Terms Definitions Examples Impact
Archetype A very typical example of a certain person or thing “A grin was on the face of the monster; he seemed to jeer as with his fiendish finger he pointed towards the corpse of my wife” (173). This archetype shows the monster for who he really is: a monster. This quote shows the villain archetype because, being the monster that he is, he kills every person Victor Frankenstein ever loved. Being the evil villain, his goal is to destroy Victor’s journey, which he successfully does.
Allusion An expression designed to call something to mind without mentioning it explicitly; an indirect or passing reference "But it was all a dream; no Eve soothed my sorrows nor shared my thoughts; I was alone. I remembered Adam
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The diction used by Shelley here shows that the monster used a more formal word choice than that of Frankenstein. This is because the monster had to learn language by himself after Victor abruptly left him. So by using this diction, Shelley helps the reader learn more about the monster and understand what he went through.
Figurative Language Uses words in figures of speech. Examples: Alliteration, assonance, cliche, hyperbole, idiom, metaphor, onomatopoeia, personification, simile, etc. "Simile: “I find it (compassion) arise, like a mountain river, from ignoble and almost forgotten sources” (34).
Metaphor: “I, the miserable and the abandoned, am an abortion, to be spurned at, and kicked, and trampled on” (188).
Personification: “But when he entered, misery and despair, alone, welcomed him” (27)." Figurative language in Frankenstein helps add the story and allows the reader to truly see what is going on at that time. The simile helps show the past joy that Victor used to have before his mind was tainted. The metaphor helps establish the depressed mindset of the monster. The personification brings the mood from positive to negative as these emotions accompany Beaufort as he
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“Him so bright and joyous in his young beauty”(61)." Through characters such as the monster and William Frankenstein, the motif of light and darkness helps to set the mood of the story. Light is always portrayed as good while darkness is always shown as evil. There is a direct contrast between these two characters. The monster is viewed by everyone, even himself, as dark and repulsive. While William is viewed as a shining light simply because he is human.
Point of View The narrator 's position in relation to the story being told First person The point of view is constantly shifting from person to person consisting of Captain Walton, Frankenstein and the monster. But it always stays in the first person which helps the reader see the perspective of whoever is in the situation. This is big for the monster, as Shelley is able to point out to the reader what all this looks like to him as well and that he has feelings
The gothic novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley highlights the idea that the real monsters of the world are humans and society, and that most traits that most humans despise are actually within all of us. Frankenstein shows that any human can be so corrupt as to be a “monster”, and that beings society considers repulsive and evil can be human at heart. Shelley exposes human faults such as hubris and irresponsibility through the main character of the novel Victor Frankenstein, who creates a living being and refuses to care for it, sending it into the unwelcoming hands of society. Victors irresponsible actions lead to many deaths and events. As the novel progresses, Dr. Victor Frankenstein and the Monster he creates become more and more similar
To begin, one example of figurative language is an idiom. In the exposition, Ichabod’s teaching methods are described by the narrator to the reader, “Spare the rod and spoil the child” (155). If a teacher does not discipline a child, that child will become a disrespectful, ungrateful brat. Ichabod, as a school master, wants respect so his student learn; if the students are learning, the parents will give him a place to stay and food to eat. Therefore, the idiom is used to reveal Ichabod’s
Many authors have different ways of building characters and how they look. It is up to the reader to build their perspective from the descriptions given by the author in order to understand books. Mary Shelley, the author of Frankenstein, sculpts the readers’ perspective of her monster through powerful diction and emotional syntax. After Dr. Frankenstein finally accomplishes his goal of re-animating a lifeless human, Shelley uses her strong word choice to fully express the extent of horror that Frankenstein had felt, describing his monster as a “demonical corpse to which I had so miserably given life.” (Shelley 45). Frankenstein’s horror is shared with the reader simply from a well descripted sentence. The detail Shelley put into Victor Frankenstein’s perspective is gradually shaping our own, as the reader’s, perspective. Furthermore, the diction being used adds a more definitive appearance to the monster. It helps us imagine what the monster looks like and additionally, how Frankenstein feels about his success.
Can you imagine losing all of your loved ones to an evil beast? Or being abandoned by everyone you came in contact with? Mary Shelley portrays numerous emotions in Frankenstein. Sympathy and hatred are two that are constantly shown throughout novel. Mary Shelley enlists sympathy and hatred towards Victor and the monster by presenting them in different viewpoints. The views of sympathy and hatred towards the main characters change as the narration changes in the novel Frankenstein.
For the duration of the monster’s involvement in the novel, the diction has relevance to the monster’s life. On pages 73-74 of the novel, as the monster is walking by himself, he said, “it was dark when I awoke; I felt cold also, and how frightened, as it were, instinctively, finding myself so desolate… I was a poor, helpless, miserable wretch; I know, and could distinguish, no thing; but feeling pain invade me on all sides, I sat down and wept,” (Shelley 73-74). The use of organic imagery in the quotation is to incite in empathetic motion emotion in the audience. The monster’s use of organic imagery is a second important factor in his persuasion of Victor Frankenstein because he too could express in empathetic emotion to the monster and if Victor Frankenstein has empathy toward his monster, he could be prone, to a large extent, to fulfill the task he was asked to do. The monster’s use of organic imagery is a second important factor to persuade Victor
... good, but can be turned to evil by society’s narrow-minded view of what is normal, and the corruption of the mind through knowledge and education. The repercussions of Victor’s and others alienation of the creature turned a caring individual to an evil one. Shelley succeeds in bringing Rousseau's theory to life, that one is born good, but he can be turned to evil through civilization and education. This story still has a great meaning for us today. Millions of people are outcast by society, not only because of physical appearance, but also because of sexual orientation, social status, and religion. Once people quit looking so narrow-mindedly at one another, the world will be a much better place, and Frankenstein's "monster" will rest in peace!
...most readers tend to sympathize with Frankenstein because of the way in which he is mentally and physically harmed by his creation. However, one must also realize that while Frankenstein is a victim in the novel, he also exhibits features that make him a monster. These monstrous qualities, however, stem from his passion for science and his desire to create life. Not only does the reader criticize and pity Frankenstein, but the reader also empathizes with Frankenstein’s creation. He was unjustly shunned by society because of his physical appearance. On the other hand, the reader realizes that like Frankenstein, the creation can not be sympathized with entirely. He too exhibits traits that make him appear villainous. It is the duality of these two characters that make Frankenstein and his creation two of the most appealing characters of the nineteenth century.
The monster of the novel is often misattributed with the name, “Frankenstein.” However, Victor Frankenstein can ultimately be considered the true monster of this tale. His obsession would lead to the corruption of his soul and the creation of two monsters—one himself, and the other, the creature. In attempting to take on the role of God, nature would become a monster to Victor and destroy his life. These elements of monstrosity in Frankenstein drive the meaning of its story.
At first glance, the monster in Frankenstein is a symbol of evil, whose only desire is to ruin lives. He has been called "A creature that wreaks havoc by destroying innocent lives often without remorse. He can be viewed as the antagonist, the element Victor must overcome to restore balance and tranquility to the world." But after the novel is looked at on different levels, one becomes aware that the creature wasn't responsible for his actions, and was just a victim of circumstance. The real villain of Frankenstein isn't the creature, but rather his creator, Victor.
At first, The Monster is very kind and sympathetic. He has a good heart, as shown when he collected firewood for the family on the brink of poverty. Like every other human creation, he was not born a murderer. All the Monster wanted was to be accepted and loved by Victor Frankenstein and the other humans but instead he was judged by his appearance and considered to be dangerous. The Monster says, “like Adam, I was created apparently united by no link to any other being in existence…many times I considered Satan as the fitter emblem of my condition; for often, like him, when I viewed the bliss of my protectors, the bitter gall of envy rose within me” (page 105). This line is an important part of the novel because the Monster lets it be known how like Adam he was created into this world completely abandoned and like Satan he is angry with those people who have found contentment and satisfaction in their lives. The rejection and unwelcome feeling he is faced with, is the main reason the Monster becomes a killer. Watching another family show love towards each other made the Monster realize how alienated he truly was. He did not know how to deal with his pain and emotions so he murders as
It is in the complex structure of the novel that Mary Shelley creates sympathy. We shift from Robert Walton to Victor Frankenstein to the monster and finally back to Walton. With each shift of perspective, the reader gains new information about both the facts of the story and the reliability of the narrator. Each perspective adds pieces of information that only they knows: Walton explains the circumstances of Victor’s last days, Victor explains his creation of the monster, the monster explains his turn to evil. This impact of the change of narration gives us a better understanding of each person, and we see that the monster is not such a monster at all.
...vel, passing one story onto his sister and the reader, though he does serve a purpose as the character who sees wrong in what he is doing, contrasting with the other two protagonists. Walton is also the neutral approach towards the whole tale, providing the story with a ‘filter’ to remove Victor’s opinions and perspectives that are invalid and unimportant to the tale. Walton is also used as a parallel to the monster and Victor but is often perceived as the ‘shadow’ of Victor. Shelley includes many of her personal life within the novel as is evident in the monster’s upbringing, her childhood contrasts greatly with that of Victor’s. Though I don’t believe he is included just as a mechanical narrative device, I believe that he is used to represent the reader. In a way that states that what he does at the end of the novel is what every budding scientist should do: stop.
Monsters can come in various physical forms, but all monsters share the same evil mentality. A Monster is a being that harms and puts fear within people. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is a prime example of how appearance does not determine whether a creature is a monster or not. In the story, Victor Frankenstein tries to change nature by creating a super human being. The being appears to be a monster. Victor becomes so obsessed with his creation and then rejects it. Victor is the real monster because of his desire for power, lack of respect for nature, and his stubbornness.
The book goes into greater detail regarding the monster’s hardships, has a more eloquent and persuasive monster and has a more heartbreaking ending. As a result a reader feels greater sympathy towards the monster in the novel rather than in the play. The monster begins his journey a purely innocent and kind being, but because he has to suffer the misfortune of having such a monstrous appearance he is condemned by society. Frankenstein tells the story of a benevolent being persecuted by man, and has the reader questioning who the real monster is.
In Frankenstein, Mary Shelley combines three separate stories involving three different characters--Walton, Victor, and Frankenstein's monster. Though the reader is hearing the stories through Walton's perspective, Walton strives for accuracy in relating the details, as he says, "I have resolved every night,...to record, as nearly as possible in his [Victor's] own words, what he has related during the day" (Shelley 37). Shelley's shift in point of view allows for direct comparison and contrast between the characters, as the reader hears their stories through the use of first person. As the reader compares the monster's circumstances to those of Victor and Walton, the reader's sympathy for the monster greatly increases.