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theme of loneliness in books
loneliness theme in literature
the theme of loneliness
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One of the most significant themes in Frankenstein is loneliness. Several characters in Frankenstein show traits of loneliness significantly. Mary Shelley, the writer of this book, connects loneliness to the character of Victor, and shows how it affects the surroundings and the characters. Victor isolates himself from his surroundings and the society around him, mainly due to his self obsession and an obsession to make and give life. This eventually leads him into creating a creature, and regretting his actions later on. As Victor chooses his path into loneliness and isolation, he leads himself into avoiding and leaving situations, focusing on only his work, the state of mind of being an introvert, as in choosing not to express feelings or …show more content…
I provided myself with a sum of money, together with a few jewels which had belonged to my mother, and departed.” (192) He was calculating and calm at periods when otherwise delirium or death would have been my portion. With all these mixed feelings, he decided to leave everyone, as he believe that being alone gives him peace. Even in the past, Victor had found peace for himself by leaving home and isolating himself. These actions show that his choice of isolation have led him into turning into an introvert. Victor passes away in the end. “The work was soon finished; in a few minutes a tumultuous sea rolled between me and my enemy, and I was left drifting on a scattered piece of ice that was continually lessening and thus preparing for me a hideous death.” (199) He states that he was done with his responsibilities, and leaves to the sea. While he was at shore, he dies as a lonely and bitter person, as he chose that lonely and bitter lifestyle. In conclusion, loneliness played a major role in Victor Frankenstein’s life. Victor chose the path of loneliness and isolation from everyone in his life. This loneliness has affected many major events in his life, and had played a major role in his relationships with the people
..., 66). This is when Victor is talking to Henry Clerval, someone who used to be a very close friend of Victor’s. Victor is saying that he does not want to talk to Henry, he would rather remain alone. This shows that he has been “cut off” from society. He does not even acknowledge his own friends. His study has made him unsocial, and he does not know how to act in a social environment, as he is so used to being in solitude.
In the Romantic period of literature, nature was often associated with isolation in a positive way. Throughout the novel, Frankenstein: The Modern Prometheus, by Mary Shelley, there is a strong symbolic relationship between loneliness and nature. However, Shelley uses the relationship to show the negativity of being alone. The relationship of nature and loneliness is displayed through three characters in the story: Victor Frankenstein, his creature, and Robert Walton. At the times when the characters are alone and in need of companionship, they feel depressed, confused, and angry; they do not think clearly, and, consequently, they make wrong decisions. They seek refuge in nature, and try to use its beauty to find answers and to fill their void of friendship. Yet, none of the characters ever overcomes their bouts with loneliness because they never find true comfort in nature.
In the novel Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, loneliness is a key theme. There comes a point in the novel where Dr. Frankenstein has to make a decision: to either make his creature an equal woman companion or to refuse his protégé and face the dire consequences. At this point, Frankenstein is knowledgeable that his creation is the murderer of his brother (and indirectly caused the execution of his family friend Justine). He sees just exactly the problems that his creation has caused and how much pain his family is in from suffering these losses. On the other hand, the monster offers peace and a ceasefire on Frankenstein’s family if he obtains what he most desires. This could potentially make his creature less miserably alone, which ultimately could benefit Frankenstein and those who are dearest to him, as well the rest of mankind because the monster would in theory not be harming humans anymore. I personally take the stance that there are too many variables in the creation of life for Frankenstein to be messing with them not once, but twice in one lifetime.
Victor’s life starts with great potential. He comes from a decently wealthy family whose lack of love towards each other never existed. He is given everything he needs for a great future, and his academics seem to be convalescing. Everything starts to change once Victor`s ambitions become his life. He leaves to study at Ingolstadt where his destiny begins to unfold. This is when Victor’s isolation begins. The search for the secrets of life consumes him for many years until he thinks he has found it. For months, he assembles what he needs for his creation to come alive. The day came in which he was able to complete his life time research project. This day was described as the day “breathless ...
“Revenge alone endowed [him] with strength and composure; it modeled [his] feelings, and allowed [him] to be calculating and calm” (145). Victor gained new purpose and even on his deathbed holds to the principle that he is justified in desiring the death of his enemy. Moment before his death he turns to Captain Robert Walton and says, “I feel myself justified in desiring the death of my adversary. During these last days I have been occupied in examining my past conduct; nor do I find it blamable” (156). He even begins to lose the small amount of compassion he had for the creature’s struggle. When visiting his family’s graves he cries that, “they were dead, and I lived; their murder also lived” (145). Previously in the novel he blamed himself for the deaths of Mathew, Justine, and Henry, claiming to be their murderer and lamenting on the evil he had set forth into the world. Victor now places the weight of these deaths solely on the monster’s shoulders and believes it is his god given burden to cleanse the world of this evil. He had been “assured that the shades of [his] murdered friends heard and approved [his] devotion… rage choked [him]”(146). The death of the monster would not even weigh on his conscience since it is god’s
Victor Frankenstein's upbringing in a perfect society ultimately led to the destruction of his life which coincided with the lives of those emotionally close to him. Victor was raised in an atmosphere where beauty and physical appearance define one's quality of life. This superficial way of life results in a lost sense of morals and selfishness, which in turn produces a lost sense of personal identity. This can cause a feeling of failure and resentment in the later stages of life which, in Victor's case, can be externalized into a form of hatred directed toward himself.
When Victor flees the creature, he becomes lonely and unhappy. He rejects his own works. If he stayed and taught him the creature would at least have a chance of happiness. When the monster flees to the cottagers he learns about human nature. He quotes “I continued for the remainder of the day in my hovel in a state of utter and stupid despair. My protector had departed and broken the only link that held me to th...
He isolated himself from his family and society to work on his monster, even when it almost killed him. "I threw myself into the chaise that was to convey me away and indulged in the most melancholy reflections. I, who had ever been surrounded by amiable companions, continually engaged in endeavoring to bestow mutual pleasure-I was now alone. In the university whither I was going I must form my own friends and be my own protector." (Shelley 44) Victor had no regards for the regulations of society and rebelled against it by wanting to create life. “So much has been done, exclaimed the soul of Frankenstein – more, for more, ill I achieve; treading in the steps already marked, I will pioneer a new way, explore unknown powers, and unfurl to the world the deepest mysteries of Creation”. (Shelley
In the novel Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, the main theme revolves around the internal and external consequences of being isolated from others. Being isolated from the world could result in a character losing his/her mental state and eventually causing harm to themselves or others. Because both Victor Frankenstein and the creature are isolated from family and society, they experienced depression, prejudice, and revenge.
Frankenstein is unable to find a balance between his ego and Id. He is driven by his Id and gets caught up in his work, meanwhile losing himself in the process. Eventually his Id is what leads to his loneliness. He becomes detached from his family and friends and gives into his desires. Instead of appreciating what he has he gives into what Freud would call his pleasure principle. This principle wants to please every impulse as soon as possible without regard to
The novel “Frankenstein” was wrote by Mary Shelley on a stormy night. Loneliness is the sadness because one has no friends or company. She was a lonely woman who was inspired by “The Ancient Mariner”, “Henry James: The Young Master”, and “Paradise Lost by Milton. The story is about the creature murderous actions on loneliness, the cure of loneliness, and the cause of loneliness.
Frankenstein was abandoned by his creator Victor, he yells to him “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. You purpose to kill me” (Shelley 90). Frankenstein speaks on how he was created and left by the one person who should have been there for him. This abandonment cause Frankenstein to view himself as a monster who can never belong. Frankenstein when looking at his reflections says “at first I started back, unable to believe that it was indeed who was reflected in the mirror; and when I became fully convinced that I was in reality the monster that I am, I was filled with the bitterest sensations of despondence and mortification.” (Shelley 103). He does not want to be a monster he feels hopeless that he will never belong. He yearns for belonging and companionship. In the novel, he watches a family through a window and longs to belong. He teaches himself how to talk so that he could communicate with them. Through this communication he can become part of their family and be
It is when Frankenstein realizes how different he is to other people that he realizes his uniqueness and individualism. “I was, besides, endued with a figure hideously deformed and loathsome; I was not even of the same nature as man. I was more agile than they and could subsist upon a coarser diet; I bore the extremes of heat and cold with less injury to my frame; my stature far exceeded theirs. When I looked around I saw and heard of none like me. Was I, then, a monster, a blot upon the earth, from which all men fled and whom all men disowned?” (Frankenstein, 150). While Frankenstein is by no means a human, he is made up of human parts and still craves love and affection. His rejection from everyone he sees, including his creator makes him feel like an outcast. It was because of Victor that Frankenstein couldn’t bear to be who he was made to be and felt a need to run into isolation. Victor not only created a monster physically, but also mentally turned him into someone he didn’t have to be. Both Frankenstein and Victor struggle with balancing their personal wants and needs with societies expectations and the people around them. That is one of the true struggles of being one person living in a world of many, you have to do what makes you happy while making sure it doesn’t effect other peoples happiness negatively. Victor doesn’t do a good job of
Friendship is one of the most common human desires found all over the world in every different type of people. In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, this deep-seeded need is explored, especially as it manifests itself in the hearts of three great men. Captain Walden writes to his sister about the loneliness that he is experiencing on his journey at the very start of the book. Then, as the story progresses, a similar want can be found in Victor despite his tightly woven relationship with Henry Clerval. The Creature is constantly denied his lust for companionship demonstrates the horrible consequences of incessant loneliness. His amiable nature combined with his grotesque appearance proves to be a horrific collaboration that serves only in gaining rejection as he is shunned, quite irrationally, over and over again by all living beings. The Creature's suffering could only be abandoned if he were able to encounter an unprejudiced and completely tolerant friend. Shelley masterfully conveys the importance of a kindred spirit and the overall necessity of loyalty between people.
In the novel Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, one of the key themes is loneliness. For many, most of their time is spent with people, whether it is friends, family, coworkers, or strangers. Many of the characters in this book break that norm and spend countless hours alone. Having time to reflect and think about everything. Sometimes, the characters are still lonely, even with people, and sometimes friends around them.