I think victors unrealiablity as a narrator is strongest in the rose coloured glasses he views his family,and its strange even among people who agree hes unrealiable as a narrator his descriptions of them as this idealistic loving and supportive family are often taken uncritically to heart. Ive seen numerous people just in the past few days,and even in the interview for That new frankenstein movie( who ironically,is tackling the cycle of familial turmoil itself but doesnt seem to recognize that theme in the book) parallel Victors family to his dynamic with the creature,and hes made out to be unique in breaking the trend of benevolence nurturing he was raised under .
Taking a more critical lense to his descriptions of his family,though,it becomes to me pretty glaring the ongoing unhealthy flaws of his family that have either simply become normalized to Victor for his entire life or are omitted from the narrativr due to his grief stricken state. I also think this plays into how people view Elizabeth and Victors dynamic,that shelley was conveying this uncritically somehow and dismissed as a simply 'normal for the times' thing for her to put in (even though she had to make changes from 1818 to 1831 because of the backlash).
I think most glaringly the observation i think the Most about is the painting on the mantle,whos addition is so strange and jarring it feels almost on the nose on how much it breaks Victors narrative of this purely idealistic family he had
“It was an historical subject, painted at my father's desire, and represented Caroline Beaufort in an agony of despair, kneeling by the coffin of her dead father. Her garb was rustic, and her cheek pale; but there was an air of dignity and beauty, that hardly permitted the sentiment of pity.”
We know right off the bat from Victors introduction this is how his parents met,Alphonse, Beauforts close friend,swoops in and 'saves' Caroline who is left stranded by her fathers death,right by his final resting place. In this moment of mourning we see the same sort of distortions of perfection Victor relays onto his family exhibited in the painting. Seeing such a tragic moment preserved by Alphonse in such a strange way ,especially given what we know that happened in that moment,clearly tells that there is something very strongly amiss about the family then beyond the surface. I feel personally that the painting itself directly reflects the circumstances leading to Elizabeth and Victors arranged marriage . Elizabeth is made to follow in Caroline's footsteps in any way she can throughout her life the moment she is taken in,and on the deathbed of Caroline, just like how Caroline was 'saved' at the tomb of Beaufort,Caroline ensures that Elizabeth is 'saved ' by the marriage to Victor by making her final request their union.
Going back a few chapters,I think about the dream in Ingloslaght, where Victor moves in to embrace Elizabeth only to find her morphing into their mother's rotting corpse . To me,an embodiment of how he is pressured to follow in the path of her dying wish. I think I could dig into this further,and how Caroline (and possibly the pressure he feels trapped under her dying wish) relates to Victors obsession w death and his subsequent creation of the creature,but i feel like its a tangent that id get too far on here. Also my braincells right now aren't all together for it.lol.
Beyond the cycles we see in Alphonse and Caroline's marriagr with Elizabeth and Victors arranged marriage ,is the repression of emotions and the set up of Victor and Elizabeth as pillars of support for the family. We see this with how Elizabeth is constantly made to take on the roles of Caroline,especially after her death ,and in Victors case we see how Alphonse deals with his emotions of grief. Most evidently with him making him repress the grief with Justine and William so that he could act as support . (Extra note,I was unsure if im grasping straws here but I feel like this cycle of emotional repression is sort? Of exhibited with victor and ernest, also directly after the introduction of the painting ironically. Ernest comes in distraught and is immediately told to get it together so that Victor could not be miserable as soon as he arrives,but again,I feel like this might be a reach .Just something of note tho)
I feel to an extent,that this emotional repression hes raised to live under is likely a factor in his trends of isolating himself in his guilt and grief,and also plays into the afformentioned 'creature as a product of victors unprocessed grief of caroline'
Idk how to end this and i could expand on this more as I get thru my reread .aogh. but something ive been thinking abt w the growing trend of 'victor defying the nurturing he grew up with by failing to embody that w the creature. ' thing. Buh.
turnnoffyourmind
andulkaphoto
tangentwithtanner
blakekathryn
