Frankenstein V

One recurring theme in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein is work, and the dangers of obsession with it. Frankenstein's obsession with his work comes back to haunt him in the physical manifestation of the creature he created. Victor became such a slave to his work in college that he shut himself away from the outside world. He obsessively questions if he can create life, not if he should. Later in the novel, Shelley shows how Victor literally becomes a slave to his work. He is threatened into creating a female creature by his own creation! The creature even states, "You are my creator, but I am your master" (122). Shelley emphasizes this theme more at the parts of the novel that include Walton. Walton, like Victor, has become obsessed with his work. This similarity is what provokes Victor to tell him of the story in the first place, and is an overall theme throughout the novel.

Frankenstein IV

The protagonist in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein is Victor Frankenstein. However, unlike many protagonists I read about, I feel not sympathy for Victor. Most readers hear Victor's story and feel bad for the lonely genius whose entire life was destroyed by one mistake. However, Victor brought all his suffering upon himself. It was his own obsession with his work that caused him to be cut off from his family and friends during his college years. The creature he created also causes him much suffering. William's death and Justine's execution are directly linked to Victor's own creation. It is true Victor did not know the consequences of his actions, and therefore could be forgiven for these first two deaths. This is not true, however, for the later deaths of Henry and Elizabeth. Victor knowingly broke his deal with the creature by destroying his bride. The creature told Victor the destruction he would cause if Victor did not help him. He even threatens him, saying "...remember, I shall be with you on your wedding night" (123). Therefore, Victor's choice makes it difficult for me to feel any sympathy for the grief he experiences.

Frankenstein III

In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, Victor's creature invokes multiple feelings within the reader. During his life story, sympathy is felt for the creature. His feelings of abandonment and rejection makes his actions, however evil, understandable. He even admits he is "full of fears, for if I fail there, I am an outcast in the world forever" (95). However, as the novel continues, any positive feelings I had for the creature vanished. The creature now understands the world and his actions enough to blackmail Victor into making a female creature. The temper tantrum the creature throws when it does notwork out reflects poorly on him. His brutal murder of Henry and Elizabeth, both innocent parties, is unacceptable. Even after causing the destruction of Victor's entire family, the creature is still not satisfied. He continues to egg Victor into wasting his remaining life chasing after the creature. When Victor finally perishes during the haunt, the creature adds one more death to his total.

Frankenstein II

In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, both Victor and his creature experience parallel lives. That is, Victor and his creature correspond their moments of happiness and grief throughout their lives. For example, the first spring after the creature's birth, both are at happy points in their lives. Victor has just healed from his illness, and is flourishing in the companionship of his friend, Henry. Meanwhile, the creature is excited and anxious to begin his plan to reveal himself to "his" family. He admits he felt "the future gilded by bright rays of hope, and anticipations of joy" (81). Similarly, that winter both experience sorrow. Victor is unable to return to his family, due to weather that prohibits travel. At the same time, the creature experiences rejection from the family he has been watching. The final example is the creature's devastation at the "death" of his bride. His revenge, murdering Elizabeth, continues the parallelism of the two's lives.

Frankenstein I

The latter half of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein provides much irony. One of the biggest uses of irony is Victor's trial for the murder of his friend, Henry. Victor is accused by the townspeople of murdering Henry, as they saw a man on a boat that same night. One woman said she "saw a boat with only one man in it, push off from that part of the shore where the corpse was afterwards found" (129). However, Victor proclaims his innocence. This is ironic to the reader because, although he did not murder Henry directly, it was Victor's fault. Not only did he create the creature that committed the crime, but it was Victor's act of destroying the female creature that drove the monster to murder. If Victor had not broken the deal, his friend would still be alive. There, although Victor is declared innocent, his feelings of guilt should not diminish. For ultimately, the town was indeed correct. Victor Frankenstein is a murderer.

Frankenstein IV

 Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, makes use of many literary devices, including characterization, personification, and similies. However, her biggest use of literary devices is frame stories. Her novel begins with the focus on Robert Walton, a man with a goal of traveling to the North Pole. When Walton meets a mysterious stranger, he is told the man's story. Robert then relays the story via letters to his sister. This brings it to a story within a story, within a third story. To add to the confusion, Shelley adds another frame story. When Victor finally speaks to his creation, the creature insists upon telling Victor his story. The creature insists "Hear my tale, it is long and strange" (70). With this new tale, it brings the total of frame stories to four, reminding the audience a little too much of Inception. 

Frankenstein

In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, Victor Frankenstein spends the majority of his college years experimenting to create life. However, his path to creation began much earlier. Victor first became interested in scientific education in his youth. He came across the works of Cornelius Agrippa and became obsessed with the "magic" of science. His father's casual damnation of the volumes furthered Victor's increase in the subject. Victor admits"I continued to read with the greatest avidity." (21). However, Victor was far from only self-educated. His college professors, Krempe and Waldman, foil characters, contributed to Victor's creation indirectly. Waldman encouraged Victor to study all ares of science, even the Agrippa. While Krempe provided him with more common information. This unique education led Victor on his path to creation.

Frankenstein III

In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, Victor works tirelessly to create an animated creature. However, when he accomplishes his goal, hi pride quickly transforms to disgust. He laments "...now that I had finished, the beauty of the dreamed vanished" (pg 35). However, Frankenstein's lack of platonic feelings for his creation do not cause his creature to lack feelings for Victor. The creature immediately tracks down Victor to his bedchamber after Victor abandons him. He then reaches out for Victor and murmurs inarticulately. Although Victor perceives this as threatening, through his later conversation with the creature he learns it was more an act of seeking acceptance from his creator. The creatures actions resemble that of a baby after birth. This further stresses the bond the creature and Victor could have had, that of a father and son. It become clear during their conversation that having that bond is the only thing the creature seeks.

Frankenstein II

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein was one of the most popular novels of her generation. However, it also secured her a place within the hearts of future generations. The story of the scary creature brought to life by a genius scientist has become a Halloween fixture and a popular culture phenomena. Like many past stories, Frankenstein has been altered slightly from the original with each new version. In the original text, Dr. Frankenstein is not an evil scientist with a hidden agenda, as most films today depict him, but rather an intelligent college student with a noble goal of curing disease. Also in the text, Frankenstein receives no help with his creation, in fact he tells no one about it. In many other tales, the "mad" doctor receives help from a creepy assistant. Another major difference between Shelley's version and folklore is the physical appearance of the creature. Shelley describes him with "yellow skin [that] scarcely covered the work of muscles and arteries beneath" (pg 35). While the giant muscles sound familiar  most modern depictions of the creature portray him with green skin, probably to increase fear in audiences. While Shelley's story continues to spread in the modern world, society has left an influence on the old tale.

Frankenstein I

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein depicts several themes. Lonliness, solitude, and destiny are all heavily mentioned in the first half. However, one major theme after William's death is guilt. This unimaginable act of violence led to many blaming themselves. Elizabeth blames herself, fearing the trinket she gave William on the night of his murder was the motive. Victor's father states she "weeps continually and accuses herself unjustly as the cause of the crime" (pg 47). However, she is not alone in her guilt. Victor also felt an extreme amount of (maybe appropriate) guilt for the death. He believes his creation committed the crime, indirectly making him the cause of the murder. In the end, neither Elizabeth nor Victor are relieved of their guilt, for justice has yet to be served.

APO 96225

Larry Rottmann's APO 96225 relates greatly to the audience. Most readers understand the need for little white lies, told in an effort to protect someone. The young man in the poem wanted to do just that. At first, he kept the horrors of war from his mother. However, while the situation is relatable to the reader, it is also ironic. The mother begs the son to tell of the true terrors he faces, saying "Son, we want you to tell us everything. Everything!" (Rottmann, 846). However, when the son tells a small fraction of his true duties of war, he upsets his mother so much his father rebukes him, stating he should not write to his mother of such depressing topics. This is situational irony, because the reader expects that the mother and father would send comforting words in response to their son's depressing letter. Instead, the mother becomes upset and the father angry. The biggest irony is the mother begged her son to tell her of the truths, but she cannot handle the truth!

I Felt A Funeral, In My Brain

Emily Dickinson's poem I Felt A Funeral, In My Brain gives the reader a glimpse into the speaker's mind. This mind is chaotic, fighting to hold on to reality. The tone of desperation overwhelms the reader with the sense the speaker is seeking help. The speaker uses an extended metaphor to detail their downward emotional spiral. This metaphor is of a funeral inside the speaker's mind representing the loss of the speaker herself, whether it mean her death or merely her sanity. Within the speaker's mind, there has been a loss, or death. The alienation theme is clear with the phrase, "And I and Silence some strange Race, Wrecked, solitary, here" (Dickinson, 776). The speaker feels completely alone, forgotten, and lost within her own mind.  The end of the poem trails off, signifying the end for the speaker. Her descent into the darkness is complete,  whether that darkness is death or the depths of her own mind.

Miss Brill

Katherine Mansfield's Miss Brill captures the fear most reader's possess, growing old and alone. However, it is through literary techniques that Mansfield captures the audiences attention and creates such sympathy for poor, elderly Miss Brill. For example, Mansfield uses personification several times throughout the story with regards to Miss Brill's fur. Miss Brill describes the fur as having eyes that say "What has been happening to me?" (Mansfield, 182). Miss Brill talks to the fur, and believes it to be talking back to her. This particularly saddens the reader, for it is clear Miss Brill must be exceeding lonely to reduce to speaking to inanimate objects as if they were people. Also, Miss. Brill's joy at the beginning of the story stems solely from the act of releasing the fur from storage and getting to wear it. That this simple act brings so much happiness to the women shows how dull the rest of her life must be in comparison. In the final scene, Miss Brill hears unfriendly remarks about her from some teenagers, and then believes to hear the fur crying. This personification of her feelings through the fur show the audience Miss Brill's true lonliness and despair.

Bartleby the Scrivener II

In Herman Melville's Bartleby the Scrivever, the narrator tells of the eccentric and mysterious Bartleby. He clearly admires Bartleby and puts up with his abnormalities because of his excellent work. However, when Bartleby eccentricities begin to effect his work ethic, the lawyer strives to find the cause of Bartleby's strangeness. While depression or his previous job may have effected Bartleby's mental staus, I believe an anxiety disorder is most likely the root of the problem. Throughout the story, Bartleby shows many signs of suffering some kind of mental disorder, such as autism or OCD. Firstly, Bartleby never intiates conversation, and rarely speaks at all beyond saying he "would prefer not to." He also seems oblivious to normal social conceptions, as shown by his obliviousness toward his co-worker's mockery. Also, he takes questions literally. This is shown when the lawyer asks what he is doing and Bartleby replies, "Sitting upon the banister" (Melville, 670). All these examples leader readers to conclude Bartleby suffers from a mental or anxiety disorder.

Bartleby the Scrivener

In Herman Melville's Bartleby the Scrivener, the narrator chooses not to tell us about his own life. Instead, he speaks about a strange fellow named Bartleby. The lawyer tells about Bartleby most likely because he feels a connection to the man based on their similarities. The lawyer subconciously sees that Bartleby is a more extreme version of himself. Both the lawyer and Bartleby are friendless and have no known family. While the lawyer pities Bartleby for never leaving the office, the lawyer himself rarely seems to go anywhere else either. He remains, like Bartleby, set off from society by his own choosing.

These similarities are what allow the narrator to have sympathy for Bartleby, time and time again. Even when the lawyer has seemingly moved on, he continues to come back to Bartleby and even visits  him in prison. This dedication, shown by a man who "has been filled with a profound conviction that the easiest way of life is the best", appears because the lawyer recognizes the connection between himself and his eccentric employee. (Melville, 642).