Chapter 3 & 4

Close focus on the end of chapter 4. How does Shelley create an atmosphere of horror and dread around Victor’s experiments?

In order to set up a dreadful atmosphere, Shelley lays a sheet of introduction regarding how Victor derives his inspiration before he carries out his horrific experiments. Inspired by the inevitable cycle of life and death, Victor observes 'the natural decay and corruption of the human body' by spending 'days and nights in vaults and charnel-houses'. Readers would be terrified at the prospect of Victor patronizing places where dead bodies are kept to further his investigation. The phrase 'how the worm inherited the wonders of the eye and brain' paints a terrible vivid image of detritus feeding on human organs, which sets up the eerie atmosphere for his impending experiment.

To obtain body parts for his experiment, Victor digs up graveyards and collects 'bones from charnel houses'. Again, the reference to the settings where he collects his materials suggests the ghastly nature of his experiments. His experiments are executed in a 'solitary cell....separated from all the other apartments'- his work is so malicious that he has to conceal his 'workshop of filthy creation'.

In fact, his work is so fraught with sheer malignity and evil that it even jinxed Victor himself. 'My cheek had grown pale with study and my person had become emaciated' tells us that though he is able to 'renew life' through relentless trial and tribulations, it has to be done at the cost of his own health. As the progress of Victor's experiments grows, his health deteriorates and he gradually projects strange behaviors- he somewhat turns into a monstrous beast, evident from his countenance 'my eye-balls were starting from their sockets in attending to the details of my occupation'.

Note also words from the semantic field of birth (‘conceive’, ‘labour’, ‘bore’) – why might Shelley use them?

These words hint readers that Victor is suppose to act as a fatherly figure to his creation, the monster. Words such as 'conceive' figuratively suggests that Victor has toiled so much with his experiments to ultimately "give birth" to his creation. The process is described as 'labour' as it is so painful and arduous that it has taken a toll on Victor's health. The word 'bore' evokes a feeling of responsibility, as parents are accountable for their children's well-being, which contrasts with the irresponsible manner Victor treats the monster when he abandons it.