Writer Techniques (Leaving Cert English): Revision Notes
Writer techniques
Mary Shelley employs sophisticated literary techniques throughout Frankenstein to create a complex, multi-layered narrative that explores themes of ambition, isolation, and moral responsibility. Understanding these techniques will help you analyse how Shelley crafts meaning and emotional impact in the novel.
Narrative structure: frame and epistolary form
Shelley constructs her story using a frame narrative - a story within a story. The entire tale reaches us through Robert Walton's letters to his sister, with Victor's story embedded inside, and the Monster's narrative further embedded within Victor's account.
Key features:
- Multiple narrative layers create different perspectives
- Epistolary form (told through letters) adds authenticity and intimacy
- Each narrator has their own voice and viewpoint
The frame narrative structure serves multiple purposes: it creates authenticity through the letter format, allows for multiple perspectives on the same events, and emphasises the subjective nature of storytelling. This technique was particularly popular in 18th and 19th-century literature.
Examples and effects: The opening establishes Walton's ambitious character: "You seek for knowledge and wisdom, as I once did" - Victor's warning to Walton immediately creates parallels between their dangerous ambitions.
Victor's personal, emotional narration draws readers into his perspective: "I am by birth a Genevese, and my family is one of the most distinguished of that republic" - this subjective storytelling reminds us that we're hearing his version of events.
The Monster's embedded narrative provides crucial insight into his suffering: "I am alone and miserable: man will not associate with me" - this epistolary layering allows readers to understand his emotional complexity and adds sympathy for his plight.
Effect: This structure encourages empathy whilst highlighting the subjective nature of truth. It reinforces key themes like isolation, ambition, and the burden of knowledge by showing how different characters experience these issues.
Gothic genre conventions
Frankenstein blends science fiction with traditional Gothic elements - the sublime, supernatural atmosphere, and horror - creating a dark, emotionally charged setting.
Key Gothic elements:
- Weather and atmosphere creating foreboding moods
- Horror and the sublime in nature and creation
- Supernatural undertones despite scientific explanations
Examples and effects: Shelley uses weather to mirror internal states: "The rain pattered dismally against the panes, and my candle was nearly burnt out" - this atmospheric description creates a dark, foreboding mood that reflects Victor's internal tension.
The moment of creation captures Gothic horror: "I beheld the wretch—the miserable monster whom I had created" - this moment of horror and regret demonstrates the Gothic idea of the creator recoiling from their unnatural creation.
Natural phenomena reflect emotional chaos: "The thunder burst at once with frightful loudness from various quarters of the heavens" - these descriptions mirror Victor's internal turmoil whilst reinforcing the Romantic concept of sublime nature overpowering mankind.
Gothic elements aren't just decorative - they serve to dramatise the psychological and emotional consequences of Victor's transgression, whilst building suspense and dread throughout the narrative. The supernatural atmosphere makes the scientific creation feel more ominous and morally questionable.
Language and diction: elevated and emotional
Shelley employs formal, emotional, and sometimes poetic language, particularly in the speeches of the Monster and Victor, giving the novel philosophical weight.
Key features:
- Biblical and classical allusions elevating the language
- Dramatic, arrogant diction reflecting character traits
- Succinct emotional declarations highlighting moral complexity
Examples and effects: The Monster's biblical reference elevates him beyond mere "monster": "I ought to be thy Adam, but I am rather the fallen angel" - this allusion to Paradise Lost transforms him from a simple creature into a tragic figure grappling with abandonment and moral fall.
Victor's language reveals his Promethean ambition: "Life and death appeared to me ideal bounds, which I should first break through" - his dramatic, arrogant diction reflects his dangerous detachment from ethical boundaries.
The Monster's powerful self-analysis: "I am malicious because I am miserable" - this concise, emotionally loaded statement demonstrates how Shelley uses succinct declarations to highlight moral complexity and elicit reader sympathy.
Worked Example: Analysing Elevated Language
Quote: "I ought to be thy Adam, but I am rather the fallen angel"
Step 1: Identify the allusion - References Milton's Paradise Lost
Step 2: Analyse the comparison - Monster compares himself to both Adam (first creation) and Satan (fallen angel)
Step 3: Interpret the effect - Elevates the Monster from simple creature to tragic, biblically-resonant figure struggling with abandonment and moral fall
Effect: The heightened language gives the novel philosophical depth, drawing attention to moral dilemmas, emotional suffering, and the tragedy of unchecked ambition.
Symbolism
Shelley uses recurring symbols to reinforce central themes of knowledge, danger, and isolation throughout the novel.
Major symbols:
Light and fire: "Learn from me, if not by my precepts, at least by my example, how dangerous is the acquirement of knowledge" - light symbolises both enlightenment and science, but also destruction, mirroring the Prometheus myth where fire brought to humans resulted in punishment.
Nature: "The saintly soul of Elizabeth shone like a shrine-dedicated lamp in our peaceful home" - nature represents comfort and innocence, particularly contrasted with Victor's artificial, horrifying creation.
The Monster's appearance: "His yellow skin scarcely covered the work of muscles and arteries beneath" - the grotesque physical description symbolises the ugliness of unnatural creation and society's rejection of the different.
Symbols in Frankenstein work on multiple levels - they function both as literal elements in the story and as representations of deeper themes. The dual nature of many symbols (light as both enlightenment and destruction) reflects the novel's central concern with moral ambiguity.
Effect: These symbols deepen meaning and allow readers to track major themes throughout the novel, particularly isolation, power, innocence, and transgression.
Intertextuality and allusions
Shelley weaves in literary and biblical references that add thematic depth and connect Frankenstein to broader moral and philosophical traditions.
Key references:
Milton's Paradise Lost: "Did I request thee, Maker, from my clay / To mould me man?" - the Monster quoting Adam shows his struggle with identity and rejection, comparing his abandonment to humanity's relationship with God.
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner: Walton refers to Coleridge's poem about a cursed sailor, creating parallels with the haunting consequences of forbidden knowledge.
Greek myth - Prometheus: Victor as a "modern Prometheus" reflects Shelley's central warning about human overreach and divine punishment for stealing forbidden knowledge.
These references aren't just literary showing-off - they connect Frankenstein to timeless moral and philosophical traditions. Understanding these allusions significantly deepens your analysis by showing how Shelley places her novel within broader conversations about creation, responsibility, and the relationship between creator and created.
Effect: These references align Frankenstein with moral and philosophical traditions, adding layers of meaning to characters and events whilst connecting the novel to timeless questions about creation, responsibility, and human nature.
Duality and foil characters
Shelley uses contrasting characters to explore moral ambiguity and highlight different approaches to similar situations.
Key character pairings:
Victor and Walton: Both are ambitious men of science, but Walton learns from Victor's failure: "I had rather die... than return shamefully" - Walton's initial mindset mirrors Victor's dangerous ambition, but he demonstrates the possibility of moral growth by ultimately choosing safety over glory.
Victor and the Monster: They mirror each other in isolation, intellect, and longing for belonging: "I was benevolent and good; misery made me a fiend" (Monster) contrasts with "I pursued nature to her hiding-places" (Victor) - this duality highlights the nature versus nurture debate and forces readers to question who the real "monster" is.
Effect: These character pairings force readers to question moral absolutes and emphasise the complex moral issues at the heart of the novel.
Setting as mood and symbol
Shelley uses natural landscapes, particularly sublime settings, to enhance emotion and reinforce themes.
Key settings and effects:
Alpine landscapes: "These sublime and magnificent scenes afforded me the greatest consolation" - Victor finds temporary peace in nature, which serves as refuge and momentarily restores his sense of humanity.
Arctic journey: "The sun rose from the ocean, and tinged the ice with rosy hue" - Walton's Arctic setting represents isolation, danger, and the unknown, mirroring Victor's emotional state whilst symbolising the dangerous pursuit of forbidden knowledge.
Physical coldness as emotional emptiness: "The bleak damp air... chilled me to the heart" - Shelley uses physical coldness to symbolise emotional emptiness and moral failure.
Worked Example: Setting Reflecting Internal State
When Victor retreats to the Alps: "These sublime and magnificent scenes afforded me the greatest consolation"
Step 1: Identify the contrast - Vast, pure mountains vs. claustrophobic laboratory Step 2: Analyse the effect - Nature offers healing from psychological damage Step 3: Interpret the symbolism - Natural beauty represents moral purity and restoration, contrasting with the artificial horror of Victor's creation
Effect: The settings function not merely as backdrop, but as emotional landscapes that reflect characters' internal worlds and reinforce the novel's central themes.
Key Points to Remember:
- Frame narrative: Multiple story layers create different perspectives and highlight subjective truth
- Gothic conventions: Weather, horror, and sublime elements dramatise psychological consequences
- Elevated language: Formal, emotional diction gives philosophical weight to moral dilemmas
- Symbolism: Light/fire, nature, and physical appearance reinforce themes of knowledge, innocence, and rejection
- Literary allusions: References to Paradise Lost, Ancient Mariner, and Prometheus add thematic depth and moral context
- Foil characters: Character pairings explore moral complexity and question absolute judgments
- Setting as symbol: Landscapes reflect internal emotions and reinforce central themes