Gothic Elements: Frankenstein The Modern Prometheus

Chapter 1

Caroline Beaufort is found by Alphonse
Frankenstein crying over her father's dead body

Chapter 3

In this chapter we see a important woman
in the novel, Elizabeth in distress as she falls
very ill with the scarlet fever

passing of Caroline is another event
that takes place and causes distress

Chapter 8 and 9

Justine is locked up in a jail cell
suffering for a crime that she did
not commit, but indeed confessed
to commit

Chapter 9

Elizabeth is completly broken after
losing a very dear friend who was
basically a sister figure in her life

the death of Justine
brought a lot of sadness
into Elizabeth's life

Chapter 13

this idea of woman in distress
occurs when Safie decided to
run away with Felix

Chapter 23

the event of Elizabeth's death

the author uses this element throughout the novel to create an air of suspense and to make the atmosphere of where the characters are playing out the plot to appear more mysterious and engaging to the audience

Chapter 2

Victor experiences a summer thunderstorm
that sparks his mind about the wonders of
electrcity and the realtions to science

this storm kind of is what starts the whole notion of
the science related behind the creation of the monster

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

"It was on a dreary night of November, that I beheld the accomplishment of my toils. With an anxiety that almost amounted to agony, I collected the instruments of life around me, that I might infuse a spark of being into the lifeless thing that lay at my feet. It was already one in the morning; the rain pattered dismally against the panes, and my candle was nearly burnt out, when.."

this quote from chapter 5 helps the readers mind paint out a
picture of the gloomy setting that is used to establish a dark setting and mood

Chapter 7

Victors return to Geneva, his travel is
described as dark and with lightning

"I quitted my seat, and walked on, although the darkness and storm increased every minute, and the thunder burst with a terrific crash over my head."

foreshadowing the horrors he will face with the monster that's been created

Chapter 16

William is murdered at the hands
of the monster in the night time

the setting he is killed in can
be seen as gothic as it was dark
and in the middle of the forest

Chapter 20

Victor sets to sail at 2:00 in the morning
where the sky is still dark and gloomy

Orkney Islands is where the female monster's
construction by Victor took place

this location is known to be very foggy and mysterious

most of the places in this setting don't have
any inhabitants proving further highlighting
gothic element of isolation and dark setting

Chapter 21

Setting takes place in Ireland that the author shows to have dark skies and storms during the event of Victor being accused of a murder he did not commit (Henry Clerval's murder)

Chapter 23

when the chain of events happen starting from
Elizabeth's death caused by the monster as he strangles her, there is a storm appraching

its almost as if the storm approaching is telling
the reader that there is something bad going to
happen, which is the case

there are 2 types of unnatural acts of nature that we are presented throughout the novel that impact the gothic side to this novel

lightning

lightning is a clear representation
of destruction as when lightning
strikes the surface of the Earth it
bring upon damage

this is reflected in the book whenever the monster and the protagonist, Victor make an encounter

Victor creates this monster basically out of what has already been destroyed, messing up the natural order of things

storm

storms are always coming in the
story when something bad or evil
is approaching a character or affecting
the plot of the story

storms are an element that we know to represent harbingers of evil, and present both a mirrored image of the inner self of the main character

it emphasizes internal fears and approaching conflict

"The wind, which had fallen in the south, now rose with great violence in the west. The moon had reached her summit in the heavens and was beginning to descend; the clouds swept across it swifter than the flight of the vulture and dimmed her rays, while the lake reflected the scene of the busy heavens, rendered still busier by the restless waves that were beginning to rise. Suddenly a heavy storm of rain descended."

Chapter 3

Victor's mother, Caroline Beaufort's death
occurs due to the scarlet fever she had gotten
ill with

death was caused of natural occurrences

Chapter 7

in this chapter the audience is informed
about the death of Frankenstein's darling
and youngest member, William Frankenstein

Victor's youngest brother was murdered
by the monster once he discovered that
this young boy was associated with the
Frankenstein family (family of his creator)

Justine was then accused of
committing this murder

Chapter 8

Justine dies after being accused
of William;s murder and put on trial

she is put at trial, which at she calls herself
guilty and hung the following day

Chapter 20

Victor kills and destroys the half
constructed mate that he had begun
for the monster that is already alive

in a fit of anger and enragement he
quickly destroys it and tells the monster
he will not continue

Chapter 21

this chapter the reader is revealed
the death of Henry Clerval

the death is caused at the hands of
the monster, but the accusation
ultimately goes to Victor

Chapter 23

Elizabeth suffers a very disturbing and grotesque death

there is a mark on her neck when she is found

"Everywhere I turn I see the same figureher bloodless arms and relaxed form flung by the murderer on its bridal bier."

the description of how her body looked or a description of the scene makes the event more gothic and dark as it sets a fear in the readers mind reading it (also sets sad and scary mood)

Alphonse dies from the suffering grief after
he finds out about his beloved daughters death

Letters At The End

The main characters both die at the ending,
both die in very different ways and under
separate circumstances

The Monster

the creature declared that he would
kill himself soon

the monster dies by committing suicide,
this is done when he jumps off the ship
dies

Victor Frankenstein

he dies onyl because of natural causes

he dies as he suffers from pneumonia,
which he gets as he travels across the
icy wastes of the Arctic to escape his
hideous creation

Scientific Tone Elements

Chapter 2

the summer storm that strikes with lightning
gets Victor interested and thinking about the
application of electricity and connection to science

Chapter 3

goes to university to only to
study the world of science

Chapter 4

works extremely hard towards
creating the monster and continues
collecting deceased parts of others
to make up the monster

the idea of glorify the desire to push the
boundaries of knowledge and possibility
in the science world is heavily highlighted
in the novel

the monster and Victor always
find one another with the connection
of weather

revenge on the monster

castles seen on Rhine River

ancient, gloomy, mysterious

Science-Fiction

protagonist Victor Frankenstein
is a scientist and driven by ambition
of scientific curiosity

Shelley shows the dangerous
aspects of modern scientific world

thoughtless development of modern science
shown in the novel

monster is itself a scientific
investigation of the protagonist

scientific ambition of
the protagonist

protagonist and all his activities in
the holistic plot structure of the novel
moves around the scientific subject
matter together with its consequences

Chapter 3

the secret laboratory that belongs
to Victor and where all the work
that he does in there is kept in
secrecy

Chapter 12

the hovel where the monster
resides without anyone knowing

there were castles seen on the Rhine River

Chapter 4

this chapter consists of the work of Victor Frankenstein that comes alive - when the monster comes to life

described in the novel as a 8-foot-tall, hideously ugly creation, with translucent yellowish skin pulled so taut over the body

the possible spirits of Victor's friends and family who have passed as a result of the monsters actions

Robert Walton found Victor
Frankenstein in the Northern Arctic

Chapter 10

At the very peak of the glaciers
with a storm fast approaching

mountain top

mountains also represent isolation

Chapter 21

Storm is so strong that it
has the ability to push Victor
to Ireland

Chapter 24

The Arctic Sea is completed
surrounded by ice

the occurrence of lightning and a storm always occur when both the main characters, Victor and the monster confront one another

Geography-island

represents a major theme of isolation and this is where he creates the monster (the central area that can be seen where his obsessions of science have taken over his life)

Water and Lakes

this landscape represnts new beginnings and thoughts of starting over

Victor was seen in roaming through the lakes when he was thinking about the deaths of Justine and William as if he were washing away the sins that he had done

Chapter 10

The monster approached Victor with a lot of speed

Chapter 12

the monster in the novel is shown to be extremely powerful as his figure is so large

in this chapter it is shown as he by himself cuts up wood to give to the De Lacey family in the woods

Chapter 14

the monster has the ability to learn and understand a brand new language, lifestyle and socitey structure so fast

proving that he is exceptionally intelligent and knowledgeable

the monster itself is made up of deceased parts and created through an artifical means, which means that it is basically impossible for the monster to age

giving it the power to be immortal - it will never ever die or age beyond its composition at the time it was created

Immortality

superhuman speed and superhuman power/strength

Assumptions about the monster based on the ideas provided by the author

As they are formed from dead beings, they lack most of the weaknesses of living beings, including need for sustenance or rest, pain, etc

because the monster was created from some form of electricity, the monster may be resistant to electrical attacks

Chapter 8

Justine was imprisoned in a gloomy, dark
and obscure jail cell

seen as a dungeon as she was locked up

Chapter 21

Victor suffers imprisonment for 2 months
as he is accused of the death of his best
friend, Henry Clerval

Letter 4

The Arctic Sea

Chapter 10

on the very peak of a mountain
very far away from any sort of
human civialization

Chapter 19

the Orkney Islands that had no inhabitants
and was completed isolated with just Victor
who was there to complete his construction
of the next monster

Chapter 24

the Arctic Sea surrounded by ice