Log inSign up for FREE
Library

Copy of Frankenstein 12/11 (6/23/2025)

Last updated 6 months ago
16 questions
Volume III, Ch. 5&6
Volume III, Chapters 5 and 6, Pages 162–168 1 After the ceremony was performed, a large party assembled at my father’s, it was agreed that Elizabeth and I should pass the afternoon and night at Evian, and return the next morning. 2 Those were the last moments of my life during which I enjoyed the feeling of happiness. We enjoyed the beauty of the scene, sometimes on one side of the lake, where we saw Mont Salêve, the pleasant banks of the Montalêgre, and at a distance, surmounting all, the beautiful Mont Blânc, and the assemblage of mountains that in vain endeavor to emulate her; sometimes coasting the opposite banks, we saw the mighty Jura opposing its dark side to the ambition that would quit its native country.

3 “You are sorrowful, my love. Ah! if you knew what I have suffered, and what I may yet endure, you would endeavour to let me taste the quiet, and freedom from despair, that this one day at least permits me to enjoy.” 4 “Something whispers to me not to depend too much on the prospect that is opened before us. Observe how fast we move along, and the clouds which sometimes obscure and sometimes rise above the dome of Mont Blânc.” 5 The Alps here come closer to the lake, and we approached the amphitheatre of mountains which forms its eastern boundary. The sun sunk beneath the horizon as we landed; and as I touched the shore, I felt those cares and fears revive, which soon were to clasp me, and cling to me for ever.

6 The wind, which had fallen in the south, now rose with great violence in the west. The moon had reached her summit in the heavens, and was beginning to descend; the clouds swept across it swifter than the flight of the vulture, and dimmed her rays, while the lake reflected the scene of the busy heavens, rendered still busier by the restless waves that were beginning to rise. Suddenly a heavy storm of rain descended. 7 had been calm during the day; but so soon as night obscured the shapes of objects, a thousand fears arose in my mind. I was anxious and watchful, while my right hand grasped a pistol which was hidden in my bosom; every sound terrified me. 8 “What is it that agitates you, my dear Victor? What is it you fear?” 9 “This night is dreadful, very dreadful.”

10 I earnestly entreated her to retire, and continued some time walking up and down the passages of the house, inspecting every corner that might afford a retreat to my adversary. But I discovered no trace of him. 11 Suddenly I heard a shrill and dreadful scream. The whole truth rushed into my mind, my arms dropped, the motion of every muscle and fibre was suspended; I could feel the blood trickling in my veins, and tingling in the extremities of my limbs. 12 A fiend had snatched from me every hope of future happiness: no creature had ever been so miserable as I was. 13 But why should I dwell upon the incidents that followed this last overwhelming event. Mine has been a tale of horrors.

14 Know that, one by one, my friends were snatched away; I was left desolate. My own strength is exhausted; and I must tell, in a few words, what remains of my hideous narration.
15 My father yet lived; but sunk under the tidings that I bore. I see him now, his eyes wandered in vacancy. Cursed, cursed be the fiend that doomed him to waste in wretchedness! 16 He could not live under the horrors that were accumulated around him; an apoplectic fit was brought on, and in a few days he died in my arms. 17 What then became of me? Chains and darkness were the only objects that pressed upon me. Melancholy followed, but by degrees I gained a clear conception of my miseries and situation, and was then released from my prison. For they had called me mad; and during many months, as I understood, a solitary cell had been my habitation. 18 As the memory of past misfortunes pressed upon me, I began to reflect on their cause—the monster whom I had created, the miserable daemon whom I had sent abroad into the world for my destruction. I was possessed by a maddening rage when I thought of him, and desired and ardently prayed that I might have him within my grasp to wreak a great and signal revenge on his cursed head.
What does Victor mean on page 165 when he says “the whole truth rushed into my mind”?

What becomes of Victor after his father’s death?
1
On page 142, the creature tells Victor
"I go; but I shall be with you on your wedding-night," and Victor thinks, "In that hour I should die, and at once satisfy and extinguish his malice."
The passage from page 165 shows that there was dramatic irony on page 142 because Victor thought that the creature planned to kill __________, but the audience suspects that the creature really planned to kill __________
1

At what point did you realize that Elizabeth was likely the creature's real victim? How did you feel about Victor's situation when you realized it?

1

Who has died by the end of this passage?

1

Do you agree with Victor that “no creature had ever been so miserable as [he] was” (167)? Explain why or why not.

Volume III, Ch. 7
Volume III, Chapter 7, Pages 169–173 1 My present situation was one in which all voluntary thought was swallowed up and lost. I was hurried away by fury; revenge alone endowed me with strength and composure; it modelled my feelings, and allowed me to be calculating and calm, at periods when otherwise delirium or death would have been my portion. 2 My first resolution was to quit Geneva for ever; my country, which, when I was happy and beloved, was dear to me, now, in my adversity, became hateful. 3 “By the sacred earth on which I kneel, by the shades that wander near me, by the deep and eternal grief that I feel, I swear; and by thee, O Night, and by the spirits that preside over thee, I swear to pursue the daemon, who caused this misery, until he or I shall perish in mortal conflict. I call on you, spirits of the dead; and on you, wandering ministers of vengeance, to aid and conduct me in my work. Let the cursed and hellish monster drink deep of agony; let him feel the despair that now torments me."

4 I was answered through the stillness of night by a loud and fiendish laugh. It rung on my ears long and heavily; the mountains re-echoed it, and I felt as if all hell surrounded me with mockery and laughter. 5 “I am satisfied: miserable wretch! You have determined to live, and I am satisfied.” 6 I darted towards the spot from which the sound proceeded; but the devil eluded my grasp. Suddenly the broad disk of the moon arose, and shone full upon his ghastly and distorted shape, as he fled with more than mortal speed. 7 And now my wanderings began, which are to cease but with life. 8 I have traversed a vast portion of the earth, and have endured all the hardships which travellers, in deserts and barbarous countries, are wont to meet. 9 How I have lived I hardly know; many times have I stretched my failing limbs upon the sandy plain, and prayed for death. 10 But revenge kept me alive; I dared not die, and leave my adversary in being. 11 I was cursed by some devil, and carried about with me my eternal hell.
  • What promise does Victor make on page 170?
  • Who calls whom a "wretch" on page 171? How does this compare to when this term has been used previously?
Comparing Victor and the Creature
1

Compare the images of Victor on page 173 with the images of the creature on page 88. What is similar about Victor and the creature in these moments?

1

Compare Victor's words on page 167 with the creature's words on page 105. What is similar about Victor and the creature in these moments?

1

Compare Victor's words on page 170 with the creature's words on page 141. What is similar about Victor and the creature in these moments?

A theme is a claim, idea, or message that is developed and communicated through a text. It is a general statement about life or human nature.

Readers can uncover a story’s theme by analyzing what happens to the main characters and connecting their experiences to a general topic (like fear or bravery).
1

Think about your answers to the previous questions in this activity. What do you think Shelley wants us to notice when we think about how Victor and the creature have transformed?

Required
1

Write for at least 10 minutes, producing at least 100 words.

What is a big idea about life or human nature that you think Mary Shelley is trying to communicate in Frankenstein? Write a statement of a theme in Frankenstein and explain how this theme develops over the course of the text.

Homework
Required
1

Which of the following answer options best states a theme that Shelley is developing in these moments?

1

Add a caption describing what happens on this page.

Required
1

Add a caption describing what happens on this page.

Required
1

Add a caption describing what happens on this page.

Volume III, Chapter 7, Pages 175–180 1 Scoffing devil! Again do I vow vengeance; again do I devote thee, miserable fiend, to torture and death. Never will I omit my search, until he or I perish; and then with what ecstacy shall I join my Elizabeth, and those who even now prepare for me the reward of my tedious toil and horrible pilgrimage. 2 Oh! with what a burning gush did hope revisit my heart! Warm tears filled my eyes, which I hastily wiped away, that they might not intercept the view I had of the daemon; but still my sight was dimmed by the burning drops, until, giving way to the emotions that oppressed me, I wept aloud. 3 But now, when I appeared almost within grasp of my enemy, my hopes were suddenly extinguished, and I lost all trace of him more utterly than I had ever done before. A ground sea was heard; the thunder of its progress, as the waters rolled and swelled beneath me, became every moment more ominous and terrific. The sea roared; and, as with the mighty shock of an earthquake, it split, and cracked with a tremendous and overwhelming sound. 4 In this manner many appalling hours passed; several of my dogs died; and I myself was about to sink under the accumulation of distress, when I saw your vessel riding at anchor, and holding forth to me hopes of succour and life. 5 I had no conception that vessels ever came so far north, and was astounded at the sight. I quickly destroyed part of my sledge to construct oars; and by these means was enabled, with infinite fatigue, to move my ice-raft in the direction of your ship. I had determined, if you were going southward, still to trust myself to the mercy of the seas, rather than abandon my purpose. I hoped to induce you to grant me a boat with which I could still pursue my enemy. But your direction was northward. You took me on board when my vigour was exhausted, and I should soon have sunk under my multiplied hardships into a death, which I still dread—for my task is unfulfilled.

6 “Oh! when will my guiding spirit, in conducting me to the daemon, allow me the rest I so much desire; or must I die, and he yet live? 7 “If I do, Walton, satisfy my vengeance in his death. When I am dead, if he should appear swear that he shall not live—swear that he shall not triumph over my accumulated woes, and live to make another such a wretch as I am. He is eloquent and persuasive; and once his words had even power over my heart: but trust him not. His soul is as hellish as his form.”
Required
5

Put the events in order that they occurred.

  1. Victor saw Walton's ship in the distance.
  2. Walton pulled Victor aboard his ship.
  3. Victor chased the creature through the ice and snow.
  4. Victor paddled over to the ship on a chunk of ice.
  5. Waves broke apart the ice that Victor was traveling upon.
Required
1

What does Victor ask Walton to do in the event of his death?

Required
2

There is a famous saying, "The apple never falls far from the tree." It means that children often turn out very similar to their parents. Do you think this saying applies to Victor and the creature? Why or why not?