Day: December 2, 2014

Summary.

The monster describes its early days after being created: running from Victor’s apartment, seeing light and dark and feeling hunger and cold, and discovering fire and its ability to both cook and burn.

Wherever the monster goes it’s appearance terrifies humans, so it decides to avoid them. Eventually it finds a place to hide in the darkness near the side of a cottage. Inside he observes a man, woman, and an old man and watches them at their daily, ordinary tasks.

Themes.

The theme of nature’s awesomeness, of the connection between human moods and natural surroundings, resurfaces in the monster’s childlike reaction to spring. Nature proves as important to the monster as it is to Victor: as the temperature rises and the winter ice melts, the monster takes comfort in a suddenly green and blooming world, glorying in nature’s creation when he cannot rejoice in his own. For a moment, he is able to forget his own ugliness and unnaturalness.

Key quotes.

‘However miserable, from the inclemency of the season, and still more from the barbarity of man.’

Summary.

Victor takes a trip to a nearby mountain and glacier on Mount Montanvert to refresh his tortured soul. While on the glacier, the monster confronts his maker. Victor seems ready to engage in a combat to the death, but the monster convinces Victor to listen to his story. The two go to the monster’s hut on the mountain, and the monster begins to tell his tale.

Analysis.

At Chamonix, Victor continues to feel despair. He again tries to escape it through nature: he climbs to the peak of a mountain called Montanvert. But just as the view begins to lift his spirits, Victor sees the monster. He curses it and wishes for its destruction. He prejudges the monster as all the monster wants to do is talk, but as Victor is convinced he is a murder he doesn’t want to.

Another theme is isolation. The monster admits it took revenge, but claims that Victor destroyed its innocence by isolating it. This theme is prevalent as it behind the murder or Justine.

Key quotes.

‘All men hate the wretched; how then, must I be hated, who am miserable beyond all living things! Yet you, my creator, detest and spurn me, thy creature, to whom thou art bound by ties only dissoluble by the annihilation of one of us.’

Narrative Summary.

Victor finds no relief at the end of Justine’s trial leaving him haunted by the thoughts of how he ruined so many lives. He cannot sleep and results in sinking into a deep depression from which he cannot escape. He leaves and goes to try boating on Lake Geneva and a trip into the Swiss Mountains. Hepaddles out and just drifts. He escapes to the Chamounix valley region to rest and recover.

We feel slightlyremorseful for Victor in this chapter as things havent turned out how he even dreamed of invising them to pan out. The beast he created wasn’t suppose to be a beast, mearly a friend to stop him getting lonely and depressed, yet it has proved to do the opposite as he falls into a deep depression.

I think that Victor was not a monster, until he let Justine take the wrap for something she didn’t do. She was condemmed to death due to Victor wanting to keep his secret quite, this is a monstrous thing to do.

Theme.

In this text, pathetic valency ispresent as Mary Shelly expresses the emotions of Victor through the weather.

Isolation is another key theme in this chapter as Victor isolates himself to keep his secret safe. Not having to face anyone allows to keep quiet. This is another monstrous act that Victor does.

Key Quotes & Explanations.

‘I wept bitterly, and wished that peace would revisit my mind only that I might afford them consolation and happiness.’