Summary of Frankenstein: Friendship, Tragedy, and Guilt
Unlike Walton, Victor has friends in Elizabeth and Henry Clerval. As Victor delves into science, particularly alchemy, he discovers the power and potential destructiveness of knowledge. Tragedy strikes with Elizabeth's illness and his mother's death, leading Victor to study science seriously. His actions result in guilt and heartbreak, culminating in devastating consequences for those he loves.
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Frankenstein Frankenstein Summaries
Ch. 2 Summary Ch. 2 Summary Unlike Walton, Victor has friends. Two of them. Or at least, he did during his childhood. First, there's Elizabeth. Victor also has a friend named Henry Clerval. Victor describes his idyllic childhood, which is a cue for us to begin use of the historical present. As a brooding teenager, Victor develops an interest in science. Especially interesting to him is the old, not to mention discredited, field of alchemy. He's especially into some guy named Albertus Magnus. Victor realizes that science is very powerful, but possibly also destructive, when he sees a tree get struck by lightning. Hmm!
Ch. 3 Summary Ch. 3 Summary Elizabeth catches scarlet fever. She recovers, but Victor's mother catches the illness while nursing her back to health and dies herself. This is where the bad things begin, if you hadn't already picked up on that. On her deathbed, she tells Victor and Elizabeth she wants them to get married. Way to lay on the guilt trip, mom. A few weeks later, Victor goes away to study at a university called Ingolstadt. He's only seventeen. Once he gets there, he finds a place to live and starts chatting up professors. Some guy named M. Krempe teaches natural philosophy and basically discredits alchemy entirely, to Victor's dismay. Luckily, Victor meets a nice chemistry professor named Waldman and decides to study science. The real kind.
Ch. 4 Questions Ch. 4 Questions 1. Describe the shift in tone when Victor says, Learn from me, if not by my precepts, at least by my example, how dangerous is the acquirement of knowledge and how much happier the man is who believes his native town to be the world, than he who aspires to become greater than his nature will allow. 2. Victor says: "After having formed this determination and having spent some months in successfully collecting and arranging my materials, I began'. What materials is he talking about? What attitude of perspective does this attitude represent? 3. During his summer experiment, Victor admits his eyes were insensible to the charms of nature. What role might nature (or the lack of it) play for Victor? 4. How can you explain Victor's relationship to the dead?
Ch. 5 Ch. 5 - - Dream Dream Assignment: Explain the dream. (2-3 sentences) Explain the significance of the dream. (3-4 sentences)
Ch. 8 Summary Ch. 8 Summary Shocking! Justine confesses even though she is innocent so that she won't go to Hell. Elizabeth and Victor still believe in her innocence, although no one else does. Justine is executed. Victor at least has the good sense to feel guilty, since his secret has now caused two people he loves to die.
Ch. 9 Summary Ch. 9 Summary Victor mopes around, contemplating suicide. He continues to feel: (1) stupid and (2) guilty. His father takes the family to their lake house at Belrive to try to put the past behind them. Victor goes off by himself to the valley of Chamounix and feels momentary happiness due to how sublime it is (again with the sublime nature bit pay attention), but the feeling passes.
Ch. 12 Ch. 12- -13 Questions 13 Questions 1. What about the cottagers does the creature find most striking? 2. What emotion does the creature find puzzling in the cottagers? 3. What kind actions does the creature perform for the cottagers? 4. In what way do the cottagers differ from the people the creature has met so far? 5. Why is the creature puzzled by the cottagers tears? 6. Why does the creature want to help the cottagers? 7. In what way does the arrival of Safie help the creature? 8. What does he learn from Felix s lessons?
Ch. 14 Summary Ch. 14 Summary Now that the monster understands what the family is saying, he can understand their story, which is weirdly like what has happened to Victor's family. Safie's Turkish father was accused wrongly of a crime (like Justine), and sentenced to death in Paris. Safie met Felix when he was visiting her father in prison, and they fell in love. At the time, Agatha, Felix, and the blind old man (named De Lacey) were respected and rich Parisians. Felix plotted to help Safie's father escape from prison, but he was discovered, and the family was exiled sans all their money. Safie's father tried to force her to move to Constantinople, but she ran away to Felix. These stories give the monster hope that Felix and De Lacey will be compassionate toward him, since they too have suffered injustice.
Ch. 15 Summary Ch. 15 Summary One night, the monster finds books and clothes in the woods while he is foraging for food. The most important book for him is Paradise Lost, which the monster mistakenly reads as history instead of fiction. He also finds some of Victor's journal entries in the pockets of the clothes he initially took from Victor. Big mistake. He discovers that Victor was totally grossed out by him and hated that he had brought the monster to life. The monster decides that the cottagers are his last hope for social acceptance. Since De Lacey is blind and the younger people often leave him alone during the day, the monster plans to gain De Lacey's trust and acceptance and in turn be trusted by Felix, Agatha, and Safie. Soon, the monster gets his opportunity. He approaches De Lacey, who is kind and cordial to him. But the others return too soon and freak out. Felix drives him off, and, when the monster finally comes back, they're gone. For good.
Ch. 18 Summary Ch. 18 Summary Victor procrastinates digging up all those graves. Finally, he decides to go off to England to work on his project. Before he goes, his father notices that Victor seems pretty upset. Only he thinks it's because Victor doesn't want to marry his adopted sister Elizabeth anymore. But Victor totally does. He's just got to make a second monster first. So, Victor arranges with his father to leave for two years and BFF Henry goes with him. Uh-oh.
Ch. 19 Summary Ch. 19 Summary Victor can't really work with Henry and the monster breathing down his neck, so he leaves Henry with a friend in Scotland. Victor then rushes off to the Orkneys, where he can work on his lady monster in solitude. Still, this guy has a tough time getting himself to work. He can't help wondering if he's just making another destructive monster. Victor spends all his time alone with his half-finished monster and a guilty conscience.
