Frankensteins ambition - 877 Words

Topic #3 Victor’s driving, obsessive ambition ruined his life and led to his own death and the murder of his loved ones. Illustrate how ambition affects not only Victor and Robert Walton, but also the creature in Frankenstein. Thesis Statement: Ambition and the quest for knowledge is a fatal flaw in the characters of Victor Frankenstein, Robert Walton, and the creature. In Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel, ‘Frankenstein’, a recurring motif of ambition and the quest for knowledge is present among the characters of Victor Frankenstein, Robert Walton and the creature. Victor’s obsessive ambition is his fatal flaw, ruining his life and leading to the murder of his loved ones and eventually his own death. Robert Walton shares a similar ambition†¦show more content†¦Victor begins to possess an unnatural drive in his quest for knowledge where he begins intense study and experimentation, â€Å"These thoughts supported my spirits, while I pursued my undertaking with unremitting ardour. My cheek had grown pale from study, and my person had become emaciated with confinement† eventually isolating himself from his friends and family. As the seasons passed Victor’s obsession with his studies continued to grow, â€Å"And the same feelings which made me neglect the scenes around me caused me also to forget those friends who were so many miles absent, and whom I had not seen for so long a time† highlighting how his ambition is a fatal flaw, neglecting the outside world and his loved ones. Victor’s ambition to research and attempt to create life drains him of health and sensibility, â€Å"Every night I was oppressed by a slow fever, and I became nervous to a most painful degree† which is ironic to the goal he wishes to achieve. Shelly’s use of irony illuminates how Victor’s obsessive ambition has become a fatal flaw. Victor’s blindness to what his end result will produce is immediately revealed when his final work is a hideous creature. Victor, through repulsion, neglects caring for the creature in its blank slate, gradually fuelling the ambition it feels for revenge. With the monster isolated, he begins to learn, â€Å"I learned to distinguish between the operationsShow MoreRelatedVictor Frankenstein Loss Of Innocence Analysis1768 Words   |  8 PagesVictor’s mother sadly dying. Her last dying wish was to have Victor and Elizabeth to espouse. Subsequently, Victor is sent to university in Germany still grieving his mothers death. He sadly leaves Henry to explore natural philosophy and fulfill his ambitions to surpass nature and become compassed with power. For two years Victor isolates himself from reality cutting all ties from family and society. Instead of ameliorating society, Victor is exhausted by the thought of being better than nature. VictorRead MoreExamples Of Ambition I n Frankenstein1316 Words   |  6 PagesShelley’s Frankenstein, Victor Frankenstein and his creation fight against each other as ambition, abandonment and the lack of responsibility result in the downfall of both. As the creator, Frankenstein represents a parental figure to his creation. A conflict arises through the years leading up to Frankenstein’s creation and continues for years while taking the lives of multiple people. Frankenstein’s knowledge and ambition, the creature’s life in isolation, and the poor relationship between the two resultsRead MoreThe Monster’s Birth in Mary Shelleys Frankenstein Essay727 Words   |  3 Pages In the Romantic novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelly, the selection in chapter five recounting the birth of Dr. Frankenstein’s monster plays a vital role in explaining the relationship between the doctor and his creation. 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The actions of these characters in their solitude’sRead MoreEssay on Frankensteins Foil Characters: Walton and the Creature795 Words   |  4 PagesRobert Walton and the Creature both contribute much to Victor Frankensteins character. They are both strong foil characters in the novel. A foil character is a minor character whose situation or actions parallel those of a major character, and by contrast clarifies certain elements of the major character. Because Walton plays a role that both parallels and contrasts to Victors in many ways, it appears that Robert Walton is the more effective foil for Victor Frankenstein. Waltons letters toRead MoreFrankestein and The Kite Runner1610 Words   |  6 Pagescharacteristics effect their lives and the lives around them. Both V. Frankenstein and Amir act as cowards in many dilemmas which affect their lives and the people they know tremendously. 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