Frankenstein, Vol 2, Chpts. 1-4

Pre-writing practice

Is Victor's thirst for knowledge an honorable pursuit? Why or why not?
How is Victor a sympathetic character?
In what ways does Victor's guilt affect his health? What is Shelley's purpose in this recurring plot device?

1. Check books and vocab

2. Review vocab and architecture

Discussion questions

1. At the close of chapter 1, in what ways has Victor changed? How does Shelley use Victor's fascination with nature to remind us of his actions against nature?

2. Close reading: p. 100 ("The ascent is precipitous, ...) — how does the tone express Victor's remorse for his actions?

3. "You accuse me of murder, and yet you would, with satisfied conscience, destroy your own creature. Oh, praise the eternal justice of man!" (103). Victor believes in an eye-for-an-eye. Is that justice or revenge?

4. How does the tone and language change from chapter 3 to chapter 4? What does this reveal about the creature's development?

NOTE: track the language of the creature. Pay close attention to when it is overtly negative and overtly positive. What's the correlation between his language and his sense of self? And the correlation between nature and Victor's sense of self.

Frankenstein: Vol. 1, Chpts 4-6 & 7-8

1. Check books, review vocab, complete architecture
2. Free write for five minutes: Looking at the passage on p. 54 ("Learn from me ... than he who aspires to become greater than his nature will allow.) In what ways does Victor's warning relate to all mankind?

Discussion questions Chpts. 4-6

• Romanticism
• Victor and God: p. 54
• In what ways does Shelley display Victor's hubris? Look particularly at the contrast in Victor's desire to conquer nature yet ignore its beauty.
• Chpt. 5: Close reading of passage on pp. 58-59 beginning with "How can I describe". Review connotation (an idea or feeling that a word invokes in a person in addition to its literal/primary meaning) and denotation (the literal/primary meaning of a word, in contrast to the feelings or ideas that the word suggests).

• Step 1: read passage out lout.
• Step 2: read silently and circle/underline all words with negative connotations/denotations.
• Big question: What kind of tone is Shelley trying to create around the the Creature's creation and creator?

• Chpt. 6: Contrast with prior chapter. Nature.
• What Gothic and Romantic elements have we seen thus far?

Discussion questions 7-8
What discussion questions do you have? Think theme, gothic/romantic elements, characterization, etc ...
Step 1: Generate five discussion questions alone.
Step 2: Working with a partner, whittle list to 3 questions.
Step 3: Share with class.

Frankenstein: Vol 1. Chpts 1-3

1. Check books
2. Check and review vocabulary
3. Architecture fun

VICTOR

• In what ways does Victor's statement that "the world was to me a secret which I desired to divine" (38) serve as characterization? What is characterization? Think about Walton!
• Is Victor's fascination with the elixir of life an admirable one? Look closely at the passage on page 42: "Under the guidance of my new preceptors, I entered with the greatest diligence into the search of the philosopher's stone and the elixir of life; but the latter soon obtained my undivided attention. Wealth was an inferior object; but what glory would attend the discovery, if I could banish disease from the human frame and render man invulnerable to any but a violent death!" What is Hubris?
• What does Victor's search for a like-minded thinker tell us about human nature? Why might Shelley have portrayed this characteristic in both Victor and Robert? How are Victor & Robert alike in ideation (formation of ideas/concepts) and language?

HENRY

• In what ways do Henry & Victor differ? Why might Shelley be setting them up as foils? (**A character in a work whose behavior and values contrast with those of another character in order to highlight the distinctive temperament of that character (usually the protagonist)) (Bedford St Martins Press).

ELIZABETH

• In what way does Shelley characterize Elizabeth when she writes "the saintly soul (who) shone like a shrine-dedicated lamp in our peaceful home?" (39). What role does this characterization set for Elizabeth?

GOTHIC ELEMENTS: what's come up so far?

Frankenstein: The Letters

Let's get into Frankenstein!

• What do you think of when you hear the name Frankenstein?
• What images and words come to mind?
• What about when you hear the word Gothic?

Image 1 (Benjamin West, "Saul and the Witch of Endor").
Image 2 (Henry Fuseli, "The Nightmare").
Image 3 (John Hamilton Mortimer, "Carrion Crows hovering over a Skeleton on a Seashore).

Elements of Gothic Genre

1. Mary Shelley Redux
2. Architecture of Frankenstein
3. Check books
4. Check and review vocab
5. Let's fill in the architecture

A little writing: What is wonder? "This appearance excited our unqualified wonder" (25). Think about the denotation (actual definition) and the connotation (the idea or feeling the word evokes).

Romanticism. What it is. What principles find their way into Frankenstein.

Discussion questions: use text evidence to support your claims

1. What is Walton's attitude toward his quest? What does his attitude reveal about his character?

2. Why do you think Walton feels lonely even though he is on board a ship with a full crew? Why do you think Walton is attracted to the stranger?

3. What details suggest that both Walton and the stranger are willing to make big sacrifices in the search for knowledge? Look at similarities and differences. Does knowledge promise immortality?

4. Why do you think Shelley chose to lead into the stranger's story by starting with a frame story about Robert?

Rhime of the Ancient Mariner: written by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, a leading poet of the Romantic era. In the poem, an old sailor, or mariner, tells the story of a horrific sea voyage that changed his life. Sailing in stormy seas near the South Pole, the mariner’s ship is surrounded by ice. When the crewmen spot an albatross, a huge seagull-like bird, flying through the fog, the ice splits open, freeing the ship. Then, unexpectedly, the mariner shoots the albatross. After this act of cruelty, the ship is cursed. Driven north, it becomes stranded in a hot, windless sea. All of the crew except the mariner die. Ever since, the remorseful mariner has traveled the world to tell his story and to teach others to revere God’s creatures.