Essay on Death and Sorrow in Mary Shelleys Frankenstein :: Frankenstein essays

 Death and Sorrow in Frankenstein   Mary Shelleys Frankenstein is filled with death and sorrow. They occur in almost every aspect of the book. The four squares of the book, Walter, Victor, the monster, and the cottagers, whole suffer from them at one time or another. Some perceive Frankenstein as a horror story however, in actuality it is a book of calamity and despair. Every page reveals more misery than the page before. Thus, death and sorrow are inevitable in Mary Shelleys Frankenstein.   Walter has an interesting turn of events towards the end of the book. He is forced to abandon his quest to the North Pole, he is faced with the monster and must hear the monsters plans for self-destruction, he has to watch idly as his new friend, Victor, passes from this world. He has such noble dreams and aspirations, but they are all brought to a halt because of his chance meeting with Frankenstein. Or, was his expedition doom from the start because of the nature of wanting t o do what no other man had done? Was it his ambition that led him to untimely failure? The evidence from the text proves that possibly he was never meant to surpass his peers and reserve the glory that he pursued.   Victor experiences very little joy at all after the creation of the monster. He suffers from numerous bouts of depression, he most rear the deaths of his brother, best friend, and wife, all of which were murdered at the reach of the monster. His friend Justine is executed because of the death of William, for which she is falsely accused and convicted. His father also dies after the murder of Elizabeth, Victors cursed bride. With so much death surrounding his life, how is it possible that Victor could still be cognizant of his actions when he decides to pursue the monster and end its violent furiousness? He cant. Victors mind is so clouded by the sorrow and pain of his past that he is blinded to the fact that he is attempting to destroy a creature with far great er physical strength and speed than any mortal. Much of his conflict appears to be created by the monster, when in fact the torment comes from Victors own hands because he himself created and gave life to the monster. The monster lived in a world of eternal turmoil and strife.