I'm currently reading Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. In it, Frankenstein's monster says, "I heard of the discovery of the American hemisphere, and wept with Safie over the hapless fate of the original inhabitants." A few other times throughout the book, the loss of Native American tribes are references in this mournful manner. So did 19th century Europeans really regret the loss of these societies? Did they understand the part they, themselves, played in it? Was this a general feeling, or just Mary Shelley's personal attitude?