World Literature

Darren Koomson

Blog Post #1

“My temper was sometimes violent, and my passions vehement; but by some law in my temperature they were turned not towards childish pursuits but to an eager desire to learn, and not to learn all things indiscriminately.”

This passage in the book Frankenstein by Mary Sheller the title character is discussing what his strongest desires were in life especially as a child growing up. A lot of his curiosity led to him to wanting to learn more and not just consume what his elders would tell him. His anger and passion was more so in the form of researching and studying and less so towards “childish pursuits” he states. In my interpretation childish pursuits meant him not being mad at things like not getting something he wanted or throwing temper tantrums as a common child would do.

He goes on further to say that about his desire to learn and not to learn all things ‘indiscriminately’. I think what he is saying is that in his pursuit to learn more there was purpose in doing so and not doing so in a random manner. His pursuits in the education he was seeking was more calculated. The language of that passage read to myself that he was that his ambitious in his desires even at an early age which is rare to recognize in a child. This thinking is what I think lead him to create the “monster” he created when he grew older. I believe what the narrator is trying to reveal to the reader is what led him to become this obsessed “mad scientist” that readers would often characterize him as.