"When I looked upon him, when I saw the filthy mass that moved and talked, my heart sickened. I tried to stifle these sensations..." (117).
I have personally written and read many comments of others that the creature is someone to pity due to how society treats him based off his appearance; however, I have to question that if, in reality, we would be able to be sympathetic to the creature? I would like to believe that I could see beyond his overpowering, in-human appearance. But sadly, I think that something so out of the norm would be startling and out of uncertainly usually stems fear. I think Grimly's remix makes this story an accessible text to younger audiences due to the pictorial use--not because the pictures inherently make it childish, but the metaphor of the blind man was more easily translated: he is the only one able to "see" the sincerity of the creature because he is not "blinded" by his appearance. So my main question is what examples of the creature exist in our own society? And how do we overcome our misplaced fears to see what is truly in front of us and teach younger generations to not have that fear in the first place?
I feel like this starts with ourselves. We have to look in the mirror and be truly tolerable of others. American society has an issue with excluding others that are different from one another. If we actually practice tolerance, then we can positively and effectively lead younger generations in the right direction.
ReplyDeleteI think you've raised some interesting questions. I was also having the thoughts that we wouldn't be as accepting in our own society of someone so different. Optimistically we'd like to think so, but given current events and how we treat those we define as "other"....well, it isn't looking positive. I'm not sure if easy examples of this creature exist in our own society, but I think that lesson you brought up is vitally importance. To not have fear of the unknown should be lesson number one for everyone.
ReplyDeleteEmily- I agree the unknown is 100% what people fear. I can imagine that this creature would have been an extreme example of unknown for the community who he is unleashed on in the text. Perhaps this is also Victor's fear. He starts out by embracing the unknown. Experimenting with science and doing what has never been done; however, when he is actually confronted by the unknown in the flesh, in the form of the creature, he fears it as much as anyone else.
DeleteI see so many examples and it's a shame that we still struggle so mightily with this in 2020. There are too many people who are afraid of people who are not like them -- we don't have to look further than today's headlines, where we see hate crimes being committed against Asian-Americans by fearful, racist people who want to blame a "Chinese flu" and feel they are entitled to take out that fear on the bodies of their fellow humans. To influence future generations, we have to ensure that we are raising kids to look beyond themselves and to value difference - not just tolerate it, but really value it. This is one of the reasons I want to encourage everyone to move beyond what feels "relatable" in a text! We have to be open to ideas that we don't immediately relate to. We have to be able to increase our own empathy and be open to ideas that are unfamiliar.
ReplyDeleteDr. MB- I agree completely. I think this text in particular serves a bigger purpose and part of what it should do is make us feel uncomfortable- but not with the creature. I think we have to be honest with ourselves and realize that, sadly, we could easily be in the position of the community in the text: rejecting the creature based on his appearance and his "otherness." By reevaluating hopefully the text can help to reshape our own perceptions of the world.
DeleteI think that answering this question explicitly could be quite problematic, so I will just say that I believe there are a lot of people and groups of people who experience a similar turmoil and strife that the monster did. it is so pathetic that we as a species are so advanced in many ways but we cannot convince our minds to look on something different or odd or even scary and learn to accept it 100%. I think no matter how hard one tries, they will always view someone who is different in these ways AS different.
ReplyDeleteAbbey- yup you're right. I personally thought of several examples I could have typed but then thought it might be better to hear what others think first. My little cousin has Down Syndrome and honestly this text brings a painful reality to the forefront: he will face ridicule his whole life. I'd like to believe that a text like this can help to educate the future generations and create a more accepting society.
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