Frankenstein+SG+Chapters+XXIII+and+XXIV

1. When does it finally occur to Victor that he has foolishly misinterpreted the creature's threat? 2. How does the monster react to his murdering Elizabeth? 3. What does the word "acme" mean in the following context: "Mine has been a tale of horrors; I have reached their acme, and what I must now relate can but be tedious to you."? 4. What is different about Victor's reaction to Elizabeth's (and his father's) death from the rest? 5. Victor, in his anger, says to teh magistrate, "How ignorant art thou in thy pride of wisdom." What is the irony of this? 6. In Chapter XX, Victor says his calmness is brought by despair. At the beginning of Chapter XXIV, he says his calculating revenge brings him calm. What does this change say about his character after the deaths of his wife and father? 7. What does the creature want Victor to do now? How does that sho a differenc in the creature's character from the point when he wanted a companion? 8. Consider Victor's statement: "When I reflected on the work I had completed, no less a one that the creation of a sensitive and rational animal, I could not rank myself with the herd or common projectors...All my speculations and hopes are as nothing; mand, like the archangel who aspired to omnipotence, I am chained to eternal hell." How does this establish Victor as a tragic hero? 9. On his death bed, Victor admits that he had an obligation to make sure his creature had a happy life. What is ironic about the excuse he offers in not doing so? 10. How does the end of the novel justify the concerntric levels of narration introduced at the beginning? 11. How does the inclusion of Captain Walton affect the overall meaning of teh book? 12. Explain how Victor is similar to a tragic hero. 13. Explain how Victor is similar to a romantic hero. 14. How does Victor depart from the typical tragic hero?

2006 Summer Blog