In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, Shelley deals with the issue of abandonment and its effects on the human psyche. The subject is addressed in three main instances; the loss of Victor's mother, the relationship between Victor and the monster, and the relationship of Victor and Elizabeth. This paper will discuss the effects of Victor's mother's death, his abandonment of the monster, and his eventual loss of Elizabeth.
Victor was brought up in a very close family; never in the book does he talk about his family in a negative way. He describes his mother in a very angelic light and seems very fond of her. His mother was the daughter of a merchant, who through mischance lost all his money and became poor. Upon the death of her father, Caroline married Victor's father. The event of Victor's mother's death seems to be the turning point in Victor's life. Up until this point, Victor had seemed a more centered person. Maybe he was a little eccentric, but up until this point, he didn't appear to be insane. I think that when this happened Victor felt like he had abandoned by his protector, especially because she had died taking care of his surrogate cousin Elizabeth. Could he have maybe felt contempt for Elizabeth for taking his mother away? Victor now avoids talking about his grieving for his mother. In any case, it is very apparent that he feels like his mother had abandoned him. At this time, Victor starts to go a little bit insane. .
Victor then describes going off to college at the University of Ingolstadt. By the time he arrives, he is already very involved in ancient philosophy and science. Because of this fact, he is scoffed at by M. Krempe, professor of natural philosophy. He doesn't take this criticism well and begins to feel contempt for the instructor. Later in his studies, Victor finds out he can animate lifeless matter. This great discovery is the beginning of the end for Victor. I think, at this moment, he starts to believe that he could bring his mother, his protector, back from the dead.