Frankenstein vs. Walton Based on previous knowledge of the novel Frankenstein, it is known that Victor Frankenstein is the main character of the novel and shown as the protagonist.It never occurred to me that this novel would start as a series of letters which is very relatable to another novel in the same genre: Bram Stoker’s Dracula. This is very crucial to the book because it helps the reader relate to two characters. The beginning is not as exciting yet contains foreshadowing that reveals the loneliness shared by Robert Walton and Victor Frankenstein. Both contain the zealous thirst for knowledge and have similar familial characteristics. Both have sisters that represent a lot to them: “And now, dear Margaret, do I not deserve to accomplish some great purpose?”Robert asks his sister Margaret.(5) Victor and Elizabeth also …show more content…
Both curious men yet Watson an explorer of the seas, while Victor, the one man in the world that has the secret to life. All the family familiarities are not actually so similar. Elizabeth would be his adopted sister even if she was never treated in any negative stereotypical way while Margaret, I assume, is blood related to Robert. While Mary Shelley probably wanted to have Robert remain a minimally described character that is similar to Victor it is impossible for the reader to not differentiate between him and Frankenstein. For one Watson at the time was unmarried, while Victor had been married. Also, there is no background history on Watson which makes it difficult to relate with him. Meanwhile, Victor’s whole life story is repeated to Watson and recorded by him for the reader to share : “I am by birth a Genevese, and my family is one of the most distinguished of that republic.” Victor begins his story. (24) Such information comes in need later on because they make sure that Mary Shelley doesn’t have to describe the characters later on in the
Robert Walton, an explorer who nourishes Frankenstein back to health and tells the narrative through a series of letters to his sister back in England, also possesses similar traits as Frankenstein, because he is persistent to seek ultimate knowledge at all costs. The monster, who is driven with rage from the betrayal of his creator, is considered the antagonist of the novel, because he kills innocent civilians and takes the lives of Frankenstein’s loved ones as revenge for Frankenstein abandoning him. Apart from these central characters are: Henry Clerval, Elizabeth Lavenza, William Frankenstein, Alphonse Frankenstein, and Justine Moritz. These characters also play a crucial role that alludes to the element of betrayal in the novel, because they either influence Frankenstein and the monster or are killed which drives this element. Shelley’s perspective and opinion about the effects of betrayal are transpired throughout the novel, beginning from Frankenstein’s childhood and transitioning into the monster’s remorse over his
The start of Robert Walton and the monster’s final conversation, this paragraph near the end of Mary Shelly’s novel Frankenstein uncovers the untold perspective of Victor Frankenstein’s creation. Revealing to Robert that Frankenstein’s misery was not the only casualty of the novel, Shelly’s utilization of the monster’s pain illustrates mankind’s hatred and abandonment of the artificial being. Moreover, directing spiteful words towards Victor Frankenstein, Felix De Lacey, and even himself, the monster’s narration reflects the being’s unresolved emotions that have emerged because of society’s cruelty. Although science fiction, the narrative of Frankenstein’s monster exemplifies the literary reproduction of England’s monarchy deserting its own
The two characters introduced during the letters section in the book are Robert Walton and the stranger who came onto his crew. Robert Walton is sending letters to his sister, which indicate he is on a voyage to the North Pole and how ambitious he is to be the first to sail there. During his journey, an unknown man boards his ship. My initial reaction to Walton was that he seemed to be very ambitious, but also a clear example of a romantic character. Additionally, he searches for someone who is in able to share his ambitions and romantic characteristics. My reaction to the stranger who boards the ship was that he seemed helpless at first until he was in a less fragile
James Whale's Frankenstein is a VERY loose adaptation of Mary Shelley's 1818 novel. The spirit of the film is preserved in its most basic sense, but the vast majority of the story has been entirely left out, which is unfortunate. The monster, for example, who possesses tremendous intellect in the novel and who goes on an epic quest seeking acceptance into the world in which he was created, has been reduced to little more than a lumbering klutz whose communication is limited to unearthly shrieks and grunts. Boris Karloff was understandably branded with the performance after the film was released, because it was undeniably a spectacular performance, but the monster's character was severely diminished from the novel.
People are always found to be in some category of conflict that prevents them from achieving their goals. During the course of the novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, Victor Frankenstein is often found in this situation. Victor is found to have many similar goals to Robert Walton in the novel throughout their letters to each other through loneliness, being consumed by their goals, and their failure to achieve their goals. This relationship is portrayed through the letters they exchange among one another. Their letters to one another, in a way, control their actions due to their commonness with each other. Victor’s actions are taken due to his vision of a failure of a creation of a monster through his doubts and morality of his actions and the choices he makes. The monster’s development as a being in society is not very respectable because of its treatment from Victor and its isolation from everyone else in the settlement. Victor, not realizing the actions he takes and the treatment of his creation, leads to ultimately his downfall because of his failure to achieve his utmost important goal as a man of knowledge.
“From this day natural philosophy, and particularly chemistry, in the most comprehensive sense of the term, became nearly my sole occupation” (Shelley 36). This shows that he devoted all his time to learning and studying about natural chemistry. After a couple years of intense studying, he starts to develop an interest in the human body, and he wants to create life from death. Just like Walton changed from being a poet to an explorer, Frankenstein changed from being a natural philosopher to being a creator of life. Another way Victor Frankenstein and Robert Walton are similar is how both of them adore their sisters. Frankenstein’s sister is named Elizabeth and she was adopted by Victor’s mother, Caroline after Elizabeth’s family could not afford to take care of her. “… she presented Elizabeth to me as her promised gift, I, with childish seriousness, interpreted her words literally and looked upon Elizabeth as mine—mine to protect, love, and cherish” (Shelly 21). Before Elizabeth was taken into Victor’s home, his mother told him that she was going to give him a present for him to take care of. Then, the next day, Victor’s parents brought
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley is a story that starts from letters of a man named Wilson to his dear sister Margaret, who is off in sea and stranded within the Arctic in his “expedition of discovery up his native river.” There Wilson meet a man named Victor who he had saved and later on Victor will tell his story to Wilson for he had felt a connection of brotherhood and wishes that Wilson won’t walk the same fate as he had. This was how the audience will later learn
It is in the complex structure of the novel that Mary Shelley creates sympathy. We shift from Robert Walton to Victor Frankenstein to the monster and finally back to Walton. With each shift of perspective, the reader gains new information about both the facts of the story and the reliability of the narrator. Each perspective adds pieces of information that only they knows: Walton explains the circumstances of Victor’s last days, Victor explains his creation of the monster, the monster explains his turn to evil. This impact of the change of narration gives us a better understanding of each person, and we see that the monster is not such a monster at all.
Victor Frankenstein serves as an instrument of suffering of others and contributes to the tragic vision as a whole in this novel. He hurts those surrounding him by his selfish character and his own creation plots against his master due to the lack of happiness and love. The audience should learn from Frankenstein’s tragic life and character to always remain humble. We should never try to take superiority that is not granted to us because like victor we shall suffer and perish. He had the opportunity to make a difference in his life and take responsibility as a creator but his selfishness caused him to die alone just like what he had feared.
After learning about the life of Mary Shelley, I have grown to appreciate the novel, Frankenstein, even more since the first time I read it. She led a life nearly, as tragic as the monster she created through her writing. Mary seems to pull some of her own life experiences in Victor’s background, as in both mothers died during or after childbirth. Learning about Mary’s personal losses, I have gained a better appreciation of her as an author and a woman of the 17th century. She had association with some the most influential minds of that
...most readers tend to sympathize with Frankenstein because of the way in which he is mentally and physically harmed by his creation. However, one must also realize that while Frankenstein is a victim in the novel, he also exhibits features that make him a monster. These monstrous qualities, however, stem from his passion for science and his desire to create life. Not only does the reader criticize and pity Frankenstein, but the reader also empathizes with Frankenstein’s creation. He was unjustly shunned by society because of his physical appearance. On the other hand, the reader realizes that like Frankenstein, the creation can not be sympathized with entirely. He too exhibits traits that make him appear villainous. It is the duality of these two characters that make Frankenstein and his creation two of the most appealing characters of the nineteenth century.
Although “Frankenstein” is the story of Victor and his monster, Walton is the most reliable narrator throughout the novel. However, like most narrator’s, even his retelling of Victor’s story is skewed by prejudice and favoritism of the scientist’s point of view. Yet this could be attributed to the only view points he ever gets to truly hear are from Victor himself and not the monster that he only gets to meet after he comes to mourn his fallen master.
Walton's letters play an important role for the reader may find many foreshadowed themes. As the novel progresses, the reader will realize how Walton and Victor Frankenstein share similar views on their life's roles. Both men are driven by an excessive ambition, as they desire to accomplish great things for the humankind. Walton is an explorer who wants to discover a new passage to the Pacific and therefore conjures "inestimable benefit on all mankind to the last generation" (16). Victor's purpose is to "pioneer a new way, explore unknown powers, and unfold to the world the deepest mysteries of creation" (49). These explorers will demonstrate that such pursuit can prove to be very dangerous in quest for knowledge. Walton's ship becomes stuck in the ice and Victor's creation finally kills everyone dear to him. However, this parallel is not the only one: we can easily compare Walton's search for a friend ("I have no friend, Margaret" (19)) with the monster's request for a female because he feels alone ("I desired love and fellowship" (224)). This similarity between man and monster suggests that the monster perhaps is more similar to men than what we may perceive. If it is assumed that Shelley also shared this view when she wrote the novel, maybe she meant that the real monster manifests itself differently tha...
Frankenstein is novel where a single man condemns himself, his family, and creation to complete misery. Family is the first significant theme we are introduced. From the beginning of the novel, Alphonse Frankenstein, shows his loyalty and appreciation to family as he adopts a child that may not be very fortunate. This action becomes very important as the adop...
This essay will focus on differences and similarities between captain Robert Walton, Victor Frankenstein and his monster in Mary Shelley’s novel. It will compare their narrative style, their personalities, their behaviour and other aspects which can be compared. At first sight it seems that captain Walton and doctor Frankenstein have many things in common and nothing with monster but it’s true?