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Critical analysis of the novel frankenstein
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This excerpt from Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein serves to illustrate how Victor Frankenstein’s feelings of melancholy and oblivion are reflected in the natural world. Upon arriving at the valley Chamounix, Victor Frankenstein resolves to ascend Montanvert, hoping to rid himself of the “sullen despair” (64) surrounding the deaths of William and Justine. As he commences his ascent however, Frankenstein begins to notice the natural scenery around him and much to his dismay, the mountain’s landscape appears unforgiving and desolate. He comments on the broken trees that lay scattered in the snow, the rocks that loom dangerously overhead, and the depressing pines that offer a gloomy atmosphere. These descriptions, coupled with a heavy rainfall only …show more content…
However, this passage does not constitute Frankenstein describing nature: it is the nature that describes Frankenstein. Mary Shelley uses the sublimity of nature as insight into Frankenstein’s emotions, thus when Frankenstein experiences the “dead calmness of inaction, which deprives the soul of both hope and fear,” (61) we see how nature reflects these emotions. After the deaths of William and Justine, Frankenstein describes the trees, rocks, ravines and atmosphere all with depressing diction. He comments on the “trees [that] lie broken and strewn upon the ground,” the stones that roll down the mountain and “draw destruction upon the head[s] of speaker[s],” and the sombre pines that add “an air of severity to the scene.” These descriptions of nature serve to illustrate Frankenstein’s feelings of despair and reflect his emotions in natural objects. This also provides a contrast to his observations of an awful and sublime Mont Blanc during his journey home. In his trek towards Geneva, Frankenstein notes how “the snowy mountains, ‘the palaces of nature,’ were not changed” and how this “calm and heavenly scene restored [him]” (49). Here, Frankenstein is delighted when he returns to his native country, thus his feelings of praise, happiness and delightful nostalgia are reflected in the natural world. The descriptions of the mountains
In these aspirations, whereas the Romantic poets value the permanence of nature in contrast to that of manmade creations, Frankenstein connects his Romantic sentiments with icy climates which shift and fade. The drastic change in tone from his speech to Walton’s crew to his final speech to Walton is an echo of the ice that melts a few days after his speech to Walton’s crew. Frankenstein’s sublime experience on the icy heights of Mont Blanc (Shelley 66) and his praise of the Arctic’s sublimity (Shelley 155) are also notable in that they both take place in the typically warmer months of August (Shelley 64) and September (Shelley 154). While such alienation from reality is typical of the Romantic poet, Frankenstein’s two experiences in these icy landscapes lead to his greatest failures: the Creature’s request for a wife (Shelley 101), which when Frankenstein refuses (Shelley 120), results in the “destruction” of his friends, family, and himself (Shelley 157). Frankenstein’s praise of the isolating sublime is characteristic of the Romantic poet, but the mutability of his icy landscapes leads to his demise rather than to the prosperous legacies the Romantic poets hoped
Nature is a dominant theme throughout the romanticism period, which was at its peak between the 1800s and 1850. The novel Frankenstein, which was written by Mary Shelly was written in 1818, and the poem A Cottage in Grasmere Vale written by Dorothy Wordsworth was written in 1805, both the novel and the poem were written during the peak of the romanticism era, which would enlighten the clear evidence of nature throughout both pieces. Dorothy was William Wordsworth’s sister, who was always close with her brother. Nature is described as ‘the phenomena of the physical world collectively, including plants, animals, the landscape, and other features and products of the earth, as opposed to humans or human creations’ In this essay I will discuss the key elements of nature and the natural world in Frankenstein and A Cottage in Grasmere Vale. Dorothy lived in Grasmere in the
Victor Frankenstein’s recollects his past before his mind in youth was plagued by his self destructive passions later on in his life. By reflecting on his past, he becomes keenly aware of the poor choices he has made which inevitably lead to the decimation of the innocence he used to possess in the past. The simile in this text compares the beginning of when he discovers his passions for natural philosophy, and his eventual demise caused by it, to the flow of a river which source was in the mountains. The serene nature of the mountain and river foreshadows the purity of Frankenstein’s being before the discovery of his passions, and the peak of that mountain symbolizes the height of this innocence. The many sources of water at the peak represents
Throughout Frankenstein, nature is considered to be a healing remedy in the process of Victor Frankenstein’s recovery.
In the Romantic period of literature, nature was often associated with isolation in a positive way. Throughout the novel, Frankenstein: The Modern Prometheus, by Mary Shelley, there is a strong symbolic relationship between loneliness and nature. However, Shelley uses the relationship to show the negativity of being alone. The relationship of nature and loneliness is displayed through three characters in the story: Victor Frankenstein, his creature, and Robert Walton. At the times when the characters are alone and in need of companionship, they feel depressed, confused, and angry; they do not think clearly, and, consequently, they make wrong decisions. They seek refuge in nature, and try to use its beauty to find answers and to fill their void of friendship. Yet, none of the characters ever overcomes their bouts with loneliness because they never find true comfort in nature.
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.
The novel “Frankenstein” is almost entirely set in remote and desolate locations. The book starts with Captain Walton meeting Victor Frankenstein in the Arctic Circle, where Frankenstein narrates the strange tale of how he got to where he was. His story includes his boyhood in remote and mountainous Geneva; his secluded studies at the University of Ingolstadt, where he creates the monster; Mont Blanc, where he first speaks to his creation; and the bleak Orkney Island, where he destroys the partner he was making for his original creation. Throughout the novel Victor seems isolated, Even when he is at the busy University of Ingolstadt, the setting still has a remote feel to it. Frankenstein becomes so focused on his work to create life that he shuts himself off from the world for months, without even giving himself time to appreciate nature or contact loved ones, as we can see when Victor Frankenstein imparts, “The summer months passed while I was thus engaged, heart and soul, in one pursuit. It was a most beautiful season; never did the fie...
Frankenstein describes all the bad things that he doesn’t like about his creation when it first comes to life, ‘yellow skin scarcely covered the work of his muscles’, ‘watery eyes’ and ‘straight black lips’. These things all explain things that most people would consider ugly and unpleasant in a person or creature. Frankenstein also thinks of his creation as a monster and wonders what, he feels is, a terrible thing he has done, ‘rain pattered dismally’ refers to the awful way Frankenstein felt when the creature came to life, Frankenstein felt as though he had done a terrible thing and that what he had created should be destroyed, ‘the wretch, the miserable monster whom I had created’ also refers to the way Frankenstein felt about his creation and what he sees it as. Frankenstein’s Monsters first experiences of life are confusing to him as his vision is blurry and his senses are not very good, almost like an infant, ‘dark, opaque bodies’, ‘oppressive light’, and ‘tormented by hunger and thirst’ all describe what the creature was going through and tells us that he is like a young child, who can’t get food for themselves and is adverse from bright direct light.
Analysis of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. Analyzing a book can be a killer. Especially when it contains tons of subtle little messages and hints that are not picked up unless one really dissects the material. Mary Shelley's Frankenstein is a prime example.
Victor Frankenstein and his creation are alike in several ways, one of them being their appreciation of nature. Victor embraces the nature for the quick moment that he escapes the creature as it “filled me with a sublime ecstasy that gave wings to the soul and allowed it to soar from the obscure world to light and joy” (Shelley 84). Vict...
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.
Nature is a key element in romanticism as the early romantics stressed the divine beauty they saw in nature. Mary Shelley uses the elements of nature to further the emotions of her characters and create a safe place for them to think. She also goes into the aspects of science and nature, "[Scientists] penetrate into the recesses of nature and show how she works in her hiding-places” (Shelley 33). In Frankenstein, Mary Shelley creates a novel based around science overreaching to boundaries. Many scientific experiments of the early 1800s make an excellent base in history for Frankenstein. Trials such as biomedical trials that began during along with the continuing studies into human anatomy and the natural world. Weather is an important element of nature which is commonly used to reflect and supplement human emotions. After William’s death, whilst Victor is returning to Geneva to talk to his father “the heavens were clouded, and [soon] the rain was coming slowly in large drops” (Shelley 62). Therefore, the storm reflects Victor’s mournful attitude and as the storm p...
Frankenstein has been interested in natural science since childhood and has described himself to “always have been imbued with a fervent longing to penetrate the secrets of nature”(Shelley 25), which foreshadows his future aspiration to create life, and
Frankenstein was written in the Romantics time period. In this time period, natural beauty, nature within life, and art were the major ideas for the time period. In the novel, breaking natural laws was a theme and it is shown through nature impacting his mood, scientific knowledge, and the way women are viewed. Nature impacts his mood in many different ways; In chapter five he hates his appearance and the creation he has made. It is a stormy night when he views his creation which makes him feel down on himself and makes him hate it. In chapter nine, he is still down on himself until he gets a sight of cheerful scenery which instantly puts him in a good mood. Scientific knowledge also breaks the natural laws because many scientific ideas were
Mary Shelley in her book Frankenstein addresses numerous themes relevant to the current trends in society during that period. However, the novel has received criticism from numerous authors. This paper discusses Walter Scott’s critical analysis of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein in his Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine Review of Frankenstein (1818).