https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk en-us 2021-09-20 17:22:49 UTC 2021-09-22 13:42:31 UTC hello@padlet.com teslincurtis https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk/wish/1757247141 Isolation can result in very unhealthy habits. In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Victor isolates himself as he creates his monster and creates unhealthy sleeping habits causing him to be physically ill in the future. Had he not kept himself “[in] a solitary chamber, or rather a cell…” and “... kept [his] workshop of filthy creation…” things might’ve turned out very differently had he had someone to keep him in check, someone who was more mentally well than Victor he would’ve made better decisions (Shelley 41). And Victor knows this. He develops internal conflict on whether or not he should continue which creates a mood of exhaustion. “[Victor’s] cheek had grown pale with study, and [his] person had become emaciated with confinement” (Shelley 40). In each of these quotes Shelley uses gothic imagery, like ‘chamber’ and ‘cell’, to help convey the disarray of not only Victor's health and workplace, but also his life overall at the moment. With all of this, Shelley establishes a theme and feeling of isolation and shows just how unhealthy it can be.

]]> 2021-09-21 13:57:26 UTC https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk/wish/1757247141 teslincurtis https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk/wish/1757305441 People can be lonely without physically being alone. In the book Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, the character Walton has set sail on a journey with his crew, but, due to his lack of a real education, feels isolated from the crew. Walton “...[Desires] the company of a man who could sympathize with [him], whose eyes would reply to [his]...[and he] bitterly [feels] the want of a friend” (Shelley 4-5). Walton is in a confined space filled with people, yet he still feels the cold stab of loneliness. This sets up a recurring theme of loneliness throughout the entire story. Walton represents who Victor was before all his misfortune, so their characters reflect each other quite nicely. This is why when Victor comes along, Walton no longer feels alone. Victor also sees this, which is why he shares his story with Walton; so he doesn't go down the same path Victor did. It sets up a ‘second chance’ for Victor to give Walton back a normal life instead of the misery Victor had. In addition to that, Shelley uses literary devices like mood and diction to show just how lonely Walton is feeling in that moment. She uses words like ‘bitterly’ to emphasize the desperation of Walton for a friend and to create a mood of isolation for Walton. Overall, even when Walton was surrounded by people, he didn’t feel like he had a friend until Victor.

]]> 2021-09-21 14:12:29 UTC https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk/wish/1757305441 teslincurtis https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk/wish/1757315353 It is very easy to fall into the same pattern of isolation when things appear dreary. In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, Victor has a very unhealthy way of coping throughout the entire story: isolating himself. Time and time again when something in his life goes wrong, he forces himself into isolation. While self isolation is a very common grief technique, the longer someone isolates themselves, the harder it is to let people back into their  life. “... [Not] the tenderness of friendship, not the beauty of earth, nor heaven, [can] redeem [one's] soul from woe; the very accents of love [are] ineffectual” when someone keeps away from people who love them. (Shelley 80). Shelley formatted this excerpt in the form of a list to emphasize how terrible Victor is feeling at this moment. Victor acts like this time and time again throughout the story, but it's this repetitive behavior and inner conflict that creates the story. Shelley shows how bad it is to self isolate when things get bad by showing the terrible and impulsive decisions Victor makes over and over again.

]]> 2021-09-21 14:15:02 UTC https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk/wish/1757315353 teslincurtis https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk/wish/1757322591 Forms of unfamiliarity can make people feel very alienated, which can lead them to doing things they’ll regret. In the book Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, Victor goes off to college at the University of Ingolstadt, leaving everything he knows behind. He left not too soon after his mothers passing, which left him in a very fragile state. “[He] believed [himself] totally unfitted for the company of strangers” and became a recluse, throwing himself into his work (Shelley 30). Not only does Shelley use the isolating mood of the passage to make Victor’s character feel alienated from his peers in the reader's mind, but it pushes the story further along with the creation of the monster. Victor was hurting and alone which led his brilliant mind to ponder the possibilities of life after death. Victor’s grief and loneliness caused him to be in a mindless haze the entire time of coming up with the idea of and building the monster only to come to his senses as the creature woke. It’s safe to say he regretted that decision, and none of it would’ve happened if Victor wasn’t isolated from his peers as he grieved.

]]> 2021-09-21 14:16:57 UTC https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk/wish/1757322591 teslincurtis https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk/wish/1757332467 Depression and mental illness is a dungeon far worse than any physical cell. In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Victor has to go through the grief of the death of not only his father, but his newly wed wife. Everything that he’s piled up on himself finally spills over and he has a mental breakdown. After this he awakes to find himself in a cell being accused for the murder of his wife. He woke and “...gained a clear conception of [his] miseries... [for] they had called [him] mad, and during many months... a solitary cell had been [his] habitation” (Shelley 189). For most of the story Victor's inner conflict has been the main reason for a lot of the misfortune to occur, but at this point it’s what keeps him from panicking. He’s been through worse and is frankly just emotionally exhausted after having to deal with the death of his wife and father. Shelley refers to Victor's self isolation habits as his own cell. His mind is finally clear enough to cope with his losses but he is completely alone. However the trap his mind set for him, the trap being an unhealthy amount of isolation, made him strong enough to deal with being alone and locked up simply because he’s been through worse.

]]> 2021-09-21 14:19:30 UTC https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk/wish/1757332467 teslincurtis https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk/wish/1758026535 It is easy to isolate yourself out of self hate. In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, after Victor creates his monster and falls ill, his best friend Henry Clerval takes care of him. The regret of creating the monster is still fresh on his mind, but during all the months Henry aids him, Victor can’t bring himself to explain to Henry what he’s done. “...[Victor] loved him with a mixture of affection and reverence that knew no bounds, yet [he] could never persuade [himself] to confide to him…” (Shelley 55). In this passage Shelley uses Internal conflict to build tension and suspense for the characters. Victor was so conflicted about telling Henry about what he’d done because he cared so much about him. He didn’t want anything to ruin his relationship with his best friend, especially after seeing him for  the first time in months. She does this to show the audience just how much Victor cares for Henry, but is too ashamed of what he’s done to come clean and risk the friendship. Victor is with Henry physically but his secret creates a rift of sorts between them. Henry even sees this, but he’s a good enough friend to not question it and be there for Victor. But in the end, Victor's secret and isolation make things a whole lot more miserable later in the story.

]]> 2021-09-21 17:56:30 UTC https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk/wish/1758026535 teslincurtis https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk/wish/1758035154 True loneliness is the worst torture one can endure.After the monster has been on his own for a while, he learns to speak and read, but he can’t be in society because of histerrifying appearance. This leads him to do a lot of wondering about his purpose and existence. He fantasizes happiness then realizes, “... [It] was all a dream; no Eve soothed [his] sorrows nor shared [his] thoughts; [he] was alone. [But he] remembered Adam’s supplication to his Creator. But where was [his]? He had abandoned [the monster], and in the bitterness of [his] heart he cursed him” (Shelley 119). Not only does Shelley use allusions to the story of Adam and Eve to contrast it to Frakestein and his monster, but using the allusion brings a sense of irony to the excerpt. The monster is comparing Victor to God, and while the monster doesn’t know, the audience knows that Victor is far from similar to God. He also compares himself to Adam; a perfect man made in the image of God, a perfect being. The monster on the other hand is just about the opposite  of that. The Monster doesn’t have someone to share his life with, can’t enter society, and has been abandoned by his creator to be truly alone. And he’s miserable. ]]> 2021-09-21 17:59:43 UTC https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk/wish/1758035154 teslincurtis https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk/wish/1758040942 Loneliness is extreme misery, and misery leads to malicious intent. At this point of the book Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, the monster is demanding Victor to create him a mate, but Victor refuses. The monster is “... [Malicious] because [he is] miserable. [He is] shunned and hated by all mankind…” (Shelley 134). By this point, the audience knows that every interaction the monster has had with anyone has ended badly, so this passage helps set a mood of loneliness and despair in the scene. Shelley's use of alliteration also helps emphasize how the monster is feeling in this moment and how he’s felt for all of his short life, but it also gives us more insight on why the monster’s done what he’s done. The use of the alliteration helps the words stick to the audience's brain and makes it plain to see the side the monster has chosen, but also gives us a reason as to why. He’s so desperate to not feel how he’s been feeling; alone, abandoned, betrayed.]]> 2021-09-21 18:01:55 UTC https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk/wish/1758040942 teslincurtis https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk/wish/1758045161 Self isolation only worsens negative emotions. After Justine is killed for her accused crimes in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Victor throws himself into the same isolation he does every time something bad happens to him. Except this time it’s more out of guilt than sorrow. “[He] shunned the face of man; all sound of joy or complacency was torture to [him];solitude was [his] only consolation-- deep, dark, deathlike solitude” (Shelley 77). Not only does Shelley use alliteration to emphasize how deep Victor was into his isolation, but she also gives a reason why Victor has been doing this throughout the novel. When he self isolates, he’s alone with his thoughts and his guilt causing him to beat himself up over it even more. Especially after the death of Justine, because he was indirectly and partially responsible for her death. Even though his monster is what framed and killed Justine, he still believes her demise is his fault and punishes himself for it.]]> 2021-09-21 18:03:36 UTC https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk/wish/1758045161 teslincurtis https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk/wish/1758048573 Watching others have what you can't have causes negative emotions to grow towards people who make that thing impossible. At this point of the story, the monster has been watching a family but has been completely isolated from everyone. He sits alone and stews on his situation, letting his hate and anger towards Victor grow larger by the second. “[He] continued for the remainder of the day in [his] hovel in a state of utter and stupid dispair. [His] protectors had departed and had broken the only link that held [him] to the world” (Shelley 127). Without being able to be a part of society, the monster has no real purpose in life. He longed for someone to share his time with but he thought it impossible unless he had someone like him. This inner conflict grew until he blamed all of his hardships on his creator, Victor. This conflict within himself drove him mad with anger until he resorted to murder to get Victor to do what he wanted. And not only did he have all his alone time to think, he watched the DeLacey family be happy and together. He watched them until he loathed his own life and creator with all his being.

]]> 2021-09-21 18:04:54 UTC https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk/wish/1758048573 teslincurtis https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk/wish/1760061608 The creator definitely has some responsibility but there’s a difference between creating an animal and an inanimate object. With inanimate objects the creator is responsible for everything they use it for and slightly responsible for how someone else uses it, because if not for them it wouldn’t exist. It’s the same thing with animate objects but they have even less responsibility for its actions because the creation now has its own ability to make its own choices. The creators responsibility is to make sure they get all the right nurturing and education to become a good functioning member of society. That’s the same case with Frankenstein and his monster. Frankenstein now is obliged to raise his creation and teach him how to be a good member of society. But instead, Frankenstein abandons the monster leaving him alone to fend for himself in an unforgiving world

]]> 2021-09-22 13:42:23 UTC https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk/wish/1760061608 teslincurtis https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk/wish/1760061916 The relationships we have really make or break our lives. If we keep them strong and healthy they make our lives worth living. That goes for any type of relationship. However, the second relationship takes a turn for the worse or dips into the more toxic side of things, so do our lives. We become miserable and obsessive over why they’re mad; are they mad? Well then why are they treating me like this? But even so, we need to keep some sort of healthy connection with the people we love. Frankenstein pushes all his loved ones away and becomes obsessive over his work. He ends up sick and miserable. The only reason he even contacts his friend Henry is because he’s terrified of what he’s created. When he falls ill, Henry is the only person who takes care of him because he knows Victor and can read him like a book.]]> 2021-09-22 13:42:29 UTC https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk/wish/1760061916 teslincurtis https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk/wish/1760062024 With telephone the original message almost always ends up as a completely different sentence with a whole new meeting. This can be the same way with framed narratives. The farther away it gets from the original storyteller the more diluted it gets. Secondhand storytellers aren’t always reliable because they can forget details, interpret them a different way than the original storyteller intended, or have a bias towards certain points of the story causing it to be presented differently. The audience has to keep this in mind throughout the story, because Victor is more than likely adding unintentional bias to the monster's story as he retells it to Walton.]]> 2021-09-22 13:42:31 UTC https://padlet.com/teslincurtis/1hmd368a3mddkynk/wish/1760062024