Frankenstein annotations

Writing style
Epistolary
- Walton's narrative is frame in which other narratives embedded
- Epistolary style
Embedded narrative
- C1 - Epistolary dropped
- V narrative embedded within frame narrative of walton
- Innermost embedded narrative - m tells his story, w is writing down story told
first by m to v and now by v to him
Narrative seduction
- Admiration and affection v inspires in w, who sees great nobility, benevolence
and sweetness in him
- Are these v virtues?
- Attraction lies in eloquence, m similarly
- Curiosity aroused by violence of v outburst, melodramatic nature of his
language and his reference to the demon
- Margaret saville is only character who like us reads the story - the other
characters hear version of the story
- V hears m, w hears v
- Increasingly sig as shelley draws attention to power of speaking voice
to persuade and seduce
- Though victor describes him as ‘devil’, m surprises us by speaking w
eloquence and dignity, his lang assumes biblical solemnity
- M begins to believe in power of lang to overcome the disability of his physical
appearance
- M eloquence persuades v’s request
- Lang has power m hoped it would have when he approached DL family when
requests mate
- V speaks of sophisms, false but persuasive arguments of the monster, his
own reasoning in destroying mate seems equally sophistical: he is seeking
excuses not to honour his promise

Domestic
- Like v, w rejects life of domestic ease for life of adventure and quest for
knowledge
- Dichotomy suggested between public sphere of work and action and private
sphere of domestic affections
 - While v paints a picture of an idyllic family life, shows stifling nature of
domestic world
- Divisions btw male and female roles, conflict between happy domestic life and
intense personal ambition
- V reaction against hot house of family life
- Confession he finds it hard to remain in one place, enter wider world
- Shuns company of family and friends
- From watching de lacey family, m learns more about emotion and love

Alienation
- Alienation idea
- Victors ambition like w isolate him from family and friends
- Emphasised by allusion to coleridge RAM
- V isolates himself from family and friends, ignore communication
- Descriptions of cold high mountains and immense glaciers that conclude c9
further emphasise his alienation from human affections
- establish de laceys and safie, like m, are aliens and exiles (their story)
- SOW expands m sensibilities, and he applies story to his own feelings and
condition, intensifying his sense of alienation
- V once again alienates himself from others to carry out task of mate
The Monster
- Reading 3 books - crucial role in develop of his char and explains why he
speaks as he does
- From werther learns despondency, from plutarch learns high thoughts, raised
beyond misery of own condition by stories of heroes past
- His admiration for virtue increases
- Paradise Lost is most important of 3 volumes
- M sees his link w adam, first man, but sees differ
- Adam - happy and prosperous, cared for by his creator
- He is wretched and alone, thrown out of his eden w no eve to comfort
him
- Satan freq seems fitter comparison - when m observes happiness of
others he is eaten up w envy
- M experiences feelings of revenge and hatred for first time, indicating how his
character is being influenced by his interaction w human society
- Comparing himself to archfiend w a hell within him, becomes more like
satan than adam
- When m later murders e, said that he is only doing what v has already done to
him in destroying the female
- Strangely, considering what v has done to him, m still admires and esteems
his creator and is full of remorse for what he has done to this great man
- His attitude to v echoes that of w
Setting
- Dreary atmosphere
- Mont blanc - sublime scenes bring v comfort
- c22 ends w description of beauties of nature from which v now excluded
Romanticism
- Has mental and physical breakdown, when recovers descriptions of spring, w
young buds on trees suggests new start, dismisses m from mind
- Images of spring and emphasis on beauties of nature and delights of
community
- V lulled into false sense security, idyllic descriptions increase tensions for
reader, x forgot m
Storm symbolism
- thunder and lightning signal reappearance of monster
- Storm heralds imminent arrival of m
Monstrous
- Monster description of newborn child, emphasis on unnatural which reflects
manner in which created
- Pathos of monster situation - outstretched hand
- V proves irresponsible, abandons child in horror
- Monstrous
- Problematised here by way suggested little more than discursive effect,
product of how creature rep by others
- F = unreliable narrator, repeatedly misreads creatures gestures towards him
at moment of animation, creature words regarding wedding night, even
assumes food and clothing elft for him as he pursues creature must come
from guardian angel (left by creature)
- F reveals a mind determined to impose coherence in accordance w his own
understanding of himself as a victim and his creature as a monstrous forced
to be eliminated
- His language, as any act of creature, functions to produce monstrosity
- It is v who rages w savage passion compared to m
- M education - boundaries between monstrous and human seem blurred
- M final speech emphasises the fact that his monstrousness is no different
from that of society
Double
- In going to place william strangled, v appears like guilt ridden murderer
revisiting the scene of his crime
- Description of m as my own vampire introduces idea of double
- M = externalisation of a repressed part of v psyche
 - V sees himself as true murderer, echoing satan in milton's paradise lost, work
that plays sig role in story
- V lang suggests idea of the double ‘i wandered like an evil spirit’
- Speaks of fiend that lurks in his heart
- In confessing to murders in his delirium, v once more associates himself w m

Psychology
- Walton description of shipmaster suggests embodiment of goodness
- Many minor characters appear as little more than representations of
abstract qualities, typical gothic tradition rep character
Realism
- V and M, analysis of individual psychology = realism
- V search for principle of life in scientific terms, makes fantastic quest more
believable to reader, suggests material and secular answer to question of life,
once seen in purely spiritual, divine terms
Ambition
- Walton anticipates v
- Quest to find the pole, alternates btw revealing desire for personal glory and a
desire to benefit mankind
- Anticipates v quest
- Altruistic motive = genuine or cover for ambition
- Suspicious of his ambition since his quest leads him from start to death and
corruption
- His ambition heroic but horrific images suggest work sordid
- His plan for his solitary death, a blazing fire amongst the icy wastes, is a
parody of walton dream of finding a tropical paradise at the pole, and also
reminiscent of v attempt to animate a cold corpse w fire of life
Horror
- Shelley suggests true horror lies within, in mental agonies and torments we
frequently inflict upon ourselves
- Enthusiasm v felt in creating first creature replaced by horror for ‘filthy
process’
Overreacher
- V establishes himself as a promethean overreacher by hungering after
secrets of heaven and earth
- Electricity, scientific equiv of fire stolen from sun in og myth = potential
animating force to be used by v
- Aspires usurp roles of god and women, create new species who would bless
him as their creator
 - Imagery suggests process labour and birth, womb, suggest v repugnance for
normal sexuality
- Behaves like guilty of terrible crime
- V regrets search for secret of life, x efforts or search he regrets but result
- Offers himself as example of dangers of overreaching, final refusal to deny
importance of attempt and belief another may succeed
- Question of if he right or wrong to pursue quest never resolved
- Monster’s situation evokes sympathy, and he underlines v crime in refusing to
nurture his creation
- Ref to PL complicate analogies btw v as god the creator and the m as adam
the created
Breakdown
- As v wanders streets, quotation from RAM suggests he is full of fear
and guilt, haunted by nameless horror
- Has mental and physical breakdown
- After c death, both physically and mentally ill
Sexuality
- More to v reaction to prospect of marriage w e
- Horror and dismay are excessive
- Fearing m also fears his own sexuality
- Confirmed by tendency to refer repeatedly to a union rather than a
marriage
- Threat ‘i shall be with you’ suggests v then unable to avoid confrontation w his
sexuality
- wedding night scene makes partic clear v horror of natural sexuality
- His comforting words to e may be read as his repulsion at the thought
of the nwo apparently unavoidable consummation of their marriage
- Leaving e alone in the room, ostensibly to draw the m rage away from
her, he acc leaves her open to attack
Victor
- Sailors also respond to v in a similar manner as m
- Does shelley convinces us that v character justifies such excessive adoration

Dreams
- V horrific dream symbolic
- Horrific nightmares that haunt v also suggest that the horror is in his psyche
- Lang used to describe appearance of m at window, pointing towards e corpse,
echoes lang used to describe that dreary night when he was created, link
death and birth again, taking us back to the nightmare that followed
 - Fears suggested by that nightmare have now been actualised
- Such quests, such dreams, ms seems to suggest, can only end w destruction

Moral corruption
- V egotism and self absorption revealed when attempts to describe anguish,
claiming in more torture than j
- Clear to reader that m threat directed towards e, v obtuse in interpreting it as
being directed towards him
Biblical reference
- Reference to paradisiacal dreams indicates that now v is seeing himself as
adam, and e as his paradise
- But having already drunk too deeply of forbidden knowledge, w apple already
eaten, he knows his paradise is lost to him
- Both v and m in c24 lay claim to a resemblance to milton's satan, vie w each
other to claim most suffering: satan, in PL, is noted above all for being the
most miserable of all beings

Language
- V indicates inadequacy of language to describe inner experience
- Lang has power m hoped it would have when he approached DL family when
requests mate
- V panegyric on his friend is a clear indication that clerval will be the next
victim

Social
Physical beauty
- Importance of physical beauty stressed - elizabeth
- Importance physical beauty stressed by reactions to krempe
- Contrast between what is seen and what is heard is emphasised as v is
persuaded by eloquence of ugly creature to listen to his story
- M discovery of his ugliness in a pool is parody of eve discovery of her beauty
in pool of eden in book IV of paradise lost
- M begins to believe in power of lang to overcome the disability of his
physical appearance
- When de laceys reject m in horror, shelley suggests how appearance is
privileged in society
- Even paragons of virtue x deal w what is alien and different, and idyllic
nature of their domestic life is sustained only by absolute exclusion of
anything that may threaten it from outside
 - William’s reaction to m’s appearance suggests how quickly children are
educated in society’s prejudices
- Sight of m, ‘filthy mass’ fills v with hatred
Women
- Caroline rep ideal femininity and elizabeth her pupil
- Religious imagery colours v description of e
- Later apparent rejection of mature sexuality linked to early
spiritualisation of women
- Religious imagery again in e description
- E limited to family circle, fills time doing nothing while v filled with desire for
knowledge
- Failure of e speech to help j shows her impotence when forced to deal w outer
world
- Delacey story - critique of treatment of women
- Portrayal of safie, who combines both masc and fem qualities,
suggests ms x consider passivity and helplessness of e as either
positive or inevitable
Injustice
- E description of servants = opportunity for commenting on social injustices
- Justine background w suggestions of incestuous impulses in fathers fondness
and evidence abuse in mothers treatment offers new perspective on family life
and domestic affections
- Story of justice criticises social institutions, drawing attention to corruption of
both church and legal system
- E comment on death of j provides more social criticism, blurs boundaries btw
monstrous and human, encourages consider how we define ‘monster’
- Monsters education provides shelley with another opportunity for a critique of
society and human injustice;
- Bizarre and improbable adventures about delacey family provide ms w
another opportunity to comment upon corruption of society
Noble Savage
- Monster appears like natural man or noble savage, essentially benevolent
- See how this innocent has his psyche formed by his contact with the world
Othering
- M is drawn to civilisation, but civilised world rejects him on basis of his alien
appearance
 Context

Allusions
Dante
- Italian poet
- The divine comedy, books focusing on hell, purgatory and paradise
Rime of the Ancient Mariner
- Coleridge, 1798
- Tale of sin and redemption
- Mariner was on a ship that was driven by storms to the antarctic, locked in ice
- Ship visited by albatross, great sea bird, befriend the men
- Men glad to see bird, luck improved - ice broke up and breeze from south
pushed them through the fog
- Inexplicable act of perverse cruelty, mariner shot bird, bringing curse upon
himself and ship
- Mariner described how he felt cursed after the death of all his companions
when he is left alone
The sorrows of young Werther
- 1774
- Johann wolfgang von goethe
- Semi autobiographical novel about life and ultimate suicide of a sensitive
artist, hopelessly in love with a woman engaged to someone else
Ruins of empires (felix tutors safie with this)
- 1791
- Constantin françois de chasseboeuf, comte de volney
- Moderate revolutionary and deist
Paradise Lost
- Pandaemonium - city built in hell by fallen angels in paradise lost
- Milton

Other
Epistolary
- Epistolary novels were popular in 18th century and associated w samuel
richardson, who developed form in works like Virtue Rewarded, 1840
- Series of letter relating a young servant girls resistance to her masters
attempts to seduce her
1818 Original version
- E is v first cousin
- Critics suggest this hints at incestuous r.ship
1800s corpses
- Early 1800 increasing demand for corpses to be used in training doctors in
anatomy
- Law ruled only bodies of recently executed criminals could be used, but not
enough to meet demand
- Led to grave robbing, developed into lucrative business

Location
- Orkney islands
- Lie off northern tip of scotland where north sea and atlantic ocean meet
- 70 islands
- Lake como
- Northern italy, north east of milan, known for its beauty
- Shelleys first visited lake in spring 1818 and ms returned during
summer of 1840 for a lengthy visit that she recorded in her RGI 1844

People
Agrippa
- Medieval scholar
- Explored magic, astrology, medicine
- His disobedient apprentice accidentally conjured up the devil
Benjamin Franklin
- 1746 first to demonstrate lightning is electricity
- 1751 famous kite experiments, following 2 who tried to duplicate were killed
by lightning strike
- 1752 developed lightning rod
Luigi Galvani
- 1780s, italian professor of anatomy conducted experiments on animal tissue
using machine that produced electrical sparks
- Proved muscles contract in response to electrical stimulus
- Research led to new discoveries about operation of nerves and muscles
Plutarch
- Greek biographer and moralist
- His parallel lives illustrated moral characters of his subjects through anecdote
Sophists
- Professional class of teachers who wandered greece 5th century BC
 - As most popular career choice at time was politics, sophists focused on
rhetoric and had a stock of arguments on a wide range of issues designed to
provide any position
- Sophism = subtle and deceptive method of reasoning or arguing, involving
statements that sound plausible but are actually false
Percy Shelley
- Died shortly before 30th bday in boating accident
- Bay of la spezia july 1822
- Body washed up on shore ten days later, friends, incl Lord Byron, decided to
send him out in style with a dramatic funeral pyre on the beach
- Uncannily duplicates monster’s proposed ending

Other texts
- The strange case of dr jekyll and mr hyde, 1886
- The double or doppelganger
- Hyde, atavistic figure of violence and excess functions as
doppelganger for jekyll, whose unacceptable desires he acts out
- Mont blanc: lines written in the vale of chamouni
- Percy shelley
- Poem, suggests for the english romantic poets natural world pervaded
by rev energies
- Both life giving potential and terrible power of destruction
- A vindication of the rights of woman
- 1792
- Mary wollstonecraft
- Called for creation of equal rights and opportunities for women
- History of a six week’s tour
- Mary shelley wrote travelogues
- 1817
- Written with ps and based on their elopement to continent in 1814
- C19 reminiscent of travelogues which became so popular in 19th
century
- Rambles in germany and italy
- 1844
- Recollections of later travelling with her son and his friends in search of
improved health

Art
‘The Nightmare’
- Scene of e death inspired by painting by Henry Fuseli
- First of several versions exhibited at royal academy in 1782
 - Depicts woman stretched out across a bed
- On her torso crouches an incubus, peering through the curtain is a
horse, the ‘nightmare’ of the title, with eyes gleaming and teeth bared
- Painting = increasingly erotic as diff versions progressed, suggests
both terror and vague sense of oppression
‘The Creation of Man’
- Parody of michelangelo's creation of man in sistine chapel, analogy between v
and god and m and adam, anticipating the many allusions to milton's PL
- (m stretches out hand to v)