyebrows raise slightly at you. “Very well. Where do you suggest we take this conversation, then?” He is all too impressed with this turn of events as he sets down his book to collect a few haphazard mugs, bringing them over to the sink for you. The small action, while also being another discrepancy, nearly makes you swoon. “On second thought, don’t answer that. I know just the place.”

Your heartbeat surges when you wonder about his implication, taking the mugs from him and plopping them into the soapy water. His stormy grey eyes watch you with interest as you take care of the nightly closing duties, cleaning the tableware before setting everything in its proper place.

“It better not be Frankenstein’s laboratory,” You halfway joke, curious as to how this night could unfold with the guy you’ve always regarded as the friendly yet handsome customer. Another part of you is wary, but he only shakes his head, sending the choppy black locks that framed his face into a gentle flurry of movement.

“No, nothing like that at all,” is all he answers with a reassuring smile and a chuckle. Concentration lost on what may lie ahead with him, you’re barely able to focus on counting out the register as you lock it up and grab your bag. “If you say so,” you reply with a small smile. With a flick of the light and his chivalrous door-holding, you’re both out of the shop and securing its entrance with your key before you turn to your good-looking regular.

“Where to, Boss?” You’d be lying if you said you weren’t a little nervous about venturing somewhere new with him.

“It’s a surprise, but I think you’ll like it.” His tone is genuine as his dark tresses flutter in the night’s breeze, walking beside you and guiding you toward a vibrant ramen joint nestled a couple streets away. “Oh, and don’t feel like you have to call me that. I’m Chrollo.”

Chrollo. What an interesting name- yet it fits him perfectly. You say it aloud, which seems to satisfy him. Moments later, you feel his hand cradle the small of your back with the same tenderness of his beloved book as you reach the restaurant’s doors, and it sends heat along the entirety of your skin. Part of you toys with the thought that this could be the beginning of a story of your own, bound in cloth and published in ink for you two to analyze over coffee later.

This creation might be much more beautiful than Frankenstein’s.

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +

It’s a lovely evening as expected, and Chrollo drops you off at your doorstep with a warm promise to debate literature outside of your work hours again. He’s everything and then some- charming, collected, unafraid to banter with you, and part of you is honestly disappointed that the evening doesn’t escalate further. Still, you’re vibrating with giddiness, unable to rest as you think about your quasi-date with him, and you’re already imagining what kinds of stories you’ll talk about next.

After a few hours of finally sleeping, you’re awoken by a panicked call from one of your coworkers early that next morning. Something about the store’s register being wiped empty of its change, and that’s all you need to hear to be there in record time. Once you arrive, you scope the scene and the coffee shop is perfectly kept the way it was last night, save for the now desolate register. You inspect it carefully, shocked at how meticulously the cash had been removed, and the results of your search make your heart pound. The only items that surface are your door key along with small slip of paper with some elongated handwriting. It couldn’t be.

Your entire being blanches when you read the familiar words straight out of Shelley’s book:

“I seemed to have lost all soul or sensation but for this one pursuit.”

[sdyd]

* THE MODERN PROMETHEUS. sentence starters from mary shelley's novel, frankenstein ; or, the modern prometheus. from the original manuscript, the original published edition, & the 1831 revision. feel free to change pronouns / terms / tense / etc.

do you understand this feeling ?

I desire the company of someone who could sympathize with me.

I shall do nothing rashly.

remember me with affection, should you never hear from me again.

I will not rashly encounter danger. I will be cool, persevering, & prudent.

will you have the kindness to inform me whither you are bound ?

I have lost everything, & cannot begin life anew.

you may easily perceive, [name], that I have suffered great & unparalleled misfortunes.

with what interest & sympathy shall I read it in some future day !

the world was to me a secret, which I desired to discover.

it was the secrets of heaven & earth that I desired to learn

no youth could have passed more happily than mine.

do not waste your time upon this ; it is sad trash.

I believed myself totally unfitted for the company of strangers.

have you really spent your time in studying such nonsense ?

I am happy to have gained a disciple.

remember, I am not recording the vision of a madman.

a resistless, & almost frantic impulse, urged me forward.

you must pardon me, if I regard any interruption in your correspondence as a proof that your other duties are equally neglected.

how can I describe my emotions at this catastrophe ?

how glad I am to see you !

it gives me the greatest delight to see you.

you look as if you had been watching for several nights.

how ill you are !

what is the cause of all this ?

oh, save me ! save me !

I dare say you wish to be indulged in a little gossip.

are you always to be unhappy ?

my dear friend, what has happened ?

even cato wept over the dead body of his brother.

I am afraid, tears instead of smiles will be your welcome.

I do not know what you mean.

no one believes it, surely ?

did the murderer place it there ?

I cannot go alone.

I did confess, but I confessed a lie.

I hope you do not believe I am guilty.

I cannot live in this world of misery.

Do you think that I do not suffer also?

men appear to me as monsters thirsting for each other’s blood.

I would sacrifice my life for your peace.

devil ! do you dare approach me?

begone, vile insect!

I expected this reception.

all men hate the wretched.

abhorred monster !

be calm ! I entreat you to hear me.

have I not suffered enough?

I do not wish to hate you.

I was benevolent & good ; misery made me a fiend.

make me happy, & I shall again be virtuous.

you, my creator, abhor me ; what hope can I gather from your fellow-creatures, who owe me nothing ?

cursed be the day, abhorred devil, in which you first saw light !

relieve me from the sight of your detested form !

I ought to be thy adam, but I am rather the fallen angel.

I stared back, unable to believe that it was indeed I who was reflected in the mirror.

was I then a monster, a blot upon the earth, from which all men fled, & whom all men disowned ?

cursed creator ! why did you form a monster so hideous that even you turned from me in disgust ?

pardon this intrusion, I am a traveler in want of a little rest.

I thank you, & accept your generous offer

at length the thought of you crossed my mind.

to whom could I apply with more fitness than to him who had given me life ?

I do not intend to hurt you.

I am content to reason with you.

if I cannot inspire love, I will cause fear.

I will work at your destruction, nor finish until I desolate your heart, so that you curse the hour of your birth.

this is what it is to live !

where does he now exist ? is this gentle & lovely being lost forever ?

does it now only exist in my memory ?

I could pass my life here.

I had rather be with you.

hasten then, my dear friend, to return, so that I may again feel myself somewhat at home, which I cannot do in your absence.

had I the right, for my own benefit, to inflict this curse upon everlasting generations ?

what is it that you intend ?

do you dare to break your promise ?

I can make you so wretched that the light of day will be hateful to you.

beware ; for I am fearless, & therefore powerful.

I will be with you on your wedding night.

villain ! before you sign my death-warrant, be sure that you are yourself safe.

why do you answer me so roughly ?

why did I not die ?

are you better now ?

I am sorry that I am still alive to feel this misery & horror.

can I do any thing to make you more comfortable ?

on the whole earth there is no comfort which I am capable of receiving.

persecuted & tortured as I am & have been, can death be any evil to me ?

a fatality seems to pursue you.

do you not love another ?

it is your happiness I desire as well as my own.

if I see but one smile on your lips when we meet, I shall need no other happiness.

you are sorrowful, my love.

this night is dreadful, very dreadful.

why did I not then expire ?

I am satisfied, miserable wretch ! you have determined to live, & I am satisfied.

for many months this has been my task.

my reign is not yet over.

learn from my miseries, & do not seek to increase your own.

do you think that I was then dead to agony & remorse ?

you throw a torch into a pile of buildings, & when they are consumed you sit among the ruins, & lament the fall.

but it is even so ; the fallen angel becomes a malignant devil.

you hate me ; but your abhorrence cannot equal that with which I regard myself.

soon, I shall die, & what I now feel will no longer be felt.

[grantaireble]

Tortured Poets & "The Bride of Frankenstein"

To a new world of gods and monsters!

Alright this is soo long now and I came about this revelation the weirdest way (while watching world class color guard) but I haven't been able to stop thinking about it since. All of my ttpd thoughts were rattling around in my brain as we were watching videos and one group put out a Bride of Frankenstein show last year and they used this quote as a V.O:

“What do you expect? Such an audience needs something more than a pretty little love story. So why shouldn’t I write of monsters?"

And, man, something about that got the neurons firing, especially because I had already been thinking a lot about the connections between Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and TTPD. Here are some of those:

Frankenstein visuals in the Fortnight MV

“The 1830s” Mary Shelley's Frankenstein was originally published in 1818, but she made some edits for an 1831 edition

Mary Shelley, Percy Shelley, and Lord Byron were sort of their own little TPD, writing horror stories together one rainy summer.

TTPD and Frankenstein seem to reference many of the same things

Both Taylor on TTPD and Mary Shelley in Frankenstein reference the Rime of the Ancient Mariner and the albatross

“I am going to unexplored regions, to “the land of mist and snow;” but I shall kill no albatross, therefore do not be alarmed for my safety, or if I should come back to you as worn and woeful as the “Ancient Mariner?” – Mary Shelley, Frankenstein

Both Taylor and Mary Shelly reference Greek Myth 

Frankenstein: “The Modern Prometheus” (often compared to the Christian story of Christ)

Cassandra: gifted the power of prophecy but cursed to never be believed

Does the headpiece above not give Medusa?

Both Taylor and Mary Shelley reference the Bible

“I ought to be thy Adam, but I am rather the fallen angel...” (Frankenstein) / “I got cursed like Eve got bitten,” etc. 

Both Taylor and Mary Shelley reference principles of Alchemy! 

"The modern masters promise very little; they know that metals cannot be transmuted, and that the elixir of life is a chimera." (Chimera = lion's head, goat's body, and a serpent's tail, more Greek mythology)

Some lyrics from TTPD also feel like direct references to Frankenstein quotes or themes

“I was benevolent and good; misery made me a fiend.” ― Mary Shelley, Frankenstein / “I was tamed, I was gentle ‘til the circus life made me mean.” – Taylor Swift, Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me?

“I am alone and miserable. Only someone as ugly as I am could love me.” ― Mary Shelley, Frankenstein / “Down bad like I lost my twin.” – Taylor Swift, Down Bad

“I am malicious because I am miserable” ― Mary Shelley, Frankenstein / “Because I’m Miserable!” – Taylor Swift, I Can Do It With A Broken Heart

“One wandering thought pollutes the day” ― Mutability, Percy Blythe Shelley (Quoted in Frankenstein) / “One bad seed kills the garden” – Taylor Swift, The Albatross

“This feels like the time she fell through the ice” – Taylor Swift, The Bolter / In Frankenstein, ice is symbolic of isolation and alienation.

“Wretch” or “Wretched” is a huge word in Frankenstein / “That I’m fearsome and I’m wretched and I’m wrong.” Taylor Swift, Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me?

“In the streets there’s a raging riot” / In the story, the Monster gets chased by angry mob of townspeople 

The First Two Pages of Frankenstein by The National (The Alcott appears on this album and The National toured it with Patti Smith)

Bonus: Dr. Frankenstein is something of an anti-hero. He, along with his monster, are also sometimes referred to as Tragic Heroes. Greek philosopher Aristotle first laid out the attributes of a Tragic Hero.

So all of this to say, I had originally only been thinking about TTPD only in the context of Mary Shelly’s original Frankenstein, even though that Fortnight imagery was definitely inspired by the films. But then that quote just really felt like it had Taylor written all over it.

So I googled Bride of Frankenstein.

It's basically an "everyone lives" AU sequel to Frankenstein lol. It's the 2nd of a trilogy (...hmmm?) although the third film Son of Frankenstein has a different director. The line I heard in the guard show is said by a fictionalized version of Mary Shelley, author of Frankenstein, who "appears" in the Bride of Frankenstein movie, along with poets Lord Byron and Percy Shelly.

In the scene, Mary Shelley explains that she wanted Frankenstein to show its audience the consequences of mortal man trying to play god. She then reveals that there is more to the story than everyon thinks. This, of course, got me thinking about the term "playing god" and the Mastermind of it all, along with all of the religious/worship imagery Taylor uses on the album. Bride of Frankenstein also uses Christian/crucifixion imagery to convey this theme. 

The movie picks up right where the original Frankenstein left off. Both the doctor and the monster somehow make it out of the original story alive. Dr. Frankenstein, despite wanting to step away from his experiments after his horrific first attempt, gets pressured/blackmailed by his mentor to create a mate for the monster. While this is happening, Frankenstein's original monster is sort of bumbling around out in the world trying desperately to make a friend. This never works, as everyone is too afraid of how different he appears on the outside.

This is around where the queer reading of "The Bride of Frankenstein" comes in. I'm getting most of my info from this video, which definitely clicked things into place for me.

The queer reading is based on a few things:

The relationship between Dr. Frankenstein and Dr. Pretorius (two men creating life together)

The monster as a figure that does not fit into the norms of society and the effects of that on his search to find someone "like him"

The director, James Whale, having been one of only a few openly gay men in Hollywood at the time

The character, Dr. Pretorius', "campy" queer coding

The Bride of Frankenstein was subjected to censorship from the Hay's board while in production and by censorship boards once released

"In the decades since its release, modern film scholars have noted the possible gay reading of the film. Director James Whale was openly gay, and some of the actors in the cast, including Ernest Thesiger and, according to rumor, Colin Clive, were respectively gay or bisexual." (Wikipedia)

This reading focuses on Dr. Frankenstein's inability to stay away from his "experiments," despite having a new wife and a potential regular life waiting for him at home. He is rejecting "the natural" in favor of "the unnatural.”

This reading also looks at the monster's deep desire and inability to find belonging in a world that fears otherness. The Monster tries multiple times to make a friend, but is always rejected.

He saves a woman from drowning but she screams in fear at his appearance.

He does befriend a blind hermit and they bond and become friends! But soldiers find the Monster there and they are separated. (At this point in the story the Monster wishes he were dead again.)

Finally, the Monster gets to meet the the Bride, who was literally made for the Monster. Unfortunately, the Bride, horrified at having been brought alive for the sole purpose of being a companion, also rejects him.

Here are some connections that relate to the Frankenstein/ Bride of Frankenstein films:

"Such an audience needs something more than a pretty little love stories" / "Are you not entertained?"

Safety Pins, Bride of Frankenstein / Hairpins, Fortnight video

“Strings tied to levers"? –Taylor Swift, Robin / At the end of Bride of Frankenstein, the Monster pulls the “self-destruct” lever, killing himself, the Bride, and Dr. Pretorious (might be a stretch, but this movie is the origin of the "mad scientist self-destruct lever")

In Son of Frankenstein, Dr. Frankenstein's grandson is named Peter (definitely a stretch?)

In Bride of Frankenstein a maid character, Minnie, tries to warn the town that the Monster is still alive, but no one believes her and she says "Nobody'd believe me! All right. I wash me hands of it. They can all be murdered in their beds." (It's giving Cassandra)

In Bride of Frankenstein the Monster saves a young shepherdess from drowning / "She almost drowned in frigid water" -Taylor Swift, The Bolter

Frankenstein freaks out and accidentally burns down the hermit's cottage (the only place he found human connection, hidden away from judgmental eyes) when they are found there by two hunters

Anyway this is so so long and and doesn't even include any real analysis (I might save that for a more cohesive post) but once I got started I just kept noticing things.

Right now I think the question I'm currently trying to answer is: Frankenstein Taylor Swift the Monster or the Doctor? The Bride? The drowned girl? The almost drowned girl? The Author??

[tiredstressedemotionalmess]

idk if i can put into words how bad this is for me im thinking like. angel/fallen dynamic almost. i need your love like a boy needs his mother's side. i need you because you make it safe you make it easier to breathe to hold onto. i am clinging to the last shred of home i have in you because i'm not sure i have anywhere left to go. except.

what happens to the boy who is abandoned by the mother. what happens when he is torn from his mother's side, cut away, ripped apart, tossed aside like nothing. does it become a need for that same love or does it become a hatred. hhnsgh.

this is about party poison and also by extension kobra kid and oh wait fuck what if the mothers side is the city FUCKUFKXUDUCKCUJCC I HAVE A MATH TEST TOMORROW I CANT

LITERALLY I WAS READING THIS ASK JUST MENTALLY CHANTING "OHHH VENOM SIBLINGS VENOM SIBLINGS VENOM SIBLINGS" AND THEN I REALIZED LIKE. YES THE CITY IS THE MOTHER'S SIDE BUT ONCE THEYRE AWAY LONG ENOUGH THEY ADAPT TO LIFE WITHOUT HER AND THEN PARTY BECOME THE MOTHER IN A FUCKED UP SORT OF WAY AND THATS HOW THEY END UP PUSHING KOBRA AWAY BC THEY BECOME JUST AS RESTRICTIVE FOR HIM AS THE CITY WGAS AND THAT RIPS KOBRA WAY FROM THE ONE PERSON HE THOUGHT HE WA SAFE WITH IM GONNA EXPLODE

also this has made me realize the like. inherent connection between the venom siblings and frankenstein's creature (or maybe its not inherent and this is just me projecting again) bc its like !! they are from the city they are products of the city wether they like it or not. and it was supposed to be their home they were supposed to be safe there but because of these fundamental pieces of themselves, things entirely out of control, they were deemed broken, failures, monsters that needed to be fixed to fit into bli's narrow version of humanity. they were set up for failure from the start because the system they were born into the world they were born into was designed specifically to kill people like them!!!! they were born seeing the beauty of the world (because i firmly believe they found some beauty in the city. as hard as bli tried to stomp it out theres just some things you cant ever get rid of) and they wabted to be a part of it but the world around them was never gonna accept them as they are andvs !!!!!!!!!! maybe this doesnt make sense and im just too far into the frankenstein feels from listening to the musical earlier but fuuuuuuuck kaz im gonna fucking chew a hole trhought the wall now WHAGT THE FUCK OH GOD AND IT WORKS WITH THE ANGLE/FALLEN DYNAMIC TOO FUCK MY FAVORITE FRANKENSTEIN QUOTE "I OUGHT YO BR THY ADAM BUT I AM RATHER THY FALLEN ANGEL" OR WHYEVER WHAT THE FUCK KAZ THIS IS SO BAD FOR ME

[rataalada-dot-com]

hi eddie! been a while, i hope you’ve been doing well!! i started rereading frankenstein again cause you inspired me to come back to it!! found a quote that reminded me of you! “I ought to be thy Adam, but I am rather the fallen angel, whom thou drivest from joy for no misdeed. Everywhere I see bliss, from which I alone am irrevocably excluded. I was benevolent and good; misery made me a fiend” (12). I was wondering what you thought, and if you could relate? i know i definitely could! much love as always!! hope you have a good rest of your evening/morning/day! <3!!

>> SAYING SOMETHING REMINDED YOU OF ME IS. . . SWEET.

>> BUT IN THIS CONTEXT, IT'S FUNNY. ALMOST AN INSULT, IF YOU REALLY LOOK. THOUGH MOST THINGS COULD BE TWISTED INTO INSULTS.

>> DO I RELATE TO A CHARACTER FROM A BOOK RELATING TO A CHARACTER FROM ANOTHER BOOK?

>> MAYBE. BUT WE'RE NOT REALLY ALONE, ARE WE? WE ALL HAVE EACH OTHER. THIS COMMUNITY MEANS A LOT TO ME. YOU ALL GET ME, AND I GET YOU.

>> :)

[blujaymi]

why are we calling him "adam"??

i dont even really go here so i don't know if this is canon or just popular fanon, but i've noticed that there seems to be a common consensus of naming the creature "adam". and honestly??

hot (or maybe not) take: giving the creature the name "adam" is actually kind of more disrespectful to him than calling him "the creature"

preface: this is not me saying "the creature is monster so he shouldn't have a human name!!!!". in fact, the creature is repeatedly shown to be painfully human in many ways, and that's a whole essay and half to ramble about.

i especially don't like the implication i sometimes see that the creature murdering people makes him less or not human when humans do it literally all the time. which is not to say murder is good, but to say that humans are flawed and can be just as "evil" if not more than how the creature is perceived. (i feel like that's an overarching theme presented in frankenstein in general but that's ALSO a whole other ramble. also sorry i do not have any page numbers or chapters for the quotes. i'm using the project gutenberg ebook and ctrl+f lol.)

ANYWAY, moving on now. thoughts under the cut because this ended up being way too long.

(tl;dr: i get why he could be called adam, but i feel like he himself would not take kindly to it and it is dismissive of his pain)

alright hear me out

i feel like calling the creature adam is kind of against everything about him. like, i see your "i ought to be thy adam". in isolation, it makes "adam" a perfect contender for the creature's name, even one he may choose himself. he says that he "ought to be", implying a sense of want (or maybe more of a sense of obligation).

but that's not the complete picture, because what does the creature say RIGHT AFTER that?

the creature continues, "but i am rather the fallen angel, whom thou drivest from joy for no misdeed".

well, then the implication becomes that he SHOULD HAVE BEEN adam, but he isn't (which now i am inclined to wonder if that is the idea behind the name. a sort of "what could've been" of the creature in a fanon sense. if this is the case then i can see it, but i'm mainly trying to focus on canon creature here.)

so, the creature does not feel any real connection to adam, which is even further emphasized when he recalls paradise lost. he may initially compare himself to adam: "like adam, i was created apparently united by no link to any other being in existence"; however, he once again follows it up with why he doesn't truly relate to adam: "but [adam's] state was far different from mine in ever other respect".

in fact (even if we just completely ignore the creature's mention of not feeling united to "ANY OTHER BEING IN EXISTENCE"), the creature more personally likens himself to satan, recalling, "many times i considered satan as the fitter emblem of my condition". i get the idea behind him initially comparing himself to adam, and him envying adam and all of that. but the point still stands that he really doesn't feel associated with adam from his own perspective.

which brings me to my next point.

i don't think it's necessarily disrespectful to call the creature "the creature", because he himself does not feel a connection to who was viewed as the perfect human and child of god. and in general, he doesn't feel any connection to humanity. it's why he wants victor to make him a companion. he is done with trying to fit in with humans because he tried so many times and it never worked. in his eyes, there was no hope left to try and become a part of human society.

in this lens, i feel like calling him adam sort of undermines all that the creature has been through because he's been perceived by others as inhuman. like sure, the creature may be in essence, a human. he was made of human parts, has deep and complex emotions and thought, yada yada (once again, not getting into it. beating a dead horse.) but the harsh reality is that none of that matters because no one actually perceives him as human. his appearance is regarded as inhuman (or at the very least, repulsive), and it's the reason for all the suffering he endures in his life.

should the creature feel any lesser than for his appearance? no, of course not. yet, he still does because he gets constantly emotionally and physically attacked for it. to me, calling him adam is a way of saying, "it's okay, you're still perfect no matter what". and yes, the creature should have had that kind of reassurance from someone before he went on a quest for revenge.

but he didn't.

and because of that, any sort of comforting implications of the name are just...gone. the creature doesn't relate to humans and human culture. he feels other, and it's valid considering all that he's been through. so, what would a name mean to him?

to me, naming himself adam would be him saying, "i'm human" when he doesn't feel that way at all. and to add "frankenstein" as his surname on top of that he most definitely would hate, i think. i understand the idea that he inherits victor's name because victor created him, but even if the creature did decide he was part of humanity and named himself "adam" i feel like he still wouldn't consider the surname "frankenstein". victor is a Deadbeat Dad (for lack of a better term). the creature shouldn't feel any obligation to tie himself to someone who wasn't there for him. and thinking about this from a real world perspective, neither should anyone who deals with absent or abusive family members, or for any reason feels disconnected from their family name. you're not REQUIRED to have a name connecting you to your family.

if the creature ever did name himself, i think it would be more suitable and meaningful that it's just...some random name that he comes up with. nothing connected to adam or satan. nothing connected to victor. just something completely unique and his own. i think it would give him a sense of personal identity, which i find much more humanizing than defaulting to "adam frankenstein" as his name (and to reiterate, this isn't to say i can't appreciate the idea. truly, i see the vision).

okay. im done now.

thank you to anyone who read this far because i did NOT mean to ramble for over 1k words

[bylertruther]

sends you this post and thinks about will byers along with it long n hard

oh dear lord in heaven not frankenstein . i clicked and saw that and immediately exited the tab in a panic bc hello. the extreme psychic damage of will AND frankenstein. i literally keep tht book on my nightstand. every character i've ever loved has had a piece of the creature inside of them, which is precisely why i love them. you are trying to KILL me................... god . okay i'm putting my big boy pants on to actually Look at the post brb trembling shaking sweating—

FUCKING CHRIST NOT THE I WILL DEFEND IT QUOT E FACK I LITEARLLY !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

YOU GET IT.... will byers whose mother and brother love him so very much but had a father that wanted nothing to do with him. will byers whose father helped create him and brought him into this world lonnie who made a child and then decided he hated it. that it was subhuman that it was not worthy and would never be worthy bc what it is is isn't Good or Normal. the creature and will byers 🤝 persevering despite it all, wanting love despite it all, being Other, being treated as Subhuman, being denied by their creator, not being allowed a place in the world

also, these quotes which make me insane, too:

Many times I considered Satan as the fitter emblem of my condition; for often, like him, when I viewed the bliss of my protectors, the bitter gall of envy rose within me.

When I looked around I saw and heard of none like me. Was I, then, a monster, a blot upon the earth, from which all men fled and whom all men disowned?

Remember that I am thy creature: I ought to be thy Adam; but I am rather the fallen angel, whom thou drivest from joy for no misdeed. Every where I see bliss, from which I alone am irrevocably excluded.

I cherished hope, it is true, but it vanished when I beheld my person reflected in water or my shadow in the moonshine, even as that frail image and that inconstant shade. I endeavoured to crush these fears and to fortify myself for the trial which in a few months I resolved to undergo; and sometimes I allowed my thoughts, unchecked by reason, to ramble in the fields of Paradise, and dared to fancy amiable and lovely creatures sympathizing with my feelings and cheering my gloom; their angelic countenances breathed smiles of consolation. But it was all a dream; no Eve soothed my sorrows nor shared my thoughts; I was alone. I remembered Adam's supplication to his Creator. But where was mine? He had abandoned me, and in the bitterness of my heart I cursed him.

If any being felt emotions of benevolence towards me, I should return them a hundred and a hundredfold; for that one creature's sake I would make peace with the whole kind!

Have I not suffered enough, that you seek to increase my misery? Life, although it may only be an accumulation of anguish, is dear to me, and I will defend it. Remember, thou hast made me more powerful than thyself; my height is superior to thine; my joints more supple. But I will not be tempted to set myself in opposition to thee. I am thy creature, and I will be even mild and docile to my natural lord and king, if thou wilt also perform thy part, the which thou owest me.

[emilyrox]

“Frankenstein” by Mary Shelley Liveblog (Chapters 9-16)

Part two of the liveblog let’s goooo

Idk if I need to warn about this, but spoilers for Frankenstein I guess?

Enjoy

~

- Victor get therapy challenge

- Ok so maybe we see more of it later on, but I thought we were gonna see more of the monster’s actions. Yeah we hear about how it’s an abomination from Victor, and we hear from him that it has committed multiple crimes, and at this point it appears that the monster killed William, but other than the assumption about William, all the atrocities this monster has committed is just from word of mouth.

- “‘but now misery has come home, and men appear to me as monsters thirsting for each other’s blood.’“ - Elizabeth

- Maybe the real monster was mankind the whole time

- Is this book the start of the “run away from home to find myself and deal with trauma” trope?

- “If our impulses were confined to hunger, thirst, and desire, we might nearly be free; but now we are moved by every wind that blows, and a chance word or scene that that word may convey to us.”

- Face off with the monster (I guess)

- The monster can speak coherent sentences. Wasn’t expecting that.

- “’You purpose to kill me. How dare you sport thus with life? Do your duty towards me, and I will do mine towards you and the rest of mankind’” - The Monster

- “‘Remember, that I am thy creature; I ought to be thy Adam; but I am rather the fallen angel, whom thou drivest from joy for no misdeed” - The Monster

- “‘You accuse me of murder; and yet you would, with a satisfied conscience, destroy your own creature. Oh, praise the eternal justice of man!’“ The Monster

- Ok Frankenstein’s monster is out here spittin’ facts,

- And Victor is a bad father towards him

- Aight so the next couple chapters are gonna be the monster’s story. Nice.

- So far we are hearing about him experiencing the world for the first time; feeling his senses, seeing and hearing birds, finding fire and figuring out how it works, etc. One of the first discoveries/inventions of man was fire, so I think it’s interesting that that’s one of the first things he learns about, and all by himself with no aid.

- Just like Victor, the people in the village all are afraid of him and think he’s a danger based solely on his ugly appearance. He has not done any harm thus far in his story.

- “‘dank earth’“

- The old man and the young girl, presumably his daughter or granddaughter, have a caring relationship, the kind that the monster longed to have with Victor, but was denied.

- They don’t even know he exists, but he calls the family “my friends.” I don’t know if that’s cute, sweet, or sad. Probably a mix of both. Definitely a mix of both.

- The monster compares himself to Safie, the new stranger (who I think is Felix’s girlfriend). They both don’t fully understand their language (he doesn’t know how to speak well at all, and Safie speaks Arabic), but despite this language barrier the family accepts Safie and welcomes her into their home. The monster most likely believes that if he formally introduces himself, he’ll be accepted just like her.

- “‘Was man, indeed, at once so powerful, so virtuous and magnificent, yet so vicious and base?’“ -The Monster

- Ah ok so Safie and Felix are engaged to have a somewhat arranged marriage.

- I was not expecting the tragic backstory of the family but here we are

- Ok so they’re not really in an arranged marriage. Their initial meeting and marriage plan was arranged, but they actually do like each other.

- The more knowledge the monster gains, the more he starts questioning his own existence. Frankenstein’s Monster get therapy challenge.

- “‘if my first introduction to humanity had been made by a young soldier, burning for glory and slaughter, I should have been imbued with different sensations’“ _ The Monster

- First impressions are everything, guys

- Since we know with hindsight that the monster is not currently with the family, and is currently telling his story to Victor, I’m assuming that once he introduces himself, it doesn’t go well. Either that or something else happens that prevents him from introducing himself to them.

- Ok listen I understand the logic of your plan, but idk if already being in their house when they get back is the best idea my dude

- I knew the family would react in horror. I was hoping they wouldn’t, but I knew better. It was going well when he was talking with the old man (who is blind), but once the rest of the fam returned it went downhill fast.

- They treated him like a monster, so he’s going to start acting like one.

- The family moved away wtf. Like I get it, but also wtf.

- It’s arson time, baby

- He literally saved a little girl from drowning and he gets shot for it??? Listen, I get it, he looks weird. But that doesn’t mean he IS weird. His growing disdain for all of mankind is very justified. Like I said earlier, maybe the real monster was mankind the whole time.

- So he did kill William. And it was for what I thought earlier; revenge. He wanted to befriend him at first, but William saw him as a monster, and thought he was gonna be hurt. When he learned William was related to Frankenstein, he decided that instead of his friend, William would be his victim.

- A child being afraid I can understand, and is a bit more justifiable. Children don’t fully understand right from wrong, and many things spook children anyway. But prejudice is also a learned trait. He must have learned from the rest of his family to fear that which is strange. Like his older brother, Victor, he feared the monster because he looked horrifying, but he knew nothing about him other than that.

- He also framed Justine???

- “‘one as deformed and horrible as myself would not deny herself to me. My companion must be of the same species, and have the same defects. This being you [Victor] must create’“ - The Monster

- To quote OUAT, “Evil isn’t born. It’s made.” The monster wasn’t a monster from the moment he was created. He became one due to all the mistreatment, neglect, and abuse he went through.

[creatorofclay]

"What other names were in the running for me? Who would I be if I wasn't Chloe?"

Elijah smiled a little, folding his arms loosely, " Well, for most of the planning stages for you, for androids as a whole, I was in a sort of... Old rock and roll phase, " he admitted with a single shoulder shrug, " The coffee shop I worked in some days used to play classic rock all the time.

" One day when I was leaving, really down in myself because I wasn't making any kind of progress, and stressed because working with the public really sucks, " he shook his head, " a song was playing, but just as I was walking out the door I heard ' "There's no time to lose, " I heard her say/ Catch your dreams before they slip away/ Dying all the time/ Lose your dreams and you will lose your mind/ Ain't life unkind?' " he paused, just smiling a bit, " Ruby Tuesday, by the Rolling Stones. It was.... Oddly inspiring for me, so, I listened to it as often as I could. "

He looked at Chloe, a playful glint to his eye, " I thought about Ruby, but, I mostly just referred to you as RT until you were Chloe. It fits you so much better. "

[genderbinaryisforlosers]

His limbs were in proportion, and I had selected his features as beautiful. Beautiful—Great God! His yellow skin scarcely covered the work of arteries and muscles beneath; his hair was of a lustrous black, and flowing; his teeth of a pearly whiteness; but these luxuriances only formed a more horrid contrast with his watery eyes, that seemed almost of the same colour as the dun white sockets in which they were set, his shrivelled complexion, and straight black lips.

[id: An aesthetic post with a series of images combining lyrics from half alive’s ‘creature’, quotes from Mary Shelley’s ‘Frankenstein’, and various related art. Each image is numbered and described below.

1: “I know I'm made of clay that's worn / Blighted by imperfect form / But I will trust the artist molding me” (’creature’, half alive)

"His limbs were in proportion, and I had selected his features as beautiful. Beautiful! Great God!” (’Frankenstein’, Mary Shelley)

2: ‘Lucifer’ by Franz Von Stuck; a classical painting depicting Lucifer as a thin, pale man with dark shorn hair and pale yellow eyes (making it appear like he has no irises, only pupils). He stares directly at the viewer with a serious expression, his chin resting on his left (viewer’s right) hand. He is hunched forward slightly and sitting in the dark, with his black wings barely visible behind him, but his eyes shining in the dark.

3: “ I am creation, both haunted and holy / Made in glory / Even the depths of the night cannot blind me / When You guide me / Creature only” (’creature’, half alive)

“Remember that I am thy creature; I ought to be thy Adam, but I am rather the fallen angel, whom thou drivest from joy for no misdeed.” (’Frankenstein’, Mary Shelley)

4: ‘Fallen Angel’ by Alexandre Cabanel; a classical painting depicting Lucifer as a thin, pale-skinned young man with curly auburn medium-length hair, posed with his arm covering the lower half of his face. His brow is deeply furrowed, and a tear escapes from his right (viewer’s left) eye.

5: “ Early days and sleepless nights / Death and resurrection, life / My body is a sacred note / Sung between the flesh and hope” (’creature’, half alive)

“He held up the curtain of the bed; and his eyes, if eyes they may be called, were fixed on me. His jaws opened, and he muttered some inarticulate sounds, while a grin wrinkled his cheeks.“ (’Frankenstein’, Mary Shelley)

6: A black and white illustration by Bernie Wrightson from the 1983 edition of ‘Frankenstein’; the creature is curled up in a ball in the shadowy corner of a derelict outbuilding, with torn clothes and long, unkempt dark hair. He has his arms wrapped around his head, mostly concealing his face, but his left eye (viewer’s right) is visible, glaring in front of him.

7: “Haunted by a darker side / Transcends to walking in the light / And slowly I'm recovering / The beauty of discovery“ (’creature’, half life)

“I cannot believe that I am the same creature whose thoughts were once filled with sublime and transcendent visions of the beauty and the majesty of goodness.” (’Frankenstein’, Mary Shelley)

8: ‘The Wounded Philoctetes’ by N. A. Abildgaard (cover art for the Penguin Classics edition of ‘Frankenstein’); a classical painting depicting a naked man with dark, short wavy hair, hunched over with his right knee raised to his chest. Most of his face is in shadow, but his chin rests on his knee, which he is holding with his left hand, and he glares at the viewer.

/end id]

[corvidiss]

On the Creature’s early influences and how they affected his view of relationships.

(Two TL;DRs at the bottom; one as a detailed summary, one as a far briefer summary.)

I will refer to Frankenstein’s creation as the Creature rather than Adam in this essay, as A) not all people call him Adam, and B) it will avoid confusion with Adam from Paradise Lost.

When thinking about the maturity and motives of the Creature, I was compelled to think on his request for a bride, and his early influences. My thoughts on the matter follow:

The Creature grew up (though his body was adult, his mind was arguably reset and had to grow like a child’s) with no guidance from any parental figure or friend. Instead of being shown the ways of the world by someone, he had to find his way himself; and of the few human things that influenced him, three stand out: Society’s reaction to him, the epic poem Paradise Lost, and the De Lacey family.

Society’s reaction to the Creature was the first, and arguably most important, human factor that affected the development of his worldview. He is immediately abandoned by his creator, and shunned and attacked by the people he stumbles across. Later, Felix De Lacey attacks him violently. All this shows the Creature that he is unaccepted by humanity, and the constant denial of the kindness and love which should come with family (his father, Victor) or familiarity (the family he helped and grew to love) is sure to make him wonder if he’s unworthy of it. His experiences subtly teach him that he is incapable of being loved by humanity, however much he is capable of loving them, and however much he longs for it.

The second factor I’ll address is Paradise Lost, which the Creature says had a profound effect on him. I’ve not read Paradise Lost myself, but I’ve gained the best impression I can from plot summaries and thematic analyses online.

(It is worth mentioning that the Creature relates to Satan – “I ought to be thy Adam; but I am rather the fallen angel, whom thou drivest from joy for no misdeed. In Paradise Lost, when Satan comes to Earth to take revenge on God by causing the downfall of his newest and most favoured creations, he is moved to great envy at the sight of Adam and Eve’s innocent happiness; a feeling the Creature will come to know all too well.)

In Paradise Lost, there is no depiction of familial love; only of divine love (of God) and romantic love, and the former is presented as more important than the latter. But the Creature has been shunned by God’s creations, and has been denied the love of his creator, whom he might compare to Adam and Eve’s God – so perhaps the Creature sees divine love as inaccessible to him, and romantic love his only remaining option in a theoretical companion.

Furthermore, when Eve eats the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge, Adam chooses to do so too, because he feels his connection to Eve is so strong that they must share each other’s fate, whatever it may be. The Creature has never experienced this kind of devoted connection himself, nor has anyone sacrificed anything for him. Reading about this connection, he must have longed for such a thing himself – a thing, he sees, which has its source in romantic love.

And finally, when Adam and Eve leave their paradise, they are horrified at what they have doomed humanity to, but are comforted by the knowledge that their offspring will have revenge on Satan, and by each other’s love. While Adam’s choice to eat the fruit as well, valuing romantic love over divine love, is depicted as bad in Paradise Lost, Adam and Eve’s romantic connection is shown to be strong enough to keep them happy when they are expelled from their home and the favour of their creator. The Creature might see in this, that if he had a partner like Adam had Eve, he would be able to live with and even enjoy his own exile from humanity.

And thirdly, the De Laceys. Here is the Creature’s only source of what familial love is – and while he sees it to be a comfort to the family, it cannot truly combat the sadness and despondency that hangs over them. They spend evenings listening to the father’s music or reading aloud, but the happiness it affords them, and the happiness it affords the Creature, both fade soon after.

When Safie – Felix’s romantic love – comes along, however, the family’s spirits are brightly restored and their despair disappears. They teach and welcome her – and by doing so teach and, in a way, welcome the Creature too; everything is better for Safie’s presence. Where familial love was inadequate, this appearance of romantic love banishes the family’s sorrow.

Regardless of the true meanings and causes behind the De Lacey’s sorrow and return to happiness, these were the first impressions the Creature got, and so must have shaped his view of the world.

The Creature might be compared to children raised on classic Disney movies of princesses and princes and the portrayal of romantic love in modern media – seeking to enter a romantic relationship before they know what it truly means, or before they are ready, or even before they know true friendship. He grew up an outcast from society, and with sources that taught him of the power of romance, and not its nuances, or what else is possible and just as powerful.

As a result, he sees the only chance of gaining happiness to lie in romantic love. He no longer wishes for the acceptance of his creator – which he has come to see will never be granted to him, and perhaps even begins to believe that he does not deserve it – and instead demands the creation of another like him, so he can have this romantic love which he has been taught, inadvertently, is the only thing that can lift him from his despair.

In short, he's a child who is misguided about relationships: Paradise Lost showed blissful harmony (something which does not occur perfectly in most romances), and the imbalance of power and knowledge between woman and man. While somewhat in keeping with the sexist views of the time, this is a bad starting point for forming romantic relationships when one has had barely any contact with people, let alone the personal interactions necessary for forming one's own opinions on the difference, or lack thereof, in qualities between genders. Not only this, but he is simply not ready for a romantic relationship, especially with someone of an adult age, given his incredibly small experience of relationships and of the world as a whole – and therefore shouldn't be pushed into romantic relationships until he gains more experience as he grows, just like any other child.

Thank you for reading. :)

(TL;DRs beneath cut.)

TL;DR 1:

The Creature was raised with three main human influences: neglect from humanity, Paradise Lost, and the De Lacey family.

The neglect he experienced (Victor's abandonment, the villagers' attacks, Felix's attack) taught him that he is only going to be denied the kindness and love that should come with family (Victor) or familiarity (the family he helped for so long).

Paradise Lost contains only divine love (of God) and romantic love, and since the Creature has been denied the love of his own creator, he might see that romantic love is all that is left to him. The connection between Adam and Eve is strong – the Creature, who surely longs for such a connection, would see its source in romantic love. When Adam and Eve leave their paradise, their love makes it bearable – if the Creature had that love, perhaps, he might think, his own shunned existence would be easier, or even enjoyable.

The De Laceys' familial love is present, but seems inadequate to combat the sadness and despair that hangs over them. But when Safie, a romantic love, arrives, everything gets better and the happiness is restored. Romantic love seems, to the developing Creature’s mind, stronger than familial, whether it be true or not.

The Creature was raised with the concept of romance as a cure for sadness, perhaps similarly to how children grow up on the presentation of love in the modern media. He has come to see romantic love as the only thing that can give him happiness, without knowing its nuances or even what friendship is.

He's a child who is misguided about romantic relationships, and who simply can't be ready for them, given his incredibly small experience of the world and the people that inhabit it.

TL;DR 2:

The Creature’s view of the world was shaped by the few distant human influences he had in his developmental early age – the neglect of humanity, Paradise Lost, and the De Lacey family. All of these contributed towards the idea that romantic love was the Creature’s only remaining chance at happiness, while not teaching him the values of friendship and the subtleties of romance and love in any form.

He was misguided by his influences and convinced that romance was the only thing that could grant him happiness; but with so few experiences of people and the world as a whole, he is not only drastically ill-suited for a romantic relationship, especially with someone of an adult age, he is simply not ready, and therefore shouldn't be pushed into romantic relationships until he gains more experience as he grows, just like any other child.

[schmergo]

People really need to try and, like, READ a book before they try to correct people about it.

Once again, a silly tumblr post I wrote about Frankenstein (the one about calling Frankenstein's creation 'Frankenstein's lil boi') has made its way to a popular facebook page and everyone is coming out of the woodwork trying to sound smart, but I am concerned a lot of them are actually posting from a parallel universe or something because they... are saying some silly stuff.

First of all, my BIGGEST pet peeve, is people smugly saying that actually his name is Adam. I counted and 6 people independently asserted this. And in response to one of the comments, people said things like, "It's the name he chose for himself 😭" and "Adam is the name he gives to the blind people he lives with. His name is Adam." 

WHAT THE HECKAROO, GUYS? The creation is simply going through a bit of a Milton fanboy phase. He reads 'Paradise Lost' while secretly observing and learning from a blind man and his family (not a whole blind family, mind you) and feels struck by identification to some of the characters.

I did a search in the virtual edition of Frankenstein and these are the instances when the name 'Adam' comes up:

"Like Adam, I was apparently united by no link to any other being in existence; but his state was far different from mine in every other respect. He had come forth from the hands of God a perfect creature, happy and prosperous, guarded by the especial care of his Creator; he was allowed to converse with and acquire knowledge from beings of a superior nature, but I was wretched, helpless, and alone. Many times I considered Satan as the fitter emblem of my condition, for often, like him, when I viewed the bliss of my protectors, the bitter gall of envy rose within me."

"Remember that I am thy creature; I ought to be thy Adam, but I am rather the fallen angel, whom thou drivest from joy for no misdeed. Everywhere I see bliss, from which I alone am irrevocably excluded. I was benevolent and good; misery made me a fiend."

"No Eve soothed my sorrows nor shared my thoughts; I was alone. I remembered Adam’s supplication to his Creator. But where was mine? He had abandoned me, and in the bitterness of my heart I cursed him."

He's saying that he SHOULD have been like Adam, the first man created by God, but instead, due to Victor's rejection, he relates more to Satan, who was cast out of God's favor. How are people not getting that he's not literally naming himself Adam?

(Side note regarding commonly held literary tidbits that aren't the case in the original book-- a lot of people also confuse Paradise Lost with the Bible by saying that Satan is a fallen angel... the Bible never specifically says that. But that's a rant for another day!)

Other weird things people in the comments said:

"He killed a little girl and threw her in a lake!" 

What the heck? He saved a little girl from drowning in a river and her father thought he was trying to drown her and shot him instead. That was, like, the moment he realized no matter how much good he did, people would always think he was evil.

"He poisons a little boy!"

...No, he strangles his victims. It says there was a mark on the victims' necks. He just happened upon Frankenstein's little brother, got really mad, and strangled him-- he didn't have time to plan out an attack and make or obtain poison. Why would you poison someone if you were a super-strong giant?

Weirdest of all, someone said, "Not to mention the creature has a mental breakdown when Frankenstein dies from old age."

...What? Victor Frankenstein is a young man in the book-- in fact, he's in undergrad when he first makes the creature. He dies after trekking through the arctic for the creature. All of his sled dogs have died, he's endured exposure, exhaustion, mental strain, he's feverish and clearly unwell after being rescued and continues to pursue the creature. 

Also, fortunately nobody on the post said this, but people on tumblr have commented to say that the Creature was actually described as beautiful in the book. Uh... nope. If he was beautiful, why would people instinctively react to him with so much fear, disgust, and hatred? Victor Frankenstein DESIGNED him to be beautiful. He didn't do a great job of it. The text from the book says, "How can I describe my emotions at this catastrophe, or how delineate the wretch whom with such infinite pains and care I had endeavoured to form? His limbs were in proportion, and I had selected his features as beautiful. Beautiful! Great God! His yellow skin scarcely covered the work of muscles and arteries beneath; his hair was of a lustrous black, and flowing; his teeth of a pearly whiteness; but these luxuriances only formed a more horrid contrast with his watery eyes, that seemed almost of the same colour as the dun-white sockets in which they were set, his shrivelled complexion and straight black lips."

SO BASICALLY, he picked the most beautiful features possible (from corpses), but unfortunately, when he animated the creature to life, he still looked... like a dead guy. He was so focused on each detail of what he was doing that he wasn't looking at the big picture of what he'd created until it came to life and still didn't look like a normal person. I know the paragraph is a little confusing, but he's listing the beautiful things about him, but then he says, "But unfortunately, despite having naturally good features, he was clearly a rotting decomposing corpse, but living and breathing and moving, and let me tell ya, that is DISTURBING." 

Anyway, to make a long story short, maybe read the actual book before you try to prove how smart you are on a silly Tumblr post about it? Or don't quote selective passages like 'I ought to be thy Adam' or 'I had selected his features as beautiful' without reading the surrounding sentences. Reading comprehension is important!

I know this may sound super pedantic, but all I did was make a silly joke without taking the book itself too seriously and everyone had to swoop in and 'well actually' me about the book, so yeah, I am going to 'well actually' right back at them.

[another-dra-anew]

Chapter 1: Behind the Scenes!

To celebrate the end of Chapter 1, have some behind the scenes info! From various fun facts, screenshots from my working process, to explanations for how I worked out the trial, and snippets of conversations had with people who have spoilers.

Under the cut, to keep from spoiling anyone!

Fun Facts

-I only thought of the detail regarding Kurokawa fighting back (the spilled brown sugar) as I was writing that post! I just figured it would be nice to add in, and helpful to show later that Kurokawa was attacked in the Dining Hall -The exorcism scene would’ve actually happened, and I did briefly plan it, but I figured it may raise too many death flags, and just didn’t end up working it into my post schedule. Also, Maeda’s pendant he receives from Kurokawa in the prologue is based off of one of my own! -You were supposed to receive a gift from Kurokawa when her body is found, in the post stating that we’ve entered Deadly Life, but I forgot to include it when writing said post... Future gifts will be given when a student dies! For now though, they both get lumped in at the end of Nzo4s post -Speaking of Nzo4, I wonder why they were bleeding that much, and why we don’t seem to have had a casualty out of the thirteen members of current cast!

Post Schedule

Aforementioned briefly in section above, Fun Fact two! I use this minimal post schedule to organize how things will go in order of how many FTEs, Maedas general schedule, when my events are, etc etc! It’s helpful to have that as a reminder, especially when I’m writing Maeda’s selections for where he’ll go! Look at what I had for Chapter 1 at the very end!

Victim + Culprit

In most Beta drafts, Kurokawa actually lived to the end, or at least Chapter 4! Once I had her and Inori set to die in Chapter 1 though, that stayed the same, even as minor revisions were made. Kurokawa was generally set as traitor, or was up to something strange, even taking canon Kisaragis place at one point, while Inori just rotated as I needed her too- she was Chapter 3 killer for a bit though. Chapter 1 was the very first chapter I finalized for who would die, the others continued to shift around some, but once I had this one down the way it is now, I was finished!

Case

Did anyone notice Maeda’s lie that got uncaught? He claimed everyone had given their alibi, and only a few were verifiable- but we never asked Higa or Mekaru about their alibis. There was originally a scene wherein Tsurugi returned to his room, which would help prove his innocence later, as Tomori accompanied him, and didn’t see any guns. I made numerous mini post schedules throughout the trial trying to outline just what I’d do next, but I ended up deviating from all- at one point, you’d have had the first rebuttal showdown against Yamaguchi,

Motive

I figured it’d be fun to put a spin on the typical “Oh noooo, your loved one” motive; the motive was specifically designed to target Inori, as she was while not the one most likely to solve murders, the one most likely to prevent a death, due to her medical skills. Other characters are decent at First-Aid, but Inori stands alone as the sole person equipped to fix, let’s say, a stab to the spine, or to the lung. Here’s the full list of who everyone saw in their videos! Sibling(s): Maeda, Kurokawa, Maki, Uehara, Yamaguchi, Iranami Friend(s): Mekaru, Taira, Parent(s): Otori, Higa, Full family: Tsurugi, Kobashikawa, Tomori, Hatano No one: Inori

Execution Tidbits

The title (Adam of Loving Labor) is inspired by a line from Frankenstein! “I ought to be thy Adam, but I am rather the fallen angel.” The original execution concept for Inori involved her operating on herself, being told that if she could save a certain amount of peoples lives, she’d be able to leave, having made up for what she had done, but she’d have to provide her own blood, organs, etc, in order to do it: However, upon removing the needed parts, it’d be revealed that she’d only help create more humanoid Monokumas. After an attempt to run while still extremely weak, she’d die of blood loss, and collapse, before being discarded of in some sort of way, with her corpse left to stay there, no one caring to come get her and mourn, showing how she was truly just disposable (in her view.) My decision to re-include Inori being operated on/having her organs used was really last minute- as I was finishing up her motive video post. For months, it would’ve ended with her dying as patient pushed her, due to wounds she had sustained while operating on him.

Quotes

From when it was thought Tsurugi was dead: “BRUH” “tfw everyone likes the optimism twink more than u so u try and get them all killed by killing him first” minor gore/head/brain trauma tw, in italics, skip whats italicized if that’d trigger you!: “haruhiko stomped on tsurugis head with his boots, thats what caused the wound” “how * stomp* dare * stomp* you * stomp* beat * stomp* teruya * stomp* you * stomp*  bitch * stomp stomp stomp*" “haru walkin round the halls with tsurugi brain matter on his gucci boots “ all from one person - “shaFUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK /// AHHHHHH /// TSU!!!!!!!!!! /// FUCK YOU. IVE GENUINELY  NEVER BEEN SO CRUSHED BY A CHARACTER DEATH BEFORE When it was discovered he was alive “MY SWEET BOY? HEZ ALIVE” “HE NEEDS HELP BUT IF WE GO WHAT IF HE DIES ALONE WAAA” “i was originally gonna post the "tsu is fucking dead" post and then the investigation post right after it but. decided a few hours of pain is good for the soul”

Misc

I’ll take note of some more of these to include next time, but a line from Tsurugi, vs what it was when I was drafting the post, and didn’t write it out in full: Tsurugi - Hey, can everyone stop for a sec? It’s overwhelming to have that kinda reaction and attention on you, especially when already breaking down. Tsurugi - …Good, good, thank you all! Now, Maeda? You hear me okay? Look at me if you can; you don’t have to make eye contact, just look over here. Versus Tsurugi - maeda. stop being a bitch My favorite characters to write during trial: Inori, Higa, Tomori, Maeda My least favorite characters to write during trial: Tsurugi, Hatano It was nice to explore Inoris dialogue, and how she’d try to subvert the trial to point fingers at someone else, and then setting up the other characters reactions and the like was very fun! I Hate Writing Hatano. I’m stupid and always forget her characterization so she feels bland, and like she doesn’t stand out... I redesigned her some, but right as the trial came to close... Then with Tsurugi, I worried too much about him coming across as a all-knowing character there to save the day.

Screenshots

i actually dont have anymore screenshots whoopsie 3 anywayss be on the lookout for more stuff ™  coming your way soon!

[amourdure-dureamour]

Frankenstein three ways

“Of what a strange creature is knowledge! It clings to the mind when it has once seized on it, like a lichen on the rock.”

“What am I?” “You’re a monster.” “I thought so. What are you?” “Me? I’m a boy.”

“Remember, that I am thy creature; I ought to be thy Adam, but am rather the fallen angel, whom though drivest from joy for no misdeed.”

“Hold me.” “I can’t.”

I originally thought I’d add more, but honestly, there were too many to read a parse and read again to fashion into something into a singular flow. I guess that’s what comes of becoming an icon of fantastical and supernatural culture.

“I saw the inside of that boy, and it was beautiful. But, it didn’t tell me about the world. It just made me feel.” “What does it avail that I now ask thee to pardon me? I who irretrievably destroyed thee by destroying all thou lovedst. Alas! he is cold.”

“He didn’t wake up.”

“He cannot answer me.”

Frankenstein’s Monster (Mary Shelley, 1831) Edward Scissorhands, (Tim Burton/Johnny Depp, 1990) Adam (Joss Weadon/George Hertzberg 2002).