Frankenstein Chapters 9-10
- Victor’s sleep is compromised by his actions and his lack of action. What does Victor do to reconcile his conscience? Start with a literal answer and segue into a symbolic interpretation.
- Here we begin to see a different monster than that formed in our minds because he is eloquent. Give one example of his eloquence and explain its impact on you.
Due Date: Wednesday, November 18, Morning!!!
21 comments:
At the opening of Chapter 9, Victor Frankenstein is weighted down by the deaths of two people close to him- deaths he finds himself responsible for (albeit indirectly). William, he believes, has died at the hands of the terrible monster he has unleashed, and Justine is dead as a direct result of William’s untimely demise. This “weight of despair and remorse pressed on [his] heart” and his guilt manifests itself in the form of self-pity, insomnia, and an aversion to company (Shelley 85). Victor attempts to address his guilt by retreating into nature: sailing out onto the lake and travelling to Chamounix. He described vividly this journey, mentioning how “the immense mountains and precipices that overhung him on every side, and the dashing of the waterfalls around spoke of Omnipotence…” and through witnessing this power was less fearful, knowing that nothing could exceed the strength of that which had created the glory of nature (Shelley 90). This description of how nature “cured” and aided Frankenstein can be easily tied in to Romantic ideas of the time. Romanticists of the 19th century worshipped nature and saw in it an escape from the industrial, violent, and socially disjointed world they lived in. Much as nature was viewed as an escape for Victor from his problems, so too did Romanticists attribute to nature all sorts of values and virtues.
As Victor gazes down at the vast lands stretching out underneath him, he is suddenly aware of the presence of his unfortunate creation. His anger and passion are expected, but the eloquence and intelligence of the monster are extremely surprising. It’s clear, well-phrased and eloquent speech is shocking to the reader, and definitely discards any previous misconceptions that could exist regarding the intelligence of the creature and the level of its intellectual development. The monster exclamation that had the greatest impact on me was his initial utterance toward victor: “I expected this reception, all men hate the wretched; how, then, must I be hated, who am miserable beyond all living things!” (Shelley 95). This is due mostly to the shock factor imbued in it both from the eloquence and the emotion demonstrated by the creature. Intelligence as in the form we demonstrate at school is very different from emotional intelligence, and in his initial statement Victors creation shows how highly developed it is in both these realms.
In chapter 9, Victor Frankenstein feels guilty for the deaths of William and Justine. He indirectly caused them, but creating the monster. "I was siezed by remorse and the sense of guilt"(Shelley 85). In order to get rid of his guilty and horrible feelings, he decides to escape to the Alpines, to be close to nature and forget his sad reality. I think this symbolizes a new beginnig for Victor, the birth of a new personality of his, where he will take action for his past actions. He is filled with regret and a hate for the monster, and decides to "get rid of it" at all costs.
When he encounters the monster in the Alpines, he starts having a conversation with him. I was impressed by the monster's eloquence, since I though he wouldnt even know how to speak. After all, he was only a few days old. I was also impressed by how much he knew and what he had learned. He told Victor: "All men hate the wretched; how, then, must I be hated, who am miserable beyond all living things!" (Shelley 95). I felt very bad for the monster after reading this, because it is not his fault he was born under such miserable conditions. I do, however, admire him because further into the chapter he explains how he survived the first few days, and he learned a lot by himmself.
Because Victor feels responsible for not only the death of his brother, but also for the death of Justine, he finds himself unable to bring joy back into his family. he feels weighed down by guilt and feels his only escape would be to the Alpine Valleys wher everything was perfect and magnificant. He takes himself away from a place of constant sorrow to a place that holds nothing but perfection. No mistakes are made in the creation of the valleys, the exact opposite of his creation.
what struck me the most about the monster's eloquence was his sense of persuasion.He was not only able to express his feelings to Frankenstien but he was able to persuade him into listening to his story. He understands the ways of people and is familiar with their methods and uses it as a way to convince Frankenstien to listen. "The guilty are allowed, by human laws, bloody as they are, to speak in their own defense before they are condemned." (Shelly97) Even theought the creature says that he is always hated by man, he has obviously learned and spent much time with people because of what he knows of practices that are known to man, and are not common, every day events.
Victor Frankenstein is loaded with guilt after the two deaths. “I was seized by remorse and the sense of guilt… solitude was my only consolation- deep, dark, deathlike solitude.” (Shelley 85) His only solution is being alone as he says so, and this is why he goes to the valley of Chamounix. “ …to forget [his] sorrows.” (Shelley 89). When Victor is close to his family, he cannot avoid thinking about the wrongdoings, so he wants to get away. He is in a way trying to escape, instead of facing the problem.
What impacts me most of the creature is when he says: “Life, although it may only be an accumulation of anguish, is dear to me, and I will defend it,” (Shelley 96) because it shows the creatures capability of reasoning about life and having a positive attitude. It shows that he is more human than we thought because he has feelings, and although he was probably hurt, he tells Victor that he is willing to be benevolent again.
Victor Frankenstein feels extremely guilty for he believes its his fault that two people so close to him died. He feels completely responsible for creating the creature and causing so much despair to so many especially Elizabeth. In an attempt to console himself Victor "shunned the face of man; all sound of joy or complacency was torture to" (Shelley 85) him. He said that solitude was his only consolation. He was living life afraid because he feared that the monster which he had created "should penetrate some new wickedness" (Shelley 87). To reconcile his conscience Victor decided to make a "pilgrimage to he highest peak of the Andes"(Shelley 87). he there wished to find the creature and avenge the murder of William and Justine. His trip to the mountains i think is not only to deal with his guilt but also to try to forget it and escape it. When he is around Elizabeth and his father which are so sad, he cannot help but think about all the damage he caused. In the mountains, there is nothing to remind him of his wrongdoings.
While on his trip he encounters the creature "at the top of the ascent" (Shelley 94). The creature has changed drastically for the last time Victor was with the creature. His eloquent language is very impacting. I don't think people expected for him to speak so much and so well. However, even though the way the creature spoke impacted me, what impacted me the most was the way he was capable of thought. The creature was able to blackmail Victor. He was able to think of a way to get his way, to get his creator to listen to him. This was not easy I'm sure for he had to learn things by himself and very quickly. The way the creature was able to think and create logical reasons for Victor was what impacted me the most.
Victor starts Chapter 9 by describing his feelings: "Nothing is more painful to the human mind than, after the feelings have been worked up by a quick sucession of events, the dead calmness of inaction which follows and deprives the soul both of hope and fear" (Shelley 85). We can see that Victor has reached a stage in his life where he fears that his inaction will lead to more deaths and eventually to his own death, even if it is only spiritual. In order to reconcile his conscience Victor decides to take a trip to the Alpines, where he comes in contact with nature and welcomes adveristy as a form of self-punishment. I think that this trip symbolizes a transformation-Victor is becoming more separated from those he cares about and traveling towards the monster in order to become one himself.
The monster's eloquence is stunning and has the power to calm down Victor. Through a powerful use of ethos, pathos, and logos, the monster is able to seduce Victor into hearing his story. "Be calm! I entreat you to hear me before you give vent to your hatred on my devoted head. Have I not suffered enough that you seek to increase my misery?" (Shelley 96). The monster arouses compassion-his words convey his suffering and impact me with their bluntness for thay are not fabricated nor false: they are the true words that accurately depict the monster's tribulations.
In the beginning of chapter 9, Victor is unable to sleep because of his inability to expunge the guilt that now surrounds his persona. This man feels incredibly guilty because he feels linked to the death of two of his family members. His sentiments completely disconcert him. He is perturbed by a slight recollection of his beloved William and Justine. In order to mollify his pain and regain the ability to sleep, Victor decides to travel to the Alpine Mountains in attempt to alleviate his guilt and bask in the tranquility and beauty emitted by the mountain. He retreats into the nature, where his feelings of sadness, apprehension, and remorse appear to subdue. A tone of tranquility is displayed when Victor is able to grasp the entirety of the Arve’s beauty and recognizes that “The same lulling sounds [that] acted as a lullaby to [his] keen sensation” (Shelley, 91) aided him to treat his sleep deprivation. This can be observed when Victor informs us that after hearing this relaxing sounds “sleep crept over [him]; [he] felt it as it came and blessed the giver of oblivion” (Shelley, 91).
During one of his meditations, Victor encounters the monster and what amazed me the most wasn’t only the monster’s eloquence and vivid diction, but his skillfulness to persuade Victor into listening to his story. I was shocked at how easily Victor was swayed by a creature that had recently been responsible for the death of two individuals that Victor had held in great esteem. This fiend is incredibly intelligent; his cleverness can be observed not only when he calms Victor’s rage, but when he influences his decision by appealing to Victor on insignificant matters with rhetoric such physical discomfort, “Hear my tale: it is long and strange, and the temperature of this place is not fitting to your fine sensations; come to the hut upon the mountain” (Shelley, 98) in order to get Victor to listen to his story. I was greatly impacted by the monster’s intellect and his astounding use of rhetoric, I must say that I no longer leer at this monster.
MANUEL CALVILLO:
Victor feels guilty because of William's and Justine's death. He killed them both in an indirect way and he felt troubled too because he knew that those were just the first victims of his monstrous creation. He decides to do what he did when he was younger to calm himself and be able to think: He went to the valley of Chamounix. Probably he just wanted to be surrounded by nature and feel comforted by the normal natural things that exist and forget the fact that he created something unnatural.
In the valley he encounters the monster. The monster now is clearly much more intelligent than he was before. He can speak clearly and fluently, which shocks both Victor and the reader. "On you it rests, whether I quit forever the neighborhood of man and lead a harmless life, or become the scourge of your fellow creatures and the author of your own speedy ruin." (Shelley 98). The monster demonstrates his intelligence because he knows exactly what he has to say to Victor to convince him of listening to his story. The monster knows that he is bigger and stronger than Victor, and that any other human, so he knows he can destroy Victor's life easily. His reasoning and logic behind his arguments are the most surprising thing in my opinion.
Victor attempts to reconcile his inner peace by escaping to the Alps, where he can be alone in reflect. He retreats to nature and is in turn made to feel by the scenery around him, for example "The rain depressed me; my old feelings recurred, and I was miserable.” This is very much in line with the Romantic ideal of nature as a source for awe inspiring experiences.
Frankensteins creature is reavealed to be not the monster that it was initially made out to be, an example of his eloquence when he attempts to reason with Victor instead of seeking a physical confrontation "Be calm! I entreat you to hear me before you give vent to your hatred on my devoted head. Have I not suffered enough, that you seek to increase my misery?"
In order to cure his inner "hell of intense tortures such as no language can descirbe" of the guilt he possessed after the death of two innocent souls, Victor goes to the alps (Shelly 85). Victor's decision on traveling to the peaks of the alphines shows that he wants to lessen his spiritual burden of guilt. By wandering around the nature and the valley, Victor sees magnificence in nature. "Solemn silence of this glorious presence-chamber of imperial nature... brawling waves or the fall of some vast fragment, the thunder sound of the avalanche" (Shelly 92). This shows the grandness of nature which also links with romanticism. "...which through the silent working of immutable laws, was ever and anon rent and torn, as if it had been but a plaything in their hands. These sublime and magnificent scenes afforded me the greatest consolation that I was capable of receiving.They elevated me from all littleness of feeling, ... they subdued and tranquilized it" (Shelly 92). This quote also illustrates how Victor, by returning to the vast grand creation of the creator, feels soothed. Just like how the monster seeks Victor, the creator, to understand him(monster) as his creation.
The monster, unlike how I imagined, has a great sense of eloquence and intelligence as well as human feelings. "My height is superior to thine...I will even mild and docile to my natural lord and king if thou wilt also perform thy part, the which thou owest me" (Shelly 96). This shows how the monster is highly developed that he even convinces Victor. The monster also states "remember that I am thy creature; I ought to be thy Adam...Make me happy,and I shall again be virtuous" (Shelly96). The monster even ends up persuading Victor to listen to his tales. Unlike the grotesque and inhumane figure I imagined the monster to be, the monter had emotions, and was sensitive just like any human being. I was very surprised by how moving the monster was convincing Victor to understand/listen to his own creation. I was also surprised how the monster could talk and provide Victor with logical reasons instead of uttering monstrous sounds.
Victor constantly thinks of killing himself and with him all his woes. He always stops himself, however, for Elizabeth. One day, he can no longer deal with his problems: he decides to go to the mountains where he spent parts of his childhood to clear his head. Here he admires God's creations and he "ceases to fear or bend before any being less almighty than that which had created and ruled the elements". (90) He is cured by nature, because the romantics admired nature and God. Victor is running away from his unnatural creation and everything that it entails and dive into the goodness of nature- the natural soother.
The monster we've all seen in random movies is a dull, big, blob of human parts. This creation is a smart one, a more human one than humans (superhuman)and excessively capable of complex thought and ideas. His eloquence makes Victor look like more of a coward than he already is. A mark of his eloquence is when he says "I was benevolent: my soul glowed with love and humanity: but am I not alone, miserably alone? You, my creator, abhor me: what hope can I gather from your fellow creatures, who owe me nothing?" (97) If one thinks about this in terms of our (as humans) relationship with our creator (God), a vital part of it is the idea or certainty that GOd loves us, that we are his most precious creation. The creature must know this, because Victor had a sort of enlightened moment in his pilgrimmage when he claims he will no longer fear anything more than his creator. Is the monster not doing the same? If we thought our creator hated us, our lives and morals would be severely crippled because we would live in a maudlin world. But we don't- so we try to give back to our kindred the love our creator gives us.
Victor constantly thinks of killing himself and with him all his woes. He always stops himself, however, for Elizabeth. One day, he can no longer deal with his problems: he decides to go to the mountains where he spent parts of his childhood to clear his head. Here he admires God's creations and he "ceases to fear or bend before any being less almighty than that which had created and ruled the elements". (90) He is cured by nature, because the romantics admired nature and God. Victor is running away from his unnatural creation and everything that it entails and dive into the goodness of nature- the natural soother.
The monster we've all seen in random movies is a dull, big, blob of human parts. This creation is a smart one, a more human one than humans (superhuman)and excessively capable of complex thought and ideas. His eloquence makes Victor look like more of a coward than he already is. A mark of his eloquence is when he says "I was benevolent: my soul glowed with love and humanity: but am I not alone, miserably alone? You, my creator, abhor me: what hope can I gather from your fellow creatures, who owe me nothing?" (97) If one thinks about this in terms of our (as humans) relationship with our creator (God), a vital part of it is the idea or certainty that GOd loves us, that we are his most precious creation. The creature must know this, because Victor had a sort of enlightened moment in his pilgrimmage when he claims he will no longer fear anything more than his creator. Is the monster not doing the same? If we thought our creator hated us, our lives and morals would be severely crippled because we would live in a maudlin world. But we don't- so we try to give back to our kindred the love our creator gives us.
Most of you are on time - very important for me since Progress Reports are due on Friday.
Your insights are delightful reading. Well done. I am glad you are as impressed with the creature as I was when I first read the book. Mrs. R
Victor Frankenstein, haunted by guilt and insomnia, decides to go to the Alpine mountains to clear his head and seek refuge from his problems. During these times of stress, he needed to be alone and in touch with nature in order to relax. "These sublime and magnificent scenes afforded me hte greatest consolation that I was capable of receiving."(Shelley 92). This escape actually helped him recover from the sleepless nights that had accompanied him for some time now and seemed to mark the new beginning of Victor's life.
Although he was able to find confort in the mountains for some time, this was all about to change when he encounters the creature he abhorred since the day it breathed life. Upon the encounter of Frankenstein and the monster, I was very shocked to see how eloquent and articulate the monster was. Not only did he spoke with diction that seemed from a highly educated person, he also was able to persuade Victor into hearing his story, "Listen to my tale; when you have heard that, abandon or commiserate me, as you shall judge I deserve."(Shelley 97). The creature clearly shows traces of human emotion, especially guilt for his actions, but is asking, in a very rational manner, for a chance of being heard.
I was also very impressed with the way it was able to rationalize with Victor and make him see some truths about society. "You acuse me of murder, and yet you would, with a satisfied conscience, destroy your own creature. Oh, praise the eternal justice of man!" (Shelley 97). This statement caused a great impact on me because it made me realize how humans can easily manipulate certain societal standards to make them work for their own benefit.
Victor carries the burden of being “the true murderer” ( shelley 88) of his youngest brother William , and the executioner of Justine. He no longer finds peace with in his own family, which is currently in sea of despair and sorrow that constantly reminds him of his cowardly inaction “Do you think, Victor” said he, “that I do not suffer also? No one could love lave a child more than I loved your brother”( shelley 86), “Elizabeth was sad and desponding; she no longer took delight in ordinary occupations”(shelley 87).”This sate of mind preyed upon my health”(shelley85) victor stated and decides to retrieve to the valley Chamounix in the Alpine Valleys. From previous chapters we know that Victor’s serenity is triggered by the grandeur of nature, which sooth his senses and suppresses his feelings” The again the kindly influence ceased to act I found myself fettered again to grief and indulging in al misery of refection. Then I spurred like an animal striving so to forget the world, my fears “ shelley (91). Although victor has a way to reach tranquility his detour to the alps is more of act of weakness by which he tries to avoid his pounding guilt by running away from like when he walked out of the court room. His guilt wlways found a way to resurface, therefore the reason of his prolognes stay, in which he avoids confronting his torment.
When victor spots the monster, he at last after his prolonged appreciation for nature man up and deprecates his creation, and was struck by his dissenvolvement. Vicotors never expects the monster to be capable of rationalizing and synthesizing his own ideas about the manipulation of life, that his aresponses seem stupid and generic compared to the strong yet eloquent way of speaking and rationalizing “How dare you sport thus with life? Do your duites towards me, and I will do mine towards you and the rest of mankind”E(Shelley 95). The creatures evolution and his grasp of the human mind impresses me as a reader since he has mastered the art of persuasion by the use of logos and pathos “have I suffered enough, that you seek to increase my misery” P(shelley 96” that he is able to revert victors murderous attiude and is able to pacify him an convices him to hear his story.
In Chapter 9, Victor is experiencing lack of sleep due to his never-ending guilt. Two people he strongly cares for have died because of his own evil creation. William was directly killed by the monster and Justine was consequently executed after being judged responsible for the death. Victor does not manage to truly recover from the sentiment of guilt and remorse, "This state of mind preyed upon my health, which had perhaps never entirely recovered from the first shock it had sustained" (Shelley 85), and led him to feel lonely and depressed, "solitude was my only consolation-deep, dark, deathlike solitude" (Shelley 85). To find some peace and tranquility, Victor decides to go to the Alpines because he feels that nature will cure his despair. Here, he has some alone time to rethink his actions and consequences. I believe that this is when Victor decides to turn the page, not to forget the past misfortunes, but to meditate on his actions. He tries to find himself through the tranquility of nature in the hope of building a new beginning.
During his stay at Chamounix, Victor meets the creature and they begin a long and revealing conversation. The reader grasps another image of the monster since he begins to justify his actions and looks for answers to the questions that have been troubling him. He is very eloquent in the sense that he rightly blames humans for being so violent and uses this as an argument for his murders, "If the multitude of mankind new of my existence, they would do as you do, and arm themselves for my destruction. Shall I not then hate them who abhor me?" (Shelley 97). The creature is willing to learn from his creator and become less violent as Victor expects him to be, he is only asking for a little compassion and attention, "Let your compassion be moved, and do not disdain me" (Shelley 97). And by this, we clearly see that the monster is developing and analyzing life.
Victor feels completely responsible for Justine's death. He is also incredibly depressed due to the fact that he created a monster who murdered his younger brother and is currently haunting his life. He finds comfort while being in nature, and this is why he goes sailing in the lake everytime he can't go to sleep due to the terrible remorse he feels because of the recent tragedies that have ocurred in his life. Not only does Victor go sailing in the lake, but he decides to travel to the mountains at Chamonix, where he can be at peace both mentally and physically. He does all this to remember that the power of nature is still much greater than the power of man, and he does it to remind himself that human life is insignificant compared to the greatness of the physical world and its mysteries.
In chapter 10, the reader finds out that not everything is what it seems when the monster appears as an eloquent and smart being, and this conveys a different picture of what the reader had already envisioned the monster to be ( a reckless and terrible beast). “How can I move thee? Will no entreaties cause thee to turn a favorable eye upon thy creature, who implores thy goodness and compassion? Believe me, Frankenstein, I was benevolent; my soul glowed with love and humanity, but am I not alone, miserably alone?”(Shelley 96-97) The monster tells Frankenstein he is terribly miserable and needs the love of his creator. He uses his eloquence to try to convince Victor to accept him and take care of him.
In chapter nine we can see how Victor Frankenstein goes through an inner turmoil and starts to feel the guilt of the deaths of William and Justine, his actions had killed them, maybe not directly but he knew he was responsible for their deaths. In order to calm himself he goes to the Alpines to find a peaceful place to try and forget his deeds.“I was seized by remorse and the sense of guilt solitude was my only consolation deep, dark, deathlike solitude.” (Shelly 85)
Victors visit to the Alpines symbolizes Victor's wish to be able to find inner peace, his external world was going down, the people he loved were dead and he was to blame, he could only wish to go back somewhere to find peace.
When Victor sees the monster and starts talking to him I was very suprised not by the way the monster talked but by the way he was a peaceful creature and only meant to explain to Victor his deeds. I would have thought the first thing the monster would do when he found Victor would be to kill him, but the creature takes the place as the bigger man.
Victor’s feeling of guilt and shame is inevitable at this point in the story. He is tormented by both the deaths of William and Justine. William because he was his gifted brother and so a loving child, is one burden that certainly leaves a mark into Victor’s soul. Justine was innocent, and Victor indirectly condemned her. Victor could’ve stopped the trial by saying he had seen the killer, and explaining his creation. But his pride won here maintaining silence to keep his own fame and respect and not to be taken as a crazy man. He goes off to the mountains to soothe his sorrow and guilt; he enjoys seeing the landscapes of his hometown and prefers solitude after the recent events. The climbing of the mountains may symbolize how Victor wanted to reach the top scientifically speaking taking as proof of greatness, his creation. His downfall is his creation itself, who gives him a wakeup call when he appears at the mountain, making Victor enter his common sense again. Here, on this encounter, is when we see a different monster, one who can now speak and has a new perception on life, especially when he says “You purpose to kill me … do your duty towards me, and I will do mine towards you and the rest of mankind” (Shelley 95). The monster brings out a great point: Victor as creator must take responsibility for his creation and should’ve taken care of him. This impacted me because the creature though portrayed dumb, make a really good point. It’s as if a mother would abandon their child because he’s ugly. Well, the mother should take care since it’s her responsibility to educate the child. The same with Frankenstein and the monster, Victor had to take care of the monster, and when he didn’t the monster reacted and supposedly killed William. This demonstrates yet another natural law broken by Victor, that is the one of nurturing and love one’s child, in this case, his creation.
Victor, has lost control of himself, he wishes he had done something for Justine and William. He knows he is the indirect murderer of the innocent, and that now he cannot cease his turbulent soul. His reach-outs to greatness has made him miserable and now he knows he needs to find himself, in order to know what to do, how to fix everything, and end his despair. He goes to the mountain to find the tranquility he needs to do so, and it is very ironical that he finds the monster there. Then he realizes that the creature and him are not so different, because there both murderers, and in a strange way he found himself by finding the creature because, the creature even though it meant disaster for others, there compassion is the same.
"As he said this he led the way across the ice"(Shelley,98). The creature way of speaking with such compassion surprised Victor, and me as well. This quote is a consequence of his eloquence and Victor's shared compassion with the creature.
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