Love in Mary Shelleys Frankenstein - Book Report/Review Example

Love cannot eclipse sorrow as Victor 'is generally melancholy and despairing, and sometimes he gnashes his teeth, as if impatient of the weight of woes that oppresses him.' (Shelley 9). Ralph begins to love Victor like a brother and is in turn saddened to see him broken by misery. Ralph asks him to relate his story so that he can see if he can be of help to him. Victor thanks him for his sympathy but says that his fate 'is nearly fulfilled' (Shelley 12) and nothing can subvert his situation. Victor consents to narrate his autobiography in the hope that it will guide or console Ralph.

He hopes that by sharing his experience, he might aid Ralph to subvert a similar fate of utter despair. This is not a sure way of subversion but Victor says that; 'I do not know that the relation of my disasters will be useful to you; yet, when I reflect that you are pursuing the same course, exposing yourself to the same dangers which have rendered me what I am, I imagine that you may deduce an apt moral from my tale, that may direct you if you succeed in your undertaking and console you in case of failure.

' (Shelley 12). Victor has attempted to create a living form and he neglected to correspond to his family. Love should have been present to encourage him to write home but it was not there to motivate him because he was consumed by work. (Shelley 28). Victor's father loved him too much to reproach him for not writing but resorted to asking about the nature of his work even more. His father's show of love could not subvert his desire of creating a living thing from nonliving components. Initially, Victor loved his creation like a father.

He said that; 'No father could claim the gratitude of his child so completely as I should deserve theirs.' (Shelley 27). When the creation became alive, Victor was horrified and disgusted with himself for doing such a thing. He felt that the created creature looked ugly because he knew of the dark origins of his parts. Victor should have shown love to his creation but instead, he shunned him. The creature, like a child, came to his bed to plead for attention and care but Victor ran away. (Shelley 30).

Victor does not show love to his creation when he ignored his welfare. He happens to meet his old friend, Clerval, near an inn. They return to Victor's house and Victor was relieved to discover that his creature had left his house. As a responsible father, love should have made him worried for his child but Victor was a coward and was glad instead; 'I could hardly believe that so great a good fortune cold have befallen me, but when I became assured that my enemy had indeed fled, I clapped my hands for joy and ran down to Clerval.

' (Shelley 32). Victor became too troubled by the consequences of his action that he fell ill and Clerval nursed him back to health. Victor cannot subvert the situation because he cannot do the necessary to show responsible love for his 'son'. He cannot look for him nor confide in Clerval. Victor loved Clerval as a good friend but he 'could never persuade myself to confide in him that event which was so often present in my recollection, but which I feared the detail to another would only impress more deeply.

' (Shelley 37). In other words, Victor loves Clerval but the love is insufficient to eclipse his sorrow and other troubles