Oh, I enjoy it Paul. Call it sentimental value. Victor Frankenstein was one of many literary figures who suffered the consequences of hubris (e.g. Oedipus Rex, Odysseus, Beowulf, Julius Caesar ... all the way up to Jay Gatsby).
How clever was Mary Shelley to tell Victor's story using epistolary framing through Capt. Walton? It is a brilliant literary device, as Walton can both relate to Victor while lamenting his fate.
By the way, the subtitle of the novel is "The Modern Prometheus" ... after the Greek Titan who stole fire from the Gods for mankind, then was punished by Zeus for his transgression. Prometheus was bound to a rock, and an eagle—the emblem of Zeus—was sent to eat his liver. His liver would then grow back overnight, only to be eaten again the next day in an ongoing cycle ... thus was symbolic of Victor's eternal punishment.
Another note: Walton's ship was called Prometheus. Thanks, Paul, for this rememberence.
I turned the comments on late, by accident. There are a bunch to read here: https://pau1.substack.com/p/substack-novels
Oh, I enjoy it Paul. Call it sentimental value. Victor Frankenstein was one of many literary figures who suffered the consequences of hubris (e.g. Oedipus Rex, Odysseus, Beowulf, Julius Caesar ... all the way up to Jay Gatsby).
How clever was Mary Shelley to tell Victor's story using epistolary framing through Capt. Walton? It is a brilliant literary device, as Walton can both relate to Victor while lamenting his fate.
By the way, the subtitle of the novel is "The Modern Prometheus" ... after the Greek Titan who stole fire from the Gods for mankind, then was punished by Zeus for his transgression. Prometheus was bound to a rock, and an eagle—the emblem of Zeus—was sent to eat his liver. His liver would then grow back overnight, only to be eaten again the next day in an ongoing cycle ... thus was symbolic of Victor's eternal punishment.
Another note: Walton's ship was called Prometheus. Thanks, Paul, for this rememberence.