HamartiaA hamartia is a personal error or flaw mostly seen in the protagonists personality that eventually creates a downfall in a tragedy. Hamartias are typically known to be a tragic flaw or what makes the main or leading character end up in a bad situation. In Frankenstein, the hamartias present are triggered of fear in a way that Victor becomes somewhat scared when he sees his creation, Pieces, and this translates to a downfall for this main character because now he has to face what he has done and leads to how he ends up with Walton. In chapter 10, Victor encounters his creature and from there on things seem to get worse, " Abhorred monster! Fiend that thou art! The tortures of heck are too mild a vengeance for thy crimes. Wretched devil! You reproach me with your creation; come on, then, then that I may extinguish the spark which is so negatively bestowed." I believe that this scene symbolizes a hamartia because it shows Victors flaw of wanting to change things right when he thinks of them wrong, he wants to ride his creation so that there would be no more trouble yet he would be making a mistake since he hasn't been there for his creation and at first sight after a year wants to "extinguish" him. As well, in chapter 5, there is the major development of character flaws describing the way Victor puts his creation together and what he does once it is created. Victor ends up abandoning his creation after creating it because he becomes ill, the illness only has risen because he is very scared of what he had done and doesn't know what to do next about it. The flaw really is how he begins to give up when he first starts things and how he is a neglectful father figure, he had not wanted to do that since that is what his father did but he had the flaw of abandonment of others.
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"I had worked hard for nearly two years, for the sole purpose of infusing life into an inanimate body. For this I had deprived myself of rest and and health........" (pg. 43) Both of quotes symbolize the hamartia that Victor possesses of abandonment and how it brings him down as the main character. It will affect him and how he participates from this point on in the book. Yet Victor tries to change once he receives letters from home yet feels guilty all the time.
"Unable to endure the aspect of the being, I rushed out of the room and continued a long time traversing my bed-chamber, unable to compose my mind to sleep" (pg. 43-44). |
"But Paradise Lost excited different and far deeper emotions. I read it,as I had read the other volumes which had fallen into my hands, as a true history. It moved every feeling of wonder and awe that the picture of an omnipotent God warring with his creatures was capable go exciting" (pg.118). This quote verifies the correlation of mythology in Frankenstein with how involved the creation becomes with actually believing he is a "satan" and a "monster" which was the whole plan behind the story of Frankenstein according to Mary Shelley.
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InvocationAn invocation is considered to be a prayer or address made to a god or muse relating with spiritual senses. It is typically found in greek mythology and as inspiration for poetry and other works meant to be read for enjoyment. They are used primarily for skill and knowledge as well as inspiration. In Frankenstein, an example of such instance is on page 85, "Wandering spirits, if indeed ye wander, and do not rest in your narrow beds, allow me this faint happiness, or take me, as your companion, away from the joys of life." This really does represent an invocation because in this instance Victor is calling for a sign of relief or hope because he has found himself back in Geneva due to a murder that occurred in his family and he goes for a hike late at night and sees his creation and understands immediately that his creation had killed his younger brother but had no real evidence to prove it. Victor wants to just escape his reality and rid this creature from his life because he thinks worse things are coming, that is why he communicates to the gods in some way to ask for help through his horrible reality check. Another example of an invocation found in Frankenstein appears in the introduction of the book it says " Did I request thee, Maker, from my clay To mould me Man, did I solicit thee From darkness to promote me?" This is just the introduction of Mary Shelleys ideals of god in the book, trying to prove relations and ties of her characters and those of mythical stories such as Milton's Paradise Lost which is mentioned multiple times throughout even by the creation itself.
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IronyIrony is a figure of speech used to intend a meaning but in a different way than what the word or situation really means. For the most part, irony is considered to be the so called difference of appearance or how things seem to be and the reality of the true meaning of the situation. Irony occurs all the time even if it isn't intended. An example out of literature is "I saw a fish drowning." This is only ironic since the situation is that a fish lives underwater and seems highly unlikely of a real occurrence. In the story of Frankenstein written by Mary Shelley, I believe that the whole story is ironic in a way that you believe when you think of Frankenstein you think a green monster with bolts and bad sewing , which I do, yet the description of the creation seems to be of a calmer complexion and not of an evil manner all around. Throughout this another there is another example of irony and it has to do with the authors life and how it translated to some of the plot in the book. In Mary Shelley's life her mother died when Mary was very young and she rarely saw her father so she felt very alone. This feeling of some abandonment transfers to the relationship between Victor and his creation because Victor leaves right after he creates it not even giving it some time. This seems ironic because Mary is writing somewhat about her own life but through a different view and with a twist. Irony also arises in a way of the relationship between Elizabeth and Victor because at a young age they seemed to act as cousins but eventually a more elaborate relationship. It seems ironic because for the authors life she ended up marrying a man who was an admirer of her fathers and in this instance it seems to be a tie of family being married together.
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" They consulted their village priest, and the result was that Elizabeth Lavenza became the inmate of my parents' house - my more than sister - the beautiful and adored companion of all my occupations and my pleasures" (pg.21). I believe this shows irony in correlation to how Victor begins to get a sense of how Elizabeth is angelic and more than sister already because he seems so corrupt in mindset wanting one thing for science at a young age and believes that they are madly in love. As well this is ironic due to each characters persona and the irony of the two being so different helped me get through the book with ease and understanding of what they shared in common.
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