Frankenstein: Chapters 17-24 - 1 Primary Blog Post and 2 Secondary Responses

11/15/2016

These images could depict some of the main plot points of Chapters 17-24. While these moments are important, they are by no means the only significant points in these four chapters.
After having read these chapters:
-Select a single passage (this may be a single paragraph or several) that you feel best typifies the action and Shelley's authorial intent in this section of Frankenstein.
-Explain the action and context of the quoted passage (you must cite the passage) and then,
-Explain how your understanding of this passage (1) supports your understanding, (2) deepens the character development, and/or (3) builds a central message that aligns with one of the unit's essential questions.

Primary Blog Expectations (respond to the prompt above): 200-250 words, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the scientists's name that you selected in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count.

Secondary Blog Response Expectations (read everyone's primary responses, select two that interest you, and respond to their ideas): 100-150 words EACH, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the scientists's name that you selected in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count.

Sofia Kovalevskaya

11/15/2016 06:59:06 pm

In chapter 20, Victor makes a big decision that will ultimately determine his future. He decides that making a female monster isn’t a good idea, and throws his project into the ocean. In this moment I am able to see that Victor is actually learning from his past experiences and using critical thinking in order to make the best decision for everyone. Yes, making the monster will get him off the hook for not being loving towards his creation, but he’s also looking out for the community. Victor states, “…she might become ten thousand times more malignant than her mate” (147). Therefore, her free will might lead her to kill whoever she desires. This also reveals a considerate characteristic in Victor that the reader hasn’t been exposed to. Frankenstein could’ve easily created the monster and not care about what happened after, but he surprisingly doesn’t. Instead he sees that the consequences outweigh the reward, and makes the best decision. This caused me to wonder if his decision would’ve remained if Henry wasn’t left in Scotland. Since Henry is a good friend and he trusts him would Henry’s opinions make Victor revive his selfish ways? Personally, I believe Victor would be better off on his own, like he was, while making the creature than with others persistently clouding his thoughts.
215 words

Jane Colden

11/20/2016 08:55:34 pm

I agree that this section shows how Victor has learned from his mistakes, but it also shows that he hasn't evolved as a person. Victor still shares an apparent disregard for life because he shows no regret in destroying this creature who had the potential to become a person. Victor showed no regret in tossing her overboard because in his eyes, she was just made of recyclable material. Even though the consequences of creating the lady creature could have been disastrous, Victor's lack of remorse for being responsible for tossing away yet another life, shows that he is still a person who feels that you can create and destroy life as you please.
W.C 113

Sarah Drake

11/21/2016 07:59:42 pm

I agree. After all this time Victor is finally understanding his actions have serious consequences and finally makes a decision that will protect others but keep others safe. If Victor had made a female monster then the monster would have been happy and wouldn't be out to get Victor. But on the other hand, if he did make the female male monster who knows what damage she could do to not only Victor but other people too. I also agree that Victor might not have made the decision had others, such as Henry, had been there to cloud his thoughts.
Word count:100

Hannah Longshore

11/15/2016 08:24:06 pm

As the book comes to an end, we really see the results of the monster that Victor had created. The essential question, “What consequences do we face when we don’t take responsibility for our actions?”. This question was clearly answered when the creature went on a rampage was technically responsible for 5 deaths. Since Victor lost everything he had known and loved, he goes into spiraling depression and soon becomes mad. A quote that explains this is “My present situation was on in which all voluntary thought was swallowed up and lost. I was hurried away by fury; revenge alone endowed me with strength and composure; it moulded my feelings, and allowed me to be calculating and calm; at periods when otherwise delirium or death would have been my portion” (178). To me, Victor was a little childish in a sense that he didn’t realize what this monster would bring until he came across the point of no return. He was playing with fire, he burned himself slightly only to then burn the whole house down without even meaning to. This monster literally destroyed EVERYTHING that Victor had and now Victor is trying to chase it down. However, some of us might feel bad because he lost everything, but Victor is actually so full of himself, which is a reason why he couldn’t take responsibility for the monster and left him alone. On the wedding night, he thought the monster was going to kill him, but it actually killed Elizabeth, the one that Victor loved the most. Almost like an eye for an eye, except it’s a “wife” for a wife. The overall lesson was to not be a Victor and take responsibility for your actions or else everything will fall apart. (292)

Mercy B Jackson

11/20/2016 07:08:57 pm

I agree with your statement because Victor was so caught up with preserving his reputation as the smart and perfect man, that he forced the creatures reputation to spiral to the ground because he wasn't like Victor a.k.a perfect. I feel as though Victor should've thought this through because it is not like he is experienced in creating life and playing god where he would've known the outcome of his creation. That's why when it is not what he expects he wings it the entire book by just running and hoping that everything will be okay in the end. But him dodging his problems leads to him having nothing in the end.114

Ethel Sargant

11/21/2016 09:23:16 pm

I wouldn’t consider it childish but rather irresponsible of Victor to not think of his consequences before creating his first monster. Victor could have prevented the deaths of all his loved ones from the start if he would have loved the monster himself. Even though Victor is so full of himself, I still feel bad for him, because like you said, he lost everything he had, and I don’t believe anyone deserves going through that pain. Low-key I find the monster killing Elizabeth so funny because I never thought of it as “wife for wife.” However, I think the overall lesson also includes thinking about the consequences before committing certain actions. (word count: 111)

Anna Atkins

11/15/2016 08:58:23 pm

In Chapter three Shelley present the idea that when we don’t take responsibilities for our actions, we can impact others, possibly even on a global level. Frankenstein Created this monster and refuses to take responsibility for the creature’s action nor did he bother to create a relationship between him and the creature. Even though the creature is hideous victor should have not left him to figure things out his own. The creature is Victor’s child and he had an obligation to teach him right from wrong, and good from bad. Had Victor not abandoned the creature he would have not encountered so much hatred from those who didn’t understand him. The creature would have not built up so much hatred in him, especially for Victor. The creature went on a killing spree to punish Victor for leaving him alone and for refusing to make a company. The creature took everything from Victor “one by one, my friends were snatched away; I was left desolate”(Shelley 175). He was left alone just like he had left the creature. Ultimately Victor creating that creature does not only impact him but possibly the whole world. The creature can “traverse the sea of ice, and inhabit caves and dens where no man would venture to intrude”(Shelley 176). He is a monster that has been hurt so many time and is angry. He roams the world free and no one knows where he is so imagine the trouble he can cause.
word count:247

Mary Treat

11/21/2016 08:24:15 pm

I agree with your point that if Victor had accepted his responsibilities as the creature's creator, the creature would not have had so much hatred toward the world. He was left to fend for himself, and in doing so he learned about how cruel the world is on his own. I wonder why Victor wouldn't try to be more accepting of the creature, or at least grant his wish for a female, after seeing how destructive the creature was in his anger. Things were already horrible for Victor, so why wouldn't he at least try to make them better by granting the creature's wishes?
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Hannah Longshore

11/21/2016 09:03:50 pm

I really agree with this statement. Victor created something that he know would be something controversial, once created he basically left it be because he didn't want to take responsibility for it. This changes not only Victor but everyone who will soon encounter the monster if they ever do so. To answer Mary's question, I feel like Victor didn't want to make the female monster because he was thinking about himself more than anyone else. He knew that if he created this female monster, it would probably end up like the first one and they both will probably go on killing sprees together and he didn't want to take responsibility of that. One was already a handful, he didn't want to have another burden on his shoulders.

Ethel Sargant

11/21/2016 10:08:42 pm

I agree with you, Victor should have nurtured the creature as a child of his own and this would have prevented the death of all his loved ones. I think the monster killing all the people Victor loved was more of revenge and a way to get Victor’s attention rather than punishment. But it still isn’t “even” because Victor only killed his “wife” who wasn’t even alive yet, and the monster killed like 5 people Victor loved. Nevertheless, if Victor did create a “wife” for the creature, it still wouldn’t have taken the anger he has towards Victor away because that goes to more a personal and emotional level. (word count: 109)

Mercy B Jackson

11/15/2016 09:47:21 pm

In the concluding chapters of the book we readers see the final aftermath of Victor’s actions. In these chapters Victor decides that he is not going to bring another monster into the world to torment and make more damage of his life. In making this decision he angers the creature and the creature makes sure that he makes Victors life hell just like the creatures life has been. For example, “I had been struck senseless by his fiendish threats: but now, for the first time, the wickedness of my promise burst upon me; I shuddered to think that future ages might curse me as their pest” (Shelley 147). As of this point Victor is realizing what his actions have brought and will bring in the future if he creates another monster. If Frankenstein had taken responsibility sooner and actually loved the creature then none of this would’ve happened. Shelley makes this ending to show that when you don’t take responsibility for your actions they come around to hurt you because in the end the creature kills Victors entire family, all because he wasn’t loved and needed a companion. In the end we see Walton again, and we finally understand why Walton comes into play. He is like another Victor, so Victor wants to make sure that Walton doesn’t make the same mistakes he’s made. Overall this book has expressed the concept that when you continue to ignore your bad actions, they continue to build up until there’s nothing left.249

Sofia Kovalevskaya

11/20/2016 03:04:10 pm

Jackson brings up the point that if Frankenstein would’ve nurtured his creature and taken responsibility for his creation then there wouldn’t be many problems between them. This constantly makes me think of the topic nature versus nurture. Is the monster’s actions a product of the way he was “raised” or is he really just a monster at heart? If Frankenstein was there for him, from the beginning, would that change his actions throughout the course of the entire book? Even though the monster fundamentally kills Victor’s entire family, I believe it was pure revenge and not because he wanted to.
100 words

Josephine Yates

11/20/2016 08:49:07 pm

I agree with your analysis of how your actions can "come around to hurt you" and "build up until there's nothing left." This novel is the perfect example of that. Everywhere Victor went, the creature was always there and made it his business to hurt him. Victor's original mistake of creating the creature comes back to hurt him and others over and over again. Once faced with the option of creating another creature, he actually decides not to. Originally, that would have been the best decision, but this time, it lead to further problems. It shows that sometimes, no matter how hard you try to fix your mistakes, they cannot always be fixed.
113 words

Anna Atkins

11/21/2016 08:25:22 pm

Along with you I do think that if Victor had taken responsibility for his actions a lot of tragedy could have been prevented. From the start Victor had despised his creation. From the beginning Victor have always despised the creature even though he was Victor’s own creation. His reaction to the creature is as follow “ the miserable monster whom I created. He held up the curtain of the bed; and his eyes, if eyes they may be called, were fixed on me. His jaws opened, and he muttered some inarticulate sounds, while a grin wrinkled on his cheeks”(Shelley 52). Even in his first description of the creature we can already sees that he despise what he has created. Victor’s first response was to flee in the presence of his creation, so he never took time to build a relation with him or took the responsibility to teach him the things he needs to know.
Word count:155

Ethel Sargant

11/15/2016 10:01:29 pm

Individuals can transform society through responsible scientific advancements and decisions. In chapter 20 Victor comes to the conclusion that making a mate for his creature would be a bad idea. Victor states “she, who in all probability was to become a thinking and reasoning animal...she also might turn in disgust from him…she might quit him, and he be again alone (147).” This quote shows Victor thinking about the consequences that may arise from his actions. Unlike when creating the first monster, Victor is now taking society and other human life into consideration. Knowing what it is like to lose people you love, we can see a transformation in the way Victor thinks. Victor is saving lives of future generations but while doing this, he is also breaking his promise to his creature. The consequences that Victor faces for breaking his promise is that now he is living the same life the creature is living, he is alone and miserable. This is proven when Victor states “I lost sensation, and chains and darkness were the only objects that pressed upon me…found myself in a dungeon… I gained clear conception of my miseries and situation…that he called me mad (175).” On top of all that is happening, his biggest fear came to life, people were calling him mad for his actions. I believe Victor’s decision was very well thought through and his ending was already destined for him when he decided to create the first monster. If he had created a mate for his creature, I do believe more destruction who have occurred, so I guess you can say he took one for the team. (word count: 273)

Sofia Kovalevskaya

11/20/2016 03:12:52 pm

I wonder why it takes losing people that Victor’s loves dearly in order to transform the way he thinks. The creature had to murder so many people for Frankenstein to make reasonable decisions. I find it very ironic how Victor was disgusted with his creature, but as soon as he vanishes he makes it a life’s mission to find him. It seems like Victor thinks he can rely on himself and his selfish ways until he ultimately has nothing left to resort to. I find this to be the reason why Victor dies on the boat trying to search for his creation.
102 words

Mercy B Jackson

11/20/2016 05:32:45 pm

I agree because in the end Victor is exactly like the creature, who is alone and isolated. Victor thought that he was this great scientist who could create this human being and it not be flawed. However when it came out to be ugly Victor runs from his problem because he isn't satisfied with his work. In the end Victor is this ugly and insane creature who is afraid, and fears its surroundings. However the creature holds all the power by tormenting Victor throughout his life, and making Victor feel like an outsider and completely alone in his current situation. 100

Josephine Yates

11/15/2016 10:02:08 pm

“As I looked on him...revenge, withdrew (148).” This passage brings attention to the ethical relationship between creator and creation. In this passage, the creature appears and Victor tears apart the companion he had been working on. As a creator, Victor is very much flawed. He has already failed the creature by abandoning him, and now he has destroyed all hopes of the creature’s happiness. While the creature did have a good argument for his need for a companion, Victor finally was capable of foreseeing the possible outcome of creating another monster. Victor could not risk their being twice the evil. In the creature’s eyes, Victor has lied and failed him entirely; he seeks revenge against him. Knowing the evil that would be brought against him, Victor has finally done something outside of his selfish ways. While evil would be brought into his own life (and eventually cause Elizabeth’s death), if a second creature was “born”, the two could inflict horror upon the world. Victor could not create a second being capable of such horrors and causing so much tragedy. Ethically, while he did indeed betray his creation, he did what was best for the world around him; that was ultimately more important.
203 words

Charlotte Knight

11/20/2016 07:02:41 pm

While your interpretation of this scene sounds interesting by finally showing Victor straying from his usual cowardly selfish ways, I saw the events play rather differently: I think Victor destroying the second creature as a result of him overthinking and dismissing the fact that while the creature may have the appearance of a monster he still is a human being in nature. Victor—in his state of anxious thought—believes that the second creature would follow the first creature’s anger from the get go, but the reason the creature was angry in the first place was because every human he encountered fled from him because of his looks. While the situation could be averted by staying with the second creature, Victor—being his usual selfish self—doesn’t want to take the responsibility of having to deal with two creatures and is too lost in thought on what could go wrong. While having this scene show a change in Victor and him developing as a character, I find it hard to believe that Victor would ever change his ways.
178 words

Jane Colden

11/20/2016 10:52:37 pm

This is a different view about Victor destroying the female creature. A lot of people don't seem to understand the monsters disappointment in Victor at this point. his is because leading up to it we only hear Victor's thoughts. Victor did take the monsters happiness in consideration but in the end he decided to do what he felt was good for everybody else. He could not have spared the happiness of many others for one person. I agree with your overall point that even though he once again turned his back on the monster it was for the greater good.
Word Count- 100

Sarah Drake

11/21/2016 08:14:27 pm

Interesting. While Victor is a flawed creator for betraying and abandoning his creation I believe he gains points back by knowing when to stop creating, which is a very important thing for any creator to know. He could've prevented everything the monster had done by simply accepting him. And if did so the monster wouldn't need a companion and Victor wouldn't need to make him one. However, we can see how much Victor had learned through out the novel and over all, in the end, he did the right thing for everyone.
Word count 91

Mary Treat

11/15/2016 10:59:37 pm

In the end of the novel, the creature murders Victor’s family and friends because Victor destroyed the female monster that he was creating. The creature held so much hatred toward Victor, but in the final chapter, he mourns his creator’s death. He says, “’Oh Frankenstein! generous and self-devoted being! what does it avail that I now ask thee to pardon me?’” (Shelley 193). This quote shows the creature’s regret for murdering Victor’s family. He asks for forgiveness but knows that he is too late. This sorrow is important because it makes the creature more human-like. He is left more alone than he was before following Victor’s death because Victor was the only person that he ever had personal contact with. Although Victor was fearful of him, he at least spoke to the creature. Victor’s death causes the creature to feel more isolated.
This relates to the idea of nature verses nurture because Victor did not fulfill his responsibilities toward his creation, the creature still saw him as a nurturing figure. He went to Victor when he needed something such as a female companion. Although Victor was not the type of nurturer that the creature wanted, he still provided his creation with some guidance. Now that the creature’s only nurturer is gone, he is left alone in nature and must fend for himself even more than before. This is what causes the creature’s sadness over the death of his creator.
239

Hannah Longshore

11/21/2016 08:59:23 pm

I agree with this for the most part. The creature did develop emotions throughout the story and when Victor left him, had was sorrowful and neglected. In the sight of the Nature vs Nurture debate, the monster was definitely nurtured because he learned all his behaviors by himself and through the experiences he had went through. The part that I don't 100% agree on is when you said that Victor still provided his creation with some guidance. The reason why I don't really agree with this is because Victor just abandoned him, leaving him be and not taking responsibility for it. The creature had to figure out who he was and what he was feeling all by himself.

Charlotte Knight

11/16/2016 09:30:12 pm

Throughout Chapter 20, Victor takes short pauses when telling his story to Walton for reasons such as ”recall[ing] the memory of the frightful events” (Shelley 154). In doing this, Shelley reminds the reader that the story Victor tells is just that, a story, or rather a recollection of memories from Victor’s mind used as a framing device. Maybe she utilized these pauses and reminded the reader of the framing device to foreshadow a shift back to Walton’s story later in the novel. Along with this, these pauses show—if just for a moment—a more sympathetic side of Victor without his usual hyperbole and melodramatic eloquence. It shows that Victor is still hurting from Clerval’s death as he struggles to recollect the events of that moment and it brings pain to him to do so. This puts into perspective that while the reader may see him as just a cowardly man who is aggravatingly avoidant of his responsibilities, a glimpse from his perspective shows that for him, he has been haunted from his past mistakes and it has cost him the lost of everything that he has hold near and dear to him. Victor is still hurting and while retelling his memories may help Walton, he still has to acknowledge that all of this has scarred him greatly.
Word Count: 218 words

Mary Ward

11/21/2016 12:19:00 am

I agree with what you say because many people tend to see only one side of the story and judge on the things that appear to be in front of them. They don't stop to think about what could be effecting the person or reasons to why they are acting a certain way. I also believe that Shelley incorporated his flash backs so that the readers can be reminded as well as informed about his background so that they can apply it to his current situation. If she were to do this in the beginning of the book and not bring it back up, it wouldn't have have as much of an effect as it does now. word count: 117

Jane Colden

11/17/2016 06:46:02 pm

Chapters 17-24 remind me of a warped version of the story of Adam and Eve. Frankenstein plays the role of God and the monster is Adam. The monster requests a female companion because he is lonely in the world, and eventually Frankenstein agrees. As Frankenstein thinks on what could happen if he were to grant this request he realizes that the results could be dire and cause even more disaster. In Chapter 20 Frankenstein says "...but now, for the first time, the wickedness of my promise burst on me..." (Shelley 169). God was able to trust that Adam would do the right thing with his mate (even though he didn't) because he showed him how to live and taught him how to love. Frankenstein did not take the time to do this with his creature which is why he is unable to create this lady monster for the male monster. These chapters really focus on what happens when humans try to play god. Victor seems to have lost his humanity and doesn’t think of the creature or the lady creature as people with feelings, but only as his creations.Rarely are humans built with the ability to control themselves when given some sense of power. Victor is a prime example of that.
Word Count 212

Charlotte Knight

11/20/2016 07:15:45 pm

I find this interpretation of the last “act”, for a lack of a better term, to be rather profound. The use of a religious allusion to draw parallels to the novel puts its entirety in a very interesting perspective. It does make sense for Victor to be this cruel and twisted god who sees his creation as mistakes that should be erased from existence compared to the benevolent God who sees humans as his children. By seeing the novel in this light, it just makes the creature even more sympathetic as misfortune and desolation comes to attack him at all times and the one time he pleads for his creator to show him a reason not to hate humanity he leads him on then just changes his mind for no reason. All of this makes me hate Victor even more and just rejoice when the creature finally gives Victor what’s been coming to him and kills him.
157 words

Josephine Yates

11/20/2016 08:34:54 pm

I think your comparison is very interesting. Victor does have too much power and is very much flawed in his use of it. Your analysis made me think that even though it seems that he is foreseeing a disastrous outcome by creating a female creature, what if that isn't just the case? It could also be Victor telling the monster that he could bring him into the world, and he can also take everything away from him. By abandoning him, he already took away his happiness. By not creating the female, he has taken away any hope he may ever have of regaining that happiness.
105 words

Mary Ward

11/21/2016 12:09:19 am

In chapter 17 of the novel, the readers are able to see that the monster has some "human senses". For example in the quote, " I demand a creature of another sex, but as hideous as myself; the gratification is small, nut it is all that I can receive, and it shall content me..Our lives will not be happy, but they will be harmless, and free from misery I now feel. Oh! My creator make me happy...," the monster expresses his emotions to Victor and how he believes that another mate could possibly make him become more satisfied and it could reduce the amount of violence that he will cause. Mary Shelley allows the readers to see how the monster is developing throughout the novel because he's constantly learning how to act and be just like others by observing people. With all this new information, we can see the contrast between Victor and the monster and how sometimes the monster seems to be more understanding than Victor. The monster has so many traits and characteristics similar to the other human beings, but no one will take the time to understand due to his physical appearance. The human senses that the monster is experiencing are emotions and the desire to have another significant other to fulfill their needs. The author wants the readers to realize the good in the monster and that he's not as scary and harmful as everyone makes him. In fact, it's actually the people that's causing the monster to be like this. word count:254

Anna Atkins

11/21/2016 07:58:59 pm

I agree with the fact that you said that Mary shelley include that chapter to show the creature have some human senses. Mary shelley wants us to see that the creature is not really the monster he has been perceived to be. I also believe that this chapter raises the question of how society can change individuals. The creature wasn’t created evil. He became evil after being rejected by everyone including his master because of how he looks. With him asking Victor to create a female companion shows that he just wants someone to love and appreciate him. Someone that will not be disgusted by the way the way he looks.
word count:111

Mary Treat

11/21/2016 08:44:03 pm

Your idea that the people are the cause of the creature's violence is true. If he was accepted by the people, or at least by his creator, the creature would not have acted violently. This idea is very prevalent in real life situations as well. An example of this is when young adults express their creativity and individuality only for it to be stifled by their parents or other adults. This causes them to have anger and resentment. If instead of smothering the child's ideas they embraced their uniqueness, the child would feel accepted. Like the creature, these children only want to be accepted by society for who they are.
110

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