#loneliness and isolation had a tool on him like the monster in Frankenstein

[margaretkart]

"Life, although it may only be an accumulation of anguish, is dear to me, and I will defend it."

[frosteee]

Re-reading Junji Ito's awesome adaption of Frankenstein got me thinking about the Creature again, particularly his request for a female monster from his creator.

When I first read the story, waaay back, I felt sympathy for the Creature wanting a partner like most people do, and angry at Victor for destroying the female creature and the Creature's hopes with it.

But re-reading the scene - from the original novel - I see it differently. While you can still understand the Creature's position (all alone in the world, feared and hated because of his appearance), his belief that having a partner would magically make him both happy and harmless is naïve, toxic and, ultimately, doomed for failure.

Naïve

I think this can be partly attributed to his creation/nature. He was shunned at birth and left to figure out his own origins and mull existential questions on his own - and the answers were terrible. He had no guide or protector - that was Victor's job, and he rejected that instantly - and so was constantly trying to fill the void, like a child would. The Creature is, for all his eloquence, still an immature child in a monster's body.

Equating marriage to happiness might also be attributed to his experience with the blind man's family, where the Creature truly gained a sense of self and concept of relationships in general. He sees the positive effects the introduction of Safie has on the blind man's family, especially Felix, who loves her:

"The presence of Safie diffused happiness among its inhabitants, and I also found a greater degree of plenty reigned there."

The Creature clearly connects this experience with his vision of life with a female partner. The blind man's family were poor, but content, because of Safie, so the Creature presumes - hopes - that the same will apply to him.

Toxic

There is an enormous amount of selfishness in this request. He is demanding another being exist to be just as miserable and alone as he is, simply so that it makes him a little less so.

The Creature is actually aware of this - he says (my bold for emphasis):

"It is true that we shall be monsters, cut off from all the world; but on that account we shall be more attached to one another. Our lives will not be happy, but they will be harmless, and free from the misery I now feel."

The Creature knows what kind of life will be in store for his female companion, but his priority is his own comfort and he simply does not care. He later states "O Creator, make me happy!", contradicting his earlier statement and suggesting that while his partner will be unhappy, he will be happy with their lot in life.

Doomed to fail

He is the misery that wants company. He constantly looks to external forces to ensure his own happiness - the blind man's family, Victor, the hypothetical female creature - but has no ability, or desire, to find his own form of happiness.

Edit: Also, a union based on shared misery is HELLISH.

At this point in this story, the Creature has suffered enormous damage to his mind as well as his body. He has killed (innocent) people in blind rage. Behaviour and thoughts like that can't just flip on a dime. He has severe issues with anger, abandonment and envy, and it has escalated to murder.

He is not at peace with his own existence, and a female version of himself (which is essentially what he wants) can't give that to him. It needs to come from within.

But again, the Creature is looking for betterment in external factors. He constantly describes himself as ugly and incapable of being more than a miserable murderer because of how he looks and how he is treated, becoming his own self-fulfilling prophecy in the process.

Having a partner just as ugly as him would not make him less so. In fact, it would only serve as a constant reminder of his own ugliness and isolation from the world. Ultimately, he would still have his insecurities and identity issues. The only difference would be that he would have someone to complain with!

Speaking of the female partner - as I said before, the Creature is aware of the kind of life she would be living, but does not consider this important enough to think twice about it. His comfort and 'happiness' trump hers. He doesn't think about what the female partner think about being created purely for his satisfaction, doomed to life of loneliness and secrecy. He doesn't consider that she might, justifiably, resent the Creature like he resents Victor Frankenstein. He doesn't consider that she, as a thinking being, would simply not like him, or not like him as much as he would want her to. He doesn't consider that he might not like her either. He doesn't consider that the violent negative emotions and trauma he suffered will have long-term effects and negatively impact his partner or humanity.

To him, the female creature is simply a means to an end. Victor destroying the creature in the novel does not take away the fact that the Creature was naïve to think that having a companion would make him truly happy, and unfair to play god just as his own creator had done. There are just so many factors and issues that the Creature either ignores or deludes himself about for the female partner to have done him or the world any good.

In Junji Ito's version - as with The Bride of Frankenstein - the female creature is completed and animated, but she rejects the Creature on sight - and it goes exactly as badly as you would expect. He blames Victor for deliberately making her that way, not caring how irrational this thought process is (the Creature was an unintelligent, animalistic thing when he was first animated). He refuses to acknowledge his own unrealistic expectations and desires, pushing all responsibility onto Victor (not saying Victor doesn't share blame as well, he does) and vows vengeance.

Ultimately, in any version, the Creature simply was not equipped with the right tools, had the right mindset, or in a position to have a partner like he wanted. It was wasn't ever going to end well, and that's the tragedy of it.