Frankenstein's last words are, "That he should live to be an instrument of mischief disturbs me ; in other respects this hour, when I momentarily expect my release, is the only happy one which I have enjoyed for several years. The forms of the beloved dead flit before me, and I hasten to their arms. Farewell Walton! Seek happiness in tranquility, and avoid ambition, even if it be only the apparently innocent one of distinguishing yourself in science and discoveries. Yet why do I say this? I have myself been blasted in these hopes, yet another may succeed" 216.
Is Victor's name significant in this story at all? Upon his death bed, he does not appear to be victorious in his fight against the monster because the monster is still out there. However, throughout the novel, he seems to have been fighting with himself to find lasting happiness, and in his final moments before death, he has. "The time at length arrives, when grief is rather an indulgence than a necessity" 72. This time has now passed. Throughout the novel, Frankenstein has been constantly preoccupied with fear of his creation, but now in his dying words, he speaks to Walton, not about killing the monster, but about what Walton should do with the rest of his life. The monster no longer defines how he feels.
On the other side of this, what does Walton think of this? Will he follow his dreams further or will he heed Frankenstein's advice and avoid ambition? Has his trip north been for nothing?
In the beginning of the novel, signs his first four letters differently - R. Walton, R.W., and finally Robert Walton - this last letter was after the all the events in the book, as it is told as a story within the story. Maybe Walton while on his trip to find a northern passage, instead found himself *Cliche. It's hard to know what Walton will do, or if it matters at all, but at least he will return home with a good story. Because Frankenstein is the friend that Walton has been looking for, and has finally found, I think that he will heed Frankenstein's advice by reintegrating himself fully into society, and that his trip has not been a waste.
I like that you question whether or not Frankenstein has attained victory on his deathbed, since the eternal failure that readers typically assign to him seems oversimplified. However, I wouldn't go as far as to say that he has triumphed over his misery or found peace. To me, his dying words are still fraught with bitter regret and resignation. Whatever pleasure they contain rests in 1) his relief at the prospect of death and 2) his satisfaction in being able to advise and protect Walton, a yet-unstained version of himself. Such modest joys, however, do not soften the blow of his "blasted hopes," which even now, so close to his "release," he cannot help but lament. This indicates that to him, his release does not atone for his tragic struggles; he will regret them until his last breath. The monster still does define how Victor feels; Victor may no longer be set on catching him (only due to impossibility, though), and he may not mention him directly, but he references him simply by warning Walton to avoid "distinguishing [himself] in...discoveries." He talks to Walton about his future because his own mistakes weigh so heavily upon him. Thus, I don't think that the dying Frankenstein is free after all.
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree with you in the sense that Robert Walton undergoes a personal transformation upon his journey to the northern passage. However, Walton poses as a foil character to Frankenstein's lack of human connection. As he remarks to his sister in the earlier letters, Walton struggled with the notion of being without companionship on the ship. "I have no friend, Margaret: when I am glowing with the enthusiasm of success, there will be none to participate my joy; if I am assailed by disappointment, no one will endeavor to sustain me in dejection," (Shelley, 54). I think this characteristic of Walton greatly distinguishes him from Frankenstein. Throughout the story, I was surprised to see that Frankenstein failed to share the details of his highs and lows with the people around him. Even Elizabeth, who became his wife, was never told of Frankenstein's situation. This meant that Frankenstein was continually suffering on his own. On his death bed, Frankenstein articulates his realization that selfish ambition tarnishes a connection to humanity that is so vital to emotional stability. Walton's understanding of this concept leads him to return home instead of continue into impending danger. This wise decision is led by reasoning and compassion for his crew members, two things that Frankenstein lost in the heat of his discoveries.
ReplyDeleteThe comment you made about the name Victor really struck me as interesting. I had not associated his name with really anything but being a name at first. But I agree that Victor seems in a way victorious on his death bed. He is able to focus on the happiness of seeing his family in his next life and to advise Walton to have a happier life than he himself had. Also, I think that Frankenstein is victorious because what he doesn't understand is his death also kills the creature. That is Frankenstein's one design—to kill the creature and avenge the deaths of his family members. With the death of Frankenstein, it seems almost inevitable that the creature would kill itself. The creature has no one on earth—no creator, no friend, nothing! Frankenstein was the one thing keeping him alive too and it seemed suiting to me that if one died, the other would as well.
ReplyDeleteLike the excellent comment made by Marlee about whether Victor was truly victorious, your statements about that topic are very though-provoking. Frankenstein throughout the book has proven to show he is very unsocial and chooses to pick more solitary activities. He picked ambition over happiness thinking that the more knowledge he gained, the happier he would become, when instead leads him to suffer at the end of his life with the consequences of this excessive knowledge. He urges Walton to not pursue his ambitions and choose a possibly simpler life of happiness to be among people he loves. I think maybe his "victory" would be the lesson he passed on in his tale, especially to Walton. "He endeavors to fill me with hope; and talks as if life were a possession which he valued" (212). He might not have succeeded in his eyes, but as he hoped he was going on to better things. I recall at some point Walton decides to care for his crew and not pursue the original quest to the north, while Victor could not believe that the crew would not follow through with their duty to their master. What Victor fails to see is the duty of the master to his crew as well. The protection of the crew was more important to Walton that the adventure he initially sought (214-215). Also, to go off the fact that they both needed each other (Frankenstein and the creature), I assume that both lived on because of each other lived. There was a need or some sort of connection between the creator and the creation; since no one on earth existed for them-except each other, their revenge and misery became their common ground. "[Y]ou live, and my power is complete. Follow me; I seek the everlasting ices of the north, where you will feelthe misery of cold and frost... Come on, my enemy; we have yet to wrestl for our lives,; but many hard and miserable hours must you endure..." (205)
ReplyDeleteI would argue that the true "Victor" at the end of the novel is the creature. this is because the creature is the only one who succeeds in his goal at the end. while Victor lies dying with the knowledge that the monster yet lives he reaffirms the success of the monster in obtaining what he sought from Victor: a companion to share in his feelings. the great irony of the novel, and the reason for the creature's eventual victory is that in the end victor becomes just like the monster. he lives completely away from human contact, he desires only revenge, and he has felt the loss of all that is dear to him. from a psychological perspective Victor has become the monster he seeks to destroy. the actions of the monster, whether by accident or design, have conspired to transform Victor into a being just a wretched as the "daemon" he seeks to destroy. The monster uses the great flight north as his chance to interface with his new creation and hold his power over him "follow me; I seek the everlasting ices of the north, where you will feel the misery of cold and frost, to which I am impassive. You will find near this place, if you follow not too tardily, a dead hare; eat and be refreshed". this passage shows the role reversal under which Victor is now dependent upon the monster to provide him what he needs. this ironic twist of events makes the creature the novel's more interesting creator and true "Victor"
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