alarmed at [their] own brutality"(Gardner 117). Then, as the rich descend, the poor will rise to power in order to complete the revolution. "The total ruin of institutions and [heroism] is [in itself] an act of creation"(Gardner 118). To break the circle would cause "evolution," forward progress, that would enhance the natural progress of mankind. But, according to Gardner, this will never happen because the powerful enjoy their present state of grace; and when they helpless rise up, they are immediately repressed in a "cry [of] common good"(Gardner 119). Though not as overt as Grendel, the concept of "revolution" is also displayed in Frankenstein. Frankenstein's society ostracizes its undesirables by chasing them to the darkest corners of the world in much the same way that Grendel's society does. Frankenstein is driven from his birthplace by his creator only to find that he must hide in shadowed allies to avoid social persecution. In the theme of revolution, the rich control what is acceptable, and to them, Frankenstein definitely does not fit the mold. Next, Frankenstein seeks asylum in the barn of a small farmer. The place where he finds refuge is a cold, dark corner symbolic of how society forces the non-elite from their spheres to places where they cannot be seen, nor heard, and therefore do not exist. After Frankenstein saves the starving family by harvesting their crops, they repay him by running him off their land. This incident repeats itself throughout Frankenstein's journeys. Finally, Frankenstein is forced into the cold wasteland of the Arctic circle. In this uninhabitable place there is no one to persecute him. Yet the doctor maliciously continues to follow Frankenstein, hoping to completely destroy his creation. When Dr. Frankenstein dies, his monster is the first to come to lay his body to rest and follow him into the afterlife. Frankenstein fits the idea of a true hero, rather t...
