Analysis of Volume 1 Chapter 5 of Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

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Analysis of Volume 1 Chapter 5 of Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

This passage is set at a point in the story where Dr. Victor

Frankenstein is creating and making his first descriptions of the

monster. Frankenstein at this time has been driven to work more and

more to complete his aim, making him seem madly obsessed with his

work.

During this passage, the Dr. and the monster are constantly described

in the same ways,

“how delineate the wretch”: the monster

“I passed the night wretchedly”: Frankenstein

This could show how the monster is being conveyed as the Dr’s

doppelganger, of the reflection of his subconscious. Frankenstein,

later in the book thinks, when the monster says “I shall be with you

on your wedding night”, that this is a threat to him, which it isn’t.

This quote can be linked to the legend of the doppelganger, which is

that if you have a doppelganger, then you must kill it before it kills

you. The dream Frankenstein experiences in this chapter could also be

seen as a representation of the Doctor’s subconscious. One could

interpret this as the gu...

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