Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein from 1818 and republished in 1994 by Dover Publications is an intense novel one can appreciate for its thorough and well-written analyses of the characters’ mental states. “You will rejoice to hear that no disaster has accompanied the commencement of an enterprise which you have regarded with such evil forebodings” (Shelley 1). Frankenstein’s first sentence grabs the reader’s attention and foreshadows the entirety of eerie events that occur in the book. The novel begins with Robert Walton writing a letter to his sister, describing his voyage across dangerous, frozen waters attempting to reach the North Pole with his ship and crew. One day, when the ship is surrounded by ice, Walton and his crew spot a large man-shaped …show more content…
figure riding a sledge in the middle of the frozen ocean. Shortly after, the ship captain meets the fatigued and ill-fated Victor Frankenstein. Frankenstein recounts his journey after discovering the secrets of life to create a living man from miscellaneous body parts, but here’s the kicker: Victor is horrified by his creation. The story continues by describing the separate lives of Victor and the monster for years after they part and the emotional rollercoaster they are on. Mary Shelley writes about the psychological aspects and events that arise due to this incident and the development of the characters’ emotions until the conclusion of the novel with the death of one of the main characters. One might expect a horror novel filled with death and destruction when one thinks of Frankenstein, but the reality of the matter is that it is not a horror novel, it is similar to an in-depth analysis of the psychology of a creator and his creation. As the reader is first introduced to Victor Frankenstein, the scientist is overcome with feelings of grief and guilt as Walton writes to his sister, “…he appeared to despise himself for being the slave of passion; and quelling the dark tyranny of despair…” (12). Such a type of well-written passage is what makes the reader want to continue flipping the pages and more than makes up for the disappointment of the book not being a horror novel. As the story progresses, Victor Frankenstein’s guilt increases to the point where he begins to contemplate suicide. Victor states, “’Wandering spirit, if indeed ye wander, and do not rest in your narrow beds, allow me this faint happiness, or take me, as your companion, away from the joys of life’” (67). Shelley’s virtually poetic writing compels the reader to fall in love with the words on each page. Frankenstein continues to chain the reader’s eyes to the pages as Victor resumes to tell Robert Walton his emotions during his troubling times, stating, “I cannot pretend to describe what I then felt. I had before experienced sensations of horror; and I have endeavored to bestow upon them adequate expressions, but words cannot convey an idea of the heart-sickening despair that I then endured” (57). The first half of the novel forces the reader to sympathize with Victor Frankenstein, but quickly turns those feelings toward the monster. After the reader is introduced to the monster and hears his story, he or she begins to learn of his yearn for companionship. The monster states, “’The more I saw of them, the greater became my desire to claim their protection and kindness; my heart yearned to be known and loved by these amiable creatures…’” (94). The monster’s previously mentioned feelings tugs at one’s heart strings. Not long after his desire begins, he has an unfortunate encounter with humans in which he then creates a hatred towards humans and Victor Frankenstein. He says, “’…from that moment I declared ever-lasting war against the species, and more than all, against him who had formed me, and sent me forth to this insupportable misery’” (97). These such descriptions of Frankenstein’s guilt and misery as well as the monster’s passion are what makes the novel such an interesting read. Although, the novel is heavily stockpiled with bouts of page-turning psychological analyses, the work is undoubtedly lacking.
Similar to any other book, there are instances where one begins to think “Is this page necessary?” and “What does this have to do with the plot?” while reading Frankenstein. Mary Shelley does an extraordinary job with writing about passionate guilt and hatred, but does poorly with developing certain aspects of the plot. The first fifty pages of the novel overfilled with character introductions and Victor Frankenstein’s backstory makes one exclaim “It took long enough!” by the time he or she reads about the first death of the novel. Shelley then spends three whole chapters describing the lives of the villagers the monster watches from a distance, rather than teaching about his experiences from doing so. This makes the reader desire to set the book down and fall asleep so that he or she may gain the energy to speed read through these chapters in order to continue reading about the psychological aspects of the monster. There are many pages of, “’As night came on, Agatha and the Arabian retired early. When they separated, Felix kissed the hand of the stranger and said, ‘Good night, sweet Safie’. He sat up much longer, conversing with his father…’” (83). Reading long passages of a family of villagers’ quiet lives becomes tiring, but is then redeemed by eventually reading a passage similar to this: “’Cursed, cursed creator! Why did I live? Why, in that …show more content…
instant, did I not extinguish the spark of existence which you had so wantonly bestowed?’” (97). Although there are plenty of thought-provoking passages in the novel, it makes an individual believe that he or she is learning more about the villagers than the monster himself. It is not uncommon for readers to be infuriated by the main character when reading a book that they genuinely adore.
The same applies to Victor Frankenstein as the story progresses. The reader first sympathizes with Victor as he explains how difficult his life became after creating a human that is the cause of the guilt that eats away at him. Shortly thereafter, one begins to feel irritated by Frankenstein’s personality and his attitude towards his creation. The first instance where one may question his or her opinion of Victor is when he describes his immediate regret of producing life. He states, “…breathless horror and disgust filled my heart. Unable to endure the aspect of the being I had created, I rushed out of the room…” (35). The reader’s initial response is “If he was going to regret creating a human, why did he not think this through completely?”. The second time is when his creation kills a child and frames another for the murder. Victor does nothing to help the child, such as explaining the truth of the matter, and lets her get executed for a murder she did not commit in order to keep himself from being shamed by the public for his previous doing. One then has to agree that Victor is not the sort of person a reader would want the main character to be. Finally, when the monster reaches out to Victor Frankenstein and asks to help him live a comfortable life, this is Victor’s response: “’Devil, cease; and do not poison the air with these sounds of malice. I have
declared my resolution to you, and I am no coward to bend beneath words. Leave me; I am inexorable’” (123). An individual reading this would then believe that Victor Frankenstein is heartless towards that which he gave life to. Frankenstein’s nearly intolerable character makes it difficult to complete reading the novel, but the reader will continue to angrily read, anticipating a change in Victor or a continuation in the psychology of the characters. In summary, Mary Shelley’s novel, Frankenstein, is an excellent example of the internal conflicts that arise when one is overcome with sensations of guilt and psychological trauma brought on by a scientist’s greed for discovery. When an individual initially grabs the book, one expects the plot to be murderous event after murderous event, but are disappointed to read the pages of emotional baggage the characters carry. Even though there are common misconceptions about the novel that are more interesting than the plot itself, such as a monster named Frankenstein that knows nothing more than death and destruction, there are periods of praiseworthy illustrations of the mind and nature of the characters, as long as the audience enjoys reading psychological thrillers. At a first glance, there are spells of intense vocabulary, but as the reader advances in the novel it becomes an easy, nighttime read. In conclusion, lengthy, dull backstories are balanced with intense descriptions of the characters’ emotions and internal struggles to create a well-written piece of work from the nineteenth century that is still worth reading to this day.
Frankenstein is the story of an eccentric scientist whose masterful creation, a monster composed of sown together appendages of dead bodies, escapes and is now loose in the country. In Frankenstein, Mary Shelly’s diction enhances fear-provoking imagery in order to induce apprehension and suspense on the reader. Throughout this horrifying account, the reader is almost ‘told’ how to feel – generally a feeling of uneasiness or fright. The author’s diction makes the images throughout the story more vivid and dramatic, so dramatic that it can almost make you shudder.
In Frankenstein, everyone treats Victor’s creation like a monster, including Frankenstein himself. This leads to the creation accepting that title and going on a murder spree. His creation says “When I reflect on his crimes and malice, my hatred and revenge burst all bounds of moderation” (69). Victor’s creation shows that he did not ask to be created, and his existence is miserable.
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is ‘one of the pioneering works of modern science fiction’, and is also a frightening story that speaks to the ‘mysterious fears of our nature’. Mary Shelley mocks the idea of “playing God”, the idea that came from the Greek myth of Prometheus, of the Greek titan who stole Zeus’ gift of life. Both the story of Frankenstein and Prometheus reveal the dark side of human nature and the dangerous effects of creating artificial life. Frankenstein reveals the shocking reality of the consequences to prejudging someone. The creature’s first-person narration reveals to us his humanity, and his want to be accepted by others even though he is different. We are shown that this ‘monster’ is a ‘creature’ and more of a human than we think.
In Frankenstein, Victor’s monster suffers much loneliness and pain at the hands of every human he meets, as he tries to be human like them. First, he is abandoned by his creator, the one person that should have accepted, helped, and guided him through the confusing world he found himself in. Next, he is shunned wherever he goes, often attacked and injured. Still, throughout these trials, the creature remains hopeful that he can eventually be accepted, and entertains virtuous and moral thoughts. However, when the creature takes another crushing blow, as a family he had thought to be very noble and honorable abandons him as well, his hopes are dashed. The monster then takes revenge on Victor, killing many of his loved ones, and on the humans who have hurt him. While exacting his revenge, the monster often feels guilty for his actions and tries to be better, but is then angered and provoked into committing more wrongdoings, feeling self-pity all the while. Finally, after Victor’s death, the monster returns to mourn the death of his creator, a death he directly caused, and speaks about his misery and shame. During his soliloquy, the monster shows that he has become a human being because he suffers from an inner conflict, in his case, between guilt and a need for sympathy and pity, as all humans do.
Letters Frankenstein This passage is out of letter three, paragraph three. I chose this paragraph because it sounded interesting and it plays a very important part in this novel. Mary Shelley wrote this novel during the Industrial Revolution. The characters in this passage approached the North Pole, challenging the Northern Sea in July.
Mary Shelley, the renowned author of Frankenstein, explores the consequences of man and monster chasing ambition blindly. Victor Frankenstein discovered the secret that allowed him to create life. His understanding of how bodies operated and the science of human anatomy enabled him to make this discovery and apply it to the creation of his monster. Walton wished to sail to the arctic because no sailor has ever reached it. The monster was created against his will, his ambition was to avenge his creation as a hideous outcast. These three characters were all driven by the same blind ambition.
He toils endlessly in alchemy, spending years alone, tinkering. However, once the Creature is brought to life, Frankenstein is no longer proud of his creation. In fact, he’s appalled by what he’s made and as a result, Frankenstein lives in a perpetual state of unease as the Creature kills those that he loves and terrorizes him. Victor has realized the consequences of playing god. There is irony in Frankenstein’s development, as realized in Victor’s desire to destroy his creation. Frankenstein had spent so much effort to be above human, but his efforts caused him immediate regret and a lifetime of suffering. Victor, if he had known the consequences of what he’s done, would have likely not been driven by his desire to become better than
self-centered. His life is the mirror of a Greed Tragedy. In his case, the flaw
Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein: A Norton Critical Edition. ed. J. Paul Hunter. New York: W. W. Norton, 1996.
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is a nineteenth century literary work that delves into the world of science and the plausible outcomes of morally insensitive technological research. Although the novel brings to the forefront several issues about knowledge and sublime nature, the novel mostly explores the psychological and physical journey of two complex characters. While each character exhibits several interesting traits that range from passive and contemplative to rash and impulsive, their most attractive quality is their monstrosity. Their monstrosities, however, differ in the way each of the character’s act and respond to their environment.
Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein, is a book in which men pursue their goals against hopeless odds. Robert Walton’s decision to turn the ship around at the end of the novel is questioned by many. This essay will discuss the interpreted views on Robert Walton’s decision to retreat by Victor Frankenstein, Mary Shelley and myself. Although, some may disagree ultimately Robert Walton made the right choice to turn his ship around at the end of the novel and is therefore not a failure.
In both cases, the information that corrupts the characters was not meant for them to be discovered. When Frankenstein is discovered in the Arctic by a sailor named Walton, he is taken on board Walton’s boat. Frankenstein then tells Walton about his quest for information, and it changes Walton’s perspective on the pursuit of knowledge. Mary Shelley uses Victor Frankenstein’s and the creature’s pursuit of dangerous knowledge in Frankenstein to question the boundaries of human enlightenment. During Mary Shelley’s life in the early 1800s, galvanism was a popular area of study among some prominent scientists.
From the beginning of time in history, women have always been portrayed as and seen as the submissive sex. Women especially during the time period of the 1800s were characterized as passive, disposable, and serving an utilitarian function. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is a prime example displaying the depiction of women. The women in Frankenstein represent the treatment of women in the early 1800’s. Shelley’s incorporation of suffering and death of her female characters portrays that in the 1800’s it was acceptable. The women in the novel are treated as property and have minimal rights in comparison to the male characters. The feminist critic would find that in Frankenstein the women characters are treated like second class citizens. The three brutal murders of the innocent women are gothic elements which illustrates that women are inferior in the novel. Mary Shelley, through her novel Frankenstein, was able to give the reader a good sense of women’s role as the submissive sex, through the characters experiences of horrific events including but not limited to brutal murder and degradation, which is illuminated by her personal life experiences and time period of romanticism.
Frankenstein by Mary Shelly is an old classic that has been enjoyed by many generations. Despite the fact that the novel was written over a hundred years ago, it is not only beautifully written but also enthralling and well composed. At the young age of eighteen, Mary Shelly raises questions about education and knowledge to which are answered through the well written characters in the novel. The Monster, who is a creation of another character, is highlighted as an individual who goes through an intellectual change.
In this essay I am going to answer ‘how and why does Mary Shelley make the reader sympathise with the character of the monster in her novel Frankenstein’.