Themes

Creation and responsibility
Victor makes a life, then walks away from it. The book keeps asking what a maker owes to what he makes.
Chapters 5 and 10
Loneliness
Walton, Victor and the creature all long for a friend. The creature's loneliness turns into rage.
Letter 2, Chapters 15 to 17
Nature or nurture
The creature starts gentle and eager to learn. Rejection, not birth, makes him cruel.
Chapters 11 to 16
Ambition and its cost
Victor and Walton both chase glory. Victor's story is a warning that Walton finally hears.
Chapters 4 and 24
Nature as comfort
Mountains, lakes and ice calm Victor and awe the reader, even in his darkest days.
Chapters 9 and 10

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