Narrative Structure and the Will of Nature in Frankenstein

Reading through the first half of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, it's not difficult to imagine how rich scholarly discussions have perpetuated for the nearly 200 years since its publication.  The novel appears at once very openly interpretable, partially due to the relevancy of the novel with modern and romantic readers and also to the novel's ambitious scope. Though relatively short, the novel presents itself as the summation of early romantic influences, commenting on the passions, nature, the sublime, and issues of masculinity and femininity, all while directing its focus forward toward the unknown.  As I was reading, I was struck by the narrative structure, how the interwoven perspectives of Walton, Frankenstein, and the creature show each characters' receding levels of humanity.  As the novel proceeds inward, readers must contemplate who is man and who is monster, a feat somewhat more difficult than the novel would have us suspect.

Walton, Frankenstein, and the creature in an unintentionally appropriate color sequence

The humanity of each character can be represented by their relationship with nature, since as readers, our sympathies are placed in those who exist with nature rather than those who try to conquer it.  Robert Walton is the overly ambitious, self-consciously self-educated explorer, who after failing to become a poet, seeks his claim over nature by sailing to the North Pole.  Like Frankenstein, Walton desires to reveal the unknown, for "what may not be expected in a country of eternal light?" (7).  He half expects a paradise beyond the ice, and once again, like Frankenstein, his double interest in the fantastical or supernatural and the scientific is dangerous.  He essentially is Frankenstein pre-monster reanimation, and Frankenstein's story serves to act as a warning for Walton.  

Frankenstein's notice or disinterest in the sublime proves useful in understanding his relationship with nature, for although he is often set against the scenery, Frankenstein finds the sublime in nature's most tempestuous throws.  Much of his interest in science can be traced back to childhood events, such as the thunderstorm he witnessed at age fifteen.  After "watching its progress with curiosity and delight," the storm violently hits a tree near Frankenstein's house, and he recalls how he "never beheld any thing so utterly destroyed" (23).  This is the first time Frankenstein witnesses nature produce something terrible, something outside of man's control.  He finds it sublime only because it excites his curiosity, and his animation of the creature is an attempt at recreating these feelings within him.  He becomes obsessed not only with "infusing life into an inanimate body," (35) but with creating a man-made sublime.  For two years his "eyes were insensible to the charms of nature," (34) and he recalls how when the creature came to life, "the beauty of the dream vanished, and breathless horror and disgust filled [his] heart" (36).  Although Frankenstein finds disgust in his work, his power in overcoming the boundaries of life and death instills in him a God-complex that lingers throughout the rest of the novel.

The creature that Frankenstein creates appears more connected with nature than either Walton or Frankenstein.  He finds sanctuary in the North Pole, one of the last places untouched by mankind, and is able to gracefully navigate through mountainous terrain and inclement weather.  Frankenstein's "monster" is the embodied form of nature itself; he is terrible and ugly only because the passions which led Frankenstein to create the creature are terrible and ugly.  

There are a ton of Frankenstein adaptations out there, but here's a well-known scene from the 1931 film with Colin Clive and Boris Karloff.  Surprisingly, this is the fourth film adaptation made.

Discussion Questions

1.  How does Shelley use Frankenstein's relationship with nature and the sublime to characterize him and show his development throughout the novel? 

2. What prevents Frankenstein from establishing a creator-creation relationship with his monster? How does this affect the creature's decisions as time goes on?