Which passage from Frankenstein best illustrates the theme of the destructive power of revenge?

Answer 1

When I awoke I found that the sun had already mounted Considerably. The wind was high, and waves continually threatened the safety of my little skiff.

Answer 2

The monster says, " I recollected my threat [to Frankenstein], and resolved that it should be accomplished. I knew that I was preparing for myself a deadly torture; but I was the slave, not the master, of an impulsive which I detested, yet could not disobey" (327) (APEX)

Answer 3

Mary Shelly's Frankenstein is a book that was ahead of its time. Not only is the science that Mary writes about for one of her characters, Victor, to create a monster was not even thought of as a serious possibility back in 1818 when the story was written, but it was written by a woman, when most authors were men, and it was a gothic novel; however the themes, such as actions and consequences, compassion, revenge, and the need for human interaction, within the book are timeless. One of the main themes that I found in the book is that of revenge. This theme is present throughout most of the book, and is shown in both Victor and the monster.

Victor became so obsessed in scientifically creating life that it consumed his own life. He poured himself into his studies, put his life and his family on the back burner, and yet, when he finally accomplished this and created the monster, he was repulsed by the sight of it, "now that I had finished, the beauty of the dream vanished, and breathless Horror and disgust filled my heart." (Shelly, 50) This caused him to run from the monster and leave him abandoned. Victor became physically ill whenever he thought about the monster; he tried to forget him, but could not. "If it is ugliness that fuels the monsters social exclusion, it is beauty that drives his revenge: he destroys what he cannot possess." (Youngquist, Paul. "Frankenstein: The Mother, the Daughter, and the Monster." Philological Quarterly70, 3 (Summer 1991): 339-359) The monster came back to him later in the story when after the monster was shunned from humanity because of the way he looked and because he was not human, he killed Victor's young brother, William. Victor wants to seek revenge on the monster because of the murder of his brother as well and the execution of Justine, who was innocent but was accused of William's murder.

The monster seeks revenge on Victor, and would stop at nothing to get that revenge. He feels that it is Victor's fault that he is lonely, detested, and despised by everyone. He is convinced that Victor is the reason for his loneliness, and wonders why he was even created. "Cursed, cursed creator! Why did I live? Why, in that instant, did I not extinguish the spark of existence which you had so wantonly bestowed?" (Shelly, 136) The monster tried to friend a blind elderly man, De Lacey, and his two grown children, Felix and Agatha, that lived in a cottage. After hiding out in their pig sty for a year and learning from them, in secret, how to speak, he revealed himself to the old man, and had a conversation with him, when the children saw the monster the son attacked him and he fled. He came across a girl that he thought was drowning, tried to help her and was shot at, because since his appearance is grotesque, it was thought that he was attacking the girl. Because of these events he becomes angry and violent, and this is when he vows revenge against all humans, particularly his creator. When he goes after his creator he meets a small boy in the woods, Williams, who tells him his father's name, and upon hearing the name Frankenstein the monster strangles the boy.

After the monster reveals his story to Victor, and tells him that he was the one that murdered William, this of course Victor had already deduced not long after the murder, and that he was the one that framed Justine, the monster goes on to ask Victor to create another creature, a female companion, so that he no longer has to be alone and feel loneliness, and that they will disappear together, onto another continent, away from humanity and that he will never kill again. Victor agrees to this however he goes back on his word after terrifying himself with the thoughts of what another creature like the monster might be like, how she would act, or even if they were to mate, that their children would be a "race of devils." When the monster sees that Victor has destroyed his work on the female creature the monster decided to get revenge by killing Victor's lifelong friend that was travelling with him, Henry. When Victor learns of this killing and is accused of the murder, he falls ill again. The monster also tells Victor that he will be there on his wedding night; Victor thinks that the monster will get his revenge by killing him; however the monsters intention was to kill Elizabeth, Victor's life-long love, and new wife. After Elizabeth's death Victor tell his father his secret about creating the monster. Victor's father dies a few days later after Victor confesses his secret to him, and Victor spends the rest of his life, which ends up only being a couple of months, searching for the monster to destroy him; however it is Victor who is ultimately destroyed because he lost everyone that he loved or cared for. "The very human desire for revenge transforms both Victor and the monster into true monsters that have no feelings or desires beyond destroying their foe." Victor dies never having found his monster, never being able to get his revenge on the monster he created, for taking the lives of those that he loved. In the end Robert finds the monster on his ship, by Victor's side, after he is already dead, weeping. I think that he weeps because not only was Victor his creator, but Victor was the only person he had a real relationship with. Their relationship was destructive and was based on revenge, Victor trying to kill his creation, and the monster killing everyone that was important to Victor, Victor trying to avenge those deaths and the monster wanting to destroy Victor for creating him in the first place, but they were both loners, and in the end that revenge is what brought them together.

Answer 4

as the was fair and the wind favorable we resolved to go by water

Answer 5

Monsters revenge on Victor, the isolation causes revenge, Monster is lonely and does not it in, Victor wants to kill the monster because he kills his family & friends

Answer 6

The monster has no emotion and so he kills a person close to his creator Victor Frankenstien after Victor refuses to make a bride for the monster.