Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein has three distinct narratives that are interconnected but remain separate. Walton’s letters addressed to Margaret are the outer frame of this narrative. As Victor tells Victor’s story, Walton relays it to Walton in Victor’s words. Victor tells Walton the tale of the monster in Victor’s words. These three narrative segments are interconnected by key themes that connect them.
Insularity and then loneliness are common themes in all three stories. Walton was the first person to communicate this theme. Victor and the monster have their stories through Walton. This is crucial because it sets the tone for isolation, which will then dominate the novel. Walton is an example of a character that suffers from both emotional and physical isolation. His expedition leaves him alone in the Arctic desert, where he is isolated from his family and friends. George Levine agrees with this argument, arguing that the snowy landscapes are “the landscape of isolation from society”. This landscape not only reflects Walton’s lonely tone but also serves to prelude to Frankenstein’s isolation. Walton clearly identifies and finds comfort in the familiar. He says, “I try in vain that the pole be convinced that it is the seat fo frost and desolation; but it always presents itself to me as the region of beauty, delight, and joy.” He feels isolated from his family and friends, as well as physically. Jennifer Richards backs this claim, saying that Walton “feels isolated despite being surrounded in the small commonwealth of his vessel”. He is surrounded by people even though the arctic landscape is bleak. Walton remains distant and lonely from them despite this fact, so he confides in his sister by writing a series if letters. These letters are Walton’s epistolary form. This helps to underscore Walton’s loneliness. He writes the details of his trip to a distant relative, and he prefers to write them down than share them verbally. This illustrates Walton’s isolation from the outside world, even though he chooses to pursue knowledge.
Victor’s story is filled with loneliness. Walton tells Victor the story. Victor experiences physical isolation, much like Walton. Victor is confined to a laboratory, while Walton lives on an Arctic-bound ship. Walton has no friends, but Victor is adamant about his isolation. Victor clearly thrives in solitude, stating early that he “tempers to avoid crowds”. Victor recounts how creating the monster led him to forget his friends, who lived so far away, and whom he hadn’t seen in so long, which suggests that human company is more important than scientific experimentation.
You could argue that the theme of self-imposed isolation doesn’t appear in the monsters section of narration. He is more interested in acceptance and company than being at the margins of society, like Victor and Walton. Although the main theme of isolation is not present in the Victor and Walton sections, it does appear in the monster’s narration. Victor and Walton’s isolation is self-imposed. However, the monster suffers from externally enforced loneliness. Graham Allen backs this argument, noting how dissimilar these positions of willed isolation to the forced isolation of the monster. The monster’s monstrous appearance leads him to seek acceptance from society and eventually to take vengeful revenge. He calls himself “solitary, hateful” Victor, on the other hand, pushes Elizabeth away. However, Victor is the one who longs for love.
Social alienation is very real to the monster. Even though they are isolated and largely self-willed to the extent, Victor’s and Walton’s accounts also touch on social alienation. Walton, Victor and the monster aren’t outcast because of their appearances. Their withdrawn personalities and “thirst” for knowledge make them feel distant from the rest of humanity. Walton tells Margaret, his sister, that he is “bitterly longing for a friend”. He tells his sister Margaret that his curiosity has made Walton an outcast. Victor, the monster’s future mate, sees him as a potential companion. This sense suggests that there is a common theme in the narratives: friendship or lack thereof. Victor makes it difficult for his friends to leave, which indirectly leads to their deaths. Walton as well as the monster long for the chance to have a friend.
All three narratives share a common theme: the pursuit of knowledge. Victor and Walton view this knowledge as an opportunity to achieve self-achievement. Jen Hill agrees, stating that Victor and Walton share the same radical, disinterested individuality Shelley associates Victor’s pursuit of scientific knowledge. Both appear to place their quest for knowledge above all else. Victor states that he is “passionately passionate about the dangers of the ocean”, and Walton says the same.
The creature is not like Victor and Walton, who are primarily interested in discovering the secrets nature has to offer, but he only wants to discover the secrets about himself. The narrative of the monster revolves around self-understanding. He is determined to find out why he was created and how he can be a part of society. Victor is desperate to answer his question: “Why did your monster become so disgusting that you turned away from ME in disgust?” There is a constant theme of forbidden knowledge as well as the theme of knowledge pursuit. The monster and Victor tell their stories, but the forbidden knowledge theme takes on a Biblical role. Victor compares Victor to Adam.
The desire to discover our roots seems to be the core of the monster. Walton’s and Victor’s fascination with “the secrets nature” is the basis of their stories. Victor talks about playing God and his fascination with “The raising of ghosts, devils”, which eventually creates new human life. Anne Kostelanetz Mellor is in agreement with this notion, as she says that Victor has denied the unique ability of God to create organic matter ….Victor Frankenstein had blasphemed about the natural order. His creation eventually destroys him and shows the negative consequences of seeking out the forbidden. The monster is also motivated to murder after learning about Victor’s selfish reasons. There is also a theme of forbidden knowledge and consequences for those who pursue it.
Walton expresses his desire to study nature in Walton’s letters to his sister. Victor’s warning to Walton in his narrative is meant to warn him against the pursuit of forbidden knowledge. Both narratives touch on forbidden knowledge. Walton and Victor both express a desire for it while Victor describes the consequences. Harold Bloom supports this, saying that Victor acknowledges that he suffered serious consequences for his pursuits of knowledge and wisdom. He wishes that Walton would not face the same fate. Victor also mentions Biblical connections, saying that Walton should not feel “a snake to bite” if he wants to fulfill his desires. This is an allusion to the serpent that tricked Eve and caused her to eat the apple without obeying God.
All three narratives have the same theme: communication. All three narratives have the same purpose. This is Walton’s letter to Margaret in which he recounts the events of the expedition. Walton’s main theme is communication. It gives him a place to vent his thoughts and allows him to have human contact. In the meantime, Victor tells Walton his story in an attempt to prevent him from repeating the same mistakes. Walton is encouraged to “Learn From Victor How Dangerous Is the Acquiring of Knowledge, and How Much Happier That Man is Who Believes His Native Town to Be the World, Than He Who Aspires To Be Greater Than His Nature Will Allow”. Victor’s communication serves as a warning for anyone who shares his natural “thirst to knowledge”.
The narrative of the monster, however, is presented as a plea for understanding. He says, “I am malignant because I am unhappy” The monster then threatens Victor with “work at Victor’s destruction” if he doesn’t create him a mate. Essaka Joshua draws attention to the monsters’ attempts to communicate. He says that Victor is being told Victor his narrative in an effort to gain sympathy and possibly a female companion. Joshua also claims that all three narratives are persuasive and appeal to the sympathy of the listeners or readers. In fact, all three narratives have a common theme: communication. However, they also communicate their sorrows, misfortunes in an effort to gain sympathy. Victor was told by the monster that while he used to be benevolent once and good, his depraved actions have made him a “fiend”. Victor attempts to justify the creation of the monster by telling Walton that he was once benevolent and good. He also blames his efforts on his “thirst to knowledge” 36, and explains the pain he has endured. Walton seeks sympathy to help him feel better about his treacherous endeavor. He tells Margaret that his loneliness is a result of his “thirst for knowledge” 36.
Frankenstein is a collection of three distinct narratives that are interconnected but have different themes. Essaka Josh argues that Frankenstein’s three interconnected narratives share many common themes. The story’s elements are often similar, but they are told from different perspectives. All three narratives have the common themes of forbidden and pursued knowledge. As Victor and Walton tell about their efforts to discover the unknown, the monster tells us of his quest to understand the nature and origins of his creation. The novel ends with a warning about scientific experimentation that is careless and selfish. The three narrative segments also explore the themes isolation and communication. Walton and Walton are desperate for friendship while Victor pushes their existing friends away. Particularly, the theme alienation is prominent throughout. Even the Artic Desert opening serves to set a lonely tone and to foreshadow Victor’s loneliness.
Bibliography
Graham Allen’s 2008 work, Shelley’s Frankenstein, was published by Bloomsbury Publishing in Bodmin.
BLOOM Harold (2007) Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein New York InfoBase publishing HILL Jen (2009) White Horizon. British Imagination of the Arctic in Nineteenth-Century New York SUNY Press
Joshua, Essaka (2007). Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. London: Humanities EBooks, Kindle edition.
LEVINE. George (1983). The Realistic Imagination. English Fictions From Frankenstein To Lady Chatterley. Chicago University of Chicago Press.
MELLOR, Anne Kostelanetz (1998) Mary Shelley: Her Life, Her Fiction, Her Monsters, New York. Psychology Press
RICHARDS, Jennifer (2007) Rhetoric, Oxon, Routledge
Mary Shelley (1818–2007) wrote Frankenstein, which was published by Pearson Education in Delhi.
