" Do not returen to your families with stigma of disgrace marked on your brows. Return as heroes who have fought and conquered, and who know not what it is to turn their backs on the foe". (page 160)
When I read this part, I was a little confused. Victor had felt responsible for William, Elizabeth, Justine, Clerval, and his father's death, so why is he wanting to put all of these men in danger as well? I guess I just thought that Victor would want to keep these people safe, no be responsible for their deaths. I am assuming that he thinks they will get hurt since he knows of the strength of the monster. Also, I think that the whole message of the story Victor told was not what I had thought it would be. I thought he was trying to just say that not everything is worth the risks pretty much. However, it seems that the point of his story was to keep Walton from chasing his dream, but to help him achieve his. I think it was a little selfish. Also, I think it is jus ta little ironic that he thinks that everyone thinks that this monster is their foe. The people did not even know who the monster was until Victor told them. I mean, why would they care? Victor would be the only one feeling like a hero.
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Frankenstein
"The threat of the fiend-' I will be with you on your wedding-night '". (page 139)
This is a motif used in the story as a reminder of the monster's presence in Victor's mind and actions. Victor is constantly reminded of the monster's threats. He cannot escape them, and I think that this has an affect of the character of the monster. At first, he is seen as the victim. Now, he is seen as the perpetrator, and he is the one who is instigating the unjust acts upon Victor. He threatens him, makes him fearful, and is always in Victor's head. I started to feel sympathy for Victor because he could not even be happy to get married because of this phrase said to him! Throughout the entire scenes leading up to and during the wedding, this phrase is repeated in order to emphasize the effect of the monster on Victor. It is also used as foreshadowing. It foreshadows the death of Elizabeth. It is so obvious that something bad is bound to happen, so when he left her for one minute I was pretty much ready for it.
This is a motif used in the story as a reminder of the monster's presence in Victor's mind and actions. Victor is constantly reminded of the monster's threats. He cannot escape them, and I think that this has an affect of the character of the monster. At first, he is seen as the victim. Now, he is seen as the perpetrator, and he is the one who is instigating the unjust acts upon Victor. He threatens him, makes him fearful, and is always in Victor's head. I started to feel sympathy for Victor because he could not even be happy to get married because of this phrase said to him! Throughout the entire scenes leading up to and during the wedding, this phrase is repeated in order to emphasize the effect of the monster on Victor. It is also used as foreshadowing. It foreshadows the death of Elizabeth. It is so obvious that something bad is bound to happen, so when he left her for one minute I was pretty much ready for it.
Frankenstein
"For an instant I dared to shake off my chains, and look around me with free and lofty spirit; but the iron had eathn into my flesh, and I sank again, trembling and hopeless, into my miserable self." (page 117).
The literary term here is symbolism. At first, I thought that Victor literally meant that he had chains on him, so then I was looking back like I had completelly missed something. Then, I read and thought about it. I realized that the chains symbolized the hold that the creature has on Victor. Victor wants to be happy and live his life, but the monster's words and threats haunt his every move and thought. He starts to feel normal again, and then poof. He rememberst that he must fulfill his promise in order to rid of these thoughts and the monster all together. He longs to forget his promise, but there is no way around it. He has the duty to do this, but he cannot bring himself to complete the task. He knows he has an obligation, but he does not want to do it, which shows him actually contemplating creating again. This is something that he had not done before when creating the current monster.
The literary term here is symbolism. At first, I thought that Victor literally meant that he had chains on him, so then I was looking back like I had completelly missed something. Then, I read and thought about it. I realized that the chains symbolized the hold that the creature has on Victor. Victor wants to be happy and live his life, but the monster's words and threats haunt his every move and thought. He starts to feel normal again, and then poof. He rememberst that he must fulfill his promise in order to rid of these thoughts and the monster all together. He longs to forget his promise, but there is no way around it. He has the duty to do this, but he cannot bring himself to complete the task. He knows he has an obligation, but he does not want to do it, which shows him actually contemplating creating again. This is something that he had not done before when creating the current monster.
Frankenstein
"This was then the reward of my benvolence! I had saved a human being from destruction, and as recompense I now writhed under teh miserable pain of a wound which shattered the flesh and bone." (page 101)
The literary term used here is dramatic irony. The monster tries to continue his longing to be accepted by humans by being someone of loving and benevolent nature. In this scene, he saves a girl from drowning, but he is shot by her father who thinks that the creature had harmed her instead. This shows how the monster is alienated from society as a result of his physical appearance. No matter what he does, he is not going to be treated how he wants merely because of how he looks. This shows that he just does not belong. The parallelism her is between the creature and his creator. Victor had once said how he had felt like he did not belong or fit in with society who was not his friends. This shows that although Victor finds the creature to be a complete opposite, that in reality they are more alike then he realizes. Also, the scene supports the theme of nature v. nurture. Although Victor is not blood related to the monster, they still have similarities. He created him, which left a mark on the monster. They have some kind of simmilarities that make the monster connected to him. I think that it supports that the monster functions as a result of both the nurture/living of his life, but he was also subconciously affected by his creator.
The literary term used here is dramatic irony. The monster tries to continue his longing to be accepted by humans by being someone of loving and benevolent nature. In this scene, he saves a girl from drowning, but he is shot by her father who thinks that the creature had harmed her instead. This shows how the monster is alienated from society as a result of his physical appearance. No matter what he does, he is not going to be treated how he wants merely because of how he looks. This shows that he just does not belong. The parallelism her is between the creature and his creator. Victor had once said how he had felt like he did not belong or fit in with society who was not his friends. This shows that although Victor finds the creature to be a complete opposite, that in reality they are more alike then he realizes. Also, the scene supports the theme of nature v. nurture. Although Victor is not blood related to the monster, they still have similarities. He created him, which left a mark on the monster. They have some kind of simmilarities that make the monster connected to him. I think that it supports that the monster functions as a result of both the nurture/living of his life, but he was also subconciously affected by his creator.
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Frankenstein
"A flash of lightining illuminated the object, and discovered its shape plainly to me; its gigantic stature, and the deformity of its aspect, more hideous than belongs to humanity, instantly informed me that it was the wretch, the filthy daemon to whom I had given life. What did he there? Could he be (I shuddered at the conception) the murderer of my brother?" (page 50) When I read this, I felt that this would be who killed William, yet I was still kind of shocked that he actually did. I think that it is strange that the creature knows where Victor and his family were, especially since he never told him. I find it quite strange, and I guess that people have said we find out later in the book how he knew. Also, during this time period I can understand how this would be a 'scary' book since it was the first of its kind. Even reading it now, I get a little caught off gaurd by how weird and creepy some of the story is. Also, this is just another instance where lightning occurs. I think that it my be some kind of symbol, but it is hard to decide what for. Maybe to emphasize the darkness or fear of the creature and intensify the setting of the scenes. It may have been used as a way to scare the audience even more. Lastly, I found it so sad that William died. If the monster did in fact kill him, then I am even more angry that Victor created that creature. It makes his mistake harm those he loves, and they are innocent.
Frankenstein
"Remember, that I am thy creature; I ought to be thy Adam, but I am rather the fallen angel". (page 69) I found this quote to be very interesting. It almost emphasized the situational irony in my previous blog. Even the creation knew he should have been accepted with open arms by his creator. He alludes to the Bible by saying that he should have been Adam, the first creation of God. The creation is implicating that Victor was trying to play God. This adds to the theme of creation. Victor should not have done his experiment due to the morals surrounding his work. He is not God, yet he strived to achieve what God does. In addition, the creature recognizes that he is seen as the devil by Victor. This seems to cause sympathy towards him because he has no one else in the world. Even his creator fears him. I think that this also proves that Victor should not have created him since he has made him live in a life of sadness. The selfishness of Victor is portrayed in this one quote made by his creation.
Frankenstein
"I had desired it with an ardour that far exceeded moderation; but not that I had finished, the beauty of my dream vanished, and the breathless horror and disgust filled my heart". (page 35) The literary device used in this quote from the story is situational irony. Victor had dedicated so much time and became obssessed with achieving his creation. When it was completed, it would be expected that he would be thrilled and proud. Instead, he is in shock of what he did and completely afraid of the creature he once believed was beautiful. He could not even look at it, and he hid from it too. This provides situational irony due to the fact Victor reacted in an unexpected way. This scene also supports the theme of creation and the right or ability to create. Victor continually thought can I do it, and became obsessed with the goal of achieving his creation. This caused him to lack in the moral thinking of his work. It doesn't matter if you can do something if it does not help society or should not be done. This is something quickly realized by Victor. He should have thought about if he SHOULD do it instead.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)