Walton Context Flashcards
(8 cards)
Walton context point one-Walton as a foil to Victor
Walton represents a younger version of Victor — a man of ambition and romantic idealism. Mary Shelley uses him as a warning symbol for unchecked desire.
Anne K. Mellor, Mary Shelley: Her Life, Her Fiction, Her Monsters (1988).
Walton context point two-isolation and the romantic hero
Walton’s desire to explore the unknown reflects the Romantic obsession with the sublime, but also the danger of isolation, something Mary personally feared.
In The Journals of Mary Shelley, she frequently notes the emotional cost of isolation — particularly after Percy’s death.
Walton context point three-autobiographical echo: Mary Shelley as a voyager
Walton’s exploration of uncharted territory echoes Mary Shelley’s own intellectual and emotional voyaging into radical ideas and forbidden relationships.
Miranda Seymour, Mary Shelley (2000).
Walton context point four-Walton and the male emotional imbalance
Walton’s early letters reflect an emotional intensity and desperation for male friendship, a theme seen in many Romantic texts (including those by Percy Shelley and Byron).
Lisa L. Moore (Queer Theorist), in her work on Romantic friendship, discusses the homoerotic undertones in letters and relationships between Romantic men.
Walton context point five-Walton and failed responsibility
Though Walton turns back from his voyage, he still fails to intervene in Victor’s or the Creature’s suffering meaningfully — perhaps showing Mary’s mistrust in passive observers.
Barbara Johnson, My Monster/My Self (1982).
Walton context point six-influence of Percy Shelley’s ideals
Walton’s poetic language and idealism resemble the youthful writings and beliefs of Percy Shelley, particularly his ideas about heroism and human potential.
Percy Shelley, Prometheus Unbound (1820).
Walton context point seven-Walton and the limits of enlightenment exploration
Walton’s Arctic voyage symbolizes Enlightenment pursuit of knowledge — but his retreat signals Shelley’s critique of such ambition when unmoored from ethics.
William Godwin, Enquiry Concerning Political Justice (1793), emphasized rational exploration of truth — but Mary questioned the cost of that pursuit.
Walton context point eight-framing device and narrative reliability
Walton controls the story we receive — his bias, selective empathy, and gendered authority as narrator reflect Mary Shelley’s experience of being mediated by men.
Mary Shelley was often publicly represented through Percy or her father, as when Percy wrote the anonymous preface to Frankenstein (1818).
Critic Marilyn Butler.
