Analysis
of Major Characters
Victor Frankenstein
Victor Frankenstein's life story is at the heart of Frankenstein. A young
Swiss boy, he grows up in Geneva reading the works of the ancient
and outdated alchemists, a background that serves him ill when he
attends university at Ingolstadt. There he learns about modern science
and, within a few years, masters all that his professors have to
teach him. He becomes fascinated with the secret of life, discovers
it, and brings a hideous monster to life. The monster proceeds to
kill Victor's youngest brother, best friend, and wife; he also indirectly
causes the deaths of two other innocents, including Victor's father.
Though torn by remorse, shame, and guilt, Victor refuses to admit
to anyone the horror of what he has created, even as he sees the
ramifications of his creative act spiraling out of control.
Victor changes over the course of the novel from an innocent youth
fascinated by the prospects of science into a disillusioned, guilt-ridden
man determined to destroy the fruits of his arrogant scientific
endeavor. Whether as a result of his desire to attain the godlike
power of creating new life or his avoidance of the public arenas in
which science is usually conducted, Victor is doomed by a lack of humanness.
He cuts himself off from the world and eventually commits himself
entirely to an animalistic obsession with revenging himself upon
the monster.
At the end of the novel, having chased his creation ever
northward, Victor relates his story to Robert Walton and then dies.
With its multiple narrators and, hence, multiple perspectives, the
novel leaves the reader with contrasting interpretations of Victor:
classic mad scientist, transgressing all boundaries without concern,
or brave adventurer into unknown scientific lands, not to be held responsible
for the consequences of his explorations.
The Monster
The monster is Victor Frankenstein's creation, assembled
from old body parts and strange chemicals, animated by a mysterious
spark. He enters life eight feet tall and enormously strong but
with the mind of a newborn. Abandoned by his creator and confused,
he tries to integrate himself into society, only to be shunned universally. Looking
in the mirror, he realizes his physical grotesqueness, an aspect
of his persona that blinds society to his initially gentle, kind nature.
Seeking revenge on his creator, he kills Victor's younger brother.
After Victor destroys his work on the female monster meant to ease
the monster's solitude, the monster murders Victor's best friend
and then his new wife.
While Victor feels unmitigated hatred for his creation,
the monster shows that he is not a purely evil being. The monster's
eloquent narration of events (as provided by Victor) reveals his
remarkable sensitivity and benevolence. He assists a group of poor
peasants and saves a girl from drowning, but because of his outward
appearance, he is rewarded only with beatings and disgust. Torn
between vengefulness and compassion, the monster ends up lonely
and tormented by remorse. Even the death of his creator-turned-would-be-destroyer
offers only bittersweet relief: joy because Victor has caused him
so much suffering, sadness because Victor is the only person with
whom he has had any sort of relationship.
Robert Walton
Walton's letters to his sister form a frame around the
main narrative, Victor Frankenstein's tragic story. Walton captains
a North Pole–bound ship that gets trapped between sheets of ice.
While waiting for the ice to thaw, he and his crew pick up Victor,
weak and emaciated from his long chase after the monster. Victor
recovers somewhat, tells Walton the story of his life, and then
dies. Walton laments the death of a man with whom he felt a strong,
meaningful friendship beginning to form.
Walton functions as the conduit through which the reader
hears the story of Victor and his monster. However, he also plays
a role that parallels Victor's in many ways. Like Victor, Walton
is an explorer, chasing after that country of eternal lightunpossessed knowledge.
Victor's influence on him is paradoxical: one moment he exhorts
Walton's almost-mutinous men to stay the path courageously, regardless
of danger; the next, he serves as an abject example of the dangers
of heedless scientific ambition. In his ultimate decision to terminate
his treacherous pursuit, Walton serves as a foil (someone whose
traits or actions contrast with, and thereby highlight, those of
another character) to Victor, either not obsessive enough to risk
almost-certain death or not courageous enough to allow his passion
to drive him.