In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein,
Victor is persuaded by the creature to creature a mate for him. At first, Victor
refuses, but the monster reminds Victor that he is lonely and another being like him
would not turn him away.
I am alone, and miserable; man will not associate
with me; but 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 must
create.
Victor still refuses,
saying that do to the same thing again would make him "base" (low) in his own eyes. He
does not want to take the risk of creating a pair of murdering monsters: at the moment,
there is only one. However, the creature threatens
him:
I will
revenge my injuries: if I cannot inspire love, I will cause fear; and chiefly towards
you my arch-enemy...I will work at your destruction, nor finish until I desolate your
heart, so that you shall curse the hour of your
birth.”
Victor finally gives
in. He travels to England to try to learn as much as he can to help him with his new
task, and then returns to begin. As Victor starts the process on a small Scottish
island, he continues to battle with himself: should he do as the creature asks? His work
disgusts him so much, that finally one night he tears the this new "being" to pieces.
The monster, outside the window, sees Victor's actions and is insane with
fury.
The pros of Victor destroying the second creature is
that there will only be one monster roaming the earth. Two creatures could harm a great
many people; if they mated, several of them could descend in anger on mankind and kill
many individuals. In not creating the mate, Victor will not repeat
his mistake of playing God the first time.
The cons are
powerful—the monster has threatened Victor and his family if Victor does not fulfill his
promise. Victor loves his family very much. He already knows what the creature is
capable of: he has killed Victor's youngest brother, William, and caused the death of an
innocent Justine.
Once Victor makes his decision, it is not
long before the creature wreaks his revenge: he murders Clerval, and ultimately murders
Elizabeth on their wedding night. Victor's father's heart gives out from the agony of
losing Elizabeth, and he also dies.
Once Victor creates the
monster, there is no going back, and no easy solution.
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