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She joined the hands of Elizabeth and myself. “My children,” she said, “my firmest hopes of future happiness were placed on the prospect of your union.”
Victor's mother Caroline speaks these words to Victor and Elizbeth on her deathbed in Chapter 3. Her dying wish is that Victor and Elizabeth get married, emphasizing how deeply she values family unity. Her words highlight the strong familial bonds and idealized domestic expectations that shape Victor’s upbringing.
Such were the professor’s words—rather let me say such the words of the fate—enounced to destroy me.
In this quote from Chapter 3, Victor describes his reaction to the words of one of his professors, M. Waldman. During a class lecture, Waldman states that the "modern masters" of science "...have acquired new and almost unlimited powers; they can command the thunders of heaven, mimic the earthquake, and even mock the invisible world with its own shadows." This claim inspires Victor to embrace his dangerous ambition and attempt to discover the secret to creating life, an instinct that eventually results in the destruction of everything he holds dear. When Victor refers to his professor's speech as the "words of fate," he implies that they were a turning point in his tragic destiny. He also suggests that his fate was inevitable, as if there was no way he could have avoided the terrible consequences of his experiments. By saying this, he's already introducing the idea that he doesn't hold the ultimate responsibility for the awful results of his many mistakes.
Read more about the Consequences of Ambition as a theme.
A new species would bless me as its creator and source; many happy and excellent natures would owe their being to me. No father could claim the gratitude of his child so completely as I should deserve theirs.
This Chapter 4 quote perfectly illustrates Victor's immense arrogance and lack of foresight in his attempt to create new life. Despite the seemingly impossible nature of his task, he "doubted not that [he] should ultimately succeed," but clearly failed to imagine anything other than an ideal outcome. He sees himself as a paternal figure to his eventual creation, capable of gifting them with life and therefore commanding their "gratitude" and obedience. However, he seems interested only in the privileges of parenthood, not the responsibilities. He feels he deserves respect and adoration from his "child," but he doesn't consider that instead of giving them a gift, he is cursing them with a terrible father.
Read more about the Role of Parental Responsibility as a theme.
How can I describe my emotions at this catastrophe, or how delineate the wretch whom with such infinite pains and care I had endeavoured to form?
In this Chapter 5 quote, Victor struggles to express the horror he feels upon seeing the creature he has brought to life. His use of the word “catastrophe” demonstrates that what he once viewed as a glorious scientific achievement has instantly turned into a nightmarish disaster. The fact that he's so utterly shocked by this outcome highlights the hubris and moral blindness that led him to create life without considering that the consequences might be monstrous.
