Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley was yet again another story that frustrated me. The novel had so much promise due to its great plot and frame story structure, and Shelley completely ruined it through the actions of Victor. I just do not understand Victor's foolish actions because he caused every negative aspect of his own life. I have much sympathy for the creature because all he wanted was to have a loving family and companion of his own. Past just the conflict between Victor and the creature, I really enjoyed the romance that went on between Victor and Elizabeth. Shelley was able to do a good job at characterizing Elizabeth into what seemed like the perfect women who completed Victor. It came as a big surprise to me when Elizabeth said , "That I love you" (Shelley, 138). Then again Shelley let me down by killing off Elizabeth, which further irked me. Overall, I would have to say this was a well crafted novel. I found it very interesting how connected Victor and the creature were. Shelley was really able to pack a lot of events into a short amount of time, while also creating suspense with almost every situation. Furthermore, this novel was able to keep the reader entrained through the complexities of literary techniques.

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley is a novel composed of multiple character's chasing something. Whether they are chasing a person, or a dream, or an idea, there is always a character chasing something. Victor finally decides to chase the creature after the death of Elizabeth because he has a new found motivation: revenge. Victor recalls, "I was possessed by a maddening rage...to wreak a great and signal revenge on his cursed head" (Shelley, 147). Victor's motivation to chase down the creature is not to make amends, but rather it is to execute the creature. All Victor can now think about is accomplishing his revenge on the creature. This constant thought process has caused Victor to become mad within his obsession. This motivation also serves to begin Victor's downward spiral to his death. Victor stops at no end to seek his revenge, which causes him to become mentally and physically weak while stranded in the Arctic. Victor allows himself to become so caught up in his motivation to seek revenge because it is honestly the only hope he has left in his entire life.

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley establishes a variety of thematic topics. One theme that is discussed throughout the entire novel is the idea of health and how it is affected by mental and physical conditions. After Victor discovered the death of Henry, "[His] strength was gone. [He] was a mere skeleton; and fever night and day preyed upon [his] wasted frame" (Shelley, 135). Victor was in so much shock and horror that his health began to deteriorate. At this point he is beginning to lose the will to live. He is in so much dismay that he has rendered himself physically ill for months on end. Since Victor's health is so harshly impacted due to being weakened mentally, the reader can get a sense of how his memories are destroying him. The events that occurred distorted his mind so much that his physical health leads to near death. Whenever Victor hits a mental breakdown, he seems to come close to death due to illness. Shelley is able to convey a direct correlation between the frantic mental state Victor is in to the health conditions he experiences.

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

The creature in Frankenstein by Mary Shelley is characterized in a controversial manner. Some people find the monster to be evil at heart, and others observe that he is truly a genuine creature. Shelley is able to use juxtaposition to tie both of these ideas together when the creature states, "My heart was fashioned to be susceptible of love and sympathy; and when wrenched by misery to vice and hatred it did not endure the violence of the change" (Shelley, 164). Shelley is stating that the monster began life as a loving and kind creature. Due to the creatures constant rejection, the creature began to feel hatred toward humanity. Therefore, the creature was morphed into the "wicked devil" that Victor portrays him as because of the evil humanity inflicted upon him. This juxtaposition proves that the creature did not intend to cause such distress in the lives of others, but did so in order for others to feel his pain. The creature felt pain and sorrow whenever he murdered one of Victor's loved ones, but he expressed even greater despair when he was labeled as an outcast. The creature just wants to return to his original, loving and sympathetic ways, rather than cause such heinous crimes.

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

Toward the end of Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, Victor's story begins to catch up with the present. Since there are at least three different stories told, this novel is structured to be a frame story. The story follows a pyramid by beginning with Walton's story, continuing with Victor's story, including the creatures' story, and then heading back through Victor and Walton's stories. When Victor question's whether Walton will help him, Walton writes a letter stating, "You have read this strange and terrific story" (Shelley, 155). This use of a frame story allows the writer to convey that the story is being told by actual witnesses. The frame allows to show the complexities of how each character is involved because each of their stories intertwine. This structure also allows the reader to better observe how the personalities and characteristics of the characters are similar in respects to their dreams and ambition. Victor and the creature share similar emotions during the exact same time frame. The reader would have no knowledge of this aspect of the story if their stories were not told within each other's story. This framework helps to cover each topic and unanswered question, and then tie it all together from each perspective.

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

So far Frankenstein by Mary Shelley is a fairly decent novel. The story is very different from the folklore that I had heard previously before starting this novel. I had originally imagined the doctor to be in a state of elation and have an evil laugh once the monster was born, rather Victor, “Rushed out of the room… [and] threw [him]self on the bed” (Shelley 35). This novel is very different in many other aspects especially because the focus is not based on a creepy monster that goes on a massive rampage throughout the village. As I stated, this novel is decent, but I believe it is a little slow with action throughout the story. Whenever a person or topic is brought up, Shelley goes into full detail of explaining this person/idea, which causes the story to become monotonous at points. It also does get quite annoying that adjectives such as “benevolent” so frequently that the word is almost clichéd.   Other than that slight negative aspect, the story seems to have a great plot and story line behind it. The vocabulary is high, but very easy to understand. Not too bad of a novel for an eighteen year old who hates the thought of writing books.

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

Throughout Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, there is a great deal of conflict that arises in Victor’s life. He is conflicted externally with the issue of the monster, but he is mostly conflicted internally by his thoughts and emotions.  When discussing how Victor felt at fault for the death of his brother and sister, he proclaims, “I behold those I loved spend vain sorrow upon the graves of William and Justine, the first hapless victims to my unhallowed arts” (Shelley 60). Victor is mentally blaming himself for the murder of both his relatives. He feels that since he created the monster who led to their deaths, it is his fault that their situation had ever occurred.  Victor is even further struck with depression and despair by this. He is conflicted internally because he has to live with the knowledge and guilt of these two lives that were ended by his creation. Victor reflects frequently about this disaster, which does not help his internal confliction. This conflict creates more madness to Victor’s character. Victor is now obsessed with revenge by killing the monster, which he feels is the only way to end his mental confliction.

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley offers a vast amount of messages and lessons. Shelley spends a great amount of time articulating these themes through the different anecdotes Victor has to offer. The monster is telling a story to Victor when the monster recalls, “He raised her, and smiled with such kindness and affection that I felt sensations of a peculiar and overpowering nature” (Shelley 75). The theme being conveyed here pertains to ‘Family – Domestic Affections’. Throughout the last few chapters of the first eighty pages of the novel, the monster observes a family and beings to feel human emotions. The monster is experiencing brand new ideas every day and learning very rapidly. This family interacts in such a loving way and impacts the monster in a very positive manner. The monster begins to spend a great deal of his time thinking of how wonderful it would be to be a part of this family and join in on the love they share for each other. This theme helps to express that the monster is misunderstood by society. The monster is just like any other human beings because he has feelings and emotions and can think for himself. The monster just wants to find a loving home where he can feel as though he is creating happiness for others.

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein contains many characters that interact with each other in very unique ways. Most of the characters are family members or very close family friends. When Victor’s mother is on her death bed, she states, “My firmest hopes of future happiness were placed on the prospect of your union" (Shelley 24). Judging by the diction Shelley uses in this passage, Victor and Elizabeth have a much different relationship than is portrayed on the surface. Elizabeth is mentioned as a “sister figure” and is referred to as “cousin” by Victor himself. Even though she is given titles as a relative, their mother states that she always imagined Victor and Elizabeth obtaining a “union”, or in other words marriage. The diction used when referring to the relationship between Victor and Elizabeth cause the reader to question the motivations of these two characters. They seem to trust each other very well, correspond frequently, and think of their love for one another often. Victor even states multiple times that Elizabeth is his forever. These two characters establish a mystery on the true depth of their “brother-sister” relationship.

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

In Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, Victor spends a large portion of his college career creating a human being which he intended to bring to life. Victor shares this story with his new friend, Robert, but focuses very little on the actual creation of the monster. As soon as the monster comes to life, Victor recalls, “Unable to endure the aspect of the being I had created, I rushed out of the room” (Shelley 35). By speaking of the creation in such a brief manner, Shelley is able to convey a sense of understatement. The resurrection of the corpse seemed to happen much faster than Victor had expected, which caused him to regret his work immediately.  This understatement also implies that the creation of the monster is not the focus of Victor’s story. The monster is assembled and given life very early in the novel, which further proves that there will be a greater message to the story.  Victor’s understatement of his success in reaching his goal also implies how upset he is with his creation. The second the monster breathes life, Victor is ashamed of the work he has done and find no honor in creating a living human being.  Victor continues his story talking about more important ways in which the monster ends up affecting his life.

APO 96225 by Larry Rottmann

The poem APO 96225 by Larry Rottmann is a poem that is a sequence of letters between parents and their son who is a soldier. The mother asks how things are, and after giving false answers demands the son to tell the truth of the situation. The son responds with, "Today I killed a man. Yesterday, I helped drop napalm on women and children" (Rottmann, lines14-15). The son is blunt and honest, and mother immediately rejects the truth and asks for him to go back to the false responses. This is a perfect example of irony in many respects. The mother could not handle the truth and continued to act as if the truth had not actually occurred. This irony sends the message about war that people who are not fighting the war can never imagine the horrors of war. The son is so numb to the reality of the actions he has taken. This poem reveals that the public turns their eye in the opposite direction when it comes to learning of negative aspects of war. The poem is implying that war changes the perspectives of both citizens and soldiers. The soldiers lose a sense of the severity of their actions, and the public allows immoral actions to take place with knowledge of them occurring.

I felt a Funeral, in my Brain by Emily Dickinson

The poem I felt a Funeral, in my Brain by Emily Dickinson is a poem that is a giant symbolism for the speaker feeling alienated. The speaker utilizes imagery in order to help convey a somber mood. When talking about the people at the funeral the speaker said they were, "treading -- treading". Then the speaker later talks about a drum, "beating -- beating" (Dickinson, lines 3,6). These images create a dreary mood over the funeral and show that everything is occurring in slow motion. The mourners are moving at a slow pace and the music seems to almost sound like a heart beat. The sounds of the casket creaking give a creepy aspect to the funeral. The speaker uses the imagery to explain every detail of the funeral with their senses. Sound is the biggest sense used, implying that the speaker can only hear what is going on. The speaker can feel the casket being lowered. The reader can conclude that the speaker is the actual person inside the casket because they only hear what is going on outside the casket until it is finally buried.

Miss Brill by Katherine Mansfield

Miss Brill by Katherine Mansfield is a story of a lonely old women who sits in a park every Sunday. Question four on this story first asks why Miss Brill enjoys going to the park. Miss Brill enjoys it simply because, "she loved sitting there, watching it all!" (Mansfield, 184). She visits the park as her weekly routine so that she can listen into the conversations of all the other visitors. She also enjoys watching the activities people participate in. The second part of this question is more important because it asks why this specific Sunday is enjoyable. While observing and listening into the other conversations, Miss Brill realises that she is part of the routine for all these other people. Miss Brill finally feels important and accepted because she feels as though people would notice is she discontinued attending the park. She feels as though she is in a play and everyone has their special part. In her head, her part is acknowledged and accepted by all the other visitors. At the end of the story, we find out that she is actually not welcomed in the park by some people.

Bartleby the Scrivener by Herman Melville

Throughout Bartleby the Scrivener by Herman Melville, the speaker goes into great detail about every character and scene. The speaker allows the reader to understand the personalities of each character because of how in depth his details go. When characterizing Bartleby, the speaker states, "The passiveness of Bartleby sometimes irritated me" (Melville, 653). I believe the word "passive" describes Bartleby's character perfectly. Bartleby avoids any form of contact with the outside world by refusing to do anything, but refuses with such respect and innocence that there is nothing one can do about it. Bartleby is a static character because he does not change at all during the story. This means that Bartleby is passive the entire time, which causes frustration due to the speaker pitying Bartleby. Throughout this characterization of Bartleby, the reader may get a sense of how awkward Bartleby acts. The speakers true thoughts and feelings allow the reader to create a mental image of this strange and unique character.

Bartleby the Shrivener by Hermon Melville

The short story Bartleby the Scrivener by Hermon Melville is the story of a lawyer who employs an odd man by the name of Bartleby. The speaker goes into detail about every one of his employees, but Bartleby seems to be peculiar and causes issues. A motif is used when Bartleby repeats, "'I would prefer not to'" (Melville, 650). This statement first is viewed as disrespect and insubordination. After Bartleby makes this all his responses, the speaker begins to question why Bartleby is not comfortable with the requests made. These words even begin to impact the other workers in the building. The speaker and Nipper find themselves subconsciously using the term "prefer" just as Bartleby does. The speaker realises that Bartleby is confined to himself and lacks friendship and a social life. The entire story is focused on the speaker attempting to convince Bartleby to change. Just as Bartleby continues to make the same statement, he continues to refuse making any changes to his lifestyle. This motif is able to connect every scenario because every dialogue with Bartleby ends with the same result, stubbornness.