Editor's Choice
How does Elizabeth influence Victor and Henry in Frankenstein?
Quick answer:
Elizabeth influences Victor and Henry by providing emotional support and embodying compassion and selflessness. She acts as a soothing presence for Victor, helping to alleviate his depression and reminding him of family love. Her letters and concern prompt Victor's recovery from illness, highlighting her role as a stabilizing force. Elizabeth's optimism complements Henry's Romantic ideals, while her selflessness contrasts with Victor's selfishness, ultimately serving as a foil to his character.
Elizabeth is similar to Henry in her compassion and interest in Victor's welfare. Henry shares many of Victor's interests, only he is not arrogant. He and Elizabeth have less of a relationship among each other. The main links between the two are their love for Victor and the way their optimism provides a foil for Victor's brooding nature.
For Victor, Elizabeth is a soothing influence. She is described as sweet and gentle. When Victor is in the midst of a depression, it is Elizabeth who has the most positive impact on his mental state. She is a safe harbor for him, someone he can always rely on when he is hurting.
With Elizabeth, Victor hopes to have a happy marriage with children. However, Victor's ultimate selfishness thwarts that possibility. On his wedding night, he believes the creature seeks to harm him and leaves Elizabeth alone in the bridal chamber,...
Unlock This Answer Now
Start your 48-hour free trial and get ahead in class. Boost your grades with access to expert answers and top-tier study guides. Thousands of students are already mastering their assignments—don't miss out. Cancel anytime.
Already a member? Log in here.
making her easy prey for the creature, whose murderous intentions were aimed at her all along.
When Victor loses Elizabeth, he loses all connection to family and love. It is the final straw, the event which makes him swear to destroy the creature for good.
Elizabeth complements Henry's Romanticism. She sees life in much of the same optimistic manner that he does. Both characters put others before themselves and look for the good in life (Elizabeth constantly encourages Victor in his darkest hours, as does Henry who even puts aside his own studies to help Victor get better).
In contrast, Elizabeth and Victor are foil characters. Victor is selfish and full of hubris. He seeks to bring glory to himself and fails to take responsibility for his actions and choices. Elizabeth is the complete opposite. She stays in the background taking care of her family members, selflessly giving of her time and love (much like Victor's mother Caroline). Moreover, she seems to take responsibility for events which are not her fault. For example, she blames herself for William's death because she gave him the portrait of Caroline which was taken from him by his murderer.
What are the effects of Elizabeth's letters on Victor in Frankenstein?
Victor Frankenstein receives his letter from Elizabeth after the arrival of Henry Clerval, who has appeared in Ingolstadt not long after Victor has successfully animated the creature. Victor has been in the thralls of a nervous fever, and when he inquires about the health of his family, Henry tells him that they are all well, except for the worry they have experienced not hearing from Victor more often.
Henry helps Victor to recover from his illness, and when he seems ready, Henry points out that he has received a letter from Elizabeth. In this letter, she reports that William, Victor's little brother, is flourishing, that the family has taken in Justine, and that she (Elizabeth) is grateful to Henry for having provided them with reports of Victor's improving health.
Victor's reaction to this letter is to write to Elizabeth immediately, though the effort tires him out. He realizes that his silence has caused his family anxiety, so he desires to soothe them. Soon after Victor responds to Elizabeth, his improved health gathers momentum and he recovers fully from his illness.
The first letter that Victor receives from his cousin, Elizabeth, is in Chapter Six, and is delivered to Victor by Clerval at a time when Victorsuffering from devoting himself to his work and study to his branch of arcane scientific knowledge. As he reads Elizabeth's letter, and hears of her concern about him because of the lack of news he has sent them, it is clear that the receiving of this letter marks the beginning of Victor's improvement in terms of his personal health. Note what the text tells us his response to reading her letter was:
"Dear, dear Elizabeth!" I exclaimed, when I had read her letter, "I will write instantly, and relieve them from the anxiety that they must feel." I wrote, and this exertion greatly fatigued me; but my convalescence had commenced, and proceeded regularly. In another fortnight, I was able to leave the chamber.
Thus we can see that the letter Victor receives from Elizabeth has the impact of restoring Victor to a state of health and sanity, reminding him of the love that others have for him and what is important to him, acting as a much needed correction to his single-minded and obsessional focus on the pursuit of scientific knowledge.