Walton is probably not a reliable narrator. His letters are not written with complete disclosure; we have no way of knowing if he is up to some misdeed or unscrupulous behavior in St. Petersburgh because he would not write to his sister about it. Thus, we know that he might not tell his sister the entire truth, either because it would not be considered appropriate for her ears or because he does not want her to know for whatever reason. Walton, rather than Frankenstein, is in complete control of the story, and the reader would never know if he skewed the facts.
Not to mention the fact that he is desperate and lonely. Any means of human companionship are greatly desired by Walton. He cannot be trusted b/c in a way, he is enamored of Victor--much the same way Nick was enamored of Gatsby. Still our sympathies lie with both Gatsby and Victor despite their villainous characters...why???
i dont believe Walton is a reliable source because he is bias with Victor. You can tell in the letters that he really likes victor, he even tells us that he feels as if Victor is like a brother to him. He fears being lonely so he wont put Victor in a bad light, and he may leave out parts that could show Victor in a bad way. we have sympathy for Victor because of the way Walton portrays him, Walton feels sympathy for victor so his story will always show Victor in that way. even though Walton is bias he is the best choice of narrator because if Victor Frankenstein was the narrator then he could totally change the story so that he is the good guy.
I agree with Jessica in that our sympathies lie with Victor and Gatsby because the authors want our sympathies to lie with them. Nick is enamored of Gatsby in the same way Walton is enamored of Victor. These "villains" have lived the lives that the narrators want to live. They failed at living that lifestyle but they still got to taste it, and for this reason the narrators are star eyed. One more reason our sympathies lie with Victo despite his villainous ways is that he seems to be a good man that made bad choices, instead of the other way around. He isn't a typical villain and does not seem to be purely evil. He seems to only be human.
I also agree with Jessica. I believe that we sympathize with Victor and Gatsby because of the way they have been portrayed. Since society is all about first impressions and "judging a book by its cover," the authors wrote to this strength. So, we sympathize with these characters not because of their personalities but because of their "looks" or the way the author makes them look.
I agree with the previous comments that Walton is not a good narrator. Although he takes Victor in his ship and nurses himself back to his health. He is desperate for a companion to share everything on his mind with. He seems to overlook any of Victor's flaws, because he is fascinated with Frankenstein.
At first, Walton seemed like a valid source for observing Victor's debacle. But when looked closely, Walton's point of view is like a glass half full. Combined with the predetermined/assumed superiority of Victor because he is an aspiring alchemist and he only got to tell the reader what he was told by Victor. Since Victor's point of view dominates this tale, events might have been described differently and Walton would have been getting only a certain side of the story.
I agree with BigStrongMojoDadLeslie. Shelley portrays Victor as supremely human because she wishes to convey a strong sense of man's inadequacy and deep-rooted inability to control the courses of our lives. Victor makes numerous choices out of selfishness that direct his life to destruction and death. Truly, had Shelley been the true narrator, being a completely objective third person with absolutely no personal interest in the matter, the story could have been told flawlessly and accurately, but at the cost of its mysterious qualities. How do we know that everything the creature said was true? How do we know Victor's story is absolute? Walton surely doesn't know, but that just adds to the drama and allure that multiple viewpoints contribute to a narrative. Fiction is not about facts, and that is what makes me dub Walton a wonderful narrator. Good job, Walton.
I agree with all the previous posts saying that Walton is not a valid narrator because of the fact that he only has one point of view of the whole story. He doesn't understand the story from the creatures point and therefore is only able to tell what Victor has told him, and this story could possibly be true or untrue.
In response to the commentary on why we feel sympathy for Victor and Gatsby - both possess qualities that are admirable (Victor more so than Gatsby. Some could describe Gatsby's ability to love and his generosity admirable qualities.) Also, both are so very sad that one sympathizes with them. I think as humans, we respond involuntarily to sadness and loneliness, both of which describe Gatsby and Victor.
Walton is probably not a reliable narrator. His letters are not written with complete disclosure; we have no way of knowing if he is up to some misdeed or unscrupulous behavior in St. Petersburgh because he would not write to his sister about it. Thus, we know that he might not tell his sister the entire truth, either because it would not be considered appropriate for her ears or because he does not want her to know for whatever reason. Walton, rather than Frankenstein, is in complete control of the story, and the reader would never know if he skewed the facts.
ReplyDeleteNot to mention the fact that he is desperate and lonely. Any means of human companionship are greatly desired by Walton. He cannot be trusted b/c in a way, he is enamored of Victor--much the same way Nick was enamored of Gatsby. Still our sympathies lie with both Gatsby and Victor despite their villainous characters...why???
ReplyDeletei dont believe Walton is a reliable source because he is bias with Victor. You can tell in the letters that he really likes victor, he even tells us that he feels as if Victor is like a brother to him. He fears being lonely so he wont put Victor in a bad light, and he may leave out parts that could show Victor in a bad way.
ReplyDeletewe have sympathy for Victor because of the way Walton portrays him, Walton feels sympathy for victor so his story will always show Victor in that way.
even though Walton is bias he is the best choice of narrator because if Victor Frankenstein was the narrator then he could totally change the story so that he is the good guy.
I agree with Jessica in that our sympathies lie with Victor and Gatsby because the authors want our sympathies to lie with them. Nick is enamored of Gatsby in the same way Walton is enamored of Victor. These "villains" have lived the lives that the narrators want to live. They failed at living that lifestyle but they still got to taste it, and for this reason the narrators are star eyed.
ReplyDeleteOne more reason our sympathies lie with Victo despite his villainous ways is that he seems to be a good man that made bad choices, instead of the other way around. He isn't a typical villain and does not seem to be purely evil. He seems to only be human.
I also agree with Jessica. I believe that we sympathize with Victor and Gatsby because of the way they have been portrayed. Since society is all about first impressions and "judging a book by its cover," the authors wrote to this strength. So, we sympathize with these characters not because of their personalities but because of their "looks" or the way the author makes them look.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the previous comments that Walton is not a good narrator. Although he takes Victor in his ship and nurses himself back to his health. He is desperate for a companion to share everything on his mind with. He seems to overlook any of Victor's flaws, because he is fascinated with Frankenstein.
ReplyDeleteAt first, Walton seemed like a valid source for observing Victor's debacle. But when looked closely, Walton's point of view is like a glass half full. Combined with the predetermined/assumed superiority of Victor because he is an aspiring alchemist and he only got to tell the reader what he was told by Victor. Since Victor's point of view dominates this tale, events might have been described differently and Walton would have been getting only a certain side of the story.
ReplyDeleteI agree with BigStrongMojoDadLeslie. Shelley portrays Victor as supremely human because she wishes to convey a strong sense of man's inadequacy and deep-rooted inability to control the courses of our lives. Victor makes numerous choices out of selfishness that direct his life to destruction and death. Truly, had Shelley been the true narrator, being a completely objective third person with absolutely no personal interest in the matter, the story could have been told flawlessly and accurately, but at the cost of its mysterious qualities. How do we know that everything the creature said was true? How do we know Victor's story is absolute? Walton surely doesn't know, but that just adds to the drama and allure that multiple viewpoints contribute to a narrative. Fiction is not about facts, and that is what makes me dub Walton a wonderful narrator. Good job, Walton.
ReplyDeleteI agree with all the previous posts saying that Walton is not a valid narrator because of the fact that he only has one point of view of the whole story. He doesn't understand the story from the creatures point and therefore is only able to tell what Victor has told him, and this story could possibly be true or untrue.
ReplyDeleteIn response to the commentary on why we feel sympathy for Victor and Gatsby - both possess qualities that are admirable (Victor more so than Gatsby. Some could describe Gatsby's ability to love and his generosity admirable qualities.) Also, both are so very sad that one sympathizes with them. I think as humans, we respond involuntarily to sadness and loneliness, both of which describe Gatsby and Victor.
ReplyDelete