Frankenstein is the tale of a man doomed to failure and death for his desire to play with nature. By creating a destructive being, in human form, that he cannot control, Victor Frankenstein brings about his own ruin. Frankenstein neglects to take responsibility for his creation, abandoning him, resulting in the murder of his most loved ones as the creation's revenge. In his idealism, Frankenstein is blinded and is unable to predict the drastic effects of giving life to a being that could never be entirely accepted by human society, that further the creation's unkindness. Lastly, consciously choosing to pursue his creation in vengeance, Frankenstein's sufferings are finally obliterated, for he was well aware that it might lead to his ultimate doom. The creation of an unloved being and the search for a death cure hold Victor Frankenstein more responsible for his own demise than the creation himself.
Chapter five begins with ‘it was a dreary night’, which sets the tone for the rest of the chapter. This immediately tells the reader that all hasn’t gone according to plan. The word dreary gives an impression of quite a lengthy but pointless attempt at something. It also tells the reader Frankenstein’s feelings of tiredness.
He called his life long dream a catastrophe, when he saw it come to life. He then goes on to describe it, he says ‘beautiful-great god! His yellow skin scarcely covered the works of muscles and arteries beneath; his hair was of a lustrous black, and flowing, his teeth of pearly whiteness; but these luxuriances only formed a more horrid contrast with his watery eyes, that seemed almost of the same colour as the dun white sockets in which they were set, his shrivelled complexion and straight black lips.’ Mary Shelly has created contrast in this quote to show all of the work wasn’t a complete failure.
Mary Shelly has also used pathetic fallacy to describe Frankenstein’s feelings. This is when authors describe the settings from the point of view of the character, which tells the reader the feeling of the character. Once again the quote ‘it was a dreary night’, which describes Frankenstein’s feelings to us.
Frankenstein realises what he had done and was so disgusted he ran out of the room leaving the monster to fend for himself. When he falls asleep he starts dreaming about what he has done but this time in the death of Elizabeth. He was almost imagining the creation of one would lead to the death of another. ‘I saw Elizabeth, in the bloom of health, walking in the streets of Ingolstadt, delighted and surprised, I embraced her, but as I imprinted the first kiss on her lips they became livid with the hue of death.’ This shows the Frankenstein’s disgust at his creation, and now he realises that the way in which he has changed nature could have devastating effect.
When he wakes to realise it was a nightmare, he was faced by the creature, which he immediately runs away from. This is a very direct way of showing his feelings; the readers still haven’t got a proper reason why he is running from the creature and are left in suspicion to why Frankenstein is running.
When Frankenstein was returning home he bumped into his best friend Clerval, to whom he was overjoyed to see. When he took him back to show him the creature, he had disappeared. Frankenstein was over the moon. ‘I clapped my hands for joy, and random for Clerval’. Now that the monster had gone he had returned to his normal self.
Chapter 9 begins with Frankenstein telling the reader now that Justine was dead he was feeling so much guilt he was torturing himself ‘and the sense of guilt, which hurried me away to a hell of intense tortures’. Frankenstein was calling himself an ‘evil spirit’, but was also feeling a sense of accomplishment, in that he had created life. I believe this was because he had planned to destroy the creature and was enjoying the history that he had created before it was too late.
The guilt was making Victor unhealthy, and his dad had realised that the death was causing immense amount of pain to him. At night Frankenstein went sailing and was admiring things which had been there all the time. He was now living life for the moment and wasn’t planning so far ahead. Although he was considering running away, but wasn’t sure as he would have left his family exposed to the creature ‘and leave them exposed to the malice of the fiend’. The state of mind show Frankenstein upset and worried, you usually only notice little things when you feel your life is in danger are you are grieving about something.
Frankenstein was so upset that he didn’t even want his mind to be at peace. ‘Wished peace would revisit my mind only that I might afford them consolation and happiness.’ This shows that Frankenstein would rather be tormented by something to keep reminding him of the deaths he had caused them let him forget about them. At this point the only way the he would gain happiness would be to kill the creature that he had created.
When Frankenstein met the creature in the icy mountains he was filled with ‘rage and horror’ when he realised it was the creature, and his first word to him was ‘devil’. I think Frankenstein was trying to show that he was the stronger out of the two by starting off by saying this. The creature didn’t respond with the same tone but simply said ‘ I expected this reception’ in a calm voice. This shows that the creature wasn’t all that Frankenstein thought he was, and had learnt new skills by himself. He then told Frankenstein how he shouldn’t by trying to kill him but protect him because he was his creator. ‘Yet you, my creator, detest and spurn me, thy creature, to whom thou art bound by ties only dissoluble by the annihilation of one of us’
As Frankenstein jumped towards him, the creature easily avoided him and warned him that he wouldn’t attack him because he was his creature, but he had made him more powerful, taller and more supple and would defend himself because life is precious. ‘Life, although it may only be an accumulation of anguish, is dear to me, and I will defend it. Remember, thou hast made me more powerful than thyself; my height is superior to thine; my joints more supple. But I will not be tempted to set myself in opposition to thee. I’m thy creature, and will be even mild and docile which thou owest me.’
Frankenstein replies ‘begone I will not hear you, we are enemies’. This almost shows the creature is approaching the situation as an adult, whereas Frankenstein is being quite childish, theoretically it should be the other way around as Frankenstein is a lot older.
Chapter 17 starts with his proposal of a female companion. ‘You must create a female for me’. Then almost as a threat said ‘I demand it of you as a right’. Frankenstein immediately refused saying that there is no way in which I will bring another creature into to world causing more devastation. He may have also thought that in creating the female creature they would multiply causing even more havoc. In defence of an attack he said ‘you may torture me, but I will never consent’
Once again the creature showed his adulthood and instead of threatening him, he reasoned with him. He began with threats, ‘I will revenge my injuries: if I cannot inspire love, I will cause fear and chiefly towards you my arch enemy
These 2 chapters show the creature with quite an adult approach to a situation that he could have lost his temper very easily. It also shows Frankenstein show mixed emotions, beginning with him full of rage and ending up with him deciding to create a female counterpart for the creature, although he still wasn’t sure.
Chapter 23 begins with Frankenstein telling the reader how he was feeling every night, at the threat of the creature attacking him. ‘Every sound terrified me’. He knew, or he thought, that his death would come soon and didn’t want to die in front of Elizabeth, especially being killed by some one she had never seen before and would address Frankenstein in such a way that it would seem they were friends. Elizabeth notices the agitation and asked him ‘what is it that agitates you my dear Victor’, and he had to lie to avoid answering the question, telling the reader that he was still worried about what the creature would do to him.
When Frankenstein let her go to their house by herself, he had made a huge mistake. As he searched for the creature he heard a scream from Elizabeth’s room. As he rushed back he found her lying dead, and instantaneously knew it was at the hands of the creature. ‘Murderous mark of the fiends grasp’. As he looked up he saw the creature, and shot at him as if it were the only thing left to do. ‘A grin was on the face of the monster’, ‘ drew the pistol from my bosom, shot’
As people heard the shot a crowd appeared and followed the creatures path, Frankenstein followed in all his rage but turned back as he feared for the safety of his friends that were still there. I think the creature did this because Frankenstein didn’t grant him his wish. Also, all the creature had wanted was happiness and now the main source of happiness Frankenstein had was gone. The creature was almost working on a basis of equality.
Sorrow of all the deaths turned into anger and anger turned in to rage. He had now almost vowed to kill the monster, but needed some money. He turned to a magistrate who denied him, saying ‘which would put all my exertions to defiance.’ This infuriated Frankenstein more, who had to now think of his own way to capture the creature.
Events in this chapter have caused Frankenstein to make a thought of killing the creature a reality, and the creature’s anger is shown by the death of Elizabeth. Frankenstein shows great courage in trekking all the way to the north to locate the creature and destroy him. He had kissed the graves of all those that the creature had killed and told them that he would kill the creature if it were the last thing he did. This shows the reader how determined and devoted he is to kill the creature. Almost as determined and devoted as when he created it. This gives the reader a feeling of what will happen, the first time he got involved in one big thing it had disastrous effects, will the same happen here?
The chapters end with Frankenstein telling us, or Walton, how he had reached the boat the story then concludes in a serried of letters, just like the story began.
Throughout the story I have parted with the creature because he had to go from being something that had been created to something that had to learn to live with humans by himself. He had also learnt to read and write himself. He was in the same boat as Frankenstein when Elizabeth and Frankenstein’s mother got scarlet fever, lonely. Also the creature had only demanded one thing from Frankenstein who had promised him this, but then abruptly changed his mind. Frankenstein should have made more of an effort to see the creature point of view and how he was feeling. The relationship between the creature and Frankenstein is dramatic and interesting for a modern reader, because it is similar to a modern relationship between 2 people. There are always ups and downs, lies and promises that are broken.
The main characterization that has made an impact on me is pity for the monster. This is because the monster tries so hard to be loved and in return he is rejected every time from his creator and other people. Even though he kills a lot of Victor’s family, he hasn’t been taught that killing people is wrong. He hasn’t been taught anything since he was created. He had never had a father or mother to teach him what was right and what was wrong. Nevertheless, like man, the creature is basically good. The monster turns into a monster only after his love is not reciprocated. Shelley shows that monsters are made by the environment and their experiences in life.
