These images could depict some of the main plot points of Chapters 5-10. While these moments are important, they are by no means the only significant points in these four chapters.
 Your blog post must be 250 - 300 words, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the assigned scientist given to you in class as your nom de plume.
Sophie Germain
10/15/2015 06:12:21 pm
“‘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? Life, although it may only be an accumulation of anguish, is dear to me, and I will defend it. Remember, thou hast made me more powerful than thyself; my height is superior to thine; my joints are more supple. But I will not be tempted to set myself in opposition to thee. I am thy creature, and I will be even mild and docile to my natural lord and king, if thou wilt also perform thy part, the which thou owest me. Oh, Frankenstein, be not equitable to every other, and trample upon me alone, to whom thy justice, and even thy clemency and affection, is most due. Remember, that I am thy creature; I ought to be thy Adam; but I am rather the fallen angel, whom thou drivest from joy for no misdeed. Everywhere I see bliss, from which I alone am irrevocably excluded. I was benevolent and good; misery made me a fiend. Make me happy, and I shall again be virtuous.’” (Shelley 89) In this excerpt, Victor and his creation are talking to one another. Victor does not want to have anything to do with his creation, but the “monster” is telling him that he is his responsibility since he created him. This scene ties in with the essential question of the relationship and responsibility of the creator and his creation. Victor’s creation acknowledges the fact that he is a creation and that someone else gave him his life. Victor does not want to take responsibility for his creation and tries to push him away. A creator and their creation should have mutual affection for one another. You can tell that the monster has respect for his creator, but the creator does not share the same feelings.
Sofia Kovalevskaya
10/15/2015 09:21:48 pm
In chapter eight of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein her intent is to show how Victor feels about the monster he created. His monster has killed his brother, William. Justine is accused of William’s death, which she admits to doing out of fear, and is hung. She is not blood related to Victor, but she has grown up with his family. She did not really kill him. Victor knows it was the monster that killed his brother. Yet does not disclose this information to anyone. The author uses this to then show the remorse Victor feels after. “From the tortures of my own heart, I turned to contemplate the deep and voiceless grief of my Elizabeth. This also was my doing!…Thus spoke my prophetic soul, as, torn by remorse, horror, and despair, I beheld those I loved spend vain sorrow upon the graves of William and Justine, the first hapless victims to my unhallowed arts” (Shelley 78). Shelly also uses this to show Victor’s character. He is afraid of the monster, his monster at that. He doesn’t want to see it and when he does he is frightened. He try to stay out of his own apartment while it was there. He knows his creation is responsible for his brothers death. No one else knows that. He is the only one with that information, which could have proven Justine innocent. Instead Victor allows her to be killed. Victor wants absolutely nothing to do with the monster. Victor is so afraid of his own creation he rather watch his family die off one by one.
Charlotte Knight
10/15/2015 10:02:28 pm
In chapter 10 of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Victor and his family took an excursion to the outskirts of Geneva to allay their heightened feelings of sorrow after the death of William (his brother) and Justine. After arriving at Belvire, Victor takes a solo-trip towards a valley called Chamonix, and then to the summit of Montanvert. He intends to absorb the “sublime” beauty of the earth in order to console his depressed feelings. However, at one moment, his eyes caught sight of an enormous, horrendous looking figure that caused his feelings of contempt to pulsate quicker than his heart. “‘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? Life, although it may only be an accumulation of anguish, is dear to me, and I will defend it. Remember, thou hast made me more powerful than thyself; my height is superior to thine; my joints are more supple. But I will not be tempted to set myself in opposition to thee. I am thy creature, and I will be even mild and docile to my natural lord and king, if thou wilt also perform thy part, the which thou owest me. Oh, Frankenstein, be not equitable to every other, and trample upon me alone, to whom thy justice, and even thy clemency and affection, is most due. Remember, that I am thy creature; I ought to be thy Adam; but I am rather the fallen angel, whom thou drivest from joy for no misdeed. Everywhere I see bliss, from which I alone am irrevocably excluded. I was benevolent and good; misery made me a fiend. Make me happy, and I shall again be virtuous’” (Shelley 89). At this moment, the disparities between humans and the monster narrow; we not only know of his ugliness that was first introduced, but of his intelligence as shown by his eloquent speech and of his emotions as shown by his feelings of neglect. This is the very first time Victor and his creature communicate verbally, a moment with much emphasis on the religious entitlements that tie them together. The monster, although capable of assassinating Victor, approaches him harmlessly and implores with such eloquent words his needs of acceptance and acknowledgment of a being with sentiments and necessities like any other being. The monster alludes to John Milton’s Paradise Lost to convey his feelings of inferiority towards Victor; he views Victor as his God, and he feels that Victor owes him acknowledgement and sympathy. I thought it was quite ironic how Victor is portrayed as a godly figure in this passage. First, he is so entertained by the exquisiteness of nature and dedicated years of his life to the study of the natural philosophies. Second, he created his own creature, which, yes, does coincide with god-like behavior, but differs from the belief that man is created by only one entity, God. This passage allowed me to understand the ties that bring Frankenstein and his monster together at various instances in the book so far. Despite Victor’s abhorrence towards his creature, he is still brought to him, further emphasizing his creature’s depiction his god-like duties.
Vera Yevstd Fievna Popova
10/15/2015 10:59:43 pm
In Chapter 7, right after Victor’s brother was murdered; he decides to make his way back to Geneva. At this point, Victor cannot feel anything, but guilt since he feels responsible for the events occurred. He has been noticing that ever since the creation of the “monster” that he worked so hard on, the evil has come upon him. “No one can conceive the anguish I suffered during the remainder of the night, which I spent, cold and wet, in the open air. But I did nor feel the inconvenience of the weather; my imagination was busy in scenes of evil and despair. I considered the begin whom I had cast among mankind, and endowed with the will and power to effect purposes of horror, such as the deed which he had now done, nearly in the light of my own vampire, my own spirit loose from the grave, and forced to destroy all that was dear to me” (Shelley 69). The paragraph identifies major point such as the effect which the “monster” is having on the Frankenstein family. It is almost in some way ironic, since Victor spent a large amount of time on creating it. We are aware that Victor is clearly intelligent, but then we wonder, why he created the monster without clear consideration of the bad that can happen. The text also is an important example of family unity, since his mother died; he was so focused on making the monster that his caring for his family, other than Elizabeth, wasn’t manifested too much. His actions when there was something wrong, helped to give life to that idea again.
Almira Hart Lincoln Phelps
10/17/2015 08:59:34 pm
In chapter 10, Victor Frankenstein travels to a nearby mountain in attempt to clear all the guilt in his head after the events that occurred (the death of his little brother William and close family friend Justine). There, he is confronted by his creation- the creature. Frankenstein is overcome with disgust and hatred towards the creature and undoubtedly believes the creature (and in a way, himself) is responsible for William's death. As Frankenstein prepared to fight the creature to the death, the creature offers Frankenstein an ultimatum, "Do your duty towards me, and I will do mine towards you and the rest of mankind. If you will comply with my conditions, I will leave them and you at peace; but if you refuse, I will glut the law of death, until it be satiated with the blood of your remaining friends" (Shelley 89). At first, this makes the creature seem evil; as if it were in his nature to kill people and cause pain. However, the creature later states, "Believe me, Frankenstein: 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?..." (Shelley 89). In this moment, both characters instantly become more complex. On one hand, readers sympathize with Frankenstein because his own creation turned on him and murdered his baby brother but on the other hand, Victor neglected his responsibility in creating life by abandoning it. As for the creature, readers now know that he is much more complex than Frankenstein thought him to be; his acts are simply a response to the treatment he received after being brought to life- hatred, indifference, and abandonment.
Elisa Bommer
10/18/2015 10:31:39 pm
In chapters five through ten, the monster that Victor created had come alive. Through Victor’s narrations we find out that the monster had supposedly killed his brother, William, which later led to the execution of Justine. The deaths in Victor’s life makes the tone of the book very solemn and depressing. “I considered the being whom I had cast among mankind, and endowed with the will and power to effect purposes of horror, such as the deed which he had now done, nearly in the light of my own vampire, my own spirit let loose from the grave, and forced to destroy all that was dear to me” (Shelley 69). In this quote from chapter seven, Victor is talking about how the monster he had created killed the people close to him in which he cared about. The understanding of this quote leads us to answer one of this book’s essential questions, “What is the relationship and responsibility between creator and creation?”. After the monster had come to life, Victor had not taken responsibility for it and had left his home. Due to his irresponsibility, the creature goes on to murder his brother. The relationship between the creator and the creation do not seem so bright, since the creator himself is afraid of his own creation. The creation also makes the creator fall into a bigger slump and become ill. In conclusion, the creator and the creation are not in a good relationship, especially with Victor having left his creation alone for a long time.
Josephine Silone Yates
10/25/2015 08:04:20 pm
From chapters five through ten, the series of events had led me to have a negative impression of Victor’s true character. On all accounts Victor acts as a victim to his own doings, which have seemed to impact his loved ones more than it has him. In chapter 5 Victor says “This was the commencement of a nervous fever, which…owed its origin to some uncommon and terrible event” (Shelley, 55), in this statement alone Victor shows his selfishness and how self-absorbed he is. In this passage not once does Victor resort to blaming himself for his outcome, he only blames that it had to do with his creation. Even as victor talks of the creature and how its creation is of his responsibility he speaks objectively. For example, He says, “A flash of lightning illuminated…to whom I had given life”, he continuously affronts his work before saying that he had “given” it life as if it was a dismissed favor he’d done (Shelley, 68). Later in the chapters as Justine’s innocence is being debated and Frankenstein has assumptions about his brother’s true murderer, he further more degrades his integrity with the reader. He does this as he says, “thus the poor sufferer tried to comfort others and herself…on the scaffold as a murderess”, he increases the amount of blood on his hands as he refuses to tell the truth about what he had created, he would rather let innocent lives be taken (Shelley, 78). Because of Victor’s cowardly behavior and fecklessness his credibility for his scientific breakthrough has fell below his questionable decisions and I don’t deem him redeemable.
Zsofia torma
10/25/2015 11:08:05 pm
Frankenstein does not give the creature a name which demonstrates that he does not want to take ownership for his own creation. “I escaped and rushed down stairs. I took refuge in the courtyard belonging to the house which I inhabited, where I remained during the rest of the night, walking up and down with the greatest agitation” (Shelley 52). Not only does Frankenstein not want to take responsibility, he also avoids anyone from meeting his creation, especially Clerval, because he is scared and ashamed. All the words Frankenstein used to describe the monster sound awful, yet Frankenstein himself finds his creation “beautiful.” Towards the end, Frankenstein does not want to know his “child,” but his instinct to simply kill the monster. “I ardently wished to extinguish that life which I had so thoughtlessly bestowed”(Shelley 81). Another major idea in these chapters was the fact that Frankenstein was projecting his feelings onto the creature. He does this by placing the extreme guilt he feels for creating the monster onto the creature. He feels evil and as a result he treats the monster as if it is evil. The first example of Frankenstein projecting his loss of humanity and horror onto the monster is when he first sees the creature, “but now that I have finished the beauty of the dream vanished and breathless horror and disgust filled my heart. Unable to endure the aspect of the being I had created, I rushed out of the room, and continued a long time traversing my bedchamber, unable to compose my mind to sleep” (Shelley 54).
Alice Eastwood
10/27/2015 04:50:52 pm
In chapter 5 to 10, Shelley’s intention of this section was to show the reader what the creature is capable to do when he is angry so as committing murder. This section of the book was a major turning point for the entire story because the author mention the death of Victor’s younger brother William, who he later found out from reading a letter that his father send to him that William have been murdered. For example in chapter 7 the father stated, “My dear Victor, You have probably waited impatiently for a letter to fix the date of your return to us; and I was at first tempted to write only a few lines, merely mentioning the day on which I should expect you. But that would be a cruel kindness, and I dare not to do it. What would be your surprise, my son, when you expected a happy and glad welcome, to behold, on the contrary, tears and wretchedness? And how, Victor, can I relate our misfortune? Absence cannot have rendered you callous to our joys and griefs; and how shall I inflict pain on my long absent son? I wish to prepare you for the woeful news, but I know it is impossible; even now your eye skims over the page, to seek the words which are to convey you the horrible tidings. “ William is dead! That sweet child, whose smiles delighted and warmed my heart, who was so gentle, yet so gay! Victor, he is murdered!”(Frankenstein). The quote from Victor father’s letter expresses the trouble baring news that Victor has to prepare himself to encounter with as soon as he returns home. This quote also shows the character development of the creature that Frankenstein have created and how the character himself as developed dramatically. The author shows how the development of the creature has lead to the first downfall of Victor Frankenstein’s life when his young brother was murdered by his own creation.
Jane Ellen Harrison
10/27/2015 08:59:48 pm
Chapters 5-10 show a development in Frankenstein’s true nature on his view of the world around him, and gives a better view on who and how the creature has developed into this new person. The passage “How can I move thee?... the work of your hands” (89-90), starts to show how the Creature’s mind has developed. He’s reasoning to get Frankenstein to agree to his terms and get his way. Now, Frankenstein is in a rage because of what the ‘daemon’ had done and sentenced his friend to death. The contrast on their outward emotions shows an evolution of the creature and devolution of Frankenstein. Within this passage the Creature wants the same justice that a normal man would get if he committed a crime he knew he was guilty of. He’s saying’ just hear me out, and if you don’t like it you can kill me’. It sounds like a very sensible thing because he’s understanding Frankenstein's rage and that it’s directed at what he did. But, the Creature is also saying ‘why shouldn’t I hate them like they me?’, which on one sense makes sense with an ’eye for an eye’ mentality. However, that can be dangerous and can possibly turn into a child with a temper tantrum and a bb gun, someone’s eye is sure to be taken out and the child will think they’re in the right. The Creature is still a man in the making with behaviors left to be learned and views still so fresh that he believes the world is against him; behaving like an angst-ridden teenager as if that will help his situation.
Sarah Drake
10/28/2015 10:44:42 pm
In chapter 7, Victors younger brother was murdered. At first he didn't know who he was murdered by but then when he got back to Geveva he realized that it might of been the creature that he created that killed his brother. He began to think of how he would tell the town, "But I paused and reflected on the story I had to tell,"(69). He had to think of what he would tell everyone. Then when dawn came along Victor entered into Geveva and that is when he found out that Justine has been accused with Williams murder. Even though Victor knows that it wasn't Justine who committed the murder he still let's it happen. He allows Justine to take the blame knowing that it was the creature. This is almost like Caine and Abel. Except Caine is the creature and Abel is William. As Caine murdered Abel, the creature murdered William.
Ada Lovelace
11/1/2015 11:54:27 am
In chapters 5- 10 Victor creates his monster. Victor is then horrified by his creation and refuses to claim the monster as his. When the monster is lose he kills Victors youngest brother William. Justine is then accused of the murder and convicted all by, you could say, Victors hand. " I believed in her innocence; I knew it. Could the daemon, who had(i did not for a minute doubt) murdered my brother, also in his hellish sport have betrayed the innocent to death and ignominy? I could not sustain the horror of my situation[...] I rushed out of the court in agony. "(shelly 76). More development of victors character is done here in this scene that we can use to understand his actions. Victor realizes that it was in fact his monster that killed William but does not say a world. We can believe he is to afraid to admit to what he has created. In the beginning of the try he tries to talk himself down by telling others that there is no evidence against Justine and that she will be okay. But, as we see that is not the case. We also see his selfishness in this one passage where he says things such as "the tortures of the accused did not equal mine" (shelly 76). The pain, guilt, and and fear he feels to him is somehow grater than the wrongful death Justine is about to face. You could almost say he feels remorseful but he still refuses to come forward and own up to his actions. Another part of this chapter that could be analyzed to strengthen the ongoing themes throughout the book is Justine's name. Justine seems to be derived from Justice meaning, fairness and what is right. But, what happens to Justine is anything but fair and just. That can draw us to he conclusion of what the outcome of Victors future actions may be.
Ethelred Bennet
11/1/2015 09:18:16 pm
During this period in the novel, Frankenstein has created this strange creature. This is the creature that was seen to be as evil because of the fact that he killed Victor’s brother. After this incident occurred, Victor formed a strong hate towards his own creation. I believe that Victor should take some responsibility for the actions of his creature because it was his creation. The creation was something that didn’t know any better for anything. Victor should’ve treated his creation as a child and taken better care of him and taught him right from wrong. He is very ashamed and stressed about the creature, so much that it scares him into running away. This is just another example of the reoccurring theme of death that keeps appearing in the novel, especially for Victor. He has gone through many deaths throughout his life and the fact that he basically created on himself, is very hard for him. “I considered the begin whom I had cast among mankind, and endowed with the will and power to effect purposes of horror, such as the deed which he had now done, nearly in the light of my own vampire, my own spirit loose from the grave, and forced to destroy all that was dear to me” (Shelley 69).
Berthe Hoola Van Nooten
11/1/2015 09:56:14 pm
In chapters five through ten, Frankenstein’s younger brother, William, has been murdered. When Frankenstein walked outside, he says, “A flash of lightning illuminated the object, and discovered its shape plainly to me; its gigantic stature, and the deformity of its aspect, more hideous than belongs to humanity, instantly informed me that it was the wretch, the filthy daemon, to whom I had given life. What did he there? Could he be the murderer of my brother?”(Shelley 68). In this passage, it is evident to both Frankenstein and readers that The Creature had acted out in violent revenge and killed his creator’s brother. This act of crime shows us what the creature is capable of doing and that he does not know right from wrong. This passage is also symbolic because the flash of lightning that illuminated the creature in the dark was the same thing that originally brought him to life. Due to his brother’s death, Frankenstein now realizes the consequences of his decision to recreate life. He is stuck with the guilt when withholding this information when Justine is convicted of murder, which only continues to provoke his fear and dreadfulness of what he has done.
Ermine A. Smith
11/2/2015 01:23:25 am
In chapter five, the readers find out that the creature has come to life. Victor Frankenstein has created this creature that he was expected to be great but is disappointed in what he has produced. At the beginning of chapter five it says, “ How can I describe my emotions at this catastrophe, or how delineate the wrench whom with such invite pains and care I endeavored to form? His limbs were in proportion, and I had selected his features as beautiful. Beautiful! - Great God!” (Shelly 51). This is at the point where Victor sees his dreams slowing going down the drain. Everything that he has worked towards, all the studying and work gone into the project is gone. This is the first time throughout the book where Shelly introduces this overwhelming theme of failure. The whole first five chapters of the book were focused primarily on Victor leading up to the point where he created a living thing. Again Victor’s dissatisfaction with his creation is expressed again when it says, “A mummy again endued with animation could not be so hideous as the wretch. I gazed upon him while unfinished; he was ugly then; but when those muscles and joints were rendered capable of motion, it became a thing such as even Dante could not have conceived.” (Shelly 52). This shows that the monster and Victor will not be at good terms throughout the book. Even from the start was Victor discussed with his creation.
Alice Lounsberry
11/3/2015 04:54:01 pm
Mary Shelley's authorial intent in chapters 5-10 are most highly outlined in chapter 8 when Justine has been imprisoned. She has been accused for the murder of Frankenstein's little brother William and in her bleak and desperate attempt to be free from her confinement falsely confessed to the crime. Frankenstein convinced that Justine is not the true murderer visits her with his lover Elizabeth and upon hearing her speak of her ordeal shrinks into a corner and presses upon himself a great deal of agony and blame. He thinks to himself "Despair! Who dared talk of that? The poor victim, who on the morrow was to pass the awful boundary between life and death, felt not as I did, such deep and bitter agony […] But I, the true murderer, felt the never-dying worm alive in my bosom" (Shelley 78). In this passage Frankenstein seems to say that he feels a more unimaginable pain than Justine herself feels being locked up in prison, framed for a crime that she does not commit, and facing certain death. This passage serves to emphasize the shallowness of Victor Frankenstein, a man who shows no real care for anyone but himself. He thinks of himself as a being that should be focused on and emphasized with. He thinks of himself as a being like God. After all he has already committed the act of playing God by creating life itself. Now he is mentally trying to justify living up to the part. Comments are closed.
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