Monstrous Metaphors of Frankenstein
The majority of metaphors in Frankenstein are nature and element based, these locations are places of safety and self-reflection for both Victor and The Being. For instance, while Victor suffers "I contemplated the lake: the waters were placid; all around was calm; and the snowy mountains, ‘the palaces of nature,’ were not changed. By degrees the calm and heavenly scene restored me," this place represents a place of calm missing from Victor's mind since the beginning processes of The Being (98).
Then in chapter 16 The Being retreats to the woods after the incident in the cottage where "‘The pleasant sunshine and the pure air of day restored me to some degree of tranquillity'" (202). Nature represents a coming home for The Being, it is where he finds the most joy, unlike his observations of mankind and their cruelty to one another. Further, The Being is far more intelligent than mankind, thus this is a metaphor telling the audience that knowledge and nature are one entity which is far from the thoughts of modern society focused on technology and wealth.
In chapter 20 after Victor promises to make a female companion for The Being he "[gazes] on the sea; it was almost motionless, for the winds were hushed, and all nature reposed under the eye of the quiet moon". This statement is a metaphor comparing Victor as the sea "reposed" or lying "motionless" aka dead "under the eye of the quiet moon," meaning his dead body will be lying under the sight or rather because of The Being as "the moon" (252). The use of metaphors through the natural world draws attention to the battle between nature and mankind that develops in the plot.
Then in chapter 16 The Being retreats to the woods after the incident in the cottage where "‘The pleasant sunshine and the pure air of day restored me to some degree of tranquillity'" (202). Nature represents a coming home for The Being, it is where he finds the most joy, unlike his observations of mankind and their cruelty to one another. Further, The Being is far more intelligent than mankind, thus this is a metaphor telling the audience that knowledge and nature are one entity which is far from the thoughts of modern society focused on technology and wealth.
In chapter 20 after Victor promises to make a female companion for The Being he "[gazes] on the sea; it was almost motionless, for the winds were hushed, and all nature reposed under the eye of the quiet moon". This statement is a metaphor comparing Victor as the sea "reposed" or lying "motionless" aka dead "under the eye of the quiet moon," meaning his dead body will be lying under the sight or rather because of The Being as "the moon" (252). The use of metaphors through the natural world draws attention to the battle between nature and mankind that develops in the plot.