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Summary Of Chapter 19 Of Frankenstein By John Foster

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Chapter 12 of Foster’s book is about allegories and symbols within novels. Foster explains it as, “things stand for other things on a one-for-one basis,” (Foster, 105). One symbol in Frankenstein is the biblical references comparing the monster to Adam and God. The monster is always questioning whether or not he is meant to exist and is actually upset at some parts of the novel because he feels like he doesn’t fit in with society and that he isn’t meant to be in this world. The monster says, “Hateful day when I received life!' I exclaimed in agony. `Accursed creator! Why did you form a monster so hideous that even YOU turned from me in disgust? God, in pity, made man beautiful and alluring, after his own image; but my form is a filthy type of yours, more horrid even from the very resemblance. Satan had his companions, fellow devils, to admire and encourage him, but I am solitary and abhorred,” (Shelley, 158). Not only is the monster expressing his hatred for himself, but he also …show more content…

Foster says, “Geography is setting, but it’s also psychology, attitude finance, industry-anything that place can forge in the people who live there,” (Foster, 174). One example in Frankenstein is when Victor feels guilty so he climbs to the top of a mountain. This seems to have little significance, but according to Foster “when writers send characters south, it’s so they can run amok,” (Foster, 179). Well, Victor ran up (or North one could presume in this context) which symbolizes a way for him to clear his mind during guilt. Victor sits atop the mountain and says, “For some time I sat upon the rock that overlooks the sea of ice. A mist covered both that and the surrounding mountains,” (Shelley, 101). Another example of geography in this novel is when the monster is looking at his reflection in the lake water and not liking what he sees. If it wasn’t for this lake then this scene would not have

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In Frankenstein, Mary Shelley employs biblical allusions to demonstrate that only nature can achieve perfection. After contemplating his fate while listening to Safie, Felix, and Agatha, the monster realizes that “no Eve soothed [his] sorrows nor shared [his] thoughts” and that his Creator “had abandoned [him]” (Shelley 141). The monster desperately craves acceptance and companionship just like Adam had with Eve, but Frankenstein refuses to help, leaving the monster to suffer in his isolation without someone to “soothe his sorrows.” Shelley compares Frankenstein to God as a creator of life and reveals that Frankenstein pales in comparison to God, as he leaves his creation without anyone to help him live. Only God can imbue something with true

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Works Cited Enstein, Vicki F. "Frakenstien" Vicki F. Enstein. 8 Mar. 2005. Web. 19 Jan. 2016. Higgins, Nicholas.

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In “Frankenstein” Chapter 15-17, the story was told in the point of view of the monster to give you a sense of what the monster was feeling . These chapters showed how the monster was developing more emotions and feeling more and more isolated. The most important event in my opinion is when the monster learns to read and was feeling very lonely, so he decided to attempt to made a friend. This event really captures the mindset of the monster and gets you to empathize with the monster. Chapter 15 starts of with the monster finding a leather satchel full of books and after reading those books the monster had became enlightened.

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Throughout the book Frankenstein, Mary Shelly uses nature imagery to show the character’s emotions and mood. Mary Shelley often uses nature and the character’s surroundings to reflect the character’s mood. In chapter 11, the monster is alone during the winter, having to survive in this unfamiliar world he is cold and frightened especially during the cold winter nights. “It was dark when I awoke; I felt cold also, and half frightened, as it were, instinctively, finding myself so desolate.” (Shelly, 105)

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Under Frankenstein’s interpretation of the monster, the reader can actively imagine and adopt the feelings that he has towards the monster. Imagery is used very proficiently here as this is precisely what Shelley wishes to accomplish in this section of the passage; she wants the readers to cringe at the monster’s portrayal, and that’s exactly what they do.

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In chapters 11 to 15 of Frankenstein, written by Mary Shelley, Victor Frankenstein’s creation realizes a great deal about the human condition and the world on a whole, but his most important discovery is language. After being abandoned by Victor immediately following his entrance into the world, the creation seeks refuge in the woods and eventually encounters (and settles down in) a hovel. Adjacent to the hovel is a small cottage inhabited by a family, whom the creation observes and subsequently learns from. For instance, it is because of this family that the creation grasps the concept of language – he states: I found that these people possessed a method of communicating their experiences and feelings to one another by articulate sounds.

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In many novels symbolism functions as a way to reveal much of what is intended for the reader to understand about characters and the work as a whole. Symbols can be ideas, objects, or actions that constitute multiple interpretations or meanings. This is also true for many older novels including Frankenstein. Throughout the gothic fiction novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, the use of symbolism and the role it partakes in the entirety of the story signifies its importance. There are many symbols throughout the novel some including light and fire, the creation story, and exploration.

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Why did you form a monster so hideous that even you turned from me in disgust? God, in pity, made man beautiful and alluring, after his own image; but my form is a filthy type of yours, more horrid even from the very resemblance. Satan had his companions, fellow devils, to admire and encourage him, but I am solitary and abhorred (Shelley.) " The abandonment and isolation is what drives the evil in Frankenstein’s monster.

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Christianity in Frankenstein         Throughout the novel, there were many biblical allusions. Christianity play into novel by comparing the creation of Frankenstein's monster to the creation of Adam and Eve. Mary Shelley incorporating this into the novel to show that no one should ever come close as Frankenstein was to receiving "God" status because it will ultimately drive them to destruction. The purpose of these connection is that no one should not play God.

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Their perspectives of nature, however, are vastly different due to their circumstances regarding companionship and affection from companions. Victor Frankenstein describes nature as calming and it brings him great happiness when he is surrounded by nature because he himself is happy and adored by friends who surround him. Frankenstein has friends whom he holds strong bonds with where “harmony was the soul of [their] companionship, and the diversity and contrast that subsided [their] characters drew [them] nearer together” (29, Chapter 2). He is surrounded by companions that give him plenty of love and affection that in turn, bring him happiness and a favoring outlook on nature. Victor takes pleasure in wandering through various scenes of nature, feeling accepted by it, therefore, he can portray it as full of life and “awful and majestic” (82, Chapter 10).

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Duality is shown in Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein, a gothic tale of a scientist whom looks to advance the life-giving qualities of mother nature. Through this novel, Shelley proves that good and evil in human nature is not always simple to define, and that everyone has both of these qualities within them. The duality of human nature is shown through the characters of Victor Frankenstein and his monster, who are both heroes in the novel while simultaneously displaying anti-hero qualities. Shelley forces the reader to sympathize with them both but also creates gruesome ideas of the two. Frankenstein’s creature places himself in a submissive position when he begs his creator to have mercy on him and asking the creator to “create a female for [him] with whom [he] can live in the interchange of those sympathies necessary for [his] being.”

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1921 Words | 8 Pages

Such passion is seen in Victor’s ‘noble intent’ to design a being that could contribute to society, but he had overextended himself, falling under the spell of playing ‘God,’ further digging his grave as he is blinded by glory. His creation – aptly called monstrous being due to its stature, appearance, and strength – proved to be more of a pure and intellectually disposed ‘child’ that moves throughout the novel as a mere oddity, given the short end of the stick in relation to a lack of familial figures within his life, especially that of parents. Clearly, Victor Frankenstein had sealed his fate: by playing God he was losing his humanity, ultimately becoming the manifestation of Mary Shelley’s hidden desires, deteriorating into The Lucifer Principle by which the author Howard Bloom notes social groups, not individuals, as the primary “unit of selection” in human psychological

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758 Words | 4 Pages

In Mary Shelley’s iconic gothic novel, Frankenstein, Romantic themes are strongly represented in order to propagandize Romanticism over the elements of knowledge and the Enlightenment. In her novel, Shelley uses gothic nature settings to foreshadow dark events that are about to happen in the novel. She also uses nature to intensify the effect that is brought during significant scenes, a strong example being, when Victor Frankenstein’s monster approaches him after a long period of time. Nature and its use to influence mood is one of the most paramount themes of both Frankenstein and Romanticism.

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656 Words | 3 Pages

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley is a gothic novel that tells the story of scientist, Victor Frankenstein, and his obsession with creating human life. This leads him to creating a gruesome monster made of body-parts stolen from grave yards, whom upon discovering his hideousness, the monster seeks revenge against his creator, causing Victor to regret the creation of his monster for the rest of his life. Shelley uses the literary elements of personification, imagery, and similes to give a vivid sense and visualization of Victor Frankenstein’s thoughts and feelings as well as to allow us to delve deeper into the monster’s actions and emotions. Throughout the novel, Shelley uses personification of various forces and objects to reflect the effect in Victor’s actions.

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764 Words | 4 Pages

The novel Frankenstein has a unique way of expressing how the setting functions as a whole. Mary Shelley used an early 1800s setting in Switzerland and London to show how Victor made it through this extraordinary adventure. There were multiple themes that affected how the setting functioned in the novel. Nature, weather, and season all affect the mood of the characters. These things all have a great impact on the setting of the book.

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