Exploring The Importance Of Chapter 5 In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

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This essay analyses the importance of chapter 5 and the ways Shelley; author of Frankenstein, builds up the atmosphere, describes the night, the monster and Victor’s attitude. There are three editions of this book. The first published in 1818, the second in 1823 and the third and final one in 1931. Shelley was born in 1797; this being a critical time in Europe. Some central developments were the French revolution and Rise of industrialism. This fictional story is about the creation of a ‘monster’ made out of used body parts. This chapter is important to the book because this is where the ‘monster’ comes to life here with the end result being his abandoning. The novel focuses on the creation of an eight foot monster, composed of old body parts, who is given life by a scientist; Victor Frankenstein. Victor leaves his hometown, Geneva, to study philosophy at the University of Ingolstadt. He spends months creating a creature of old body parts and bringing it to life. He is disappointed with…show more content…
This gives the contrast of life and death. ‘inanimate’ would usually be referred to the dead and ‘life’ for being alive. For this victor had “deprived” himself of “rest and health”; but as the monster is given life, victor describes his reaction as a “breathless horror” and “disgust filled” his “heart”. Victor rushes to his room and tries hard to fall asleep. Victor is “disturbed by the wildest dreams” and sights Elizabeth. “as I imprinted the first kiss on her lips, they became livid with the hue if death”. This builds the atmosphere and develops the contrast between life and death. It also gives a sense of imagery. This shows that from the moment he had tried to bestow life into the dead, he accomplished the total opposite; he causes the living to die. Victor is shivering when he awakes. “dim and yellow light of the moon”, shows the reader that it is night time and also gives imagery. It also gives the characteristics of a gothic
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