This in-depth paper analyzes various works of Western literature in which the authors utilize monsters or images of evil to symbolically represent the dark side of humanity.
Written in 2006; 4,151 words; 11 sources; MLA; $ 111.95
Paper Summary:
The writer of this well-researched paper contends and explains the manner in which the theme of monsters in classic Western literature originates from religious, cultural and linguistic sources. This paper focuses primarily on Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein" and Victor Hugo's "The Hunchback of Notre Dame," both classic romantic novels which clearly depict dark and gothic images. This paper explores Shelley's writing style which illustrates how evil can emerge from the human psyche literally as well as symbolically. The writer discusses and details the similarities in both novels. This paper analyzes Hugo's intention when describing Quasimodo who is slightly more appealing than Frankenstein, albeit Quasimodo's appearance does convey a certain amount of fear. This paper contains several selected portions of text from both novels which are relevant to the specific topic detailed in this paper. The writer also discusses how this particular style of dark writing has evolved in more contemporary and up-to-date works by authors such as Stephen King as well as in films such as "Fatal Attraction" and "Silence of the Lambs."
Table of Contents:
Introduction
Frankenstein: Who Was the Real Monster?
Victor Hugo's Hunchback: An Illustrative Device
Allegory or Entertainment?
Modern Monsters: The Theme Continued
Conclusions
Works Cited
From the Paper:
"There is little question that Hugo fully intended Quasimodo to evoke horror in his readers. He creates Quasimodo as a grotesquely deformed, almost non-verbal, and deaf. Interestingly, Hugo assigns the character a friend, if not a creator as in Frankenstein, but as a protector--one who supposedly has the best interests of the monster at heart. This friend, Dom Claude Frollo, ironically on some levels represents the "best" of humanity as is exemplified by his devotion to the Church and a life of God. However, the reader soon sees the irony, as well as the inherent evil of the human heart not in the monster, but in the supposedly "good" human man. This, the reader sees most clearly in the following passage, perhaps one of the most striking in the novel, when Frollo, a supposed beacon of hope and mercy, passes by Quasimodo being tortured by a terrible mob."
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