Chapter 1.pdf

Chapter 1 From Captain Walton’s Log Book 24th April 1825, 14.00 hours, on the edge of the frozen north, 9 degrees latitude, 81 longitude. A very strange thing has just happened. I was on deck looking out across the endless field of ice, when an enormous being, the shape of a man, but almost 8 feet tall, suddenly appeared out of the mist. For a moment I thought I had made a mistake. ''How could any creature be alive in this place?" I said to myself. Then, about 500 yards behind him, a man of average size appeared and, by the way he was angrily beating the dogs which pulled his sledge, he seemed determined to catch the giant. Then they both disappeared into the mist as suddenly as they had appeared out of it. 25th April 1825, 10.00 hours During the night a storm came from the south and broke the ice up into pieces. I was certain that the two beings I had seen must have died in the cold. However, when the storm finally ended, I went out on deck, hoping that I might see them again. All around the ship great pieces of ice were moving up and down on the angry waves. Then I saw him, the smaller of the two men. He was lying on the broken sledge in the centre of a large piece of ice, about 20 yards from the side of the ship. His dogs were lying dead around him. I called some of my men and told them to get a small boat and bring the dead man on board. I felt I had to try to find out who he was and bury him properly. My men finally managed to climb onto the ice. Then, one of them began waving his arms and shouting. "He's still alive! Prepare hot water and a bed!" By some miracle the man is not dead, but it is impossible to communicate with him. He is so weak that he is hardly breathing at all. 28th April 1825, 12.00 hours. Three days have gone by since we rescued the unknown man. We still do not know who he is. We have not seen the giant since then, although I think he must be dead. The man we saved is very thin. He hasn't eaten for days. Will he live? At times, we are sure he is dead. At others, he seems to have unbelievable strength. He often sits up and cries out in his sleep. One night he stood up with his eyes full of fear and anger and started screaming. "You won't escape me! I’ve got you now!" I am very curious to know what brought him to the frozen north. Was it because of great madness or a great hate, or both? 29th April 1825, 10.00 hours. The man with no name spoke for the first time today. He could only say short sentences. His name is Frankenstein. Victor Frankenstein. He was chasing someone, most probably! the giant I saw on the 24th. He calls him 'the murderer'. But why was he chasing him? And why did he risk his life to catch this criminal? Many questions still

remain unanswered. I hope to hear the whole story in the next few days. I am afraid, though, that it will be weeks before he can even get out of bed. He is lucky to be alive. Most men would not have survived the Cold. Only a deep and mysterious passion keeps him alive.

Chapter 2 Frankenstein Begins his Story Listen "(This story was told over a period of five days. During that time Frankenstein was hardly able to speak for more than a minute without, a rest. At times he could say no more than a few words, but slowly the terrible story was told: This is a warning to those who think that they, like God, have the right to give life and take it away.) I spent my childhood in Geneva, Switzerland. I had everything that a child could want; a mother who adored me, two younger brothers, Ernest and William, who admired me, and a perfect friend, Henry Clerval, who was possibly the most loving and faithful friend that anyone could hope to have. I also had a sister, Elizabeth, who was not my real sister but a girl my parents adopted when she was very young, because her family was too poor to look after her. Elizabeth was four years younger than me, and although we were like brother and sister, a love grew between us that was much greater than the love a brother and a sister usually feel for each other. Finally, there was Justine, a loyal and caring servant, who was more like a sister to me than a maid. As I was growing up, two things happened which changed me forever. The First happened one day as I was walking in the mountains around Geneva. Although it had been a beautiful sunny day, it suddenly became very dark and I saw lightning in the sky. I looked for a tree to shelter under because I knew, it would soon start raining. Eventually, I saw a large tree with strong branches covered in leaves. I was only a few yards away from it when the tree was struck by lightning. It burst into flames and burnt down in a few seconds. This experience made me realize the incredible power of nature. I began to think that if this power could destroy life, it could also create life. At this point in my life I decided that I wanted to understand that power and find a way of using it. Somehow, I was sure that the mystery of life itself was in that power. The second thing that changed my life was my mother's death. I loved her very much. She was the kindest and purest person I'd ever known. She saw life as a gift from God. It was her love that kept our Family very close. During the last few weeks of her life, I stayed with her the whole time. One day, as I was reading to her, she took my hand and gently pulled me towards her. As she looked at me her eyes were, as always, full of love and gentleness. She stopped for a moment to find the right words. She was very weak and could only speak in a whisper. "Victor, you must take my place now. You should keep our family together and look after your brothers. You love Elizabeth and you know that I have always wanted you to marry.

As soon as you finish your studies, I want you to promise to come back and make her happy, as I know she will make you happy." After speaking these few words she fell back on her pillow, exhausted. Three days later she died with a smile on her lips, sure that I would keep my promise. Thank God she never lived to see what happened to her loved ones. I was too young, and too selfish perhaps, to understand the importance of what my mother had asked of me. All I wanted was to get away from that place of sadness and concentrate on my studies. That summer I sat my university entrance exams and did brilliantly. I got the highest marks in the country and won a scholarship to study natural sciences at the University of Ingolstadt, one of the best universities in Switzerland. I had heard about the famous Professor Waldmann and the research he'd been doing there. Some said he was about to discover the secret of life. I knew it was difficult for my father, who had still not got over my mother’s death, but I could see that Elizabeth could help him more than I could and so I decided to leave for Ingolstadt as soon as possible. I packed my bags and said goodbye to my family, promising to write often. When I went to kiss Elizabeth, she held me away from her and looked at me. "Yon will write, Victor, won't you?" "Of course I will, my dearest. Believe me." "I feel there is a fire inside you that will not let you rest. I am afraid it will burn you up unless you are careful. Promise you will be careful, Victor. We have lost our darling mother, and nothing can replace her, but we are still here and need you just as much as she did. Don't forget that." She smiled and hugged me tightly. God be with you, Victor. May He keep you safe and bring you quickly back to us." I arrived in Ingolstadt 24 hours later.

Chapter 3 Professor Waldmann Listen I am ashamed to admit it, but I soon forgot my promise to my mother. At first, I wrote every day. Then as I spent more time on my studies, I wrote fewer and fewer letters. I knew that my family would be worrying about me, but my desire for knowledge made me selfish and insensitive. Professor Waldmann was an old man, yet his mind was as sharp as a razor. What he said excited me because I could see that he was about to make a discovery that would change the way we see the world forever. After the first lecture, I decided to speak to the professor and ask him to let me help him in his research. In order to really help him, though, I first had to study every paper he had written.

For the next two months I worked night and day reading his research writings. With every word I read, I felt I was closer to knowing the secret of life. When I had finished reading the last paper, I went to see the professor. The professor lived and worked on the top floor of one of the university buildings in Ingolstadt. I was very nervous as I climbed the old wooden stairs. The door was open, so I walked in. I called his name, but there was no answer. I went straight into his laboratory. No one was there. Although I knew it was wrong, I wanted to see how far he had gone with his research. His work was like a puzzle with some of the pieces still missing. "Frankenstein." His clear deep voice echoed around the room. I jumped with fright and turned towards him. He looked angry, and I saw at once that he was very ill. "Frankenstein, have you come to spy on your professor? Or are you here simply to pay a sick old man a visit?" "I had no idea you were ill, Professor. If I had known, I ..." ""You came to learn my secrets. Don't you realize the danger of what you are doing? Do you think you can take my place?" "No, Professor. I simply want to offer my help." "Offer your help! You think you are very clever." "Professor, you know I am your best student, possibly the best student you've ever had. Why won't you ..." "That is the trouble. You know too much." "I don't understand." "I know you have learned everything that has taken me all my life to discover. I also know that you can see where the last piece of the puzzle should go, and I can't, Frankenstein. I can't!" "Why, Professor? I can help you. Together we can work more quickly." "No, Frankenstein, my life is over. For weeks now I have hardly been able to get out of bed. In less than a month I will be dead. I need at least two more years to complete my research." I said nothing. It was easy to see that he wouldn't live long. "Take me back to my room." When he was back in bed, he spoke to me again. "Frankenstein, I am going to destroy my work." I was so shocked I could not speak for some time. Finally, I said, "But, but, Professor, a whole lifetime's work! You can't..." "It's my work and I will do what I like with it." "But why?" "Because it is dangerous." "Is it dangerous to find out the meaning of life?" "No. What is dangerous is to be able to create life." "But think of what this will mean to medical research. It's a revolution!"

"Yes, but if the wrong people get hold of it... No. I must destroy everything before I die. You understand, don't you?" My mind began to work very fast. I had to stop him from destroying his work. Then, I thought of a way. I have an amazing memory, greater than even the professor suspected. I would try to remember everything as we destroyed it and write it down later. "You are right, Professor. I was wrong but now I understand. I will help you destroy you work." I could see that he did not believe me. "But how do I know you will do it?" "We will do it together, Professor." "I have misjudged you, Frankenstein. Leave me now and come back tomorrow. I am tired." I worked with the professor for the next two weeks. In this time I not only learnt everything that he had discovered, but I also saw how close he was to breaking the code of life. The day he died he called me to his bedside. "We have destroyed my work. Now you must forget everything that you have seen. Swear it." I muttered something to myself and he seemed satisfied. Then he lay back and never spoke again.

Chapter 4 The Monster is Born Listen I wanted to create a perfect being, the son every father dreams of: intelligent, handsome, loving and kind. I should have known that something would go wrong, but I was so sure of myself that I would not turn back. Professor Waldmann had discovered how to create a man. What he had not discovered, and that was the missing piece from his puzzle, was how to give it life. For me this was the easiest part. I had known how to give life even before I had known the basics of physics. I had seen it that day on the mountain when lightning burned a giant tree. Electricity was the secret. I knew what the answer was, but I did not know how to find it. I worked without a break for six months. I managed to persuade the university to let me use Professor Waldmann's laboratory after his death. It took me only a week to put everything back as it had been before. What I had to do was to find a way of controlling the electricity without burning the body. For my experiments I had to use real bodies which I could only get by stealing them from hospitals. I tried many times but it was a while before I succeeded in my experiments. Then, my only task was to find the perfect body. I thought that all the bodies I found from the hospitals were ugly, so I decided to use different parts from many bodies in order to create the perfect man. I used Professor Waldmann's brain in my creature, as he was one of the cleverest men I had ever known.

When everything was ready, I was exhausted. I could barely walk. To keep myself from going mad, I spoke to myself all the time. All I had to do was to wait for lightning. It was the stormy season, so I knew I would not have to wait long. Then, on the same day that I finished my preparations, the storm came. I sat in my laboratory, filled with a new strength, trembling with excitement. I looked down at my creature, lying there lifeless. He was not as handsome as I had hoped. His legs and arms were too long and scars on his head showed where I had put in the Professor's brain. As I looked at him. I spoke to him as if he were already alive. "With your mind we will work together and explore the .... secrets of life. I will be like a father to you and ..." At that moment, I heard thunder outside. I ran upstairs onto the roof. I could see flashes of lightning in the sky. I used a kite to attract the electricity that I needed. I saw a flash and electricity traveled down the string of the kite. I was too nervous to go back into the laboratory, so I waited on the stairs for a while. I don't quite know what I expected to find as I entered the laboratory. I had not thought that far. I went to look inside the room. but saw nothing. The body had gone. Had the experiment worked? Where was my creature? It was only then that I realized what I had done. I had created a monster and now it was somewhere out there. I sat for an hour not moving, until it got dark. Then, I saw it, half walking, half dragging itself along. It was making strange noises like a wild beast. It was coming towards me with its long arms stretched out in front of it. When it was about two yards away, I saw the face, the face that was meant to be the most beautiful face in the world. The electric current had burnt the skin and it was yellow and wrinkled, so that it was like the face of a skeleton, not of a young man. I was frightened. I screamed and ran away as I was sure he was coming to kill me. I ran downstairs and into the street and wandered for hours in the rain without being able to think. All I knew was that I had done something terrible and that I hated my creature and wanted to destroy it before it destroyed me. I didn't want to go home, so I went to stay with my dear friend, Henry Clerval. Soon after that, I fell ill and it took me a month to recover. When I was better, Henry told me that Elizabeth and my father were very worried about me and asked me to go home at once. The thought of them made me happy and I quickly recovered. I planned to close the laboratory and then go to Geneva. Then, on the day before I was going to leave, I received this letter from my father. Dear Victor, We have missed you terribly and really want to see you. However, I have some terrible news which I felt I had to tell you before you arrive. William, your brother, is dead. He was murdered. Please come quickly. Your loving father.

Chapter 5

Justine in Prison Listen On the journey home to Geneva, I thought about my life, and I realized, too late perhaps, that the people I loved were more important to me than all the science in the world. All those months of passionate research and study seemed without any meaning now that William was dead. My father and Elizabeth were waiting to meet me at the station. Elizabeth looked more beautiful than ever, despite the sadness in her eyes. My father looked much older than when I had last seen him. He was very chin and seemed depressed. I could see by the look on their faces that they were shocked at how I, too, had changed, but they said nothing. My father kissed me on the forehead, and I felt his tears on my face. After that, my darling Elizabeth held me close to her and whispered that father was not well, before saying in a load voice, "You look tired, Victor. You’ve been studying too hard." I picked up my bags and we went towards the carriage. "Tell me about poor William. Did he suffer?" "No, thank God. He died in a few seconds, so the doctor" says. The killer was a very strong man. They believed at first that it was the crime of a madman, until we discovered that the silver locket was missing from around William's neck." "A madman?” "The doctor who examined the body said that it looked as if he had been killed in a fit of wild anger." We got into the carriage and then Elizabeth told me what had happened. "Justine and William had gone walking in the mountains. She sat down on a rock to rest, while William wandered off on his own. When he didn't come back she went to look for him and found his body in the mouth of a cave." "What did the police do?" "They questioned all the obvious suspects and they came and examined Justine's room. In the pocket of the coat she was wearing that day they found William's locket. So, they put her in prison." "But what does Justine say? She denies it, doesn't she?" "Of course." "It can't be true. Justine would never do a thing like that and we will prove it in court." "I sincerely hope so, Victor." At that my father spoke for the first time. "A curse has fallen on our family, Victor. First, your mother. Then, William. And now, Justine. Where will it end?" "It will end, Father. I will make sure that it does." He put his hand on my knee. "You're a good boy, Victor. I hope you're right."

That afternoon we went to see Justine in prison. Her trial was set for the following day. She sat quietly on a wooden chair waiting for us. I tried to comfort her. "We will save you, Justine. We know you are not guilty of this horrible crime." "I am happy, Master Victor, that you at least believe that I'm innocent. I know you will try to save me, but I'm afraid the people will want to punish me." "Don't say that, Justine." I looked around at Elizabeth and my father. "What has happened to you all? Why have you lost hope?" That afternoon I found the best lawyer in Geneva and we spent the whole night preparing her case. When we had finished, I was certain that they would find her innocent. As I arrived at the courthouse, I was surprised by the crowds of people outside shouting. "Hang the murderess! Hang her and save our children!" Was this possible? Did these people really think that this sweet young girl was a murderess?