Frankenstein plot ch 9-12 – Flashcards
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How does Victor respond in the days after Justine's death? How have Elizabeth's views changed?
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Unable to sleep, Victor retreats into solitude and shuns human company. Elizabeth sees evil in men. She says she never believed in capital punishment, but now she wants the true murderer to suffer for his crimes.
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What journey does Victor undertake, and when? What places does he travel through? Where does he stay?
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Victor journeys to the Swiss Alps. He leaves in August and first travels through the Arve Valley. He stays in the village of Chamounix.
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Where does Victor go the next day? Where does he go the following day? P. B. Shelley mentions the glacier in a letter written at Chamouni (his spelling) on July 25, 1817:
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He travels through the valley. Then, in the rain, on the following day, Victor decides to climb Montanvert.
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How does he feel during this part of his journey? (Notice in this chapter that Frankenstein, in the late 1700s, is able to quote a poem written by P.B. Shelley in 1816.
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Victor says he was "filled ... with a sublime ecstasy that gave wings to the soul and allowed it to soar from the obscure world to light and joy" (79).
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Whom does Victor see? How does he respond?
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Victor sees the creature running with amazing speed over the mountains. He is filled with horror and rage and ready to engage in "mortal combat."
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In this chapter, we finally hear the creature speak for the first time. What does he say? Is this what we expect from the creature?
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The creature says he has suffered from loneliness. He says all men hate the wretched and he is hurt that his creator detests him. He says "do your duty towards me, and I will do mine to you and the rest of mankind" (81).
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What does the creature ask of Victor? What does the creature say to Victor? Does his language remind you of another literary work? How good is Victor at performing the role of creator for his creature?
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The monster says misery has made him a fiend. Victor despises his creation. The language resembles Milton's Paradise Lost.
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How does the creature continue to learn about the family he is watching? How might a modern anthropologist or sociologist respond to the creature's methods? What is the condition of the family? How does the creature manage to help them?
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The creature studies their daily routines. The creature thinks they have all the luxuries of life, but then realizes they are very poor. The creature clears the snow from their walk and leaves supplies of wood for the family.
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Why has the creature caused the deaths of William and Justine? Is he as inherently evil and bloodthirsty as Victor has assumed?
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The creature says Victor is determined to annihilate him; therefore, as long as Victor intends to destroy the creature, he will destroy Victor's happiness in return. The creature is not just a scientific experiment; he is emotional, sensitive and intelligent. He possesses a human dignity and intellect!
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What are the names of the family members? Who are Agatha and Felix?
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The old man is not yet named. Agatha and Felix are brother and sister.
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What will cause the creature to change? Keep in mind his statement "I was benevolent and good; misery made me a fiend. Make me happy, and I shall again be virtuous". What sort of psychological understanding is Shelley showing here?
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Compassion and love will change the creature. Shelley seems to say that humanity's goodness is a result of the compassion and duty towards others.
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Does Victor agree to listen to the creature's tale? What does Victor begin to feel? Where do they go?
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Victor agrees to listen because he feels the duty of the creator is to "render him happy" (83). They go to the creature's hut.
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What does the creature remember of his earliest days? How does he seem to be learning things? How well can the creature speak at this point of his existence?
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The creature's five senses were not separated and light greatly bothered him. He was filled with pain and misery at the knowledge that he was so desolate.
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What happens during his first encounters with people? Is this more like what you expect from a horror story? But from whose point of view do we see these encounters?
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When he encounters people, they scream, run away, faint or try to harm him. These encounters are told through the monster's pov.
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How good of an ironic sense of humor does the creature have? (See the "hand" bit)
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Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel has this famous painting.
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The creature is still there when spring comes. What has been happening to Victor in the meantime? (See Chapter 5.)
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Victor is sick and being nursed back to health by Henry Clerval.
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How does the creature learn language? Why might he have trouble learning words such as "good, dearest, unhappy"?
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The creature learns the words for food and objects. Abstract nouns and some adjectives are difficult to understand because they usually refer to or modify a condition, not a person, place or thing.
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What things bother the creature when he thinks of discovering himself to the family? How does he respond to his own appearance when he sees it?
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He fears the family will be horrified by him. He sees his reflection and notices how ugly he is compared to the beautiful humans.
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How does the creature hope to win over the family? How does he respond to the coming of spring?
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The creature wants to learn to speak. Spring fills him with joy and hope.
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Where does he finally find a place to stay? What does he learn about the people who live in the cottage? How does he feel toward them?
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He finds a small kennel next to a cottage. He learns of music for the first time, as well as words and language. He feels a mixture of pain and pleasure.
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How does the creature respond to his discovery of the fire? Why does he move?
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He discovers that fire provides warmth and light, but also pain. He moves because he must search for food.
