What Is Victor's Search For Greatness

Chapter Four: Victor has become obsessed with studying (something no one should ever be interested in) and has locked himself in his room studying for days on end. He "applied so closely, it may be easily conceived that my progress was rapid. My ardour was indeed the astonishment of the students, and my proficiency that of the masters... Two years passed in this manner, during which I paid no visit to Geneva, but was engaged, heart and soul, in the pursuit of some discoveries which I hoped to make". (7) This early application of himself is what drove him to become lonely and reclusive, shying away from all who attempted to come into contact with him. He is also inspired in this chapter to start his reanimation project. He becomes consumed in this one project spending many months alone in the top of his apartment assembling his creature. He raided slaughter houses, grave yards, and dissection rooms to furnish what he needed to create his monster. The lines between life and death became blurred

Ever since his youth, Victor has been fascinated by the sciences and nature. This curiosity is what drives him to attend a University in Ingolstadt, away from his family and loved ones. His best friend, Henry Clerval, attends school alongside Victor but is promptly neglected by Victor in favor of his studies. After his mother’s untimely death, Victor begins to shift his focuses towards reanimating a human corpse, which at first glance seems both impossible and unethical. Both of his professors explain to Victor that his idea is impossible and he’s wasting his time, but this only fuels the fire burning inside him. He becomes completely enveloped in his project and his health greatly suffers because of it. While he is working, he admits the toll this process has taken on him: “I [Victor] shunned my fellow-creatures as if I had been guilty of a crime. Sometimes I grew alarmed at the wreck I perceived that I had become”

Although Victor’s family was one of the most distinguished of the republic of Geneva and his parents were possessed by the “very spirit of kindness / And indulgence,” (Shelley 39) his days were not filled with happiness. His troubled past started the day Elizabeth caught scarlet fever, delaying his departure for Ingolstadt. Although Victor’s mother, Caroline, was able to cure her, she died in her place. The destruction of a dear bond by an irreparable evil surely would have caused anyone to suffer, but as time came, Caroline’s death became “rather an / Indulgence than a necessity” (Shelley 45) to Victor; it was nothing more than something that delayed his departure for Ingolstadt. Because Victor is in a situation where he no longer has control, his psyche must carry the burden

When Victor traveled to Ingolstadt to attend the university, he delved deeper into the sciences, specifically chemistry. Resulting from the profound involvement, and concentration Victor devoted to his studies, he began to lose contact with family, friends, and later, his professors. Victor labored arduously over his experiments and “two years passed in this manner, during which I paid no visit to Geneva” (Shelley 55). It became apparent that Victor’s research consumed him; his commitment to science eliminated the opportunity and will for social endeavors, or even communication with his family. If Victor were to encounter a problematic outcome with his studies, which would soon occur, he would have no prospect of receiving help. Although the effect of isolation was weighing down on Victor’s sanity, he was not the sole recipient of this loneliness. Victor’s experiments produced a monster, and Victor neglected his responsibility as a creator and left his creation to its own devices. The monster suffered from the symptoms of a solitary lifestyle, similar to the one led by Victor himself. Ultimately, the scientist realizes the hideousness of the result of his experiment and abruptly abandons the monster. The monster quickly becomes deadly to those surrounding Victor and he realizes he must pursue and destroy his creation. Victor’s health rapidly deteriorated during his pursuit of the

Victor becomes addicted to the science of life after his mother dies, and learns the secret of reanimation He succeeds in creating life, but the creature he creates ends up killing the ones he loves most. An example of Victor’s obsession over life is, when he is reading the works of Cornelius Agrippa, Albertus Magnus, and Parcelsus who were all famous alchemists. He states that “there attempts were futile,

Dear Board of Education, The consideration towards banning classic novels from High Schools has caused great disagreement within school meetings citywide. It has come to the attention of Southwest local school council that a certain novel is trying to be banned from schools city wide. However the book Frankenstein should continue

Before Victor goes off to college, his mother dies which leaves him distraught. Subsequently he became infatuated with death and the idea of bringing life back. He said, "To examine the causes of life, we must first have recourse to death" ( Shelley Chtr 4). Slowly, he became a monster engulfed in his own subconscious with the help of his studies in science.

As the scientist, who should have known about the issue and investigated over what he had done. It was clear that he did not predict the effects of it. All Victor wanted was fame and be the one who can achieve the creation of life. As greed and ambition came to mind, he worked every day; Iisolating himself from his friends and family for a couple of years to finish no content due to bad result. He says: "The winter, spring and last summer ... that was so deeply absorbed in my occupation" (156). Spending most of his time inside his masked experiment to track their environment and judgment, therefore he loses control of his experiment. He is to blame for the devastation caused by the monster he

He invested every second he possibly could on creating this creature. He never visited home, and he kept himself locked in his apartment until he was finished bringing life to this creature. It is written, “I could not tear my thoughts from my employment” (53) and “ I wished, as it were, to procrastinate all that related to my feelings of affection until the great object, which swallowed up every habit of my nature, should be completed” (53). There two quotes show how devoted Victor was to completing this creature. He could not even pull himself away long enough to write or visit his home. Since he left for Ingolstadt, he never went home. He spent all of his time studying, researching, and discovering theories of his own. In the process of all this is when he discovered how to reanimate the dead. Another way he showed how much he worked was he did not take care of himself properly. Victor never got enough rest in the two years it took him to create this creature. He also fell ill because of all the time he spent on the creature and not taking good care of

Upon the death of his mother and his preparations to depart for Ingolstadt, we see a Victor who is ignorant to the changes he will undergo. We still see him only as a romantic, not yet as a mad scientist.

Cody Johnson Mrs. Joyner Honors English 4 17 December 2015 Victor as a God Figure Many people in history have tried to play the role of God by taking other people’s lives and trying to do what has never been done before, creating a new species. In the novel Frankenstein, Victor Frankenstein accomplished this goal by creating the monster thus playing the role of God. There are even many hints and lines in the story that are related to biblical stories and ideas to compare Victor as God or a father figure towards the creature. It gave Victor something to do with his life and even to this day people want to be like Victor and have the power of God.

On a basic level, it could be argued that Victor’s search for knowledge ultimately leads him to his transgressions and eventual demise; through the medium of science he is able to create a creature that is fearful and

The audience can assume that Victor runs to his knowledge and education as his form of a friend. Victor works tirelessly to not only build, but perfect his creature to his liking for two long years. Believing that he has the solution to betterment of humankind, he loses sleep and cuts off all contact with family we see the effects of his madness while building his creation has not only affected him emotionally, but also physically as clearly stated: “Every night I was oppressed by a slow fever,

After the death of his mother, Victor was reluctant to attended college but later decided to attend a university in Ingolstadt. When Victor was young he knew he had a fascination for nature so in college he studied anatomy. He soon had what his professors had taught him mastered and decided to experiment with it Victor ostracized himself from his family and friends to dedicate himself to his work. Victor worked for months creating his experiment till one night he finally finished it but due to his creation hideous look he went and hide in his room. When he woke up the next day he woke to his creature looking at him. Victor ran from his creation in terror. Later he came back with one of his former schoolmates, Henry Clerval, but couldn’t find the creation. Soon after that Victor founded out that his little brother, William Frankenstein, had been murdered and the convicted killer had been a little girl who was adopted by Victor’s family named Justine Mortiz. Justine was soon executed but she told Victor and Elizabeth she was not guilty before she was killed. Victor knew she was telling the truth because he saw his creation by his brother’s body the night before and by this time he felt guilty because his creation had cause two death in his

In Mary Shelley’s horror fiction novel, Frankenstein, Victor goes off to study science at the institution of Ingolstadt. Soon, Frankenstein gets caught up in his fascination of the study between life and death, as well as death and life. In Victor’s early life, there has always been the struggle with obtaining the power of education. However, before going off to school, there were a few bad omens foreshadowing what is to come. With how dedicated Victor becomes to his occupation, he still holds regret over his decision to study and pursue science.