Frankenstein or Colombus?

Victor Frankenstein has some bold goals. In a time period so far back, when people probably were still skeptical about the shape of the globe, Victor seems to consider himself somewhat like Christopher Columbus. He sees a lot of potential in himself, with the types of bold promises he makes in his letters, such as Letter I, on page 18, written to Mrs. Saville in England. He tells her that he wants to depart to a town on a boat, as if it’s easy to just leave life’s responsibilities and end up in a new place with no certainty of what the future holds. He said he would depart with the intention to hire a ship, with a cocky tone, implying that it is not a difficult feat for him to accomplish that. He claims that he can pay for the insurance for the owner, as if he is loaded with wealth, which he stresses with the word, “easily.” He talks about hiring a volume of sailors, based on however many he thinks are necessary. They also must be specialized sailors that are accustomed to whale-fishing. He sets in stone that he doesn’t want to sail during the month of June, even though it’s a quite specific desire for someone who doesn’t know if he’ll make it dead or alive.

This passage makes me think, what makes Frankenstein think that he is entitled to making his far fetched dreams come true? I wonder why he thinks that he, of all people, deserves to go on a voyage so intense and risky for someone living in the age he is living in. I wonder why he thinks that he can decide to leave at whatever time he pleases, with intentions to sail with sailors that he assumes to be waiting there right for him. What irks me even more is that he has specific types of sailors in mind, as if he is special enough to rent out a specific group of people that are specialized enough to do something as specific as wale-fish. I stay wondering what makes him think that he is worthy of doing something so unique. I wonder what makes him speak on par with Christopher Columbus, as he talks about his dreams heading to the unknown.

Clearly, since he received the fortune of his cousin, he believes that he is powerful enough to make all of his dreams come true. He believes that wealth is enough to make an uneducated person someone skilled enough to make far fetched dreams turn into reality. He believes that inheriting money, involving no work, can make him this powerful. Clearly, he thinks that money is the answer to all of the problems he has encountered. He believes that it is money that can make him feel like he is someone special enough to accomplish something that is impractical to the common man. He believes that money is powerful enough to give him confidence that he doesn’t deserve.

 

 

 

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