Frankenstein Overview

Author Mary Shelley Year Published 1818; 1831 (revised edition) Type Novel Genre Horror Perspective and Narrator Frankenstein is told through the first-person point of view. Using the first person, Robert Walton, the frame narrator, quotes Victor Frankenstein's narrative, also in the first person, in letters to his sister. In turn, Victor quotes the Monster's narration, also in the first person. Finally, Elizabeth Lavenza and Alphonse Frankenstein relate part of the story through their letters to Victor.

Tense Frankenstein is told in the past tense.

About the Title The novel's full title is Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus. The first part of the title, Frankenstein, refers to Victor Frankenstein, the scientist—not, as is often misunderstood, the Monster he created. The subtitle refers to the Greek god Prometheus, who created the first human. After Zeus (the king of the gods) took fire away from humans, Prometheus returned it to them. As punishment for these actions, Zeus had Prometheus chained to a rock for eternity and sent an eagle to eat his liver. The liver grew back each night, and each day the eagle returned, condemning Prometheus to eternal torture. The subtitle links Victor and Prometheus; both defy heaven in taking the power of creating life, reserved for heaven alone, and suffer tremendously as a result.

The Genesis of Frankenstein What prompts a 19-year-old to write a horror story about science run amok? Whatever caused Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley to formulate the story, the impetus for doing so was something of a contest, as she explained in her preface to the 1831 edition of the novel. Stuck inside because of the incessant rain while on a tour of Europe, Mary, Percy Shelley, and their friends Lord Byron and John Polidori passed the time reading a book of German ghost stories. Byron suggested they each write a horror story, and the others agreed. While Mary struggled to find an idea for a story that would "awaken thrilling horror," another conversation among the friends a few days later sparked her novel. On that occasion they discussed galvanism, or using electricity to animate muscle, as Italian physicist Luigi Galvani had done with a frog. That night she had a vivid dream of a "pale student of unhallowed arts" kneeling beside "the hideous phantasm of a man," which he stirred to life. The scientist quickly regretted "his odious handy-work" and hoped the life he had stirred would die out again. But he was wakened from his sleep by the creature at his bedside "looking at him with yellow, watery, and speculative eyes." Mary was frightened awake, but she then realized that the terrifying dream was exactly the kind of idea she sought. The next day she began writing the story that became Frankenstein.

Gothic Literature Frankenstein fits in the tradition of gothic literature—stories about mystery, horror, and the supernatural—that had been launched in the mid- to late 18th century by The Castle of Otranto (1764) by Horace Walpole and popularized in the 1790s by the novels of Ann Radcliffe. It is known that Percy Shelley read two of Radcliffe's gothic novels in the years 1814 and 1815; while it is not certain that Mary did, it is likely. Typically set in eerie, isolated places, such as castles, monasteries, or wild expanses of nature, gothic stories usually include violence, suspense, and mystery. The gloomy setting is ideal for the brooding heroes, monsters, and deranged people in attics who often populate these novels.

Romantic Movement Frankenstein is also a work in the tradition of the romantic movement. Romantic writers took as their topics a deep connection to nature, the depth of human emotion, and the conflict between the individual and society. Percy Shelley, along with William Blake, Wordsworth, Coleridge, Byron, and John Keats, were the foremost romantic poets. Wordsworth captured the essence of romantic poetry in the preface to his collection Lyrical Ballads, calling it "emotion recollected in tranquillity." Characteristics of romanticism in Frankenstein include humans' emotional tie to nature and attraction to the sublime, the term the romantics used for the powerful and awe-inspiring aspects of nature, as opposed to the merely beautiful. Another characteristic of romanticism is attraction to a heroic figure interested in breaking the boundaries of traditional society and achieving a lofty ideal. Some romantics viewed French emperor Napoleon I as such a figure until his conquest of other countries made him seem more tyrant than hero.

Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment The romantics also rejected the exaltation of scientific thinking and reason, hallmarks of the Scientific Revolution, which began in the 15th century, and the Enlightenment, which began in the 17th century. The Scientific Revolution promoted the ability of the human mind to understand the laws of nature and even, perhaps, to control them. Enlightenment thinkers believed in the power of reason to find new solutions to centuries-old social and political problems and build a better world. Romanticism was marked by a fascination with scientific advances mixed with a sense of the world having secrets that were unknowable—though they could perhaps be intuited. Romanticism also rejected rationality, order, and balance in the arts and Enlightenment thinkers' emphasis on reason. Individual experience and subjective perceptions were valued over social harmony and objective principles. Faith in human progress through the application of reason—a hallmark of the Enlightenment—did have some parallels in romantics' thinking as well. Some romantics, including Percy Shelley, embraced the republican and revolutionary impulses introduced by the French Revolution and believed that a better, more equitable age was about to dawn.

Another aspect of the Enlightenment relevant to Frankenstein was the interest of thinkers from this movement in questions of the state of nature. Political philosophers discussed the state of nature as the human condition prior to the formation of social groups, and they viewed this existence in varying ways. To Thomas Hobbes, the state of nature was insecure and threatening, and humans needed to form society to gain security. To Jean-Jacques Rousseau, the state of nature was more peaceful, with humans working to ensure survival but also cooperating with others. John Locke and Rousseau were also concerned with how humans learned and developed intellectually and morally. Locke thought the human mind was a blank slate that accumulated knowledge and formed moral impulses as a result of experience. The Monster in Frankenstein can be seen as living in the state of nature and as a creature that develops as a result of his experiences and self-education.

Mary's Authorship Much debate took place in the past over, first, Mary's authorship of the novel and, second, the extent of Percy's influence on it. The fact that Percy provided the preface to the first edition, his reputation as a writer, and Mary's being unknown as a writer all contributed to the belief that he had written the novel when it was first published. That Mary's other works did not enjoy success reinforced that view. Even when her authorship was finally established, some critics speculated that Percy's editing strongly shaped the work. Indeed, one modern scholar has pointed to a few thousand edits made by Percy as evidence that he left his stamp on the book. This scholar also points out that William Godwin, Mary's father, read and annotated the manuscript. In the 21st century, scholars agree that the inspiration and execution were Mary's, though Percy encouraged her to write the book and read and annotated her drafts.

Critical Reception Mary published Frankenstein anonymously in 1818, and critics assumed the novel had been written by a man, in part because of the two male narrative voices. The novel was widely reviewed. Sir Walter Scott (1771–1832), one of the most popular novelists of the era, set the tone when he praised the author's use of language but found some of the novel's events less than believable. Other critics found the work offensive. Conservative writer John Wilson Croker (1780–1857), writing in the Quarterly Review, concluded by stating that readers were left "in doubt whether the head or the heart of the author be the most diseased." Some critics complained that the novel was irreligious and immoral because Shelley had not condemned Victor Frankenstein for trying to usurp God by creating life, despite his repentant words and death. Others strongly objected to what they saw as its pardoning of the Monster's behavior: a reflection of Godwinian ideas that the root of evil was injustice. In 1822 the second edition of the novel was published. In 1831 Mary heavily revised the third edition of the novel to make it less offensive. The new edition made Victor even more regretful about his actions and more religious in outlook. She also split the first chapter in two and changed Elizabeth's background so that she was no longer Victor's cousin.

By the 1850s only one edition remained in print, and sales were low. One reason for the paltry sales was that the copyright holder—after 1831, a publisher, not Mary—insisted on publishing it only in a more expensive format that made it less accessible to a broader public. It was not revived until the 1880s, when the book was no longer in copyright. Even then, when the novel was reissued in an inexpensive paperback version, editor Hugh Reginald Haweis stated his hesitation to publish it because "the subject is somewhat revolting" and "the treatment of it somewhat hideous." While sales were never robust, the story remained popular in large part because of many stage adaptations, and the ominous specter of Frankenstein's monster was employed by thinkers throughout the Victorian age to warn against any reform or change that they deemed potentially destructive.

Influence In the 21st century, Frankenstein is regarded as a classic of romantic, gothic fiction. It is also recognized as one of the first science fiction novels. The work's influence extends far beyond the world of literature, however. Frankenstein and the Monster are firmly embedded in popular culture, having sparked an entire genre of novels, films, and Halloween costumes. In 2016 a ballet based on the book premiered in London. The most famous film adaptation remains the 1931 version, in which Boris Karloff plays the Monster. Sequels include The Bride of Frankenstein (1935), starring Elsa Lanchester as the title character, and The Ghost of Frankenstein, starring Lon Chaney Jr. The character of the Monster and the novel have inspired many parodies as well, including the butler Lurch in The Addams Family (a television show from the 1960s that later inspired films and a Broadway play), Young Frankenstein (1974), The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975), and even episodes of the children's television program Sesame Street.

Character Description

Victor Frankenstein Frankenstein is the scientist who created the Monster. Read More

The Monster The Monster is the eight-foot-tall monster Victor Frankenstein creates. Read More

Robert Walton Walton is the Arctic explorer whose letters to his sister open and close the novel. Read More

Henry Clerval Victor's closest friend, Henry is a fellow student at the university. Read More

Elizabeth Lavenza Victor's cousin, Elizabeth is also his adopted sister and, later, his wife. Read More

Alphonse Alphonse is Victor's father. Read More Frankenstein

One of the servants in the Frankenstein household, Justine is framed for the murder of William Justine Moritz Frankenstein. Read More

Agatha is a French exile and the daughter of M. De Lacey, whom she treats with great kindness and Agatha De Lacey deference.

Felix is a French exile and the son of M. De Lacey. He is in love with a Turkish woman, Safie, and Felix De Lacey rescues her and her father at great personal danger.

The head of the family of exiles the Monster hopes to join, M. De Lacey is old, blind, and poor. M. De Lacey Descended from a good family in France, he lost his fortune, social standing, and home when he helped Safie's father, who later betrayed him.

Caroline is Victor's mother, who dies of scarlet fever after nursing her niece/daughter Elizabeth Caroline Frankenstein through the same illness and expressing her long-held hope that Victor will marry Elizabeth. Ernest Frankenstein Ernest is Victor's younger brother.

William Frankenstein William is Victor's youngest brother and the Monster's first victim.

Mr. Kirwin Kirwin is a judge in charge of Victor's trial in Ireland for the death of Henry.

An arrogant science professor at the University of Ingolstadt, Krempe is one of Victor's teachers and M. Krempe mocks him.

Magistrate The magistrate is a criminal judge in Geneva to whom Victor relates his story about the Monster.

Daniel Nugent Nugent is a witness in Victor's murder trial in Ireland.

Nurse The nurse cares for Victor while he is in prison in Ireland.

The beautiful Turkish woman whom Felix De Lacey loves, Safie leaves Italy after her father's betrayal Safie of the De Laceys and makes her way to that family.

Safie's Father A treacherous Turkish merchant, Safie's father is helped by Felix De Lacey but then betrays his family.

Margaret Saville Margaret is Robert Walton's sister and the person to whom he addresses his letters.

A kindly chemistry professor at the University of Ingolstadt, Waldman supports Victor's ambition and M. Waldman teaches him a great deal about chemistry.

Frankenstein | Character Analysis

Victor Frankenstein The product of a loving and wealthy Swiss family, Victor is highly ambitious and determined to leave his mark on the world. As a teen he studies alchemy, an outdated pseudoscience. At this point Victor is still relatively naive, captivated by the allure of science. Victor is horrified by his creation: a monster of hideous appearance and proportion. In an attempt to atone for his ambition and excessive pride, Victor becomes obsessed with tracking and killing the Monster yet succeeds only in isolating himself from all human contact. Victor and the Monster serve as doubles of each other, revolving in opposite ways around many of the book's themes. Their relationship is not a simple matter of one character being good and the other evil, however. Rather, the two shift back and forth in terms of morality, with the actions of each being more moral at some times and more objectionable at others.

The Monster The Monster is an eight-foot-tall giant Victor Frankenstein forms and brings to life. The Monster is composed of various body parts scavenged from cemeteries and morgues, so he is hideous: his yellow skin "scarcely cover[s] the work of muscles and arteries beneath," and he has "watery eyes" that seem almost of the same color as the "dun white sockets" in which they are set as well as a "shriveled complexion and straight black lips." Born innocent, the Monster is baffled when Victor violently rejects him. Highly intelligent and eloquent, the Monster educates himself, learning to read and write French, but all his learning cannot help him find what he most desires: companionship. After Victor rejects him, the Monster alternates between acts of horrific violence (killing Victor's brother) and touching kindness (rescuing a drowning girl, helping impoverished peasants). When Victor tears apart the mate he had agreed to create for the Monster, the Monster kills Victor's best friend and Victor's wife. No one will accept him because of his appearance. He is doomed to a life of bitter loneliness and isolation.

Robert Walton Walton is the narrator of the frame story that begins and ends the novel. He plays an important role in the plot by confirming the Monster's existence, because he spoke with him, and allowing readers to know what happens to the Monster after Victor's death. He also plays valuable thematic roles. Seeking to accomplish "some great purpose" in life, Walton sets off to explore the Arctic. Walton seeks two things: fame from exploring the Arctic and a friend. His ambition parallels Frankenstein's, while his yearning for friendship parallels the Monster's. He believes he has found that friend in Victor Frankenstein, but the latter dies soon after Walton and his crew rescue him. Finally, Walton serves as Victor's foil, the differences between him and Victor helping highlight Victor's characteristics.

Henry Clerval Henry is Victor's closest friend, an easygoing, helpful, and charming young man whom Victor met in childhood. Henry studies languages at the university and nurses Victor through his breakdowns, setting aside his own studies to do so. He displays the attentive, caring, devoted behavior of a true friend. The Monster kills him after Victor breaks his promise to create a companion female monster.

Elizabeth Lavenza The daughter of an Italian gentleman and Alphonse Frankenstein's sister, Elizabeth has a "gentle and affectionate disposition" even as a child. (In the 1831 edition, she is the orphaned daughter of a Milanese noble whom the Frankensteins adopt after taking custody of her from a peasant family that could no longer afford to support her.) She and Victor grow up good friends as well as siblings (and cousins), and they marry when they are adults. She is pure goodness, as compassionate as the Monster sometimes is, but is innocent and incapable of his violence or of Victor's challenge to morality. The Monster strangles her on her wedding night.

Alphonse Frankenstein Compassionate and caring, Alphonse Frankenstein and his wife, Caroline, treat everyone well. Alphonse dies soon after his niece/daughter Elizabeth is killed, crushed by the weight of too much sorrow.

Justine Moritz A loyal servant and help to the family, Justine is an innocent casualty of Victor's creation. She accepts her fate with remarkable calm. She, like Elizabeth, also serves as a foil to the Monster. Also like Elizabeth, she is given up by her family, but both find a loving home. The Monster, abandoned by his creator, is left without one.

Summary Frankenstein takes place in the 1790s. It's a wild scenic ride, beginning in St. Petersburgh (spelling later changed to St. Petersburg), Russia, and then shifting to the Archangel, Russia; the waters of the Arctic Ocean; Geneva, Switzerland; Ingolstadt, Germany; Mont Blanc, between Italy and France; Germany; the Netherlands; London; the Orkney Islands off the coast of Scotland; and finally back to the Arctic Ocean. Robert Walton, an explorer headed for the North Pole, opens the story by relating his adventures in letters to his sister Margaret Saville. Walton and his crew see a manlike giant driving a dogsled in the distance. Soon after, they see another man, skeletal and nearly frozen to death, also driving a dogsled. They rescue the latter figure and learn that he is Victor Frankenstein and has been chasing the huge creature. As Victor regains his strength, he tells Walton his story. Victor takes up the narration. He and his younger brothers, Ernest and William, enjoyed a happy childhood in Geneva, Switzerland, thanks to their loving and wealthy parents, Alphonse and Caroline, who adopted Alphonse's sister's daughter, Elizabeth Lavenza. Elizabeth and Victor were both five years old at the time. They became close friends. Victor's other close companion was Henry Clerval, a classmate who enjoyed stories of knights in shining armor, a contrast to Victor's obsession with science. The family's happiness dimmed when Elizabeth became ill with scarlet fever and Caroline contracted the illness while nursing her. Before dying she communicated her great wish: that Victor and Elizabeth marry. After recovering from the loss of his mother, Victor left home to study science at the University of Ingolstadt in Germany. The top chemistry student, he was determined to discover "the principle of life." Victor studied day and night, dug up corpses from cemeteries, and set up his own laboratory. Stitching together body parts from various corpses, he made a creature 8 feet tall. Using electricity, he gave the Monster life, but it was terrifically strong and grotesquely hideous. Repelled by his gruesome creation, Victor rejected the Monster.

Later, Victor was relieved to find that the Monster has disappeared. Exhausted from two years of nonstop work and the horrid results, Victor collapsed. Henry nursed Victor back to health.

Returning home more than a year later, Victor was shocked to learn of the murder of his brother William. A servant, Justine Moritz, was blamed for the crime after a locket belonging to William was found in her pocket. Although Justine was hanged for the crime, Victor was sure that the Monster committed the murder, seeking revenge for Victor's rejection. Victor did not reveal his suspicions, because he did not think that anyone would believe him. Victor went hiking at Montanvert to help deal with his guilt and grief, but the Monster found him and recounted his own history. The Monster explained that he had found refuge in an abandoned cottage. There he spied on a family in a neighboring cottage, the De Laceys, learning to speak and to read by observing them through a window. The Monster grew very fond of the family for their kindness to each other. Finally he got up the courage to approach the family, but they rejected him and fled from their home. Furious, the Monster burned their home to the ground and both murdered Victor's brother William and framed Justine for the crime. Bitterly lonely and isolated, the Monster told Victor that he would leave his creator in peace only if Victor created a mate for him. Victor reluctantly agreed. Victor resumes his narration of events. Victor and Henry traveled together to England, where they parted ways. Suspecting that the Monster was shadowing him to make sure that he kept his word, Victor set up a new laboratory in the isolated Orkney Islands. There he began building the female monster, but just before he gave her life, he tore the body apart, fearful that she and the male would mate and create a race of monsters. The Monster, watching through the window, became enraged and threatened that he would be with Victor on his wedding night. The Monster then strangled Henry, leaving evidence (through witness sightings) that Victor was responsible. Victor was found innocent after a trial, but his health became shattered. He returned to Geneva, recovered, and made plans to marry Elizabeth.

On Elizabeth and Victor's wedding night, the Monster killed Elizabeth. The shock proved too much for Victor's father, who died soon after. Determined to get revenge, Victor tracked the Monster around the world, ending near the North Pole.

The story ends where it began, with Walton listening to Victor's story. Walton's voyage is brutally hard, and the sailors want to turn back, but Victor wants them to push on so that he can continue to track the Monster, reminding them of their goals for the voyage. With the voyage endangering their lives, Walton agrees with the men to turn around, and Victor dies soon after. Walton is shocked to see the Monster appear and mourn over Victor's corpse. The Monster explains that he killed Victor's family and Henry because of his rage at being shunned by all humans—even his creator. The Monster has found no comfort in his actions, however, and promises to kill himself. At the conclusion Walton watches the Monster spring "from the cabin-window ... upon the ice-raft" that lies close to the vessel. He is "soon borne away by the waves and lost in darkness and distance."

The Plot in Points

Introduction

1) Robert Walton meets Victor, who tells his tale.

Rising Action

2) Victor builds the Monster, brings it to life, and flees. 3) The Monster kills William; Justine is blamed and executed. 4) Victor meets the Monster, who tells his history. 5) Victor builds the Monster a mate, then destroys it. 6) The Monster vows to return on Victor's wedding night. 7) The Monster kills Henry. 8) Victor marries Elizabeth, whom the Monster kills.

Climax

9) Victor sets off to find the Monster and kill him.

Falling Action 10) Victor is rescued by Walton. 11) Victor dies.

Resolution

12) The Monster mourns Victor and jumps off Walton's ship.

Frankenstein | Prefatory Matter | Summary

Summary The title page contains the subtitle The Modern Prometheus and an epigraph taken from John Milton's epic poem Paradise Lost, which recounts the story of the creation of man and woman, the fall from the Garden of Eden, and the earlier fall of Satan from heaven and his role in bringing about the fall of Adam and Eve. The epigraph, quoting Adam, reads, "Did I request thee, Maker, from my clay/To mould me man, Did I solicit thee/From darkness to promote me?" The Dedication "respectfully" offers the book in honor of William Godwin, the philosopher and writer who was also Mary Shelley's father. An anonymous brief preface connects the novel to the research into the origin of life by British physician Erasmus Darwin (1731–1802) and German scientists. While presenting the novel as a complete fiction, the preface explains that the supernatural tale gives the author an opportunity for "delineating human passions" that would not have been possible in a more realistic story. The preface also has a sketchy account of the visit to Geneva and storytelling contest that caused Mary Shelley to write the novel.

The 1831 edition has a more extensive introduction written by Mary Shelley, in which she declares her authorship and gives a fuller account of the writing of the book. She describes the rainy weather that forced her, Percy Shelley, Lord Byron, and John Polidori to stay inside and read ghost stories to one another. This pastime led to the idea of each of them writing a similar story. After a conversation about galvanism, she had a vivid dream of a scientist who had brought a horrible "phantasm of a man" to life and quickly recoiled at this "odious handy-work." Awakened by the nightmare, Mary began writing Frankenstein.She explains that she saw the tale as only a short story at first but that Percy encouraged her to expand it and explore the matter further. She closes the introduction by explaining that, while Percy encouraged her in many ways, the novel and its execution are hers alone and owe nothing to him in detail.

Analysis The prefatory matter of Frankenstein, which includes the subtitle, epigraph, and dedication, as well as Percy's anonymous 1818 preface and Mary's introduction to the 1831 edition, provide insight into the text and its themes. The subtitle introduces the perspective of the creator, referring to the Greek god Prometheus, who created humanity. The epigraph introduces the perspective of the created with a plaintive call pointing out that the created life has no choice in coming into existence. Paradise Lost, published in 1667, describes the fall of man, according to the Old Testament account in Genesis, as filtered through the thinking of Milton, a 17th-century Puritan. Milton describes Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, the temptation by Satan, and their expulsion. The epic also tells the story of Satan's fall from heaven. The two elements thus introduce the ideas of creator and created, responsibility and power. Because Prometheus, Adam, and Satan were all punished for their actions, these elements also introduce the ideas of sin and guilt. The Monster can be seen as Adam, a sinner thrown out of the Garden of Eden and forced to make his way in the world. Victor is God, the Monster's maker, but he is also Satan, as he has brought evil into the world. The quotation can also be read as the Monster's cry of anguish at his state. After all, he never asked Victor to create him. Because Victor—like all humanity—is descended from Adam and Eve, this is his lament as well. In this reading, he regrets being created because it set him on the path to his sin of creating the Monster and unleashing evil. The dedication connects the novel to the ideas of Godwin, a major liberal thinker and writer who was considered dangerous by conservative thinkers who dominated the cultural scene. The dedication no doubt gave fuel to the conservative critics who objected to the morality of the novel.

While the preface was presented anonymously, it became known that Percy had written it, contributing to the idea that he had penned the novel itself. His preface also draws a Godwinian moral from the novel: "Treat a person ill, and he will become wicked." While that made sense to Godwin, Mary, and Percy, to conservative critics such as John Wilson Croker this view was outrageous and immoral. They believed that "wicked" behavior was absolutely and without exception blameworthy and should be censured and punished.

Mary uses the 1831 Introduction to clarify the identity of the book's author because there had been some speculation that her husband, Percy, had written it. Beyond pride of authorship, survival no doubt had something to do with her decision. Percy had died in 1822. While Mary would work on editing and publishing his poems, she had her own literary ambitions. Establishing herself as the true creator of Frankenstein could help convince publishers to bring out other works of hers in the future.

Frankenstein | Letters 1–4 | Summary Share

Summary

Letter 1 Robert Walton, preparing to explore the North Pole, relates the progress of planning for his expedition in a letter dated December 11, 17—, to his sister Margaret Saville, in London. Walton has made it to St. Petersburgh, Russia, and he describes his excitement about being the first to reach the Pole, solve scientific mysteries, and benefit humanity. Six years before he started training for the arduous journey by serving on whale boats to the North Sea and enduring great physical hardships. As a result, Walton feels entitled to success.

Letter 2 In his letter of March 28, from Archangel, Russia, Walton describes securing a ship and hiring sailors, but he is lonely, writing, "I have no friend, Margaret." He praises the other ship officers but says they are not friend material for him. He hopes a friend will help him learn, feeling self-conscious because he is self-educated, and yearns for someone to celebrate his victories and soothe his defeats. He keenly anticipates the future, describing a "trembling sensation, half pleasurable and half fearful," that fills him as he considers what is to come.

Letter3

In a very brief letter from July 7, Walton writes that the ship is well under way and is nearing the North Pole. He and the crew have occasionally seen sheets of ice float by, and they have weathered two wind storms and a broken mast, but nothing significant has happened. He reassures his sister that he will "not rashly encounter danger."

Letter4

On August 5 Walton writes to his sister explaining recent events. On July 31 his ship got stuck in the ice floes. That same day Walton and his crew saw the strangest thing: a "gigantic" figure of a man traveling by dogsled on the ice floes. The next morning they found another man, this one of normal size, also on a dogsled. Although the man was close to death, he would not agree to come aboard Walton's ship until Walton verified that they were traveling to the North Pole. A few days later, when the stranger had recovered sufficiently to speak, he told Walton and Walton's lieutenant that he has been chasing someone also traveling by dogsled. The stranger got excited when Walton said he thinks they saw such a man. Walton is delighted to have found a possible friend, though the man's "spirit had been broken by misery."

By August 13 Walton writes that his fondness for the stranger has increased. They talk about the business of the ship, Walton's goal to reach the North Pole, Walton's childhood, and Walton's desire for a friend. The stranger tells Walton, "But I—I have lost every thing, and cannot begin life anew."

On August 19 Walton writes that the stranger promises to tell Walton his story "the next day," when Walton is free to listen, and calls Walton "my friend." Walton plans to "record" the stranger's story.

Analysis The connection to Paradise Lost continues in the letters. Some critics have noted that both St. Petersburgh and Archangel, the places Walton uses to prepare for his voyage, are biblical allusions or references. St. Petersburgh was named after St. Peter, one of the chief apostles of Jesus; an archangel is the highest rank of angel. If Victor Frankenstein can also be seen as Adam (created), fallen mortal man, then Walton is an angel who takes care of Frankenstein as he is dying. Walton's four letters have several purposes in the novel. First, they serve as a frame narrative. This literary device is just what its name suggests: a frame in which the main story is set. People select a frame to set off the picture it encloses; in the same way, authors create frame narratives to underscore the main story they surround. In Frankenstein Walton's story offers parallels to Victor's. Both men are exceedingly ambitious and driven to leave their mark on the world. However, in this frame the men's stories turn out very differently, as the novel's ending reveals. Walton's fate contrasts to Victor's. This makes Walton a foil, or contrast, to Victor. His need for human companionship contrasts with Victor's frequent failures to stay in touch with his family. His scientific idealism and curiosity parallel Victor's, but the decisions he makes at the end show more caution than Victor showed. Second, the letters give Frankenstein a veneer of realism, although the novel is the wildest fiction. Without Walton's conversations with Frankenstein and especially with the Monster, Frankenstein's wild story would not have any verifiable proof. Third, the letters introduce Walton, who reflects the emotionalism, individualism, and imagination prized among those in the romantic movement. Other factors also link Walton to romanticism.

 In his second letter, Walton tells his sister he will "kill no albatross," an allusion to Samuel Taylor Coleridge's poem "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner." In that poem, an old sailor tells the story of what happened to him decades ago. His ship was locked in the ice. The crew spotted an albatross, a large seabird, thought to be a good luck symbol. However, the old sailor (then a young man) shot the bird, sending a curse down on the ship. As a result, the ship was stranded in the ocean, and everyone but the old sailor died of thirst. As punishment, the old sailor must travel the globe to share his story to teach people to respect all of God's creatures. While Walton vows not to commit the old sailor's crime, he plays this part, in a way. He bears the burden of telling Frankenstein's story, although he did not commit the crime.  The North Pole, as with any exotic location, held great interest to readers, but especially to romantics, who celebrated nature. The region held mystery , which explains Walton's conviction that the Pole holds more than "frost and desolation," as he says. "What may not be expected in a country of eternal light?" he asks, setting the stage for the adventure to come. That Walton is self-educated connects him to Mary Shelley. It also links him to Victor and the Monster, as readers learn over the course of the novel. Victor educated himself about alchemy; the Monster reads classics to learn more about humankind. Finally, the letters introduce one of the novel's primary themes: human companionship. Walton is bitterly lonely and isolated, craving a friend. He tries to blunt the edge of that loneliness in writing his sister. When Victor appears, Walton quickly warms to him, seeing the chance to form a friendship. Frankenstein | Volume 1, Chapter 1 | Summary

Summary Here Victor Frankenstein begins his story and takes over the narration. He recounts his early years. Victor traces his family background, birth, and childhood, explaining that his ancestors and father were active, distinguished members of the community in Geneva, Switzerland. Victor's father, Alphonse, helped a merchant friend of his, Beaufort, who had fallen on hard times. When Beaufort died, Alphonse helped his daughter Caroline. Although Alphonse was considerably older than Caroline, they married two years after Beaufort's death. Their union was happy, and Victor was their first child. When Victor was four, the Frankensteins took in Elizabeth Lavenza, the daughter of Alphonse's deceased sister, and adopted her as their own child. She and Victor grew up as close friends. Mrs. Frankenstein decided that Elizabeth and Victor should marry when they reach adulthood. Victor and Elizabeth had a delightful childhood, adored by their loving, intelligent, indulgent parents. Even from childhood, Victor showed a scientific curiosity. When he was nine, Victor met Henry Clerval, a schoolmate. Although Henry was outgoing and interested in chivalry and romance, while Victor was introspective and interested in science, the two boys soon bonded and became lifelong best friends. Victor had two brothers; Ernest is six years younger than Victor, and William was an infant when Victor reached 15. "Such was our domestic circle," Victor says, "from which care and pain seemed for ever banished," a strong hint that these happy times are about to end. Victor started reading the works of Cornelius Agrippa, Paracelsus, and Albertus Magnus when he was 13. This reading sparked his deep love of learning. Two years later, at 15, he saw an electrical storm, which develops his interest in electricity.

Analysis As Victor narrates the story of his childhood, he introduces some of the novel's most important concerns:

 One is the role of women in the early 19th century. Caroline Frankenstein and Elizabeth Lavenza are both passive figures, taken care of by men. Alphonse rescues Caroline, an orphan, from poverty and loneliness, and the husband and wife later do the same for Elizabeth. Given Mary Shelley's background as the daughter of the foremost feminist of the era, this portrait of passive women who must be cared for by men is surprising. In contrast, her acute awareness of the pain of a child losing a parent colors these plot points. The two women's circumstances also introduce the tenuousness of human connections, which can be quickly lost through death, another issue that connects the Monster to the human characters.  The chapter highlights the importance of education. Alphonse saw to the education of his children and exposed Victor to many disciplines and to the works of established, renowned authors. Victor thus learned as Mary Shelley had done, largely in the library of his father. Later, the Monster will also absorb knowledge by reading a treasure trove of books, and as we saw in the first letters, Walton is self-taught as well. Victor notes that his father did not give him much guidance in his learning, though, and suggests that this lack of supervision or discussion helped lead him to make his later mistake of making the Monster. This chapter also lays the groundwork for Frankenstein's creation of the Monster, making his invention of the Monster seem logical and even possible. Shelley does this by having Victor read the work of Cornelius Agrippa, Paracelsus, and Albertus Magnus. These were alchemists, ancient scientists who tried to find the "philosopher's stone," a substance that would turn inexpensive compounds such as mercury into gold or silver, extend life, create life, and achieve immortality. Obviously, their alchemical work has long been discredited.

Victor also notes that he reads books that concern "the raising of ghosts or devils," a possibility that excites him. Finally, Victor's interest in electricity foreshadows the way he will bring the Monster to life. These details also make Victor's later obsession with his creation understandable.

That Victor's mother wanted him to marry Elizabeth, a cousin in this edition, is not so unusual for the time. It may seem strange that two children raised as siblings would marry, but they did not, of course, share the same parents. Elizabeth was adopted. It is notable, though, that Mary Shelley changed Elizabeth's status in the 1831 edition, making her no relation to Alphonse Frankenstein when she is taken into the home. This might have been meant to blunt any possible criticism that could be leveled at their relationship.

Frankenstein | Volume 1, Chapter 2 | Summary

Summary When Victor was 17 years old, his parents decided that he should attend the University of Ingolstadt in Germany. Before he could enroll, however, Elizabeth became ill with scarlet fever. While taking care of Elizabeth, Caroline contracted the disease and died. On her deathbed, Caroline asked Elizabeth to promise to care for the younger children. She also made Victor and Elizabeth promise to marry.

After recovering from his mother's death, Victor headed off to college. There, he says, he will be alone to "form my own friends, and be my own protector." Victor describes two of his professors, M. Krempe and M. Waldman. Krempe, who teaches natural philosophy, had a "repulsive countenance" and was critical of the time Victor wasted studying the alchemists. Waldman, in contrast, was kindly and supportive. With Waldman as his mentor, Victor decided to study chemistry.

Analysis Victor's comment that at university he was "alone" continues the theme of human companionship. While he admits to the need to make friends, Victor is perfectly content to be alone; he believes he is "totally unfitted for the company of strangers." The same contentment with loneliness is not true of several of the other characters in the novel, especially the Monster and Walton, Victor's foil. In this duality, Victor and the Monster can be seen as doubles, two halves of the same person, in this regard as they were as creator and created: the introvert and the extrovert, the one desiring to be left alone and the other craving companionship, although the Monster, like Victor, is unfitted for company. His tragedy is the clash between his desire for human companionship and his rejection by humans. Frankenstein | Volume 1, Chapter 3 | Summary

Summary For two years Victor was a dedicated and determined chemistry student, working hard and making speedy progress. He says, "In M. Waldman I found a true friend." He didn't return home, even for visits, because he was "engaged, heart and soul, in the pursuit of some discoveries." He did indeed make some significant discoveries relating to "the improvement of [laboratory] instruments," which brought him fame and respect among his professors and classmates, and he considered going home to Geneva.

Victor was especially interested in studying the human body and the question of from "whence ... did the principle of life proceed?" To that end, he dug up corpses from the cemetery and removed bodies from morgues to experiment upon. After much hard work, he had a breakthrough, "discovering the cause of generation of life." As he tells Walton, "I became myself capable of bestowing animation upon lifeless matter." He hoped that soon he would be able to bring dead bodies back to life.

But Victor realized that acquiring such knowledge is extremely dangerous. His unbounded ambition has cost him his happiness, and he cautions his audience, Walton, to beware of "becoming greater than [your] nature will allow." Nonetheless, Victor says, he started to build a giant man-shaped creature, about eight feet tall, from various scavenged body parts. He was sure that this new species would celebrate him as its creator and look upon him as a father; he set a long-term goal of "renew[ing] life" in the dead. He spent the entire summer at work, ignoring everyone at school and the beauty of nature, becoming ill, and not even answering letters from his family back home in Geneva.

Analysis Victor Frankenstein's realization that he has overstepped his bounds parallels the story of Faust, a famous literary figure. Faust was a brilliant scholar who made a pact with the Devil, trading his soul for unlimited knowledge and worldly delights. In some versions, Faust goes to hell; in others, Faust is saved. The Faust legend has come to symbolize someone who foolishly and disastrously gives up his or her integrity and morality to gain power and success. This is what happens to Victor, because in assuming the power of creating life, the power that belongs only to God, Victor will cause disasters for his family and closest friend. Victor uses his intelligence in a way that results in evil rather than for good, and tragedy ensues. All this lies ahead, of course. For the present, Victor tells Walton that he will not reveal the secret of reanimation that he discovered, hinting at dark and tragic events that he will relate later in his tale, building suspense for what will follow. In his flashback, Victor is arrogant about his power, too, another sin. He believes that the new species he creates will be grateful to him and others will celebrate him as well. In effect, Victor is setting himself up as a god. Since this entire section is a flashback, Victor is speaking on Walton's ship. He is close to death, which he realizes. Therefore, he is able to look back on his life and realize his error and its consequences. That is why Victor warns Walton not to make the same mistake that he did, not to acquire too much knowledge and become "greater than his nature will allow." Too much knowledge is dangerous, Mary Shelley suggests.

Frankenstein | Volume 1, Chapter 4 | Summary

Summary Victor relates to Walton his success. He brought the Monster to life in November. The process by which the Monster was animated is not described in the book. Rather than being delighted at his success, as he had proudly anticipated, Victor was horrified. He intended to make a "beautiful" creature, but the Monster was "a catastrophe." "But now that I had finished," he tells Walton, "the beauty of the dream vanished, and breathless horror and disgust filled my heart." He rushed out of his laboratory and paced back and forth in his bedroom. Physically and mentally exhausted, he finally collapsed into brief sleep. In a nightmare, he kissed Elizabeth, who then died and transformed into Victor's dead mother. The Monster came to his bed, and Victor ran off. All night he paced in the courtyard "in the greatest agitation." The next morning, Victor went into Ingolstadt and walked aimlessly through the streets. He thought of lines from Coleridge's "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner." Henry Clerval, who had come to the university to study, found Victor and took him back to his apartment. The Monster had fled, to Victor's enormous relief. Victor had a nervous breakdown, becoming "lifeless" in a fit, and Henry nursed him back to health through the winter, as Victor "raved incessantly" about the Monster, and into the spring. In addition, Henry convinced Victor to write to his father, reassuring him that he is fine. Henry also told Victor he had brought a letter from Elizabeth.

Analysis This chapter is heavy with gothic elements: a spooky setting; a tense, fearful mood; the appearance of madness or illness; and a grotesque dead/undead monster." Shelley also includes a six-line quotation from Coleridge's "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner," the poem Walton alludes to earlier in the novel, which adds another layer of connection between Walton and Victor. The first line quoted, "Like one who, on a lonely road," continues the theme of human companionship. The lines "Doth walk in fear and dread" and "Because he knows a frightful fiend/Doth close behind him tread" reinforce the terrifying mood characteristic of gothic novels. All the lines describe how Victor is acting as he hurries on "with irregular steps." In addition to classifying it as a gothic novel, some critics claim Frankenstein is the first example of science fiction, a type of writing that deals with technology and the potential results of scientific experimentation. Shelley does not describe the scientific process Victor uses to make the Monster come alive; she is not concerned with the process (which, of course, does not exist), only with the results. Describing the process would slow the narrative and reduce suspense; it could also explain how to replicate Victor's discovery, which Victor wants to prevent. Significantly, Victor does not name his creation. He refers to it as the "wretch" and the "creature." Names convey importance, individuality, and identity. By denying his creation a name, Victor is denying it an identity. It is therefore ironic that in popular usage, the Monster is identified using Victor's last name. The Monster becomes him. Frankenstein | Volume 1, Chapter 5 | Summary

Summary As the flashback continues, Victor relates that Henry gave him Elizabeth's letter, which was filled with family news and events, including information about Justine Moritz, who had moved into the Frankenstein house when she was 12 because her mother rejected her. Justine, whose behavior and appearance Elizabeth saw as similar to Caroline Frankenstein's, was working as a servant in the household, and Elizabeth reminded Victor that he always enjoyed Justine's company. Elizabeth related that, while Victor was at school, Justine's mother forced her to return home to take care of her and treated the girl poorly. When Justine's mother died, Justine returned to the Frankenstein home and resumed her duties. Elizabeth also described their youngest brother, William, a charming child. The letter cheered Victor greatly, and he wrote back. Recovered from his breakdown, Victor introduced Henry to his professors, who all praise him lavishly. However, Victor found hat he had developed a violent hatred of chemistry—he cannot even look at his laboratory instruments—so he joined Henry in his study of languages and "the works of the orientalists." Victor remained in Ingolstadt that summer and then, because of poor weather, stayed until the following May. At that time, Victor and Henry took a two-week vacation, a walking tour of Ingolstadt, and delighted in the beauty of nature and the comfort it offers.

Analysis Justine serves as another foil to the Monster. Like the Monster, she is rejected by her parent (a mother, in this case). However, unlike the Monster, she finds a family in the Frankenstein home, where she works as a servant but is treated well. In a similar way, Henry is a foil to Victor, as Henry's cheerful, open nature stands in contrast to Victor's more brooding, closed self-absorption. Further, Henry is hearty and well, while Victor is often frail and ill, haunted by his creation.

This chapter also brings in elements of romanticism and the theme of connection to nature. Victor says, "A serene sky and verdant fields filled me with ecstasy. The present season was indeed divine; the flowers of spring bloomed in the hedges while those of summer were already in bud." The walk in natural beauty revives Victor; as the passage reveals, nature has restorative powers, which is a common idea in the romantic movement. His joy in nature is a contrast to the horror and anguish he feels over the Monster.

Frankenstein | Volume 1, Chapter 6 | Summary

Summary Victor's relation continues. His happy mood abruptly ended back in Ingolstadt on receiving a letter from his father, informing him of the tragic news that his brother William had been strangled. The police cannot find the locket that Elizabeth had given William. That locket contained a miniature portrait of their mother, Caroline Frankenstein. Victor's father implored him to come home at once. Victor left Ingolstadt, but, "dreading a thousand nameless evils," he lingered in Lausanne for two days, where he was brought to tears by seeing the beauty of Mont Blanc. Arriving in Geneva, he found the city gates closed, forcing him to wait outside the city overnight. He "resolved to visit the spot where" William died. On his journey, Victor realized that he had not been home for almost six years. Watching a "beautiful yet terrific storm," Victor saw "in the gloom a figure which stole from behind a clump of trees." A flash of lightning revealed the figure to be the Monster, whom Victor had not seen since bringing him to life two years before. Victor suspects the Monster has murdered William.

Victor went home the next morning. He cried with his brother Ernest, who explained that since the missing locket was found in Justine's possession, she was assumed to be the murderer and was being tried that day. Victor assured Ernest, their father, and Elizabeth (upon whose beauty and womanhood Victor comments) that Justine was innocent, but he cannot explain his reasons for asserting this because doing so would reveal his creation of the Monster.

Analysis Two years have passed since Victor created the monster and saw him, lulling him into a false sense of security that the monster has fled for good and Victor's secret is safe. William's murder, however, smashes that security and propels the plot forward. It can be no coincidence that Victor's brother is the victim; it is clearly the work of the Monster, getting revenge for being rejected by his maker. The fact that Victor sees the Monster at the murder scene, near the Frankensteins' home, reinforces this point.

The lightning that reveals that the figure is definitely the Monster recalls Victor's interest in electricity and its apparent connection to bringing the creature to life. It also adds to the eerie gothic mood. The lightning evokes light, a symbol of learning and knowledge. Lightning comes during powerful storms, and that association foreshadows an ominous future for Victor due to the Monster's presence. Of course, the storm also parallels Victor's grief: he weeps over the death of William with Ernest, and the sky weeps as well. Victor calls the storm William's "funeral dirge."

Victor's reflections about the Monster further distance him from his creation. "Nothing in human shape," he thinks, "could have destroyed that fair child," his brother. Only a monster or fiend, something capable of evil, could do so.

Victor's pause in Lausanne reinforces him as a romantic, seeking solace in nature. On this occasion, though, it does not work. While the two days there calm him, the sight of Mont Blanc and its nearby lake, rather than bringing comfort, makes him feel worse. He wonders if they are meant to "prognosticate peace, or to mock at [his] unhappiness."

Frankenstein | Volume 1, Chapter 7 | Summary

Summary As Victor's story continues, Justine's trial took place later that morning, and the entire family attended. Victor, terribly agitated, rationalized that he does not confess to the truth because he wasn't in Geneva when the crime took place and he thought no one would believe his wild tale. Justine, in contrast, was calm. The testimony presented in court made it appear that Justine was indeed guilty. Justine told the court that she was innocent and relayed her accounting of the events of the evening that William was killed. However, since she had no proof to persuade the court of her assertion, she hoped that her good reputation would suffice.

Elizabeth tried to convince the court that Justine could not have committed the crime, and her words were heard with approval from the spectators, but only because they admired Elizabeth. Nothing she said can shake the belief in Justine's guilt. Victor "rushed out of the court in agony" before the verdict, saying Justine's "tortures did not equal mine"; he can't sleep that night. The following day, he learned the court had found Justine guilty and sentenced her to death by hanging. Victor then learned Justine confessed, which he told Elizabeth. This news upset Elizabeth deeply.

Before the sentence was carried out, Justine told Elizabeth and Victor that she had confessed to the crime even though she was innocent, because her priest threatened her with excommunication if she did not. She believed that a confession, even a false one, would help her obtain salvation. She faced her death calmly, comforting Victor and Elizabeth. Victor felt "despair" and "agony" and calls himself the "true murderer." She was to be hanged the following morning. Victor was devastated, as two members of his family will have now died because of the monster he created.

Analysis Justine's fate is an example of the passive role of women in the early 19th century. She is docile and submissive, quietly marching to an unjust death and unready to challenge the court's decision or her priest's advice to submit a false confession. Elizabeth's words on Justine's behalf at the trial are ignored, another example of how women were disregarded and treated as inferior to men. Only Victor, a man, has the power to prevent Justine's death, and he chooses not to exercise that power. He is also self-absorbed enough to consider his suffering worse than Justine's, and Shelley does present him as far more agitated than her. Justine's death will move Victor's situation one step deeper on his downward path. Perhaps he could have ignored the death of one family member, but the deaths of two clearly indicate that the Monster is determined to enact his revenge on his creator. Victor is torn by grief and guilt, horrified at what he has wrought. Adding to that sense of horror is the fact that Justine has been linked by Elizabeth to Victor's mother. Her death is as though he has killed his mother again.

Justine's false confession serves as a counterpoint to Victor's secret truth. She humbly and willingly confesses her guilt to a crime she did not commit in hopes of gaining salvation. He shamefully harbors the truth of his own real crime, punishing himself with shame and guilt and removing any hope of relieving himself of their burden. Justine's calm, stoic acceptance of her fate contrasts with Victor's fevered agitation—an agitation that will only grow worse in future chapters as more tragedy strikes.

Frankenstein | Volume 2, Chapter 1 | Summary

Summary As Victor explains to Walton, his mood sank even lower, as he was "seized by remorse and the sense of guilt, which hurried me away to a hell of intense tortures, such as no language can describe." His father advised him not to yield to " immoderate grief," but Victor's guilt prevented him from doing that. The Frankensteins traveled to Belrive, where Victor secretly sailed the lake at night and thought about killing himself. Victor believed the Monster determined to "commit some signal crime" of "enormity," and his hatred of "this fiend" became violent. Elizabeth, also grieving, attempted to comfort him, but Victor believed himself to be the true murderer. Hoping to cheer and relieve Victor, his father suggested they take a trip to the valley of Chamounix, a familiar place from Victor's childhood. Victor recognized the "wonderful and sublime" beauty of the Alps, including "the supreme and magnificent Mont Blanc," and enjoyed the physical exertion. But he could not shake his feelings of remorse and gloom. The chapter ends with him awake at night while his family sleeps, watching a storm with lightning playing above Mont Blanc.

Analysis Victor says that "solitude was my only consolation—deep, dark, deathlike solitude." His condition parallels that of the Monster, as readers later learn, and Victor's anger makes him appear monstrous: "my eyes became inflamed." The two have one critical difference: Victor chooses solitude, but the Monster has it thrust upon him. Victor can rejoin society at any time he chooses, and the care others show for him is evidenced by his father's idea of traveling in nature to restore his spirits and by Elizabeth's attempts to talk him into a better mood. The Monster, in sharp contrast, has no one who loves him, no one who likes him, and no one who can ever bear to look at him. Details in this chapter reflect both the theme of connection to nature and the gothic genre. Victor's descriptions of the scenes they see show the romantics' love of nature. He describes "immense mountains and precipices overhanging us" and "the magnificent and astonishing character" of the valley and the "sublime of the mighty Alps." Romantics drew a distinction between the beautiful, which reflected harmony and goodness, and the sublime, which could be terrible but reflected power and inspired awe. The sublime was nature untamed, what moderns call "wild nature." The visit to Mont Blanc reflects a trip that Mary and Percy had taken to the area in 1816, which inspired Percy to write a poem that year about the mountain. In the poem, he celebrates the mountain as a symbol of grandeur but also of freedom. Finally, the gothic mood is reinforced by the "ruined castles" they also see, as well as by the storm that Victor watches that night. Despite the restorative power of nature, he is so troubled he cannot shake the ominous future that overhangs him.

Frankenstein | Volume 2, Chapter 2 | Summary

Summary Victor explains that he and the others spent a day in nature, near the Arve River, and Victor's "grief" was "subdued and tranquillized." The following morning, Victor felt his depression recurring and decided to return to nature, this time climbing in the mountains and glaciers that partly cover them. Moved by the "solitary grandeur" of the scene, Victor quotes to Walton the last eight lines of Percy's poem "Mutability." Returning to his narrative, he explains that he arrived on the top of the glacier around noon and rested before walking on the glacier for two hours. Looking at the magnificent scene of Montanvert, a glacier, and Mont Blanc, he felt "something like joy."

He then saw what he assumed to be a man running toward him "with superhuman speed." As the figure came closer, Victor realized it was the Monster. Victor violently rejected the Monster, calling him "Devil" and saying, "Begone, vile insect! Or rather, stay, that I may trample you to dust!" Victor tried to attack and kill the Monster, but he was too slow. Nevertheless, the Monster convinced Victor to hear what he has to say. The Monster said to him, "I ought to be thy Adam; but I am rather the fallen angel, whom thou drivest from joy for no misdeed." He asked Victor to help him, to make him "happy," and described his lonely "wretchedness." He threatened Victor, saying that Victor must know his story and choose if the Monster will disappear or "ruin" his life. Finally, Victor agreed to hear him out. Victor realized that "for the first time, also, I felt what the duties of a creator towards his creature were, and that I ought to render him happy before I complained of his wickedness." Victor also hoped to confirm his suspicion that the Monster was his brother's murderer. They went to the Monster's hut so the Monster could tell his story.

Analysis The Monster's plea that he should be Adam but instead is the "fallen angel" is an allusion to both Genesis and Milton's retelling of it in Paradise Lost. According to the Bible, Adam is the first human God created. The "fallen angel" is Lucifer, the angel God cast out after he tried to seize control of heaven. Lucifer becomes Satan, the ruler of hell, saying in Paradise Lost, "Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven."  The Monster is "fallen." He should have been Victor's finest creation ("I ought to be ... Adam"), but instead he has become Victor's greatest failure. Of course, the Monster is not like Adam until he has a mate, as Adam had. Equating himself with Adam, then, foreshadows his demand that Victor make a mate for him. He calls himself a "fallen angel," but that is Lucifer (Satan), who challenged God and thus fell from heaven. The Monster initially does nothing wrong, but Victor punishes him.  Victor is God. The Monster is suggesting that Victor should have cared for him as God does for all his creations. Thus, the fault lies with Victor, not with the Monster, for all of the evil the Monster has done. Victor, in feeling "for the first time ... the duties of a creator," recognizes this responsibility. He is always held back, though, by his horror at the Monster. A harmonious relationship between the two is impossible. Earlier in the novel, Victor feared the Monster because of his hideous appearance. He is now aware of the Monster's great strength and stamina. The fact that the Monster speaks and alludes to Paradise Lost shows that he has acquired language and great learning, both of which make him a far more formidable foe than his mere brute strength and endurance did. Victor rightly fears the Monster's intelligence and cunning.

Frankenstein | Volume 2, Chapter 3 | Summary

Summary The narrative voice shifts, as now the Monster is telling the story—which is, really, Walton's recounting of Victor's retelling of the Monster's story. (The Monster's story continues through Chapter 15.) He returns Victor to the day of his creation, saying he first awoke to find himself "desolate" and became aware of light and darkness, hunger and thirst. He was in a forest. The next day, he was "cold" and guided by a "gentle light," the moon, he "found a huge cloak." Over time, he recognized different sensations and developed a longing for language. He was overjoyed to find a fire to warm him; soon, he realized how to maintain the fire and use it to cook food. He spent much of his time foraging for food to relieve his constant hunger. On one search for food, the Monster found an old man living in a small hut, chased the man off, and stole his breakfast. He set off again and arrived that evening at a village, where the people recoiled at his appearance and chased him away. The Monster next arrived at a small hovel, a squalid shed attached to the back of a cottage. Happy to have shelter, the Monster stole bread and a cup and then realized that he could see into the cottage and so spy on its inhabitants. These are the De Lacey family—a father who is blind, as the Monster realizes in Chapter 11, and his children, Felix and Agatha—who treat each other with great love and kindness. The Monster saw the old man play music and the young man read.

Analysis The kindly way the De Lacey family interacts contrasts to the hatred the Monster faces. The De Laceys' love for each other increases the Monster's misery, as he sees what he is missing. They enact the positive aspects of humankind, serving as a kind of ideal and model the Monster can aspire to. That the names Felix and Agatha mean "luck" and "good," respectively, adds more luster to their existence. Seeing the old man embrace his daughter, Agatha, the Monster says, "I felt sensations of a peculiar and over-powering nature: they were a mixture of pain and pleasure, such as I had never before experienced ... and I withdrew from the window, unable to bear these emotions." No one treats the Monster well; no one cares whether he lives or dies. Indeed, even Victor, his father and creator, actively wants the Monster to die. Thus, the theme of human companionship is clearly evident here.

In his story, the Monster reveals a powerful and sensitive personality completely at odds with his monstrous appearance and the terms—"wretch," "fiend," "demon," and "devil"—that Victor constantly uses to refer to him. Readers may feel great pity for the Monster, a sensitive soul cast out of society. That Victor retells the Monster's account honestly and with no attempts to excuse himself does cast the creator in a somewhat sympathetic light. He grants the Monster a certain dignity of equal treatment in this regard.

The Monster's story also provides insight into one way of envisioning the first human. The Monster becomes aware of himself with no socialization or training; he is like John Locke's tabula rasa, or blank slate. He must learn on his own, as Adam had to; neither had a parent available to provide instruction or guidance. There are some differences, though. Adam, living in Eden, clothed himself and Eve after they ate of the forbidden fruit and realized their nakedness. The Monster seeks clothing because he is cold. He, unlike Adam, is not a sinner at this point. He is like a child, innocent and free of sin or guilt.

Frankenstein | Volume 2, Chapter 4 | Summary

Summary The Monster was especially impressed by the gentle way the De Lacey family members treated each other, but he noticed they are not as happy as he had first assumed. It took the Monster a while to realize the cause of their sadness: they are very poor. Moved by their plight, the Monster stopped stealing their food and anonymously gathered wood for them, relieving them of this burdensome chore. The Monster learned that language exists and then, slowly, learned to start to speak French by listening to the family speak it. This continued for the winter, during which time the Monster also "ardently longed to comprehend" writing. The Monster also caught his first glimpse of himself, reflected in a pool, and was shocked at his grotesque appearance. As the weather improved with the coming of spring, the Monster continued secretly assisting the De Laceys and decided that he might be able to make the De Lacey family happy again—and that they would then accept and "love" him. He practiced speaking and found his mood lifting, saying, "My spirits were elevated by the enchanting appearance of nature ... the future gilded by bright rays of hope and anticipations of joy."

Analysis Accustomed to great hardship, the Monster at first cannot understand how the De Lacey family could be sad when they appear to have everything that anyone could want: food, shelter, and love. Once he comes to understand their situation, he helps the De Laceys in every way he can and even dreams of restoring them to total happiness, showing his innate kindness and compassion. The Monster shows himself to be more humane, more full of compassion, than Victor, his human creator. Who is the real monster? The Monster's thirst to learn ennobles him. Watching the De Laceys converse, he realizes that language is the key to humans connecting with one another. He calls language a "godlike science," the vehicle for forging human bonds. His pursuit of knowledge contrasts with Victor's and Walton's. They both pursue knowledge to push the limits of science and to gain fame for themselves. The Monster seeks the ability to speak so that he can connect to other creatures. He wants to learn to read to open new realms of understanding, to improve himself, not to enhance his status.

The Monster's happiness when spring comes underscores the romantics' belief in the power of nature and the link between nature and people's moods. He celebrates nature's glory when he cannot celebrate his own. This provides a further connection between him and Victor, who also finds joy and peace in nature. The Monster, like his creator, is a romantic. Frankenstein | Volume 2, Chapter 5 | Summary

Summary One day, the Monster saw a beautiful young lady arrive at the cottage, to Felix's great delight. She is Safie, the woman Felix loves. Safie does not speak French, so Felix used a book called Ruins of Empires by the Comte de Volney to teach her the language. From listening to their lessons over two months, the Monster learned to speak and read French too; he also learned about world history and mused on the nature of humanity. "Was man, indeed," he thinks, "at once so powerful, so virtuous and magnificent, yet so vicious and base?" These thoughts prompted the Monster to look inward, and he realized that he had nothing that would gain mankind's respect: "no money, no friends, no kind of property." He asked of himself, "Was I then a monster?" This knowledge tortured the Monster, and he yearned to once again be ignorant, knowing only the feelings of hunger, thirst, and cold. He also longed for "friends and relations," for another "being resembling" him, and for interaction with others.

Analysis Again, the Monster's situation parallels Victor's, as they both seek education and then come to realize that knowledge changes a person. Knowledge is desirable, but too much knowledge or knowledge used unwisely brings misery, as Victor's abuse of science to exceed the powers of humanity shows. More knowledge also makes the Monster unhappy, when he learns about what he does not have. Knowledge used for good, however, is beneficial, as is shown by the Monster helping the De Laceys (or as in the appreciation of Victor's improvements to the scientific instruments at Ingolstadt). Speaking through the Monster, Shelley explores the mixture of good and evil in everyone and in humanity as a whole. Both Victor and the Monster are set apart from humanity: the Monster by his hideous appearance and Victor by his monstrous creation, the effort of keeping it secret, and the tragedy it causes. The link between the Monster and his creator is central to Frankenstein. Part of the impact of the novel is the fact that Victor never realizes how similar he and his Monster really are, which in this chapter is shown by the Monster's thirst for knowledge, paralleling Victor's, and recognition that knowledge sometimes can bring pain as well as pleasure. Mention of Ruins of Empires is significant. The book was a radical denunciation of the religious and political status quo in the world and was published two years into the French Revolution. It protests the tyranny of hierarchies and demands their destruction. Godwin knew the work; a friend of his made the first English translation. Percy Shelley knew it as well, and it influenced his political thought. Safie's arrival and reception provide a contrast to the Monster. She is accepted, in part because she is beautiful. Victor rejected the Monster because he is hideous (and the De Laceys will in a few chapters do the same). This differential treatment exemplifies the injustice of humankind that the Comte de Volney describes on an individual scale. Frankenstein | Volume 2, Chapter 6 | Summary

Summary Here, the Monster recounts the history of the De Lacey family. Some years before, they were wealthy and distinguished in Paris, France, but the family was ruined by Safie's father, a Turkish merchant. Running afoul of the French government, Safie's father was unjustly jailed and sentenced to death. Felix, present at the trial by chance, decided to help the merchant. Felix went to the prison, where he met the beautiful Safie. Felix refused the merchant's offer of both money and marriage to Safie in return for his rescue, although he hoped to marry Safie anyway. The Monster cites letters between Felix and Safie in his possession that will corroborate the story he is relating and says he will show them to Victor. The Monster then returns to the narrative of the De Laceys' story. The night before the execution of the merchant was scheduled to take place, Felix helped him escape from prison; after those two and Sadie escaped to Italy, Felix and Sadie's relationship grew. However, Felix's involvement in the escape was uncovered by authorities, and M. De Lacey and Agatha were imprisoned for five months. Felix hurried home to Paris, leaving Safie in a convent, but his family was ruined, their fortune confiscated by the government and their reputation shattered. The De Laceys had to leave France for Germany. The Turkish merchant betrayed Felix by ordering Safie home to Turkey, but she managed to escape to return to Felix, which explained her arrival at the cottage.

Analysis The Turkish merchant suffers an unjust punishment—imprisonment and a death sentence. The De Lacey family suffers an unjust punishment—the loss of their money, land, and reputation. The Monster suffers an unjust punishment—the loss of all human companionship and comfort. In addition, all are outsiders: the merchant because of his nationality, the De Laceys because of their exile, and the Monster because of his appearance. Felix's courage in helping the merchant contrasts Victor's cowardice in not helping Justine; Felix's sympathy for Safie contrasts Victor's deep loathing of the Monster. The offer of Safie to Felix in marriage in return for her father's freedom is another example of female powerlessness. Like Victor's mother had once been, like Elizabeth and Justine had been as children, Safie is at the mercy of a dominant male. Felix is unusual in being "too delicate to accept" that offer and in hoping they can develop love. That desire parallels the reality for Victor and Elizabeth, but it also contrasts with the Monster, who wants to be given a mate but never is.

The Monster's stated intention to show Victor the Felix-Sadie letters reinforces the idea of evidence and proof set up in the Walton framing story. He wants to be believed; it is important to him to be seen as credible.

Frankenstein | Volume 2, Chapter 7 | Summary

Summary Continuing his narration, the Monster relates that one evening he found a suitcase of books (Paradise Lost, Plutarch's Lives, Sorrows of Werter) that he read and thought about deeply. He was especially moved by Milton's Paradise Lost, which he read as accurate history rather than a work of imagination. He contrasted himself with Adam; when he thought about the love the De Laceys showed for each other, he identified with Satan and felt envious. He also read some of Victor's journal tracing the Monster's formation; he had it because it was "in the pocket of the dress which [he] had taken from [Victor's] laboratory." He shows Victor the pages and tells his creator they made him ill, feeling worse off than Satan because he was "solitary and detested." He wanted to show himself to the De Laceys but waited "for some months." Meanwhile, the De Laceys, whom the Monster had come to see as his own family, were happier since Safie's arrival. The Monster again compares himself to Adam, but he has "no Eve" and his creator has "abandoned" him. Autumn's bleakness meant he was no longer soothed by nature. That winter, gathering his courage, the Monster waited until M. De Lacey was alone. Since the old man is blind, he could not see the Monster. The Monster told the old man of his isolation and yearning to be accepted by his "friends," not specifying that he meant the De Laceys. The old man offered to help. Just as the Monster was about to admit these friends are the De Laceys, he heard Safie, Felix, and Agatha returning. He told M. De Lacey, "You and your family are the friends of whom I seek. Do not desert me in the hour of trial!," and the three arrived back at the cottage. Agatha fainted, Safie fled, and Felix beat the Monster with a stick. The Monster ran from the cottage.

Analysis The Monster reads Milton's Paradise Lost, one volume of Plutarch's Lives of Illustrious Greeks and Romans, and Goethe's Sorrows of Werter, all major texts, the last a key document of the romantic movement. He says, "I learned from Werter's imaginations despondency and gloom: but Plutarch taught me high thoughts." However, all the skill the Monster acquires in language and communication is frustrating, as he has no one to communicate with. The Monster pours out all that he has learned, drawing on all his language and communication skills, when he meets Victor and tells his story. As he becomes educated, the Monster thinks about his condition and yearns for a mate. Drawing on his reading of Paradise Lost, he says, "Like Adam, I was apparently united by no link to any other being in existence." However, the Monster realizes that his similarity to Adam ends there, for God created Adam as "happy and prosperous," while Victor Frankenstein made the Monster "wretched, helpless, and alone." The Monster's despair makes him more human and again incites readers' sympathy, giving the novel its deep humanity. The Monster's conversation with M. De Lacey makes use of the common literary device of the blind person who sees more clearly than the sighted. When the Monster asks his assistance in helping him befriend the family (who are really the De Laceys), the old man says, "There is something in your words which persuades me that you are sincere." The blind man, who does not see how horrific the Monster looks, is the only person who can perceive his true nature.

When Felix and Agatha De Lacey reject him, the Monster learns that the De Laceys were not as kind and tolerant as he had supposed. Instead, they are as flawed as the rest of humankind. He has romanticized the family, making them into the ideal family he wishes he could join, showing his desperate desire for human companionship and relief from isolation and loneliness.

Frankenstein | Volume 2, Chapter 8 | Summary Summary That night, in a fury, the Monster declared "everlasting war" against all humans, especially Victor Frankenstein. Later, calmed by "pleasant sunshine," the Monster decided that he had acted too quickly and, after napping, returned to the cottage, where the following morning he saw Felix negotiating with his landlord to leave. The unhappy Monster says, "I never saw any of the family of De Lacey more." The Monster's feelings of hatred and desire for revenge flared again. That night, he burned the De Laceys' cottage to the ground and set off, hoping to reach Geneva. He traveled a long time, developing a desire for "justice" from and then "revenge" on his "heartless creator," finding pleasure only in nature. Along the way, the Monster saved a "young girl" from drowning, but her male companion shot the Monster in the shoulder. The Monster spent weeks recovering, his physical pain increased by his mental anguish. He vowed revenge against humanity for the "outrages and anguish" they had caused him. Two months later, near Geneva, the Monster was awakened from a nap by a beautiful child. Believing the child too young and innocent to fear him, the Monster grabbed the boy. Instead of accepting him, the boy screamed, "Monster! Ugly wretch!" certain the Monster wished to eat him or tear him to pieces. The boy proclaimed that his father, Mr. Frankenstein, will "punish" the Monster. Hearing the child's identity, the Monster said, "You shall be my first victim," and strangled him. The Monster took the portrait the child was wearing. When he saw a young woman (Justine), he decided to punish her in place of other people who have rejected him and secretly placed the necklace on her. He was fully aware that the innocent young woman would be blamed for the murder of the boy. The Monster relates that he then wandered for some time, hoping to see and confront Victor. The chapter closes with his demand that Victor end his solitude by making him a mate.

Analysis This chapter brings the stories of the Monster and Victor together, as the Monster explains how he killed William and what he did to frame Justine for the crime. This murder is a counterpoint to the kind deed the Monster performed earlier in the chapter—saving another girl from drowning—and the unjust punishment he received. His anger at that injustice, reminding him of his rejection by the De Laceys and his treatment by the boyfriend of the drowning girl, his rage at William Frankenstein's horror upon seeing him, and his desire for revenge on Victor, awakened by hearing the name "Frankenstein," all spur him to violence.

The Monster takes the written word as all-powerful, believing what he reads is literally true. He extends this to assume that he will be able to use language, threats, and violence to persuade Victor to make him a mate. The Monster's naïve belief in the power of language foreshadows the failure of his plea. That faith also provides an ironic commentary on Mary Shelley's act of penning the novel. If language is too weak to persuade, why does she write? Or is language capable of changing minds—Victor, after all, complies initially with the Monster's demand—but not necessarily changing society? The power of language appears in the William story as well. The Monster's words cannot persuade the boy that he is not a threat. In determining to kill him by strangling, the Monster says he acts to "silence him." If his words will not be heard, he will ensure that William's words are not heard, either.

The pleasure that the Monster finds in nature in the chapter reinforces the theme of connection to nature inspired by the romantic movement. It also once again underscores his connection to Victor in this regard. His desire to "reanimate" the drowning girl connects him to Victor as well; he hopes to animate life.

Frankenstein | Volume 2, Chapter 9 | Summary Summary The Monster has finished his story, and Victor becomes narrator again, continuing the events of the past. The Monster indicated to him his willingness to repent, saying he "would make peace with" humans if he could have some positive emotion from one of them. But he also repeated his demand for a mate, explaining, "I am malicious because I am miserable," and threatening, "If I cannot inspire love, I will cause fear." The Monster vowed to destroy Victor if his demand were not met. If Victor complies, however, the Monster promised to leave with his mate, never to be seen again. The Monster argued with eloquence, and Victor finally agreed to his demand. Immediately, Victor and the Monster part ways; overnight, Victor slowly and unhappily returned to Chamounix. His family was shocked by his "haggard and strange" appearance, but after they returned to Geneva, Victor offered no explanation. The chapter concludes with him describing his "despair" and eventual "calm." Thinking of suicide at first, he is calmed by nature.

Analysis The monster yearns for a mate. The reasonableness of his request and the eloquence of his plea make a strong argument that everyone needs human companionship. "Shall each beast have his mate," he pleads with Victor, "and I be alone?" Creating a mate for the Monster is the least that Victor can do for him, yet Victor is torn by indecision. His senses are conflicted: he says when listening to the Monster, "I compassionated him ... but when I looked upon him ... my heart sickened." When Victor finally agrees, he is plunged back into depression, which shows that he is still conflicted about his choice. If Victor's story recalls the Faust legend, this episode reintroduces it. Victor has called the Monster "the Devil." In agreeing to make him a mate, he is making a pact with the devil, as Faust had done.

Nature, of course, revives Victor, reinforcing the theme of connection to nature. The romantic can always find renewed energy and lifted spirits by communing with nature. Frankenstein | Volume 3, Chapter 1 | Summary Summary Not eager to begin his work, Victor relates, he procrastinated in Geneva and found "returning tranquility" on the lake. Meanwhile, Mr. Frankenstein pressed Victor to marry Elizabeth. Victor agreed, reassuring his father that he indeed loved her as a future wife, not as a sister. Reluctant to marry before he created the Monster's promised mate, Victor decided to first go to England to do research, find some information he needs, and keep his family safe by staying away.

Worried about Victor's mental health, his father and Elizabeth arranged for Henry Clerval to accompany Victor. Although this interfered with the solitude Victor felt he needed to complete his task, he was happy to travel again with Henry and hoped that Henry's presence would keep the Monster away. Victor set off in August, with the understanding that he and Elizabeth would marry when he returned, although he told her the trip would take two years. Victor and Henry traveled though Germany and Holland on the Rhine before arriving in London. Henry was especially delighted at the scenery; Victor was preoccupied by the task set for him by the Monster. In his account to Walton, Victor remembers his "beloved friend," praising Henry's "imagination" and "sensibility," and quoting from two romantic poems: "The Story of Rimini" by Leigh Hunt and "Tintern Abbey" by William Wordsworth. He expresses to Walton his sadness that Henry is now dead.

Analysis In Victor's discussion of Henry, Shelley includes a six-line excerpt from William Wordsworth's 1798 poem "Tintern Abbey," one of the most famous romantic poems. Typical of Wordsworth's poems, "Tintern Abbey" describes nature's ability to touch an individual and prompt powerful emotions and profound reflections. Henry is deeply moved by the beautiful scenery, which he "loved with ardor." However, thinking of this landscape now, while on the ship with Walton, brings sadness to Victor, as it reminds him of Henry. This sadness actually contrasts with the theme of Wordsworth's poem, which establishes that the pleasures in nature he felt as a youth can be recollected and experienced again later in life. Nature can still conjure powerful emotions in Victor, possessor of the romantics' affinity with nature, but sometimes the burden of his actions and their results weighs too heavily on him, and nature's restorative powers are ineffectual. This scene also reinforces the theme of human companionship (friendship) and its importance. Despite his fears and depression, Victor enjoys Henry's company, while the joy of friendship is cruelly denied to the Monster.

Victor's conversations with his father and Elizabeth about marrying her reinforce the recurring idea of passive females. Victor and his father settle the question of Elizabeth's marriage; she is not consulted. Similarly, Victor alone decides that this wedding will only occur after he returns. She has no choice in the timing, either. Females are pawns; males are the decision makers. Frankenstein | Volume 3, Chapter 2 | Summary

Summary Victor and Henry lived in London during the winter. Their touring and stay in London failed to rouse Victor from his depression, although Henry enjoyed himself. In Henry, Victor sees himself before he created the Monster, as Henry was still eager to learn and experience new things. Victor had by then lost his joy and interest in new adventures and new learning—he was tormented by the results of his earlier unbridled pursuit of knowledge. At the end of March, Victor and Henry traveled through the English countryside to Edinburgh, Scotland, responding to a friend's invitation. When they reached Perth, Victor—conscious of his "horrible curse"—suggested that he and Henry part.

On his own, Victor set up a laboratory on a remote island in the Orkneys. The island was so isolated that it had only three huts; Victor took the one that was empty. He set to work making the female monster, but every day, that work seemed to him more and more terrible. Sometimes he could not even enter the laboratory for days. Nevertheless, he made progress, despite being plagued by disgust over the work. Henry, living elsewhere, had no idea what Victor was doing.

Analysis Many themes come together in this chapter. The theme of scientific idealism is evident and made complicated through Victor's reluctant work on the female monster. Here, unlike the case with the burst of energy and passion that Victor first experienced, the theme is combined with the theme of disillusionment. Aware of the "horror" of his actions, Victor cannot feel excitement or joy in his work. The theme of curiosity is also reinforced in this chapter, where Henry's continued thirst for knowledge is contrasted by Victor's remorse over the results of his unbridled curiosity. Finally, Victor's decision to be alone and to work in an extremely secluded location shows the theme of human companionship. Henry and the Monster crave companionship (as does Walton), while Victor wants only to be alone.

In addition, qualities of the gothic novel are shown in Victor's work building the female monster, from the eerie, isolated location to the dark mood attached to those scenes. Of course, as with the male monster, Shelley does not describe the nuts-and-bolts construction of the female monster, leaving these details to the reader's imagination.

Frankenstein | Volume 3, Chapter 3 | Summary

Summary Victor recounts that as he worked on making the female monster, he thought back three years to when he had built the male monster. He worried about the possible outcomes of making this new creation, fearing the two creatures would mate and create a "race of devils" that would make human life "full of terror." Looking up from his work, Victor saw a figure at the hut's window; the Monster had followed Victor and Henry through their travels. In a fit of terror and fury, Victor ripped the female figure apart. The upset Monster left, and Victor departed from his lab for his other room, where he remained looking out the window.

Hours later, the Monster entered Victor's room and berated Victor for breaking his promise. The Monster threatened Victor, promising vengeance even if it results in his own death. He delivered an even more terrifying threat: "I go; but remember, I shall be with you on your wedding-night." The Monster then left. Victor, anticipating that the Monster's words meant his own death, felt sad about Elizabeth mourning him. Following an unhappy night, Victor received a letter from Henry, asking him to meet him at Perth so they could travel to India together. Victor cleaned up his lab and left two days later, taking a boat off the island. After dumping the rest of the female's body parts into the water, he fell asleep in the boat. The wind pushed the boat out into choppy water, and he woke up lost. After a fitful night, he managed to reach the Irish shore, joyful at being alive. Landing, he was puzzled that the local people treated him with great hostility. Victor was then arrested and taken to seen Mr. Kirwin, a magistrate, to explain another man's murder. He breaks off the story here, explaining that the "frightful events" take "fortitude to recall."

Analysis This chapter furthers the themes of scientific idealism and curiosity, as Victor acts against curiosity and discovery, deciding to destroy the female monster rather than risk the potential for even greater disaster. He fears that perhaps the female won't go along with the Monster's plan to leave or that the two creatures might hate each other and create havoc. Their mating might have even more dire repercussions. Related to this interpretation is the view that Victor, in taking the role of creator, usurps the female role of motherhood. In a male-dominated world, in which men control the creation of new life, women become unnecessary. Victor's fear that the female monster would mate with the male monster and produce offspring is a fear that women will again wrench the role of motherhood back to them. If she never comes alive, that threat is removed, and Victor's power as creator and mother remains intact.

The Adam and Satan symbol gets a twist in this chapter. The Monster tells Victor, "You are my creator, but I am your master;—obey!" Here the Monster takes the role of Satan. As Satan, before his fall, challenged the divinely mandated order and revolted against God, seeking control of heaven, the Monster challenges the supremacy of the creator. Victor's destruction of the female monster can also been seen as one culmination of the recurring theme of the passive woman. In this view, women are meant to be protected, managed, and controlled by males. If they show the slightest potential for power, they must be destroyed.

Frankenstein | Volume 3, Chapter 4 | Summary

Summary In front of the magistrate and several witnesses, Victor learned that the body of a handsome young man washed ashore. Initially, the men assumed the victim had drowned, but they soon discovered that he had been strangled. Victor's reaction to the strangling news caused suspicion, as does his arrival by boat and his horrified reaction to seeing that the murdered man was Henry Clerval. The villagers assumed, based on circumstantial evidence (including seeing a man in a boat), that Victor was the murderer; Victor figured it was the Monster. The accusation and his grief at the loss of his best friend sent Victor into terrible illness, which lasted two months. During this time and in delirium, he confessed, in his own language, that he was the murderer and fantasized that the Monster was coming for him. Regaining some of his health, he realized that he had been imprisoned and that a nurse was sent to watch over him. She and a doctor treated his illness. Mr. Kirwin, the magistrate, became sympathetic to Victor's plight and explained he had sent for Alphonse Frankenstein to be at his son's side. After Alphonse arrived and told Victor that the family was well, Victor began to improve physically. At a grand jury hearing, Victor was exonerated when it was proved that he was not at the scene—he was in his laboratory on the Orkney Islands. Fearing the Monster intended to destroy the rest of his family, Victor hurried home with his father. Tormented by fears the first night on the ship, he took laudanum, a drug, to help him sleep, but even double the usual quantity did not give him peace. Analysis By killing off Victor's friends and family, the Monster shows Victor what it feels like to suffer loss, to be lonely and isolated, deprived of companionship. It is perhaps the worst punishment the Monster could inflict. The theme of isolation and human companionship, woven through Frankenstein, is especially apparent in this chapter. Victor suffers for two months alone. He is heartened by the appearance of his father, but even his presence cannot lift the sense of guilt and despair that Victor feels—nor can it dispel his sense of foreboding, that more death and suffering is to come. The created being has once again proven to be a force of destruction. Victor's triumph over death has led to death. Victor's arrest and trial recalls Justine. She, innocent of a crime, is found guilty; Victor, who is ultimately guilty, is declared innocent. Justine issues a false confession. Victor confesses in his delirium, and that confession is both untrue (he is not directly responsible for killing Henry; the Monster is) and true (by creating the Monster and rejecting him, he is ultimately responsible). Justine suffers the human punishment of death; Victor goes unpunished by his fellow humans, although the Monster sees to it that he suffers. Indeed, Victor punishes himself, saying, "The cup of life [i]s poisoned for ever," and he feels no difference between being in nature or prison. But he wishes to die, hoping for an end to his misery and suffering and, presumably, feeling that his death will cause the Monster to stop killing those Victor loves.

Victor's repeated collapses suggest that his health issues may be a response to stress, as his physical and psychological breakdowns coincide with encounters with the Monster. By this time, Victor is in such debilitated mental condition that he has "fits" and "paroxysms of anguish," is suicidal, and needs help to keep from hurting himself.

The themes of disillusionment and connection to nature combine here. Victor is so overcome with disillusion that prison is as welcome to him as "the divinest scene in nature." Here he is Adam, fallen in sin and expelled from the Garden. Nature no longer provides a balm to his soul or a boost to his spirits. Nature is dead to him.

The light and darkness symbol appears in this chapter as well. When Victor is exonerated and released from prison, the sun is shining. Rather than reveling in the light and feeling joy, however, he sees "nothing but a dense and frightful darkness." Rather than the cheerful sun, he see two orbs, which are eyes. Sometimes they are Henry's and sometimes the Monster's. Victor has fallen into the darkness and feels despair.

Frankenstein | Volume 3, Chapter 5 | Summary

Summary Victor relates to Walton that he and his father then went to France. During this trip, Victor told his father he was responsible for the deaths of William, Justine, and Henry; his father viewed Victor as mad. In Paris, Victor received a letter from Elizabeth, asking if he had fallen in love with another woman, explaining that she loves him and would understand. Victor recalled the Monster's ominous warning and wrote back to Elizabeth to saying he is dedicated to her but has "one secret ... a terrible one."

Returning home to Geneva, Victor passed in and out of madness; Elizabeth helped him. He assured his father that he loved only Elizabeth and was ready for marriage. Victor again remembered the Monster's warning, but as he tells Walton, "I thought that I prepared only my own death, I hastened that of a far dearer victim." Victor and Elizabeth married. He armed himself, and they left on their overnight honeymoon, planning afterward to go to Cologny. While sailing past the "beauty of the scene," landscape including Mont Blanc, Victor had his "last moments ... of happiness" and Elizabeth told him to "be happy." At sunset, they reach Evian.

Analysis The novel builds to its climax as Victor fears the Monster will kill him on his wedding night. The climax is foreshadowed and suspense is built by Victor's statement to Elizabeth that he has only "one secret," "a dreadful one," which will "chill your frame with horror" when it is revealed. He promises to tell her the day after they wed but does not intend to fulfill the promise, since he believes the Monster will kill him first. While Victor carries a gun, such weapons are not likely to prove effective against the Monster, who is possessed of speed, strength, and endurance beyond those of an ordinary human.

Victor's delay in revealing his secret to Elizabeth continues behavior he has shown throughout the novel. He is full of self-loathing over his secret, which is as ugly to him as the Monster is in appearance. He has a genuine wish to not mar Elizabeth's happiness before the wedding, but his inability to be truthful also deprives her of any freedom of choice in relation to him. She is in darkness as to his character and actions, acting only on partial information. She does not press him for details, however, showing a lack of the curiosity that impelled him to ruin. Of course, Elizabeth, the passive female, is also complicit in her powerlessness. Her letter to Victor confesses that she places his happiness above her own. As much as she loves him (more than he loves her, some readers may suspect), she will give him up if he loves someone else. Elizabeth gives Victor all the power and authority in their relationship. Frankenstein | Volume 3, Chapter 6 | Summary

Summary Victor continues his relation. He and Elizabeth walked along the shore near the inn where they were staying. Back at the inn, an hour after it started raining, Victor convinced Elizabeth to go to bed. He stalked through the halls with his gun, on guard for the Monster. Suddenly, Victor heard a "shrill and dreadful scream," and he quickly grasped what had occurred. On hearing a second scream, he rushed to their room to find Elizabeth strangled. He fainted. People at the inn tried to console him, but he returned to Elizabeth and confirmed she was dead. Victor saw the Monster outside, grinning, and shot at him but missed, and the Monster got away. Victor and people from Evian went looking for the murderer, and then the others continued without him.

Crying for the dead, Victor feared for Alphonse and Ernest and rushed back to Geneva. Soon after Mr. Frankenstein heard the news, he died of a fit caused by grief. Following his father's death, Victor says, "I lost sensation." Thought mad, he was placed in a cell for months.

Regaining sanity, Victor vowed revenge, and one month later told the local magistrate the story of the Monster. The magistrate was polite but, while drawn in with a "half kind of belief," clearly didn't fully believe Victor's story or intend to act on it, concluding Victor was still somewhat insane. Victor left. Analysis When Victor and Elizabeth arrive at the inn, "the wind, which had fallen in the south, now rose with great violence in the west ... the clouds swept across it [the moon] swifter than the flight of the vulture and dimmed her rays." Victor says that the night is "dreadful, very dreadful." The foul weather creates a gothic mood, while the word choices enhance it and provide foreshadowing. For example, the violence of the wind foreshadows the murder to come; the idea of the "vulture" foreshadows death and characterizes the Monster, who is made of the kind of carrion vultures eat; the phrase "dimmed her rays" foreshadows Elizabeth's death and the end of any potential for Victor's happiness.

The misunderstanding underlying Victor's reaction to the Monster's threat "I shall be with you on your wedding-night!" is finally revealed. Victor assumes in his egotism that the Monster will kill him. It never crosses his mind that the Monster intends to kill Elizabeth instead. Her murder makes much more sense, however, because Victor destroyed the Monster's mate by violently tearing apart the body before finishing it. This is the climax of the novel, as the Monster has stripped Victor of his family, his friend, and his bride. As a result, Victor begins to lose his humanity and becomes like the Monster, isolated and lonely, devoted only to revenge. It is also fitting that the Monster strangles Elizabeth; he kills her with his hands, just as Victor tears apart the Monster's intended mate. As he relates his story to the magistrate, Victor says, "I do not doubt that he [the Monster] hovers near the spot which I inhabit," indicating he believes the Monster is somewhere nearby, hiding but dangerously present. It seems the Monster knows where Victor is at all times, adding another mysterious, supernatural or gothic element to the book. Victor's ability to sense the Monster, in turn, furthers the linkage between the two of them (a twisted kind of companionship). The Monster is, in a sense, Victor's double, or shadow self. As a shadow, he has a special bond to Victor. This tradition, called doppelgänger ("double goer") for the first time in 1796, comes from the ancient German concept that each living creature has an exact copy. The twin may exist as a phantom or as a real human. In this chapter, Victor finally—for the first time—confesses the full truth of what he has done. The magistrate, lacking proof, cannot believe his fantastical story; Victor being mad is the only way to explain his account. The bulk of the novel, of course, is Victor telling his story in detail to Walton, who will eventually see proof that confirms it.

Elizabeth's live body made dead by the Monster contrasts with the dead body that Victor brought to life to form the Monster. She is "lifeless and inanimate"; Victor had animated the lifeless body of the Monster but can do nothing for her. She is pale, with "bloodless arms." The Monster's yellow skin "scarcely covered the work of muscles and arteries beneath." Frankenstein | Volume 3, Chapter 7 | Summary

Summary For months, Victor chased the Monster across the globe, the desire for revenge keeping him alive. He first spent the night in the Genevan cemetery, where the Monster overheard and "mocked" him for making a vow to "pursue the daemon." Victor went on the Rhone, to the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea, to Russia, but the Monster was always one step ahead. Victor ate food left by what he thought were benevolent "spirits" (later revealed as the Monster) and dreamed about his dead family and friends. The Monster goaded Victor with messages carved into trees and cut into stone. Victor and the Monster reached the Arctic. Victor, learning from Russian villagers the Monster had stolen food and a dogsled to take him over the ice floes, bought a dogsled and followed. Victor was not sure how much longer he could survive the brutal conditions, but he pressed on nonetheless. After days of pursuit, Victor saw and then got tantalizingly close to the Monster, but they were ultimately separated by the cracking ice. About to die, Victor was found and rescued by Robert Walton. He explained why he needed a northbound ship: to continue after the Monster. Knowing he is still close to death, after finishing his narrative, Victor makes Walton swear that if he (Victor) dies, Walton will kill the Monster.

Analysis In effect, Victor has become the Monster, willing to die to enact his revenge. He has become stripped of his humanity and has only a tenuous grip on reality and sanity.

One message the Monster leaves for Victor during their chase across the north reads, "My reign is not yet over," a reference to Satan's statement in Paradise Lost "Better to reign in Hell than to serve in Heaven." This connection elevates the struggle to an epic, Biblical level. Furthering this connection, Victor tells Walton, "The fallen angel becomes a malignant devil." Of course, if Victor has become the Monster, that makes him like Satan too, reinforcing that symbolic connection. The Monster's leaving both food and messages for Victor throughout the chase reflects his dual nature. The food sustains Victor, keeping him alive—the Monster provides more support to his creator than that creator ever gave him—but it also reinforces the taunting tones of the messages he leaves. The Monster is toying with Victor, leading him on. He indeed has become Victor's master—or at the least the master of this situation. Gothic elements are brought into this final part of the novel through several details. They include the fierce, isolated Arctic environment and the Monster's supernatural tracking abilities, as he leads Victor on a chase to the roof of the world.

Frankenstein | Walton, in Continuation | Summary

Summary The novel closes as it began, with letters Walton writes to his sister. In the first of these final letters, dated August 26, Walton tells his sister that he believes Victor's story because he and the crew saw the Monster before rescuing Victor and because Victor has shown Walton the letters that Felix and Safie sent each other. Walton asked Victor to explain how he made the Monster, but Victor refused to tell him: "Are you mad, my friend? ... whither does your senseless curiosity lead you?" In addition, Victor edited and corrected Walton's notes of his story. During the week that Victor told his story, he and Walton discussed various subjects, and Victor tried to teach Walton the lessons he has learned as a result of his overwhelming ambition. Walton repeats to his sister his own longing for a friend.

In the letter of September 2, Walton explains that the ship is trapped in ice, and he fears the sailors will mutiny. On September 5, Walton writes that the crew insisted on turning back before the ice crushes the ship and expresses his concern that he may not be able to turn them down. Victor succeeded in quelling the mutiny, urging the men to "return as heroes." Walton relates that he told the men that he would not lead them farther north if they really didn't want to go, but he hopes that their courage will return. On September 7, Walton briefly relates to his sister his agreement to turn the ship around if it is not crushed by the ice.

In his final letter, dated September 12, Walton says they started sailing south the previous day and tells of Victor's end. Prior to dying, Victor said that he believes himself "justified in desiring the death" of the Monster and "refusing, to create a companion." He acknowledged that in making the Monster he became responsible to it but believes now that should have recognized his "paramount" duty to his fellow humans. He changed his instructions to Walton, telling the other he need not pursue the Monster to kill him but asking Walton to execute that deed if he should encounter the Monster by chance. Then he died.

After describing his grief, Walton writes, "I am interrupted," and then finishes the letter, explaining what follows. The Monsterburst into Victor's room to mourn the loss of his creator and to beg his forgiveness. The Monster told Walton the rest of his story, describing how he killed Henry and Elizabeth and chased Victor across the world. After explaining how he "still desired love and fellowship," only to meet the "injustice" of constant rejection, the Monster said he will leave the ship, travel to the most northern part of the world, and kill himself. The Monster then jumped overboard and vanished into the "darkness and distance," ending the novel.

Analysis To complete the story frame, Walton concludes the novel. The story of his expedition contrasts with Victor's catastrophic pursuit of knowledge. Walton agrees to turn the ship around to avoid it being crushed by ice. He chooses prudence rather than the destructive path of insatiable curiosity.

Victor endorses this approach in the narrative of the final chapter in his warning not to pursue knowledge too far. While he contradicts this position in the speech Walton recounts in the September 2 letter, when Victor urges the crew to persevere, this change might be seen more as reflecting Victor's agitated state of mind. His last words to Walton include this warning: "Seek happiness in tranquility and avoid ambition, even if it be only the apparently innocent one of distinguishing yourself in science and discoveries." This recalls the novel's themes of scientific idealism and curiosity: how using scientific learning for evil purposes leads to catastrophe.

Sharing with Walton the lessons he has learned about excessive ambition, Victor makes an allusion to Paradise Lost and the Bible, saying, "Like the archangel who aspired to omnipotence, I am chained in an eternal hell." Like the Monster, Victor has become Satan, cast out of heaven, doomed to everlasting torture. Of course, the image of Victor chained also brings to mind the Prometheus myth, reminding readers of the book's subtitle. With Victor's death, Walton has lost his friend, the friend he so greatly desired. The bond the two men form during the course of Victor's relation reinforces the theme of human companionship through the importance of friendship. Victor's death reinforces the theme of loss and the sorrow that results.

While Victor has become the Monster, the Monster becomes Victor—the compassionate human—when he begs for Victor's forgiveness. He also becomes ennobled when he tells Walton of his resolve to kill himself and end the terrible cycle of violence.

Throughout his long final speech, the Monster shows his eloquence again and again. He does so in confessing his guilt: "Your abhorrence cannot equal that with which I regard myself." He also does so in speaking of his early awakening to consciousness of the world, saying he saw life as precious when he first "felt the cheering warmth of summer, and heard the rustle of leaves."

The symbol of light and darkness makes its final appearance at the novel's close. In the opening letters, Walton expressed excitement at the prospect of exploring in the Arctic, where the sun shines around the clock for part of the year. At the book's close, the Monster drifts away on a chunk of ice into darkness. Frankenstein | Quotes 1. What may not be expected in a country of eternal light?

Robert Walton, Letter 1

Frankenstein begins with four letters written by Walton to his sister. He expresses his excitement at the prospect and possibilities of exploring the Arctic Circle, where the sun does not set for half the year. The light symbolizes the joy of gaining knowledge, the search for which drives both Walton and Victor (as well as the Monster). Each search has unexpected results: Walton, failing in his intended journey, learns the stories of Victor and the Monster; Victor succeeds in his experiment yet, in so doing, creates misery, terror, and death for many, including himself.

2. Learn from me, if not by my precepts, at least by my example, how dangerous is the acquirement of knowledge, and how much happier that man is who believes his native town to be the world, than he who aspires to become greater than his nature will allow.

Victor Frankenstein, Volume 1, Chapter 3

Victor warns Walton to not exceed the boundaries of human knowledge, to rein in his ambition, and to resist the drive for fame. He speaks based on his "example" of making the Monster, when he assumed the powers of God, those "greater than his nature," resulting in tragedy for all involved. There is dramatic irony in this warning about the dangers of pursuing knowledge being preceded by the directive "Learn from me." Some lessons are worth learning.

3. How can I describe my emotions at this catastrophe, or how delineate the wretch whom with such infinite pains and care I had endeavored to form?

Victor Frankenstein, Volume 1, Chapter 4

At the moment of giving life, Victor is repulsed by his creation, so much so that he can scarcely bear to look at him. After nearly two years of hard work and years of studying, Victor is appalled rather than delighted at what he has wrought, seeing something that was intended to be "beautiful" as repulsive. Victor's disgust moves him to reject the Monster; this sets the rest of the plot into motion, as the Monster seeks revenge for this and other rejections also based on his awful appearance.

4. My country! My beloved country! who but a native can tell the delight I took in again beholding thy streams, thy mountains, and, more than that, thy lovely lake!

Victor Frankenstein, Volume 1, Chapter 6

After William's murder, Victor seeks comfort in nature, where his soul becomes refreshed and his sorrows wash away. The belief in the power of nature was central to the romantic movement and to the theme of connection to nature that appears throughout the novel.

5. My abhorrence of this fiend cannot be conceived. Victor Frankenstein, Volume 2, Chapter 1

Frankenstein can be read as a revenge novel, with the Monster seeking revenge on Victor for rejecting him and Victor seeking revenge on the Monster for murdering his family members, friend, and servant. Victor's hatred of the Monster becomes all-consuming, and he dies in his quest for vengeance. It is also notable that Victor, in hating the Monster, also hates himself.

6.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. The Monster, Volume 2, Chapter 7

The Monster reveals his deep desire for human companionship and acceptance as he recounts his feelings after observing the De Laceys. The passage reflects the eloquence he often employs to express his thoughts and feelings, which belies his characterization as a monster.

7. 'Hateful day when I received life!' I exclaimed in agony. 'Cursed creator! Why did you form a monster so hideous that even you turned from me in disgust? God, in pity, made man beautiful and alluring, after his own image; but my form is a filthy type of yours, more horrid from its very resemblance.' The Monster, Volume 2, Chapter 7

The Monster recounts to Victor the self-loathing he felt after reading Victor's journal entries describing his creation. The speech not only reveals the Monster's wretched isolation and anguish but also Victor's error in creating the Monster and taking no responsibility for him. Unlike the humans created by God, whom the monster believes to be perfect, the creature formed by a human is a crude, malformed mockery.

8. My companion must be of the same species, and have the same defects. This being you must create. The Monster, Volume 2, Chapter 8

Finishing his narrative, the Monster demands that Victor create a mate for him to relieve his burning isolation and loneliness. This connects to the theme of human companionship. Victor is more comfortable being alone than the Monster is. The request also reinforces similarities to Paradise Lost and the biblical book of Genesis; like Adam, the Monster asks his creator for a mate.

9. I am malicious because I am miserable. Am I not shunned and hated by all mankind?

The Monster, Volume 2, Chapter 9

Tortured by loneliness, the Monster is trying to convince Victor to make him a mate. The Monster is terrifying, but, like all living beings, he requires companionship. He explains that his behavior is caused by his unhappiness through loneliness. If he can be happy, accepted by a companion, he will act morally. But, if Victor does not agree to the Monster's demand, the Monster vows to cause fear and commit acts of "inextinguishable hatred." 10. It is well. I go; but remember, I shall be with you on your wedding-night The Monster, Volume 3, Chapter 3

After Victor destroys the Monster's mate, the Monster delivers this threat. Victor—and perhaps the reader—assumes that this means the Monster will murder Victor on his wedding night. Victor marries Elizabeth even though he worries about the threat. Instead, the Monster intends to destroy Victor's happiness—and does, by killing his mate, Elizabeth, as Victor has killed the Monster's incomplete mate by destroying it. The importance of this quotation is underscored by Victor's frequent recounting of it.

11. 'Are you mad, my friend?' said he, 'or whither does your senseless curiosity lead you? Would you also create for yourself and the world a demoniacal enemy? Or to what do your questions tend? Peace, peace! learn my miseries, and do not seek to increase your own.'

Victor Frankenstein, Walton, in Continuation

Victor delivers the same warning to Walton that he had before beginning to tell his story: do not seek knowledge that goes beyond the limits of human power. The quotation reflects the themes of curiosity (use care in pursuing knowledge) and disillusionment (Victor has clearly become disillusioned by his experiences).

12.Oh, Frankenstein! generous and self-devoted being! What does it avail that I now ask thee to pardon me? The Monster, Walton, in Continuation

The Monster, mourning over Victor's corpse, asks forgiveness for destroying all that Victor had loved. The Monster's grief and desire for absolution show his remorse and humanity. They also contrast with Victor's feelings just before his death, in which he is devoted to the goal of revenge. The Monster has become more human, or at least more humane, than his human creator. The Monster's characterization of Victor as "generous" might seem generous on the Monster's part, given Victor's behavior toward the Monster, though "self-devoted" seems correct.

Frankenstein | Symbols

Light and Darkness Light is a positive symbol in Frankenstein, representing hope, knowledge or learning, and discovery. Walton introduces the symbol when he describes the North Pole as a place where "the sun is ever visible ... a region of beauty and delight." He asks his sister, "What may not be expected in the country of eternal light?" showing his optimism in science and exploration. When Victor realizes he can create life, he says, "Until from the midst of this darkness a sudden light broke in upon me—a light so brilliant and wondrous, yet so simple." As these examples show, light is associated with knowledge and discovery—positive things. As Victor's words about the flash of insight that led him to recognize how to create life show, darkness represents ignorance. Later in that conversation, Victor tells Walton that he hoped his discovery would "pour a torrent of light into our dark world." When Victor returns home to Geneva after his brother William's murder, it is during a dark, stormy night that he sees the Monster. That vision convinces him that the Monster is linked to the murder; his darkness (ignorance of the Monster's involvement) is dispelled by light (the flash of lightning that reveals the Monster). Darkness is also a symbol for evil. Elizabeth's letter to Victor recounting the news of William's death speaks of "the dark side of human nature." Finally, darkness symbolizes emptiness and despair, as shown by the descriptions of Victor's dark depressions. It is into darkness that the Monster disappears as the book closes.

Fire Fire is the dual-edged sword of light; it can sustain life by heating food, providing warmth, and ensuring protection from wild animals. But fire also causes pain, death, and destruction, as shown when the Monster uses fire to destroy the De Laceys' cottage. The Monster discovers the dual nature of fire when he says, "When night came again, I found, with pleasure, that fire gave light as well as heat; and that the discovery of this element was useful to me in my food." Overcome by pleasure at the warmth, the Monster says, "I thrust my hand into the live embers, but quickly drew it out again with a cry of pain." The Monster also intends to use the destructive power of fire to destroy himself, thereby eliminating any memory of him from the world. As with scientific knowledge, fire can both help and harm. The fire symbol also recalls the Prometheus myth, as he brought fire to humans.

Adam and Satan The Monster is both symbolized by Adam, the first man, and Satan. Victor creates him, and he is the first—and only—of his kind. Mary Shelley brings in allusions to Milton's epic poem Paradise Lost, the biblical story of the fall of humanity, from the beginning of the novel, and the Monster seems identified with Adam in the cited lines that serve as the novel's epigraph. The connection is carried out in several aspects of the book, including the Monster's explicit identification of himself with Adam when he recounts his history to Victor and says, "I ought to be thy Adam." In addition, like Adam, the Monster is curious about the world and desires a mate. In contrast, the Monster is also Satan, cast out of heaven. Like Satan, the cast-aside Monster lives in hell (what the world has become after he is rejected). He is also like Satan in being fallen; Victor hoped to make him beautiful and magnificent. Instead, he is hideous, a lesser version than the creator wished. The Monster's fallen state can also be seen—from Victor's perspective—in violent revenge. In this interpretation, Victor is allied with God, the creator. Victor makes the monster; he gives it life. But Victor rejects his creation, abandoning any responsibility for it. (God punishes his creation, Adam, for disobedience.) Here the Adam-Satan symbol takes a twist, for the Monster who murders is also capable of kindness and compassion. He feels the De Laceys' love and essential goodness; he saves the life of the drowning girl. Victor, however, shuns his creation. It could be argued that he casts the Monster out, as God cast Adam out of the garden, but Victor is actually the one who flees after creating the Monster. In a sense he, too, is Adam, ashamed and horrified at having partaken of the forbidden fruit of hoisting himself into the role of creator. The plaintive epigraph could be his words, as well as the Monster's, as he laments being brought into the world and allowed to do evil.

Frankenstein | Themes Curiosity Both Victor and Walton are driven by curiosity to explore new possibilities or new worlds. Even as a child, Victor saw the world "as a secret , which I desired to discover." Indeed, their curiosity carries them to obsession with these quests. In both cases obsession leads to danger. Victor's curiosity drives him to create a monster that generates many deaths. Walton's own curiosity drives his ship into the ice, where it can be crushed and destroyed, putting the entire crew in danger of death. However, he listens to the pleas of his men and agrees to withdraw. The Monster, too, is curious, initially hoping to learn more about humankind and then driven by intellectual curiosity to seek as much learning as he can glean from books. Victor's and the Monster's curiosity connects to the Adam and Satan symbol. Like Adam, both are curious for knowledge, and both suffer as a result. All three are, to some extent, self-educated, exemplifying that curiosity. Victor has read authors who studied books on alchemy, a pseudoscience of the Middle Ages whose practitioners sought to convert common minerals into gold and silver to cure diseases and to extend human life. Walton explains in one of the early letters that he is self-taught, and the Monster's insatiable curiosity leads him to read books he finds. The novel suggests, however, that self-education has limits and dangers. Victor laments that his father did not direct his learning more, suggesting it might have led him away from his errors. Walton finds his self-education lacking and wants a friend in part to learn more. The Monster accepts what he reads as truth, even believing Milton's epic poem Paradise Lost to be historical fact. That the self-educated Mary Shelley creates these three characters who show the limits of self-education suggests her own ambivalence about the lack of formal schooling and recalls her mother's arguments that women should be educated in the same way as men.

Scientific Idealism In the late 18th century, Galvani captivated Europe with his experiments on the effects of electricity on dissected animals. He proposed that the animals' bodies had "animal electricity," a position disputed by Alessandro Volta, who posited that the bodies were conducting electricity from one metal to another. Galvani's nephew, Giovanni Aldini, supported his uncle's position and carried out experiments applying electricity to the corpses of criminals. An eyewitness account described one result, conducted in London's Newgate Prison in 1803: "On the first application of the process to the face, the jaws of the deceased criminal began to quiver, and the adjoining muscles were horribly contorted, and one eye was actually opened. In the subsequent part of the process the right hand was raised and clenched, and the legs and thighs were set in motion."

Electricity was but one of the areas of scientific discovery in the late 1700s and early 1800s that seemed to promise great improvements in human life. In the introduction to the 1831 edition of Frankenstein, Mary Shelley referred to galvanism (named for Galvani) in connection with reanimating life, though, in the novel itself, Victor's process is not described. His youthful interest in finding the source of the "principle of life" shows his idealistic belief that such profundities can be uncovered. His success in animating the Monster, however, highlights Shelley's view that scientific experimentation, carried too far, can produce tragedy. Walton reflects the theme of scientific idealism as well. What could be more idealistic than the North Pole he imagines, as described in his first letter to his sister? He sees the area not as the "seat of frost and desolation" but as a "region of beauty and delight," where "snow and frost are banished." He also hopes to make a glorious discovery and thereby gain fame; scientific idealism is tied to ego. By the end of the novel, he has become chastened by Victor's account. Survival trumps scientific idealism, and he agrees to turn the ship around.

Disillusionment Victor is clearly disillusioned by his actions in making the Monster. What he thought would be a magnificent scientific breakthrough and a "new species [that] would bless [him] as its creator and source" becomes a hideous creature he variously calls "monster," "fiend," and "demon" and that murders, or at least indirectly causes the death of, nearly everyone Victor holds dear. The Monster is disillusioned as well. First, he is rejected by his creator. Then, watching the De Laceys, he becomes convinced of humans' fundamental virtue and moral superiority. But this belief in humanity's goodness and his hope for acceptance are crushed by the rejection he constantly receives. When Elizabeth hears of Justine Moritz's confession, she is disillusioned, as she was firm in her belief in Justine's innocence. When she hears Justine's explanation that the confession is a false one, her faith in the woman is restored. She is the only character whose disillusionment is resolved.

Loss With her own birth the cause of her mother's death, and with the writing of this novel carried out in the context of the death of her half-sister, Percy's first wife, and Mary and Percy's son, Mary Shelley had a keen sense of human loss and the suffering and grief it causes. That sense pervades the novel. Elizabeth loses her mother as a child, as Mary had, and also loses her adoptive mother, who dies of an illness Elizabeth survives (in a way, another parallel to Mary). The loss of Caroline Frankenstein also prompts the eventual marriage of Victor and Elizabeth (as Harriet Shelley's death opened the door for Mary's marriage to Percy.) Many losses lead to others. For instance, William's death is followed by the innocent Justine's execution. The deaths of his wife, son, eldest son's best friend, and adopted daughter drive Alphonse Frankenstein to death; so much loss could not be borne. Victor experiences the losses of virtually his entire family—only Ernest survives—as well as his best friend. Walton loses the possibility of having Victor as a friend at the end of the novel, though his loss pales in comparison to those of others. The Monster loses the attentions and affections of his creator, a father figure; he loses possible affection from the De Laceys; and he loses his chance at happiness with the destruction of the female monster. Loss is everywhere in Frankenstein. The guilt that wracks Victor and, eventually, the Monster results from their knowledge of their own role in causing that loss to others.

Connection to Nature Several characters in Frankenstein—Victor, Henry, Walton, and the Monster—are emotional, imaginative, and deeply moved by nature, characteristics of the romantic movement. In Chapter 17, for example, Victor describes how Henry "was a being formed in the 'very poetry of nature.' ... The scenery of external nature, which others regard only with admiration, he loved with ardor." Shelley follows these lines, which quote romantic essayist and poet Leigh Hunt, with a quotation from Wordsworth's "Lines Written a Few Miles above Tintern Abbey" (1798 ), a poem that embodies the romantic movement's sense of nature's power to affect the human soul. Shelley mentions Mont Blanc, the highest of the alpine mountains and an important symbol for romantics, as the focus of this connection to nature several times in the novel. She and Percy Shelley had taken a trip to Mont Blanc during their travels through Europe, and Percy wrote a poem presenting the peak as eternal and inspiring that was published in Mary's account of their journey. Coleridge had also written a poem praising the mountain.

Human Companionship Walton yearns for a friend, writing to his sister, "But I have one want which I have never been able to satisfy," the lack of which he sees as "a most severe evil." He is without a friend. The Monster also yearns for human companionship, attempting to befriend the De Lacey family, William, and Victor. The Monster convinces Victor to build him a mate to relieve his anguished loneliness. When Victor changes his mind and destroys the female monster, the Monster retaliates by killing those Victor loves, Henry and Elizabeth, making him feel the pain of bone-deep loneliness. The Monster is motivated to act as he does largely out of loneliness; he commits his most horrible acts only after he is denied human companionship. The parallels between the Monster and Walton in their yearning for companionship suggest that man and monster are more similar than either would recognize Walton does have a friend in his sister, though. She is someone he can confide in and even to whom he can relate the dark truths he has seen and heard. In this relationship he may be more fortunate than Victor, despite the scientist's closeness to his father, to Henry, and to Elizabeth during their lives. Walton is able to share the horrors he has experienced; Victor's anguish is caused in part by the fact that he harbors his actions of forming the Monster as a secret. Until meeting Walton—when he knows he is dying—Victor tells no one what he has done. Unable to unburden himself, Victor lacks companionship, too, even as he has family and friends.

Injustice Injustice is another theme of the novel. Victor's and other humans' rejection of the Monster is a clear example, but, over the course of the novel, the Monster shows he is not blameless—he is guilty of several murders and of successfully framing an innocent victim, Justine. His behavior might reflect the Godwinian view that social institutions are by nature unjust. The De Lacey family story reveals other examples of injustice, as the De Lacey father and sister are unjustly punished for the actions of Felix. The Monster's behavior also reflects the Godwinian view that injustice breeds crime, as Percy Shelley points out in his preface to the first edition and as the Monster himself says. In his last speech, delivered to Walton before he departs, he complains about having been spurned in his search for human companionship and adds, "Was there no injustice in this?" Of course, individual humans can be unjust as well. Victor compounds his scientific hubris with the error of injustice. He rejects the Monster rather than accepting responsibility for him, and this aspect of the novel reflects William Godwin's social views. Safie's father acts unjustly toward Felix, and the De Laceys and the boyfriend of the drowning girl all treat the Monster unjustly.

Frankenstein | The 1818 and 1831 Editions

There are two major editions of Frankenstein. The 1818 edition is the original text published by Mary Shelley. The 1831 version includes Shelley's account of how the book came to be written but also has several textual changes. The chief changes are these:  Chapter 1 is expanded and split into two chapters. For this reason, the numbering and final count of chapters can vary from one version of the book to another.  The story of Elizabeth Lavenza's origin changes. In the 1818 edition, she is the daughter of Alphonse Frankenstein's sister, making her Victor's cousin. While it was not unheard of for cousins to marry, some readers might have reacted negatively to that circumstance. In the 1831 edition, then, Shelley changed Elizabeth's situation, making her a poor orphan Alphonse and Caroline—chiefly at Caroline's direction—take into their home. This change also adds to the credit of Caroline because of her kindness toward the girl.  In describing the lightning strike that destroyed a tree and first alerted him to the power of electricity, Victor says in the 1831 edition that a scientist visiting the family discussed electricity and galvanism. Galvanism was thought at the time to have the power to animate animal muscle. The addition suggests that this might have been the secret power that Victor used to bring the Monster to life.  The 1831 edition has more comments critical of Victor's decisions and actions, as Shelley attempted to respond to the harsher conservative critics who had objected to her novel on moral grounds. Many readers have come to know the novel by reading modern editions based on the 1831 version. Scholars argue that the original from 1818 more closely reflects Mary's original vision.

This is a summary and analysis of the 1818 edition of Frankenstein.

Mary Shelley | Biography

Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin might have seemed destined to become a writer from her birth in London on August 30, 1797. Her father, William Godwin, was a noted philosopher and political writer who argued, in An Enquiry Concerning Political Justice(1792), that a central government was by its nature corrupt and tyrannical. Her mother, Mary Wollstonecraft, was an early feminist and novelist whose controversial book A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (1792) argued that women's lives—and society as a whole—would improve if women were given an education equal to that of men. Mary grew up surrounded by some of the most important writers of the time, including Samuel Taylor Coleridge and William Wordsworth. Mary had an unhappy family life. Her mother died less than two weeks after giving birth to her, and Mary detested the woman her father married four years later. Denied any formal schooling, Mary taught herself by reading widely in her father's library. She also wrote, noting in the 1831 edition of Frankenstein that in childhood her "favorite pastime, during the hours given me for recreation, was to 'write stories.'" When Mary was 15 years old, she met poet Percy Bysshe Shelley. He was handsome, charming, intellectually alive, and committed to political liberalism like her parents—and married. Nonetheless, she fell in love with him. In 1814, when she was nearly 17 and he 21, he abandoned his wife, and the couple fled to Europe. A year later Mary had her first child, who died a few days later. The couple settled in Switzerland, and in the summer of 1816 Mary began writing Frankenstein, which she published two years later. That work came in the midst of tragedy. Mary's half-sister Fanny committed suicide in 1816, and later in the year Shelley's wife, Harriet, devastated by her husband's affair with Mary, killed herself. In December Mary and Percy married. Frankenstein was published in 1818. The couple's life was not easy, as Percy, despite being from a wealthy family, was in conflict with his father. Though Frankenstein's first edition sold out, that was only 500 copies. Mary had published the novel anonymously, and because she was so young, relatively unknown, and married to Percy Shelley, people believed he had written the runaway hit. The fact that he had written the preface increased that conviction. Added to the couple's troubles were the deaths of three of their children and Percy's inability to remain faithful. Financial and emotional struggles continued. Then, in 1822, when Mary was only 24 years old, Percy drowned. Needing to support herself and her only surviving child, Mary wrote five more novels and a novella, but none were as successful as Frankenstein. She also wrote magazine stories, biographies, and travel books, and she collected and edited editions of Percy's poetry and prose. Several men wanted to marry her, but she remained devoted to her husband's memory. She carried Percy's heart—which a friend had grabbed out of his funeral pyre—in her pocketbook for the rest of her life. She died in London on February 1, 1851, at age 53. Frankenstein | Discussion Questions 1) How does the symbol of fire in Frankenstein relate to the novel's title?

The novel's full title is Frankenstein; Or, the Modern Prometheus. Prometheus, a Greek god, created humans and gave them fire, and for the latter, he was punished by Zeus, the king of the gods. Prometheus's punishment was agonizing: He was chained to a rock and tortured by having an eagle eat his liver every day. The liver grew back at night, and so the torture continued throughout eternity, as Prometheus was immortal. Victor Frankenstein, like Prometheus, gave a gift to humanity. His gift was the ability to give life to an unliving body, the Monster, and like Prometheus, Victor was punished for his gift by being wracked by guilt, suffering mental and physical deterioration, feeling the pain of the loss of several family members, and ultimately dying. There the similarities end, as Victor's gift of life to the Monster brings only evil, not good. Prometheus's gift of fire, in contrast, helped humans rather than harmed them. Further, Prometheus's punishment came from Zeus, while Victor's came from his own guilt.

2) What function does Robert Walton's frame story serve in Frankenstein?

Robert Walton's story provides a frame for Victor Frankenstein's story, makes that story believable, increases its pathos, and contributes to theme development. Walton's frame story puts the main plot of the novel in context. Victor's search for a scientific breakthrough can be seen is part of a larger quest for knowledge. In addition, because he is a witness to Victor and the Monster, Walton can observe their condition and reveal their fate. Importantly, Walton provides readers with both Victor's story and proof of its validity, lending the novel plausibility. The proof comes from Walton and his crew seeing the Monster before they meet Victor and from Walton seeing and hearing the Monster when the latter enters the cabin after Victor's death. In giving the Monster, rather than Victor Frankenstein, the last words in the novel—which is possible because Walton quotes him while relating the end of the frame narrative—Mary Shelley adds to the novel's sense of tragedy. As the Monster, himself wracked by guilt, says, his agony and suffering was worse than Victor's. Readers likely feel pity for the Monster, moved to commit brutal acts of revenge because he was rejected by his maker. Victor's pained account of his own actions provokes pity for himself and for the innocent victims (William, Justine, Henry, Elizabeth, and Alphonse). Finally, the Walton frame story contributes to some themes of the novel. Walton, like Victor, has curiosity and scientific idealism. He hopes to make some important discovery in the Arctic that will contribute to humankind. He thus serves as a useful audience for Victor's cautions against arrogantly reaching too high for glory. In deciding to turn the ship around and avoid being trapped in the ice, complying with the crew's request, Walton agrees to curtail his curiosity for the greater good, something Victor had not done. Walton's story also contributes to the human companionship theme, as he is as desirous of companionship as the Monster and looks eagerly upon Victor as a potential friend. Last, his story also adds to the loss theme, as he loses that chance at friendship when Victor dies.

3) How does Robert Walton's attitude toward the North Pole in Frankenstein show the influence of the romantic movement?

The North Pole is a brutal, treacherous place, as Walton discovers when his ship is trapped in the ice, the force of which can crush a ship to bits, which he describes in his fourth letter. However, Walton is a romantic, feeling a deep connection to nature and seeing it as capable of elevating human souls and imaginations. Therefore, early in his voyage, before he experiences the region's brutality firsthand, he does not regard the Arctic region as hostile. Rather, he sees the region in his first letter as filled with "beauty and delight." He believes that at the North Pole, "snow and frost are vanished" and the ocean is calm. The land itself exceeds "in wonders and in beauty every region hitherto discovered on the habitable globe." Walton shows the romantic attitude toward nature, finding the sublime, or awe-inspiring power of nature, in an extreme environment.

4) In Frankenstein, why does Robert Walton want to go to the North Pole, a brutal, hostile environment?

Like Victor Frankenstein, Robert Walton is very ambitious and curious. He wants to be the first to travel to the North Pole so he can make exciting new discoveries about magnetism and navigating by the stars. He especially wants to find a passage near the Pole to other countries, hoping that by doing so he can reduce the time it takes to travel to the Americas or perhaps to Asia (he does not specify which places but only refers to "countries" that require many months of travel to reach). He hopes to explore lands others have never seen. As the first person to step foot on a part of the world never before visited and make these discoveries, Walton would become famous—and he very much wants to become famous.

5) How does Walton's view of light in Frankenstein embody romantic beliefs?

Walton's optimism about human potential to help people is typical of the romantics, who believed in the power of the imagination, individualism, and emotion to overcome adversity. The symbol of light in the novel represents hope, knowledge or learning, and discovery. Walton views his voyage of discovery with high hopes, optimistic about the great things than can be learned in the land of constant sunlight. He is especially interested in scientific knowledge; this interest is parallel to what motivates Victor Frankenstein. Walton wants to plumb the aspects of nature that have baffled scientists, such as "the wondrous power which attracts the needle" (magnetism), and to learn more about the stars. Of course, what Walton discovers is the tragic outcome of excessive ambition, quite the opposite of what he had expected. In an example of situational irony, in which what is expected to occur does not and what does take place is unexpected, Walton ends up learning far more about the mysteries of the human heart and soul on his journey than he does of these physical mysteries.

6) In Frankenstein, how are Robert Walton and the Monster similar?

Both Robert Walton and the Monster desire human companionship and, even more, true friendship. Walton writes to his sister in the beginning of Frankenstein that his life is empty because he has no one to help him celebrate his success and no one to console him in defeat, to "approve or amend my plans." Walton is delighted when he and Victor become friends, but their time together is very short- lived, as Victor dies soon after they meet and find that they do indeed have common interests. The Monster's entire life can be seen as a quest for companionship, friendship, and love. Rejected by his maker, his "father," the Monster tries over and over to be accepted by others, but to no avail. He and Walton are alike, as well, in the futility of their hopes to find that desired friend in Victor. Walton loses that opportunity when Victor dies; the Monster loses it because of Victor's horrified rejection of him and again by extension when Victor does not give him a companion monster. 7) In Frankenstein, how can Victor and the Monster be considered two halves of the same being?

Victor and the Monster are opposites in many ways and thus can be seen as two halves of the same being. Victor Frankenstein is scientific and relies on facts. As a youth, he reads the works of Cornelius Agrippa, Paracelsus, and Albertus Magnus, who were alchemists. Later, he reads more reliable scientific books, especially those on chemistry. The Monster represents the other side of the brain, imaginative and interested in literature. He reads Paradise Lost, Plutarch's Lives, and The Sorrows of Werter, major classical texts or key books of the romantic movement. These books teach him about emotion, specifically "sorrow and gloom" from Werter. Victor is scientific and literal; the Monster is literary and imaginative. Victor sees the world in black and white. For example, he regards the Monster as thoroughly evil, not acknowledging that the Monster has been driven to maliciousness by his own (Victor's) rejection. Only when he sees the Monster years after that event does he feel "the duties of a creator towards his creation." The Monster, in contrast, is creative and flexible, using language to explain the evolution of his thoughts and feelings, to explain the consequences of his ill treatment, and to persuade Victor to build him a mate. Finally, Victor prefers being alone, while the Monster shuns isolation and craves companionship.

8) How is the Monster in Frankenstein heroic?

The Monster's initial impulse is to help humanity. This is evident, for example, in his desire to help the De Laceys and when he saves the drowning young girl. In the latter case, without a moment's hesitation, the Monster rushes from his hiding place and, "with extreme labor from the force of the current, saved her, and dragged her to shore." Heroes risk their lives to save others, which is what the Monster does in this situation. The girl is unconscious, but he saves her. For his effort, he is shot and badly wounded. There is situational irony—in which the opposite of what one expects takes place—in the fact that the "monster" or "fiend" has generous, humane impulses, attitudes that humans are unwilling to show him. Of course, the Monster's heroism is undercut by his relentless pursuit of revenge and the brutal murders he commits.

9) How is Victor Frankenstein both pathetic and pitiable?

First, Victor is isolated and lonely on purpose, not because he is shunned, as is the case with the Monster. Victor deliberately cuts himself off from regular human contact for long periods, such as the nearly two years that he spends in his laboratory working on creating and animating the Monster. He deprives himself of rest and health, only to hate that which he has created. Victor is also pathetic—evoking the reader's sympathy—in sacrificing so much and regretting the result so deeply. Second, Victor shuns his creation and wishes him dead. It is pitiable and pathetic when a parent rejects a child, which is what Victor does when he shuns the Monster. Of course, it is also repelling when parents do that. Victor's being tortured by guilt also excites the reader's pity. When he and Elizabeth are discussing Justine Moritz's death, Victor thinks to himself, "I, not in deed, but in effect, was the true murderer." His remorse causes him "the extremest agony." Victor's guilt causes him great suffering, and readers may pity his wretchedness.

10) Why might people think that the title Frankenstein refers to the Monster, not its creator? It seems logical that the famous Monster would have a name and that this name would be the title of the book, but Victor Frankenstein never names the Monster. Indeed, the fact that the Monster doesn't have a name might contribute to this confusion. Assuming that "Frankenstein" is the name of the Monster and not its creator has a certain symbolic truth, however, as Victor and the Monster can be interpreted as doubles of each other, two parts of the divided self. Such doubles, called doppelgängers in German, are especially common in horror tales, and Frankenstein is a gothic horror story. Doppelgängers are often evil or ominous, and Victor and the Monster certainly have evil effects on each other. It could also be argued that in never naming the Monster, Victor effectively gives it his own name—it is his creation, no one else's, and thus he owns it, in the sense of having responsibility for it.

11) What does the behavior of the women in Frankenstein suggest about the time when the novel was written?

The female characters in Frankenstein, published in 1818, include Caroline Frankenstein, Elizabeth Lavenza, Justine Moritz, Agatha De Lacey, and Safie. All are passive and dependent on men. Caroline is submissive, first dependent on her father. When he dies, she is transferred to Alphonse as one would hand over a package. Elizabeth is docile and quiet. She agrees with her mother's long- expressed and dying wish to marry Victor and then waits for years for Victor to arrange the wedding. When it appears that he has no intention of setting the date, she timidly asks him, through a letter, if he loves someone else and, if so, frees him to marry that woman. Justine goes to her death for a crime she did not commit after making a false confession because of the pressure exerted on her by her confessor, a man. While she says that she hoped by confessing to save her soul, the fact is that she is giving in to a male authority figure. Both Agatha and Safie rely on Felix to handle difficulties. When they first see the Monster, Agatha faints, and Safie runs out of the cottage. These are hardly the responses of strong, independent women. The women's passivity and dependence on men suggests that this was the norm for women in the early 19th century, when Frankenstein was written. Women were generally not expected to be assertive and ambitious as men were, but rather to stay in the background as they tended to the children and household.

12) Based on Mary Shelley's life, what is strange about her portrayal of women in Frankenstein?

Mary Shelley lived an independent life, supporting herself and her sole surviving child after the early death of her husband. She was only 24 years old when her husband drowned. She made a career for herself as a writer in her own right, in addition to as an editor of her husband's poetry. In addition, Mary's mother, Mary Wollstonecraft, was a famous feminist, known for her passionate campaigning for women's rights and education. Wollstonecraft's efforts reached their culmination in her 1792 book A Vindication of the Rights of Woman. When she wrote the book, women were considered naturally inferior to men. Wollstonecraft, in contrast, contended that women seemed inferior to men because they had not been educated well. She suggested that women and men should be treated as equals in morality and be given an equal education, a radical idea at the time. She even argued that better education of women would contribute to an improved society. In light of these views, it is strange that the women in Frankenstein—Caroline Frankenstein, Elizabeth Lavenza, Justine Moritz, Agatha De Lacey, and Safie—are all passive. They tend to be acted on rather than act, though Safie is something of an exception since she takes the step of leaving her father to join Felix. Even in her case, though, she is initially offered by her father as a debt payment to Felix, and her happiness depends on joining with Felix rather than pursuing a career. Indeed, three of these characters die, two of them indirectly or directly due to men. Mary Shelley also shows Elizabeth being educated along with Victor, apparently upholding her mother's ideas, but Victor's progress eclipses hers.

13) Why is Frankenstein considered a gothic novel?

Gothic novels are distinguished by eerie settings; fearful, ominous moods; suspenseful plots; and grotesque characters such as ghosts, undead creatures, and monsters. Frankenstein has all these qualities. The settings of the novel include craggy mountains, at once majestic and terrible; the lonely, spare Orkney Islands; and the stark, brutal Arctic. The plot is punctuated by fierce, terrifying storms, such as the weather on the night Victor and Elizabeth marry. The Monster, of course, is hideous, as an effective gothic monster must be, assembled from bones salvaged from graves and crypts, mixed and matched to repugnant effect. Assembled, the Monster "became a thing such as even Dante could not have conceived." This is an allusion to Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy, which in part describes the narrator's journey through hell. Shelley also includes multiple references to Samuel Taylor Coleridge's poem "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner." One of these, a six-line quote from the poem, contains references to walking "in fear and dread" and "a frightful fiend," both of which serve to reinforce the terrifying mood characteristic of gothic novels. The line "Like one who, on a lonely road" invokes the theme of the need for human companionship, a theme also common in gothic novels.

14) How is Frankenstein a science fiction novel?

Some critics claim Frankenstein is the first example of science fiction, a type of writing that deals with futuristic science, technology, and the potential results of scientific experimentation. Science fiction differs from fantasy because it includes events that appear to be scientifically plausible. Victor's creation of the monster is the primary connection of the novel to science fiction because Victor uses science unknown in his time (and today as well), though allegedly based on existing knowledge to give a sense of plausibility, to create a monster out of dead body parts and bring it to life. While Shelley does not describe the exact process by which Victor achieves this miraculous result, such lack of explanation is not unusual in science fiction. Another aspect of the book that might be seen as giving it the quality of science fiction is the enhanced abilities of the scientifically made Monster. In a sense, the Monster exemplifies the scientific quest for improving humankind. The Monster teaches himself to speak and to read and soon develops great facility with language, speaking with great precision and eloquence. He shows deep emotions, too, as when he weeps over Victor's body in Robert Walton's cabin. The Monster also has great endurance, able to survive in the hostile climate of the North Pole. He has physical abilities beyond those of humans, as in his speed and strength, shown as he races across the ice floes of the Arctic. The Monster even appears to have the ability to anticipate Victor's every move; he tracks Victor around the globe and shows up at Victor's window on the isolated Orkney Islands just as Victor is ready to animate the Monster's mate. Clearly, creating a Monster like the one described in Frankenstein, much less one with these capabilities, is beyond the limits of known science. This makes Frankenstein an example of science fiction.

15) In what ways is Frankenstein typical of the romantic movement?

Writers of the romantic movement were concerned with emotion, imagination, compassion for people, individualism, nature, and rebellion against society. Romantic writers often described country people rather than city folk and distant places. Both Victor and the Monster are extremely emotional. Victor is imaginative in his ability to think of an impressive scientific breakthrough and shows the individualism of the scientist consumed—obsessed, some might say—by the pursuit of discovery. The Monster is by definition an individual, as he is the only member of his kind, but he is also an individual in his deeply thought and felt existence. Though Victor is not very compassionate, the Monster shows great compassion for common folk, such as the De Lacey family (fallen from the upper class into poverty), whom he helps by cutting wood and leaving it by their door as needed. Victor, Henry, and the Monster also feel a deep connection to nature, an aspect of the romantic movement. Both the Monster and Victor rebel against society, the Monster by killing members of Victor's family and Victor by refusing to be bound by the limits of conventional scientific thought. Romantic heroes often failed to fit into society, and the Monster can be considered a romantic hero because he is rejected from society, chased, shot, and beaten.

16) How are both Victor Frankenstein and the Monster like Satan?

Both Satan and Victor aspire to be God. The angel Lucifer attempts to overthrow God and rule in heaven. For his excessive pride and ambition, he is cast out of heaven into hell and becomes Satan. Similarly, Victor seeks to seize God's power by creating human life, a power held only by God. Creating the Monster and animating it are examples of Victor's excessive pride and intellectual arrogance. As Victor says in the first of the final letters that conclude the novel, "I trod heaven in my thoughts, now exulting in my powers, now burning with the idea of their effects." As Lucifer, Victor "trod heaven"; as Satan, he is "now burning" as a result of his actions. Further, both Satan and Victor are evil, as they create chaos and death. Satan rules in hell, where souls are doomed to eternal damnation. Victor develops the Monster, who leaves a path of murder in his wake, and refuses to confess what he has done in order the save Justine. The Monster is like Satan in taking evil actions, including several murders, not to mention his stealing. He is also like Satan in rebelling against his creator. As Satan challenged the authority of God, and thus fell from heaven, the Monster fights, stalks, issues orders to, and threatens his creator, hardly the actions of an obedient creation.

17) Which of the two central characters in Frankenstein is more monstrous, Victor or the Monster?

Both Victor and the Monster perform monstrous acts in Frankenstein. In determining which character is more monstrous, it is necessary to judge between the number of evil actions and the enormity of them. Victor commits three evil actions. First is taking the role of God and giving life to the Monster. His second evil is his rejection of the Monster. By disavowing responsibility for his creation, he demonstrates how pitifully short of God's power a human can be. His third is to withhold the truth about what he has done, which results in several deaths. The Monster is responsible directly for the deaths of William Frankenstein, Henry Clerval, and Elizabeth and indirectly for the deaths of Justine and Alphonse Frankenstein. He could also be considered indirectly responsible for the death of Victor. Of course, Victor can be seen as indirectly responsible for all of those deaths, especially after William's murder, when he should have realized that the Monster would not stop. Victor's initial act seems the most horrific, as it reflects an arrogance and willfulness that links him to Satan, who also tried to usurp divine power. The Monster can be seen as having been driven to his crimes by rejection. While that does not excuse him completely, the explanation does mitigate the evil somewhat. Victor's first crime and subsequent hiding of the truth make him more culpable of more fundamental evil because he should have known better and thus make him more monstrous.

18) How is Robert Walton a foil for Victor Frankenstein?

A foil is a minor character whose characteristics and actions contrast to those of a main character, serving to highlight some aspect of the main character's personality. In so doing, the foil helps the author convey the theme. In Frankenstein, Walton's ambition is contrasted with Victor's. In the beginning of the novel, Walton explains that he has spent six years preparing for his Arctic exploration. However, when his crew urges him to turn back because the trip is too treacherous, Walton finally agrees. He is more careful and reasonable than Victor. Victor, in contrast, never gives up his goals, including first creating the Monster and then pursuing him to the roof of the world in an ultimately vain attempt to destroy him. Second, both Walton and Victor are explorers who yearn to exceed human boundaries: Victor explores the boundary between life and death by creating life; Walton aims to be the first to discover a passage through the Arctic. Both are interested in magnetism. Victor does not know when to turn back, to stop experimenting, or to stop chasing the Monster and so destroys himself and others. Walton does know when to turn back and so saves himself and his crew.

19) What function does Henry Clerval fulfill in Frankenstein?

Henry moves the action of the plot along, nursing Victor after the latter breaks down following making the Monster; traveling with him; and through his murder, foreshadowing the novel's climax. Second, Henry serves as a foil to Victor, since he is a lesser character who serves to illuminate a main character's traits. Henry is a foil for Victor because Henry's personality and actions are the opposite of Victor's. For example, Henry is easygoing, extroverted, and loyal. Victor, in contrast, is high-strung and driven, introspective, and disloyal, as he rejects his "son," the Monster. Henry studies literary subjects; before joining Henry in this language study, Victor studies science, focusing on chemistry and natural philosophy. Victor could perhaps have benefited from the more humanist studies of Henry, tempering his curiosity and drive for scientific discovery with greater understanding of the human psyche and morality.

20) When does the climax of Frankenstein occur?

The climax of Frankenstein occurs in Chapter 22 (Volume 3, Chapter 6), when the Monster kills Elizabeth, strangling her to death on her wedding night. This is the climax of the novel because this is the point of highest interest; everything in the novel builds to this point. By killing Elizabeth, the Monster succeeds in destroying everyone in Victor's family unit—his brother, the family servant, his friend Henry, and his wife, which results in indirectly destroying his father. Now Victor truly knows how the Monster feels, doomed to social isolation and loneliness. It is especially fitting that the Monster kill Elizabeth, Victor's bride, because Victor brutally tore the promised female monster apart, depriving the Monster of his potential lifelong companion. 21) In Chapter 22 of Frankenstein, Victor tells his father that William, Justine, and Henry all died by his "hands." What is the symbolism of Victor's hands?

Victor feels that he is actually responsible for the death of his brother William, the family's servant Justine Moritz, and his best friend Henry Clerval because he created the Monster that committed the actual murders. By highlighting Victor's "hands," author Mary Shelley's word choice emphasizes that Victor's hands made the Monster and chose the hands that became part of the Monster (another instance of doubling). As a result, Victor's claim that his hands committed the murders certainly has symbolic truth. The imagery of hands is especially effective because William (as Henry and Elizabeth later) dies by strangulation—murder through direct application of hands, with no intermediary weapon, shown through "the black mark of fingers."

22) In Frankenstein, why does the Monster destroy Victor's friends and family rather than his belongings or Victor himself?

By destroying the people whom Victor loves, the Monster forces Victor to realize the importance of that which the Monster can never have and craves most of all: human companionship. In addition, he kills Elizabeth as an act of fitting revenge for Victor's destruction of his mate. Victor has few close relationships because he is solitary by nature. He goes long periods without answering his father's letters, and there is no indication that he communicates with his two younger brothers after going to university or that he shares grief over William's death with his brother Ernest. Even his contact with his fiancée, Elizabeth, is very limited. Outside of the family, Victor has only one close friend, Henry Clerval, but the murders of Victor's family and this friend makes Victor as isolated as the Monster is. At that point, Victor becomes like the Monster, cut off from society, single-mindedly bent on revenge.

23) How does Mary Shelley benefit as a storyteller by not describing the actual creation of the monster in Frankenstein? Because Mary Shelley does not present details about the creation of the Monster, she can focus instead on the story that really matters, reinforce characterization, and avoid criticism. The first benefit of this choice is that it allows Shelley to focus her attention on the aftermath of the act. The "how" does not matter to her as much as the answers to the question, "What next?" She is intent on exploring the psychology and morality of the relationship of creator and rejected creation. By moving quickly past any questions of how that creation occurred, she gets to the heart of the matter. Second, she reinforces her characterization of Victor with this lack of detail. He is the one relating the act of creation. He tells Walton several times in his account that he now views the act as a mistake and says he wants no one to gain knowledge of how he did it. For him to relate the details to Walton would contradict this position and would put the credibility of his other statements into question. Finally, making up details to describe the actual creation of the monster would leave Mary Shelley open to criticism from scientists that she had gotten her facts wrong, misinterpreted key details, or created something illogical. None of these criticisms would be valid, of course, because Mary Shelley was writing fiction, not fact, but by leaving the details out she avoids critical focus on issues that are not really of central concern to her.

24) How could Victor Frankenstein be considered a failed scientist? Victor Frankenstein succeeded in creating and animating the Monster, an astonishing feat. The Monster is hideous but highly intelligent, teaching himself how to speak and read. The Monster also has great endurance and speed far above normal. He is ugly, it is true, but surely future versions of the Monster could be made more attractive. Nonetheless, Victor Frankenstein would be considered a failure as a scientist since in his work on the Monster he contributed nothing major to science, no lasting achievement that other scientists can build on. More importantly, his act is presented as a usurpation of divine power. He failed as a scientist because he failed to recognize and adhere to the limits of human action or to accept the moral responsibility for his actions.

25) How does Mary Shelley present the powers and dangers of science in Frankenstein?

Victor's ability to create and animate the Monster shows that Mary Shelley believed science was extremely powerful. Science has the potential to be beneficial if used in the right hands, the right way. In addition, Victor's and Robert Walton's stories show that science can be helpful if used prudently but dangerous if not. Walton takes his crew as far as they can go but turns back when it becomes apparent that they may not survive in the ice floes and bitter cold. His pursuit of scientific discovery is at the last tempered by judgment and caution. Victor Frankenstein, in contrast, goes too far. The fact that the Monster runs amok, killing William, Henry, and Elizabeth, suggests that science is dangerous if not regulated. In the wrong hands, such as Victor's, science causes more harm than good.

26) In Frankenstein, what does Victor's destruction of the Monster's mate suggest about himself?

Victor's destruction of the female monster suggests he does not recognize the importance of human companionship, although it also shows his acceptance of limits to the pursuit of science. The Monster's request for a mate is perfectly reasonable: He simply wants someone to share a life with, someone with whom he can communicate and who can relieve his intense and painful isolation. He wants acceptance, which Victor and society as a whole refuse to provide him. In destroying the mate, Victor does not recognize or acknowledge the importance of friendship, love, or simple companionship. Victor has only one friend, Henry Clerval, but most of the time he is happier being alone than being with anyone else except perhaps Henry. Victor is in no hurry to marry Elizabeth; he agrees to do so largely to please his father (and he thinks the Monster will kill him after the marriage). Victor's inability to grasp that he owes the Monster companionship, that it is the least he can do for the creation he has rejected, shows his inability to see any value in social contact or communication. In destroying the mate, Victor also shows that he has accepted that some limits must be placed on the pursuit of science. While nothing could stop his unbridled ambition early in the novel, once he has created the Monster, he recognizes that he has gone too far. The possibility that the Monster and the female might mate and have unnatural, destructive offspring frightens him into his act of destruction. He sees that such an event would be going too far. He also tries to undo his original error by seeking to kill the Monster, though that seems more out of revenge than as a corrective action.

27) What role does Milton's Paradise Lost play in Frankenstein?

Mary Shelley frequently alludes to Paradise Lost to give Frankenstein much of its emotional power and depth. Further, this comparison increases the tragedy of her story and its larger-than-life stature. Along with the book's epigraph, one of the most important allusions to Paradise Lost occurs when the Monster tells Victor, "I ought to be thy Adam; but I am rather the fallen angel." The Monster is the first of his kind, the only of his kind, like Adam when God created him. As a result, the Monster feels that Victor should celebrate him as a wondrous creation. Instead, Victor rejects the Monster as hideous and repulsive, and so the Monster becomes like Satan, the "fallen angel." The Monster becomes evil and murders people, acting out of pain and sorrow, because Victor has rejected him. By linking the story of Frankenstein and the Monster to Milton's retelling of the fall of mankind, Mary Shelley gives her story epic stature.

28) Why is the murder of Elizabeth rather than the creation of the Monster the climax of Frankenstein?

The climax of a plot is the point of greatest interest, the culmination of the action. While Victor's creation of the Monster is indeed an act of great importance and interest, it is the beginning of the story Mary Shelley wants to tell. She wants to explore the significance of that act. To do so, she must make an in-depth exploration of the implications of the act for both creator and created. Mary Shelley builds suspense and foreshadows the climax in Frankensteinthrough the murder of William, the execution of Justine, and then the murder of Henry. These deaths, and Victor's destruction of the Monster's mate, lead up to the worst murder of all, that of Victor's beloved, Elizabeth. The murder is even more dramatic because it occurs on Victor and Elizabeth's wedding night. The climax gains readers' interest because it provides a twist, as Victor had expected to be the one the Monster was hunting and intending to kill based on the Monster's threat, "I shall be with you on your wedding- night." The Monster shocks Victor by strangling Elizabeth rather than attempting to kill him. After Elizabeth's murder, Victor vows to spend the rest of his life finding and destroying the Monster. This leads to the novel's resolution, as Victor dies while hunting the Monster and the Monster appears aboard Robert Walton's ship to mourn his maker. 29) How does the point of view shift in Frankenstein, and what effect do these shifts have on the novel?

The shifts in point of view in Frankenstein allow Mary Shelley to differentiate her characters and probe their feelings as well as tell a gripping story. Frankenstein is first told from Robert Walton's point of view. The narration then shifts to Victor Frankenstein's point of view and then to the Monster's before returning to Victor's and finally to Walton's. A few other voices are also heard, in the letters written by Alphonse Frankenstein and Elizabeth Lavenza. The layered shifts in point of view give readers a fuller picture of the characters, especially their motivations and feelings. These different narrators provide additional information, too, adding details that only specific characters would know because they were participants in the events. Since the romantics were deeply concerned with individualism and emotions, the practice of using various narrators also reinforces the novel's position within that literary movement. The inclusion of Walton's voice also provides proof of the veracity, or truth, of the fantastic story.

30) How do the letters in Frankenstein relate to the theme of human companionship?

The characters who write letters, such as Robert Walton, Alphonse Frankenstein, and Elizabeth Lavenza, do so to keep in touch with people they love. Their letters transmit information but also forge social bonds and relieve loneliness and isolation. For example, Walton writes his first letters to his sister Margaret to reassure her that he is doing well, to help him to ease his loneliness, and to comfort himself that someone truly cares for him. Alphonse's letters to his son Victor cheer Victor up greatly and even serve to lessen his repeated bouts of depression. Elizabeth's letters to Victor reflect her sense of isolation from him and worry about him. Elizabeth's and Alphonse's letters also provide information, such as background about Justine and the news of William's death. Finally, the letters move the plot along, as when Alphonse calls Victor home and Elizabeth asks if Victor "love[s] another."

31) How do rainy days feature in both Mary Shelley's creation of Frankenstein and Victor's creation of the monster?

Both Mary Shelley's creation of Frankenstein and Victor's creation of the monster started with the need to find something to do to pass the time during a rainy day. Mary Shelley and her friends found a book of ghost stories to pass the time during a rainy summer day. That led to the idea of writing horror stories, which led her to dream the idea of writing Frankenstein. Similarly, Victor Frankenstein is on a vacation with his family when the weather prevents them from going outside, so Victor looks for something to read. He chooses the works of Cornelius Agrippa and soon finds himself engrossed in the book, which causes him "boundless joy," and he continues to read it with "the greatest avidity." The book, concerned with alchemy, gives Victor the idea of "penetrating the secrets of nature," the overarching goal that eventually led him to create the Monster.

32) In Frankenstein, what can readers conclude about Victor's hesitation just before he creates the Monster?

After he solves the mystery of creating life, Victor Frankenstein calls it an "astonishing" power and says he "hesitated a long time concerning the manner in which I should employ it." Readers might conclude that he hesitates on some level because he grasps that the power this knowledge brings poses dangers. In this view, waiting reveals that Victor has a sense of what exceeding the boundaries of human knowledge will bring. Based on his account to Walton, however, Victor's hesitation seems to be based solely on practical concerns and the difficulty of "prepar[ing] a frame" for "animation." He thinks through the problem of getting from the principle of animating dead flesh to life toward actually achieving that goal. He considers first whether he should attempt it with simpler organisms than humans but is confident and, after deciding that creating a living human is his dream, steels himself for a long process of discovery and many reverses. In his hesitation, then, Victor shows himself to be a methodical scientist and not someone with a growing morality.

33) In Frankenstein, how do references to "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" illuminate Victor's plight?

Victor Frankenstein acts similarly to the old sailor in the Samuel Taylor Coleridge poem "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner," and that poem illuminates why Victor relates his story to Robert Walton (who also references the poem in his second letter). Coleridge's poem describes the plight of a sailor who kills an albatross, a large sea bird that sailors believed brought good luck. The sailor kills the bird for no reason at all; it is not intended to be food, nor is it bothering the sailors in any way. After the sailor kills the bird, the wind dies, and the ship is stranded in the ocean. Everyone but the sailor who killed the bird dies. As penance for his crime, the sailor travels around the world and shares the tale of his crime and his shame. In exceeding the bounds of human endeavor by making the Monster and in showing a lack of personal responsibility in rejecting it, Victor has brought tragedy to the world, just as the sailor caused tragedy. As a warning, Victor tells his story to Robert Walton. In so doing, Victor reveals that he has learned from his quest for scientific knowledge, assumption of God-like powers, and excessive pride.

34) Why is the Monster so attracted to the De Lacey family in Frankenstein?

The De Laceys appear to have that which the Monster lacks and most desires: love, companionship, and tenderness. Agatha and Felix treat their blind father with affection and respect, and their father treats them the same way. Felix is deeply in love with Safie, a beautiful young Turkish woman, and she blends seamlessly into the family, even though she does not speak French at the beginning of her stay in the cottage. Her study of French enables the Monster to learn it in secret. The De Lacey family is poor and disgraced, but that does not matter to the Monster, for he is used to scant food, bitter cold, and rejection, and at any rate, he feels the connection to them before he realizes these facts about them. The family's happiness appears golden to him, and he wishes only to be a part of it.

35) How is Frankenstein similar to Robert Louis Stevenson's novella Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde?

Both Frankenstein and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde have a doppelgänger, a double. According to the ancient German belief, every living being has a double. In Frankenstein, Victor and the Monster can be considered doppelgängers because they can be seen as two halves of the same being. In Robert Louis Stevenson's Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Dr. Jekyll is a divided man who wants to isolate that which is evil. In developing the potion that allows him to shed his evil side, however, he releases the terrifying Mr. Hyde. In both texts, the experiments go tragically awry: Victor cannot control the Monster he has created, and Jekyll loses control of the appearances of Hyde. Further, both Frankenstein and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde are gothic novels, involving elements of horror, mystery, and fearful moods. They both feature a monster and concern a scientific experiment gone wrong.

36) Why is the Monster so angry at being shot after he saves the drowning girl in Frankenstein?

The Monster has just rescued the drowning girl, a selfless and heroic act. Instead of thanking him, however, the girl's companion shoots the Monster, causing a serious wound and great pain. While he had been disillusioned by his rejection by both Victor and the De Laceys, he is shocked to be so punished for what was a generous and humane act. To be rewarded for saving a life with being shot—threatening his own life—seems to the Monster the height of injustice, a conclusion most readers are likely to agree with. It is not surprising that he would be extremely angry, though his response, murdering William, costs him much or all of the sympathy he had gained. 37) In Frankenstein, why does the Monster kill Victor's brother William?

The Monster kills William Frankenstein in a reaction to another instance of disillusionment and in an almost visceral need for revenge against Victor. A few weeks after rescuing the drowning girl and getting shot for his efforts, the Monster comes upon William, running toward him in a clearing in the woods. The Monster has no initial intention at all of harming William (even though he still wants revenge on Victor). Rather, the Monster thinks that he can befriend the child and so relieve his intense loneliness. However, William is repulsed by the Monster and shoves him away, calling him vile names. Thus, the Monster suffers yet another disillusioning rejection of his fundamental nature. It is not until William reveals his identity as a Frankenstein that the Monster decides to kill him, saying, "Frankenstein! You belong then to my enemy—to him towards whom I have sworn eternal revenge." The Monster decides to kill William, then, to enact revenge on Victor Frankenstein. His murder of William also serves as a symbolic acknowledgment of the power of language. He kills the boy by strangulation, he says, "to silence him."

38) In Frankenstein, why does Victor destroy the female monster before finishing it?

While working on the female monster on an isolated island in the Orkneys, Victor sees the Monster spying on him from the window. As the Monster said he would, he has been following him all through his travels with Henry Clerval to make sure that Victor keeps his promise to create the female monster. Victor thinks the Monster has a look of "malice and treachery," and "trembling with passion," Victor rips the female to shreds. Victor destroys the female monster out of anger, "a sensation of madness [about his] promise" and "passion." Given that the Monster has not harmed anyone during the time he has followed Victor, destroying the female is, ironically, an act of "malice and treachery" and a broken promise on Victor's part. Victor has also just been worrying about the implications of making the female monster, wondering if she and the Monster could mate and begin a race of beings that would be dangerous to humans. Based on those fears, and his reluctance to start on or finish the female monster, he might have been predisposed to destroying it.

39) In Frankenstein, how is the Monster's taunt "I shall be with you on your wedding- night" fitting?

The Monster delivers his threat just after Victor has destroyed the Monster's mate, ripping it to shreds. This is an act of cruelty and betrayal, as Victor had promised to create a mate for the Monster. The threat is a fitting one first because it haunts Victor before the wedding (he keeps thinking about it) similar to how the Monster is haunted by his own loneliness. Second, the threat is fitting because in carrying it out by killing Elizabeth, the Monster exacts an appropriate revenge on Victor. Just as Victor destroyed his own hope for lifelong companionship and happiness, the Monster does the same to Victor in killing his bride. By surprising Victor, the Monster also shows how intelligent he has become. The creation has outsmarted the creator.

40) What function does the quotation from Paradise Lost that serves as an epigraph to Frankenstein play in the novel? Mary Shelley uses three lines from Paradise Lost as the epigraph to Frankenstein. Those three lines, quoting Adam, introduce the theme of creator and created that is central to Shelley's horror novel. They also symbolically place Adam's words in the mouth of both the Monster—like Adam, the unbidden creation—and Victor Frankenstein himself—like Adam, a man and also an unbidden creation. Adam's lament speaks for both of them. The Monster decries Victor's act in bringing him to life and then abandoning him. The extent to which these words apply to Victor suggests an attempt to shift responsibility for his own act of creation, a violation of the natural order, to God, as though God's creation of Victor set in motion the actions that led to the Monster. Of course, if the creator bears ultimate responsibility for all the actions of his or her creation, then Victor must accept responsibility for the murders the Monster commits.

41) In Frankenstein, why does Victor take Henry Clerval's death so hard?

Victor takes Henry's death hard because of their friendship and his own feeling of guilt. Henry was Victor's dearest friend, and they had been close friends since childhood. Further, they enjoyed each other's company, especially on their adventures traveling through Europe, as they shared a common interest in nature and delighted in its variety. Henry's cheerful, optimistic personality is like medicine to Victor, relieving his frequent bouts of depression. In addition to being a great friend, Henry is a loyal and selfless one, nursing Victor through his depressions and the physical collapses the depressions bring on. For instance, Henry nursed Victor for four months after he collapsed at the university. Victor also takes Henry's death so hard because he feels responsible for it. A good argument could be made that he is indeed responsible: Victor did not commit the murder, but he is the reason it occurred. The Monster kills Henry to achieve his revenge on Victor by destroying that which Victor cherishes, his great friend.

42) Why doesn't Victor Frankenstein name his creation?

In denying the Monster a name, Victor is denying the Monster an identity and membership in a family. Names convey individuality and importance. Surnames, a family's last name, provide a link to that family, showing the person is a descendant of a long line of people. Without the Frankenstein surname, the Monster has no acknowledged link to his creator. First names can be chosen to convey individuality, to suggest character traits, or to honor an older member of the family. For example, the name Frank conveys an open and honest personality; the name Honor suggests integrity and trustworthiness. Without a first name, the Monster has no individual identity. Of course, the lack of a name connects him to Victor in a way. Many people misconstrue the novel's title as referring to the Monster. This confusion of creation for creator shows how the two are linked.

43) In Frankenstein, how does Walton's desire for a friend affect both his relationship with Victor and the reader's trust in Walton as a reliable narrator?

It may seem that Walton cannot entirely be trusted as a reliable narrator because he is desperate for a friend and so idealizes Victor. However, the thoroughness of his narration also seems to contradict that concern. In his letter of March 28, Robert Walton writes to his sister of his intense desire for a friend. Walton's emotional language suggests that he might well overlook the faults in such a friend in his desperation to find a kindred spirit. Indeed, Walton is so overjoyed to discover that Frankenstein is intelligent, educated, and driven—all traits that Walton possesses—that he inflates Victor's positive traits and dismisses his negative ones. Walton quickly grows very close to Frankenstein and sees him as heroic. He describes Victor's speaking to the crew, near the end of the book, in exalted terms. Later, Walton does not comment on Victor's rejection of the Monster, his failure to take responsibility for his role in the Monster's murderous revenge spree, or his tragic quest to find and kill the Monster—the quest that results in Victor's own premature death. On the other hand, Walton does not seem to mitigate Victor's actions either, and he presents a variety of details that do not reflect well on Victor. The completeness of his retelling Victor's story suggests that Walton may be reliable after all.

44) In Frankenstein, what is the significance of Victor's dream that his kiss turns Elizabeth into a corpse?

Victor's dream foreshadows Elizabeth's death and his role in it. In the dream, Victor's kiss turns Elizabeth into a corpse because by marrying her, Victor marks Elizabeth as the vehicle for the Monster's revenge on Victor. The Monster chooses Elizabeth as his victim to perfectly repay Victor for his destruction of the female monster, the Monster's potential mate. The punishment is, in effect, an eye for an eye. Of course, Victor is Elizabeth's killer in a broader sense as well. He is the one who created the Monster, so he is responsible for the latter's hideous appearance, which causes other humans to reject the Monster and perpetuate injustice too. In his rejection of the Monster—his unnatural rejection of the responsibilities of creator and father—he also turns the Monster on a dark path toward loneliness and vengeance. In that dream, he also see Elizabeth transform into his own mother, who is dead. That detail foreshadows Elizabeth's actual death.

45) In Frankenstein, what is the effect of Shelley's describing Victor's frequent physical breakdowns?

By describing Victor's frequent physical breakdowns, Mary Shelley shows the tremendous psychological toll Victor's work has taken on his mind and body. Victor's physical breakdowns are a manifestation of his inner turmoil over creating the Monster in the first place and not taking at least partial blame for the Monster's actions when his experiment gets out of hand. Victor's tremendous guilt causes his body to collapse. Victor's breakdowns also show him to be a poor kind of creator. Rather than being omnipotent, like God, he is fragile. Rather than being able to withstand great hardship and exhibit above-normal strength, like his creation, he is weak. Indeed, he is morally weak as well, not taking the responsibility of being a creator by supporting his creation. His weakness emphasizes Victor's arrogance in assuming the role of creator when he is himself only a fragile man.

46) In Frankenstein, how does Victor's view of the Orkney Islands reflect his emotional state?

Frankenstein sees the Orkney Islands as desolate and inhospitable, a wretched place. He describes the specific island that he chooses as his temporary home while he works on the female monster as "hardly more than a rock" and "barren." The barren island mirrors Victor's psychological state, a frequent theme of romanticism, as he feels desolate and despairing, forced into a task he does not want to do. Like the island, he is isolated and empty. He feels that his life lacks meaning. The island is also buffeted by wind and waves, just as Victor himself is buffeted by powerful emotions and external forces—the push of the Monster to make a mate—that he cannot really control.

47) In Frankenstein, what is the dramatic irony in Victor's statement to the magistrate: "Man, how ignorant art thou in thy pride of wisdom"?

The magistrate tells Victor that it will be "impracticable" to find the Monster and so Victor should prepare himself to be disappointed. Victor is incensed by the magistrate's response because he believes that the magistrate isn't taking his concerns seriously. Considering that the Monster has taken refuge in the Alps, the magistrate's response is logical, as there is no chance that a tracking party will be able to locate a monster that has exceptional endurance, speed, and strength. Victor also interprets the magistrate's behavior as somewhat condescending, thinking that he treats Victor as a child. Victor then accuses the magistrate of being arrogant because the magistrate thinks he is smarter than Victor. The dramatic irony, in which the reader recognizes something a character does not, is that readers can see that Victor is the one with flawed thinking, because he thinks he knows more than the magistrate but exhibited "ignoran[ce] in [his] pride of wisdom" while making the Monster. Believing that he knows more than anyone else, that he can exceed the bounds of human knowledge, is what got Victor in trouble in the first place. He realizes this by the end of the novel, shown when he tells Walton to "seek happiness in tranquility and avoid ambition."

48) In Frankenstein, does Robert Walton lose his "hopes for glory" when he turns the ship around?

It seems that Walton loses his intended "hopes for glory" stated in his initial letters when he agrees to turn the ship around. After his men point out the danger they face and threaten to mutiny, Walton decides to return to England, abandoning his plan to reach the North Pole. Walton is disappointed that he cannot continue with his voyage and so become famous for making great discoveries. However, Victor's scientific discovery, the mystery of life, did not bring him glory, because his experiment was a disaster. Further, Victor did not build on his work nor share it with others, so he attained no glory. Ironically, Walton can achieve renown by publishing his account of Frankenstein and the Monster, obtaining that which Victor was denied by his egotism.

49) What function does the preface to the 1818 edition of Frankenstein serve?

The first line of the preface to the first edition of Frankenstein, written by Percy Bysshe Shelley, establishes a scientific basis for the wild story to follow. Shelley does this by mentioning a "Dr. Darwin," who is Dr. Erasmus Darwin, an English doctor, Charles Darwin's grandfather, and a famous philosopher. Second, Percy Shelley places Frankenstein in its literary context by listing other famous literary works, including the Iliad, The Tempest, A Midsummer Night's Dream, and Paradise Lost. These comparisons suggests that Frankenstein should be regarded as being like these great works in "preserv[ing] the truth ... of human nature," even though its author is a "most humble novelist." Percy Shelley's words were prophetic, as the novel has indeed become a classic, celebrated for its insights into human nature as well as its gripping plot and poignant characters. In addition, mention of Paradise Lost is no coincidence, since the novel is closely related to themes of the epic. Third, Percy Shelley places Frankenstein squarely in the gothic tradition by describing how the novel came to be written, as the author and friends "crowded around a blazing wood fire and occasionally amused ourselves with some German stories of ghosts which happened to fall into our hands." This background prepares the reader for the supernatural story of the eloquent, lonely, and brutal eight-foot-tall monster to come. The connection of this story to Geneva also introduces the setting of the book.

50) What function does the introduction to the 1831 edition of Frankenstein serve?

In her 1831 introduction to Frankenstein, Mary Shelley first acknowledges that she wrote the novel and explains "how [she] ... came to think of ... so very hideous an idea" for it. She needs to assert ownership because, when Frankensteinwas published in 1818, it was widely believed that her husband, Percy Bysshe Shelley, was the author. She then satisfies the public's need for background about how she came to write Frankenstein, beginning with her biography. She tells about her childhood, how Shelley encouraged her work, and the stories that the others in their group that rainy summer of 1816 wrote. She says that she wanted to write a story that would "speak to the mysterious fears of our nature, and awaken thrilling horror." She explains how she got her idea and started the novel.

51) What are the parallels between Mary Shelley's creation of Frankenstein and Victor's creation of the Monster in terms of the images of light? In her 1831 introduction to Frankenstein, Mary Shelley describes her dream about a scientist building a monster and then animating it. Upon awakening, she suddenly realizes that she can use the dream as the basis of her story. She writes: "Swift as light and as cheering was the idea that broke in upon me." Victor Frankenstein uses almost the same imagery when he describes how he gets the idea for animating his Monster: "From the midst of this darkness a sudden light broken in upon me," he says. For both Mary and Victor, the inspiration for their creation comes in the form of a flash of light, suggesting that light represents sudden vision and awareness.

52) Why might the first readers of Frankenstein have thought that the anonymous author was a man?

Several factors in the publication of Frankenstein, as well as the characteristics of the novel itself, might have led the original readers of the novel to conclude that the anonymous author was a man. The first factor was the inclusion of the preface by Percy Shelley in the original edition. Though it, too, was published anonymously, Percy was linked in literary circles to the preface and thus, since the writer of that foreword claims authorship, to the novel itself. The other factors of the novel that might have produced this inference are the dominance of male characters and the horrific details of the story. While female authors like Ann Radcliffe did write gothic novels before Mary Shelley's time, they did not have exclusively male casts of characters but included important heroines. Indeed, the perils of the heroine form a central part of the gothic genre. Frankenstein, however, is dominated by the voices of the three male narrators, Victor, the Monster, and Walton. In addition, the formation of the Monster from the parts of dead bodies and the brutal murders he carries out might have seemed more probably to come from the pen of a male author to readers of 1818 than from a female author, as women were thought to have greater sensibility than men. 53) How does Victor Frankenstein represent male appropriation of motherhood, and what are the implications of his doing so?

Victor Frankenstein is the male scientist who gives life to a wholly new creature, thereby assuming the role of mother as well as that of creator. In making a being that is created, not born, however, he can be seen as depraving that role, and in abandoning the Monster, his offspring, he shows an unmaternal unwillingness to nurture the child he brought into the world. The novel has only one female character who is a mother—Caroline Frankenstein—and she dies. The other females—Elizabeth Lavenza, Justine Moritz, Agatha De Lacey, and Safie—are either killed before they can have children or disappear from the novel's story. Women in the novel, then, are essentially barren. They do not produce life; only Victor does. The terrible results of his action suggest a strong condemnation by Mary Shelley against this unnatural order. Males may take for themselves the power of birth, but only evil will come of it. Perhaps this view reflects the thinking of her own mother, a vindication of the place of women in the social order.

54) What is the role of Justine Moritz in Frankenstein?

Justine Moritz serves multiple roles in Frankenstein, including as a foil to the Monster and an occasion to see further into the characters of Victor and Elizabeth. Justine is a foil to the Monster in that, like him, she is a victim of injustice but, unlike him, responds to that injustice with profound calm and acceptance rather than lashing out with vengeful violence. Justine knows she is innocent of the charge against her but accepts society's judgment and goes serenely to her death. The Monster wants to see himself as innocent of society's judgment against him and fights back. Justine is the passive, unchallenging female; the Monster is the active, aggressive male. The accusation against Justine serves as the first real test of Victor's conscience. He feels the truth of the Monster's responsibility for William's death but cannot bring himself to speak out with the truth even if doing so would save Justine's life. His shame and fear of the judgment of others is so deep that he abandons his moral duty to a fellow human and remains silent. His behavior contrasts with Elizabeth's, who testifies on Justine's behalf in court. While her defense of Justine does not work, it demonstrates her own virtue—she is clear-sighted enough to know of Justine's innocence and strong enough to take a stand for the other woman.

55) What are the sympathetic traits of the Monster in Frankenstein?

The Monster in Frankenstein, though he commits murder and various other crimes, is nevertheless a highly sympathetic character due to his abandonment, his surprising compassion, the injustice he suffers, and his great eloquence. The Monster begins life, like all creatures, brought into the world without asking to enter it. Whereas most humans and many animals are nurtured by their parents when they are born, the Monster is immediately rejected and left alone. While he is large and powerful, he knows nothing of the world and its ways; he is given no tools or information to help ensure his survival. In his long narration of his history to Victor, the Monster also shows considerable compassion. His impulse on recognizing that the De Laceys suffer is to help them; he cuts firewood and stops taking their food. His immediate reaction on seeing the young woman drowning is to save her. The injustice of the harsh reaction to his own kindness, both by the De Laceys and the girl's companion, certainly provokes the reader's sympathy—his actions of reaching out for human companionship and helping someone in distress do not merit these responses. Finally, the Monster's eloquent description of the torments he suffers from his isolation, rejection, and even guilt provoke sympathy. He is a complex soul who can express himself with great emotional power, and readers wish, like him, that he had received better treatment.

56) How does the development of the Monster in Frankenstein reflect the ideas of John Locke?

English philosopher John Locke held that the human mind was a blank slate, or tabula rasa, that could develop in many different ways, depending on one's experiences and the associations that one made based on those experiences. The intellectual and moral development of the Monster in Frankenstein can be seen as reflecting this view. The Monster, who is created and then abandoned by his creator, has the potential for developing in many different ways. His initial perceptions and experiences stem from the need for self-preservation. Hungry, he seeks food. Cold, he seeks warmth. Later, he watches the De Laceys interact, and he, in effect, receives moral instruction and lessons on living in social groups, which he tries to emulate. In watching them, he also learns language and thereby how to articulate his thoughts and feelings. He also learns human history from the book Felix reads to Safie and from the books that he discovers. In all these experiences, he adds to his understanding. He also becomes self-reflective, comparing his own condition and nature to what he considers to be the human character. From his experiences, he learns the value of human companionship. From the harsh treatment he receives from all the humans he meets except Walton, he becomes disillusioned. The Monster's emotional state is clearly shaped by all these experiences.

Things to Know about Frankenstein

Since its release in 1818, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein has enchanted audiences with its sordid tale of science, obsession, and murder. Critics and readers alike were left flabbergasted at the novel's take on reanimation and grave robbing, while the book's theme of "man versus technology" revolutionized the literary world and ultimately laid the groundwork for the science fiction genre. Here we've compiled 10 little-known facts about one of literature's most innovative novels and its author—whose own life was replete with tragedy and despair.

1. Frankenstein was likely written because of a volcano. Mother nature played an explosive role in the creation of Dr. Frankenstein and his monster. In April 1815, Indonesia's Mount Tambora erupted, killing over 100,000 people and blotting out the sun for months with ash. Climate experts believe the eruption caused an unseasonable chill in Europe in 1816, known as "the year without a summer." The resulting bad weather kept 18-year-old Mary and her friends indoors most of the time. Out of their boredom came a writing contest that would reshape the entire literary landscape.

2. The first draft of Frankenstein was written for a contest. In the summer of 1816, Mary Godwin and her soon-to-be-husband, the famous Romantic poet Percy Shelley, were staying with some fellow writer friends at poet Lord Byron's home in Switzerland. Because of volcanic ash still floating in the atmosphere from Mount Tambora's eruption, it was unseasonably cold that summer. The group often found themselves huddled around a fire telling ghost stories.

To keep themselves entertained, Byron suggested a contest that challenged each of them to write a horror story and read it out loud. Nobody knows who won the contest that summer, but it's safe to say Shelley produced the most famous story. Interestingly, another guest of Byron's, the English writer and physician John Polidori, did write The Vampyre as a result of the contest, which later inspired Bram Stoker's Dracula. Polidori claimed the suave and seductive vampire was inspired by Byron himself.

3. Victor Frankenstein was inspired by a real-life scientist and castle. Many speculate that the idea for Frankenstein had been swirling around Shelley's mind for some time before that fateful summer night in 1816. In their travels, Mary and Percy had happened upon a centuries-old castle in Germany called Frankenstein Castle. ("Frankenstein" in German literally means "the stone of the Franks," which was the name of the family that originally claimed the land.) It was in this castle that an eccentric scientist named Johann Conrad Dippel experimented with both animal and human body parts. Today the castle hosts a huge annual Halloween festival.

4. The loss of Mary Shelley's first child may have inspired the book's "back to life" theme. Throughout her life, Shelley suffered the loss of three infant children. Her first was born in 1815, the year before she wrote Frankenstein. On March 19, 1815, Mary wrote in her journal: Dream that my little baby came to life again; that it had only been cold, and that we rubbed it before the fire, and it lived.

Many believe the depression she endured after losing her first child influenced the book's theme of reanimation.

5. Critics didn't like Frankenstein because it was written by a woman. For a woman at this time to write anything at all was an act frowned upon by most reviewers. It was for this reason that Shelley first published it anonymously—but rumors were beginning to spread it was the work of a woman, and critics were none too pleased. A reviewer in 1818 in The British Critic wrote, "The writer of it is, we understand, a female; this is an aggravation of that which is the prevailing fault of the novel." Still, the novel grew in popularity, spawning several stage productions—most notably Richard Brinsley Peake's Presumption: or the Fate of Frankenstein (1823). The play was so acclaimed that it resulted in a second printing of her novel.

6. A lot of people thought Mary's husband, Percy, wrote Frankenstein. When Frankenstein was published anonymously in 1818, Percy Shelley—a famed poet in his own right—wrote a preface for the book, leading many to believe he was the true author. It wasn't until the book's second printing in 1823 that Mary published it under her own name. 7. Thomas Edison gave us the light bulb, motion picture camera—and the first film adaptation of Frankenstein. Thomas Edison was known for his innovative ideas, but did you know he also imagined adopting Frankenstein for the big screen? In 1910 Edison produced a watered-down version of Shelly's tale that was only 15 minutes long, and much tamer than the book. But his idea caught on, and since then, the film has been adapted more than 130 times. Edison wasn't happy with his film though, admitting: "To those familiar with Mrs. Shelley's story it will be evident that we have carefully omitted anything which might ... shock any portion of the audience."

8. Shelley is often credited with creating the science fiction genre. With its depiction of alchemy and mad science, Frankenstein ushered in a new genre of literature known as science fiction. Because of her tackling of innovative and taboo topics, Mary Shelley is regarded by many as the "Mother of Science Fiction."

9. The monster in the novel was never named Frankenstein. Over the last 200 years, pop culture has often depicted the monster itself as Frankenstein. However, Mary Shelley never actually gives the monster a name, to further its lack of humanity and heighten the main conflict in the story. The name Frankenstein that you often here merely refers to the monster's creator, Victor Frankenstein.

10. Hollywood's monster looks nothing like Mary Shelley's. The flat head, droopy eyes, and bolts through the neck that are synonymous with the image of Frankenstein's monster were actually inspired by makeup artist Jack Pierce's work in the 1931 film version. Shelley, on the other hand, described the monster as having lustrous black hair, yellow skin, and pearly white teeth.

Frankenstein | Suggested Reading

Here are some suggested reading materials and online resources to help you get a better understanding of Mary Shelley'sFrankenstein. In addition, we've listed some articles and other books that are similar to Frankenstein that you may enjoy.

Reading Materials Bloom, Harold, ed. Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. New York: Chelsea, 2007. Bloom's Modern Critical Interpretations. Print. Botting, Fred. Making Monstrous: Frankenstein. Criticism Theory. Manchester: Manchester UP, 1991. Print. Brennan, Matthew C. "The Landscape of Grief in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein." Studies in the Humanities 15.1 (1988): 33–44. Print. Mellor, Anne K. Mary Shelley: Her Life, Her Fiction, Her Monsters. New York: Routledge, 2015. Print. Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein. 2nd ed. Ed. J. Paul Hunter. New York: Norton, 2012. Norton Critical Editions. Print.