We have no comparable description of Elizabeth Lavenza from Victor, whose appreciation
of her virtues overshadows the few physical details he gives of her upon his return
to his family at the end of of the first volume (I:6:40). In the unself-conscious
innocence of the Creature, in contrast, not only do we realize that he has a nuanced
appreciation for the beautiful, but we also comprehend that strong romantic desire—not
a subject in which Victor seems particularly adept—is an aspect of his makeup, perhaps
to be considered normal for a human being, but in the Creature's circumstances deeply
problematical. Mary Shelley's delicate handling of the Creature's awakening to desire
is an index of the complexity with which she endows his character.