3 Key Ideas from George Levine

1. Ambition and how Frankenstein acts on his ambition which makes him evil

· Levine says that evil is a part of our human nature and we cannot escape it. This aspect I applied to the people around town, because I realized they automatically judged the monster based on his looks. It is in our nature to be cruel and unkind at times, I’m not sure about flat out evil, but harsh on occasions, yes.

2. "Doubles" of characters; the main similar identities are Frankenstein and the monster, Frankenstein and Clerval, and Frankenstein and Walton

· I already made these “redoubling” connections, so I am not sure how this information would give me greater understanding.

3. Every death is in relation to the family; again, Frankenstein’s main ambition is the cause of the death of each of his family members including himself

· It’s interesting to see that Frankenstein is responsible for practically everyone in this novel who dies, and they are all related to him in one way or another. Even though the monster is not blood-related or even a close friend, he is kind of like Frankenstein’s son since Frankenstein is his creator. Although the monster is not related to Frankenstein and they have no amiable feelings toward one another, in the end, Frankenstein is still responsible for the death of his own creation.

Beginning's of Frankenstein's Work

In Volume I, Chapter III of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, we are able to observe the thoughts and feelings of Victor Frankenstein as he begins his creation of a human being. Initially, Frankenstein’s motives for creating a human being are of noble intentions. He would “pour a torrent of light into our dark world” if he could accomplish such an impossible task of breaking the barriers of life and death. But as is common of human behavior, the hunger for success and glory soon triumphs his early reasoning.

Frankenstein was obviously full of excitement when he first began his strenuous work; however, he became unhealthily obsessed. Despite repeated failure, he continued to lose “all hope or sensation but for this one pursuit.” By this point, Frankenstein realized the horrors of his project, yet he would not quit. His decision to proceed with his intense and obsessive work now showed his selfish desires. What started off as a noble purpose quickly turned into a self-absorbed one, and he knew it, too. Frankenstein’s awareness to the issue is justified in the passage where Frankenstein states, “often did my human nature turn with loathing from my occupation, whilst, still urged on by an eagerness which perpetually increased…”

It may be in Frankenstein’s personality to not give up and to accomplish great things, and that could attribute to his selfish pursuit of completing a monstrous creature. Nevertheless, we should look more into his past. Many people say their past experiences and acquaintances ultimately add up to help form them into the person they are to-date. It is possible that the death of Frankenstein’s mother could be a contribution to his bizarre impulse to create a human being from lifeless matter. If he can succeed in this small task then he can “renew life where death had apparently devoted the body to corruption.” In his mind (though it is not directly mentioned), he could possibly bring his mother back to life in the future, as well as discover a new part of science that could benefit all of humanity.

Regardless of his thoughts and feelings, his whole idea is derived from selfishness. The fact that he attempts to overcome death is unreasonable. Frankenstein should have accepted the truth that death is just a natural part of life.

Memorable Character

From Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, the monster stood out to me the most. Throughout most of the story, there are several different people "telling the story" in a sense and it is easy to get a little confused. However, in my mind, the monster telling his own story stands out to me the most. While I read from his point of view, I was constantly thinking how interesting it was that a monster created from different parts and was not meant to be "one" with the human race could grow on his own to become so intelligent. It made me think how easy it is in our society today to create something so small that can turn into something much greater.

Most Memorable Books

1. Five Little Monkeys Sitting In A Tree by Eileen Christelow - I read this book so many times when I was younger from the time I could read until I was about 7. I remember naming the monkeys different names of my cousins and laughing as each one fell off the bed before my monkey did.

2. Poppy by Avi - The next 3 books are a part of Avi's Poppy series. I think I was about 9 or 10 when I read these books. I loved them because they were about the adventures of little mice and a porcupine, and the characters seemed so humanlike. It was a cool series to read especially at a younger age.
3. Poppy and Rye by Avi
4. Ragweed by Avi
5. Poppy and Ereth by Avi

6. Twilight series by Stephanie Meyer - I read these right after the first Twilight movie came out. I had heard of the books but never became interested until I saw the movie and thought "why not read the books", and I became captivated. I wish I had read them before I saw the movie so I could create the characters in my own mind.

7. The End of the Beginning by Avi - This was a small book I read when I was about 10 years old. I remember seeing it in the book store and I had seen that Avi wrote it. Since he is one of my favorite authors, I bought the book and read it. It was about a snail that goes on an adventure, with his ant friend, across their tree branch. It was a fast read and a cute story. The simplicity of it made it memorable to me.

8. The Phantom Stallion series by Terri Farley - This series had over 20 books and I read them all. Farley's horse series is by far my favorite. I enjoyed reading this series because it was about a ranch girl and her long lost horse that became wild, but each book had a "main" horse that it focused on. I absolutely love horses and whenever I read these books I felt completely engaged in the lives of the characters.

9. In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez - I read this book junior year and did my final English presentation on it. I really enjoyed the book because the storyline was so powerful, especially since it was a true story. Also, Alvarez had a unique way of writing in which every other chapter was from the perspective of each of the 4 sisters involved in the main plot.

10. Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger - All the juniors read this book for Driscoll's class. This book is most memorable because Driscoll referenced it throughout the entire year, no matter what we were reading. It's also hard to forget Holden Caulfield because he was such a depressed and "spontaneous" teen.