Frankenstein Quotes + AO2 Flashcards
What does Walton want to discover?
“A passage near the pole”
Who does he write his letters to?
His sister
What does Walton represent?
A typical Georgian gentleman with an ambitious explorer spirit
What does Walton represent?
A typical Georgian gentleman with an ambitious explorer spirit
Walton: “the joy a ….. feels when he embarks on a …… ….”
Child,
Little boat
Analyse: “the joy a child feels when he embarks on a little boat”
- naive optimism
- ignorant of potential dangers
- does not grasp magnitude of voyage
- represents the enlightenment
Shelley refers to Walton’s feelings about embarking on a voyage of discovery as ‘the joy a child feels when he embarks on a little boat’. Walton is driven by a naive sense of optimism that seems to cloud his judgement and make him ignorant to potential dangers he may face on his journey. He does not grasp the magnitude of his exploration, reducing it to an exploration done by a ‘child’ on a ‘little boat’; this over-ambition represents the explorer spirit embraced by many late Georgians, and the political movement: The Enlightenment.
Walton: “I may there discover the …….. power which attracts the ……”
Wondrous,
Needle
Analyse: “I may there discover the wondrous power which attracts the needle”
- Hyperbolic language
- Highlights Walton’s hubris
“Success shall ….. my endeavours”
Crown
Analyse: “success shall crown my endeavours”
- Walton driven by ambition
- sees himself as a pioneer (glorified self-image)
- ‘shall’ = certainty
“Proceed over the …….. yet …….. element”
Untamed,
Obedient
Analyse: “proceed over the untamed yet obedient element”
- antithesis (opposites)
- disregards power of nature
- views himself as superior to nature
- can link to Romantics as AO3
Victor and Walton are doubles - what is the term for this?
Doppelgängers
Victor and Walton are doubles - what is the term for this?
Doppelgängers
“He must have been a ….. creature”
Noble
Analyse: “He must have been a noble creature”
- Victor = embodiment of the enlightenment and its consequences
- ‘creature’ - unequal relationship, pity
Analyse: “He must have been a noble creature”
- Unequal relationship, pity
- Victor = embodiment of enlightenment and its consequences
“One man’s life or death were but a small price to pay for the acquirement of ………”
Knowledge
“One man’s life or death were but a small price to pay for the acquirement of ………”
Knowledge
Analyse: “One man’s life or death were but a small price to pay for the acquirement of knowledge”
- reckless ambition
- Walton mirrors Victors former self
- Enlightenment
What word could be used to describe Victor’s childhood?
Idyllic
“Inexhaustible stores of ……… from a very mine of love”
Affection
Analyse: “Inexhaustible stores of affection from a very mine of love”
- hyperbolic language
- idyllic childhood
- contrast to Shelley’s own childhood
“The innocent and helpless creature bestowed upon them by …….”
Heaven
Analyse: “The innocent and helpless creature bestowed upon them by Heaven”
- Hyperbolic language
- connotations of purity and naivety - foreshadows his later impure actions
- views himself as a gift
“A …… …. that all seemed but one train of enjoyment to me”
Silken cord
Analyse: “A silken cord that all seemed but one train of enjoyment to me”
- connotations of wealth, comfort and luxury
- ideal and easy childhood
What was Victor’s cousin called?
Elizabeth
“I have a …… ……. for my Victor - and tomorrow he shall have it”
Pretty present
Analyse: “I have a pretty present for my Victor - and tomorrow he shall have it”
- Elizabeth presented as a possession for Victor to own - objectification
- Lack of agency
- ‘it’ = dehumanising
“…. to protect, love and cherish”
“Till death she was to be …. only”
Mine
Analyse:
“mine to protect, love and cherish”
“Till death she was to by mine only”
- Highlights Victor’s superiority complex in his immediate assumption that Elizabeth needs protection
- ‘mine’ repeated - obsessive ownership
- ‘death’ foreshadowing
“….. of distinction”
Crown
“Bearing a …….. stamp in all her features”
Celestial
Analyse:
“A crown of distinction on her head… a being heaven-sent, and bearing a celestial stamp in all her features”
- biblical imagery places Elizabeth on a pedestal
- Victor’s obsession with the superficial can be linked to physiognomy
- objectification and lack of agency
“I was ….. wrapt up in this”
Solely
Analyse: “I was solely wrapt up in this”
- Neglects his own health and his relationships with family to focus on his studies
- becomes isolated - aware that his work breaks moral rules so unable to talk about it with anyone
- controlled by a desire to fulfil ambition