Frankenstein and the Political Gothic: The Creature as Refugee

As a being whose mind is developing under the influence of political theories and the anecdotal evidence of the French De Lacey family, Victor Frankenstein’s creature is a complex collection of ideas, aligned to no nation, empire, revolution, religion, or class. His original (human) body parts from various social strata (graves unknown, charnel houses, executed criminals), result in one who is not politically cohered. This diffusion raises him into a category of political refugee, as he journeys through monarchies, empires, kingdoms, and the new Republic of France. Scholars have established studies of the creature’s appearance as representative of Asian immigrants or enslaved West Africans, indicating the social anxiety of rebellion toward their oppressors, even as a voice for animals who are part of his composition. This article argues that the creature’s very variety of assemblage denies him political completeness. The creature resists placement except as Mary Shelley’s compelling warning of the ethical ramifications of secret knowledge and violent outcomes, the abandonment of refugees and citizens, and the intolerance to vulnerable beings.