E

E.

Mary Shelley describes in detail of what the character is experiencing at the moment and it is written in such detail and description that makes your mind to wander with in your own mind. ‘The abrupt sides of vast mountains were before me; the icy wall of the glacier overhung me; a few shattered pines were scattered around; and the solemn silence of this glorious presence-chamber of imperial nature was broken only by the brawling waves or the fall of some vast fragment, the thunder sound of the avalanche or the cracking, reverberated along the mountains, of the accumulated ice, which, through the silent working of immutable laws, was ever and anon rent and torn, as if it had been but a plaything in their hands.’ She write on and on about what Victor sees and it’s a bit overwhelming to take it all in at the same time and this quote is followed by ‘These sublime and magnificent scenes afforded me the greatest consolation that I was capable of receiving. They elevated me from all littleness of feeling, and although they did not remove my grief, they subdued and tranquillized it.’ It’s a bit iffy at first but Mary Shelley includes the word ‘sublime’ in the text to show that she’s integrating Edmund Burke’s theory of the sublime. It’s a feeling that can never be said too much and that’s why she goes on writing and writing. She keeps emphasizing on the idea of sublime especially in chapter 10 when Victor’s going up the icy mountains. I think its because it was such an emotional stage for Victor with Justine’s death that he was in a state where everything felt unreal but so hard to endure. The beautiful sight of the Alps helped him forget about life and his worries, instead he was able to embrace the sensation of sublime. ‘It had then filled me with a sublime ecstasy that gave wings to the soul and allowed it to soar from the obscure world to light and joy. The sight of the awful and majestic in nature had indeed always the effect of solemnizing my mind and causing me to forget the passing cares of life.’