Victor Frankenstein’s monster in Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein (1818) is considered by some to be an allegory for the French Revolution of 1789. The revolution’s early leaders were influenced by Enlightenment philosophy and sought to improve upon society by using reason. Yet the revolution quickly devolved into rampant bloodlust that consumed even some of its leading figures, just as the monster devolved into a murderer who destroys his creator.
The monster also fits the archetype of the “noble savage,” a Romantic convention with roots in ancient Greek literature that portrays an inherent good nature in uncivilized characters. The monster begins life as innocent as a child but is quickly corrupted by the violence in society.