"Farewell, my dear, excellent Margaret. Heaven shower down blessings on you, and save me, that I may again and again testify my gratitude for all your love and kindness" (Shelley, 3).
Shelley commences Frankenstein with four introductory letters. This strategic formatting serves to provide subtle background information for the reader. The narrator is introduced, and his prominent traits are exposed through thoughtful characterization. By referring to action that follows the central story of the novel, these letters also serve to foreshadow the events to come. This excerpt in particular portrays the preliminary narrator, R. Walton, as an individual who is extremely lose to his sister, to whom the five introductory messages are addressed. This structure also serves to create suspense, imploring the audience to wonder the connection between R. Walton and the protagonist Victor Frankenstein.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I agree that the use of the four introductory letters creates suspense. I was very curious as to how a mariner had anything to do with Frankenstein. In the first few leters, I wondered if the R. Welton was the scientist, or maybe the monster-I had no clue!
ReplyDeletecheck
ReplyDelete