Frankenstein Chapter 2

  In chapter two of Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, the use of flashback takes readers back to Robert Walton's childhood. After Robert's reminiscing of the glorious moments of his past, of time spent with Elizabeth, and his sometimes violent, but mostly eager desire to learn. This yearning for knowledge is later continued out by Robert's interest in natural philosophy. However, once Robert jumps back to the present time there is a change of mood from the previous happy recollections of his past and growing up. When examining his current disposition and state of mind, he draws on negativity and misfortune which elude that he is very depressed. "I feel exquisite pleasure in dwelling on the recollections of childhood, before misfortune had tainted my mind, and changed its bright visions of extensive usefulness into gloomy and narrow reflections upon self,"(Shelley, 20). I believe that that which taints Walton's mind could be a reference to his research and development of the creature. I feel this a logical assumption given the result of his experiment: the creating of a living monster from something inanimate, to probably have an overwhelming toll on Walton. The happy memories of his younger days seem to be the only positivity Robert can rely on in his life, due to the fact that his emotional state is going downhill. I predict the revealing of the real cause of his misfortune, if it is the creating of the creature, to be revealed soon in the novel.