English Literature - Pearson Edexcel - Prose
Frankenstein by Mary Shelly
Full Essay
Theme/Analysis: Victor Frankenstein
AO1, AO2 & A03
Language Analysis & Context
Victor Frankenstein is the protagonist of Mary Shelley's 1818 novel ‘Frankenstein; or, The Modern
Prometheus’. He is an intelligent man with an obsession with reanimation. The name ‘Victor’ is
derived from Paradise Lost by John Milton, a great influence on Shelley. Milton frequently refers to
God as ’the Victor’ in Paradise Lost, and Shelley sees Victor as playing God by creating life. As a result
of Victor’s ambitions Victor is presented as the embodiment of the Enlightenment period or attitude,
a time/attitude which values logic and scientific answers above all, in stark contrast to the ever-
popular Romanticist movement which characters like Walton and Elizabeth embody, valuing the
beauty of nature, emotion and imagination. Overall Victor’s character is mostly conveyed through
his attitudes/emotions towards those in his life and their attitude/treatment to him, especially in his
early years. Victor’ narration after Walton’s epistolary form is dropped also emphasizes his deadly
ambition and the effects that certain events of his life have on his life and his choices. Possibly the
first thing that the readers learn about the character of Victor Frankenstein is that he was born in
Geneva, Switzerland and he is born into a quite proficient and respected family, which of course
means that his family is well-off and live a comfortable lifestyle. One significant detail of
Frankenstein’s birthplace is the rise of the Christian theology of Calvinism, led by a French
theologian, pastor and reformer, called John Calvin in Geneva during the Protestant Reformation.
This theology was based around the ideas which emphasize the sovereignty of God and the authority
of the Bible. This gives the reader a good idea of the environment which Victor Frankenstein was
born in and the popular ideas and religious philosophies which could have had an impact on
Frankenstein's character.
Generally speaking, any person’s parents have a huge impact on what sort of person they are or
become. This is no different for Frankenstein. As a whole, there is no doubt that Victor Frankenstein
has what seems to be the ‘perfect’ childhood with equally befitting ‘perfect’ parents. His father
Alphonse Frankenstein like many of his ancestors was a man in service of the people in Geneva who
had ‘filled many public situations with honour and reputation’ is the very image of a respectable
man and father. The noun ‘honour’ and similar nouns like ‘integrity’ and ‘reputation’ which are used
to describe Alphonse clearly show the readers what kind of man he is, someone who is held in great
esteem by his people because of his great acts of kindness. But not only is he beloved to his people,
his virtue extends to his family as well, to his wife he is a ‘protecting spirit’, the verb ‘protecting’, not
only emphasizes his masculinity but shows that he loves and cares for Caroline and to Victor he gave
‘smile(s) of benevolent pleasure’. Similarly, Caroline is also a loving caring person and mother who
Frankenstein describes as shaped from an ‘uncommon mould’, the adjective ‘uncommon’ shows
how Victor sees his mother; as someone who is different to any other mother in both her calm
disposition, caring temperament and her intelligence. From this broad perspective is in not unfair to
say that Victor had a seemly idyllic childhood and family environment however from Victor narration
some hints can be extracted which imply that this is not the case. This view can be seen most clearly
when Victor describes himself as being guided by a 'silken cord’, the adjective ‘silken’ is a description
of Victors ‘perfect’ childhood, a childhood full of prosperity and love. However, the noun ‘cord’
changes this perspective drastically, this noun creates a sense of restriction and limitations
particularly with reference to Victor’s knowledge of the world and people outside of his limited
amounts of family and friends. Here Shelley seems to be criticizing the regime of family itself, which
could be a result of the fact that she lost her own mother with days of being born.
However, it would be ignorant and negligent to ignore the differing effects that Alphonse and
Caroline on Victor’s presentation as a curious teenager and independent young adult (and
subsequently his actions and future) when considering the presentation of Victor Frankenstein’s
character. Whilst Alphonse is generally presented as a good father it is easy to get a sense that he is
quite detached and indifferent in his parenting style, on occasion coming off as aloof and far too
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