I was their plaything and their idol...

As Frankenstein is recounting his childhood this particular phrase caught my attention "I was their plaything and their idol, and something better - their child" (19). I found it interesting that he would phrase his childhood rearing as such. It lends to the idea that parents create their children, shape their children, and arguably have the greatest influence on whom their children become. This creative influence on life is echoed further in the narrative as Frankenstein creates his monster. While Frankenstein does give life and shape the monster, ultimately the monster just like children cannot be contained by their creators. When I was reading this passage I immediately began to think of the connection between Frankenstein and George Bernard Shaw's play Pygmalion. Based upon the mythological Pygmalion, a sculptor who fell in love with his statue of the most perfect maiden which the goddess Venus granted life, the play sees the social transformation of Eliza Doolittle from a flower seller to a refined lady at the hands of Professor Higgins. In the end though, she leaves him after all that he has done for her as she realizes that he cannot provide what she desires in life. The connection between Eliza, Frankenstein's monster, and children shows the ultimate reality in life that those who create or shape who we become cannot contain who we are. Ultimately, we cannot be our creator's idol or plaything. We either rebel and break away or we cannot fully embody our creator's visions. Eliza refuses to be Higgins' puppet, Frankenstein delves into the world of anatomy and criminality, children rebel from their parents, and Frankenstein's monster cannot be accepted by his creator for the reason of his monstrosity.