Saturday, February 9, 2013

Who visits Victor at the University of Ingolstadt in Frankenstein?

While Victor is at the University of Ingolstad, he is visited by his dear friend Henry Clerval. 


In Chapter 5, on a dreary November night Victor's creature comes to life, but his creator is filled with horror when he sees it awaken with watery eyes and its yellow skin forms a hideous smile. Frightened, he flees; secluding himself in his bedchamber Victor walks around and around until he collapses in exhaustion. However, he wakes and finds "the miserable monster" holding up the curtains around his bed. 



His jaws opened, and he muttered some inarticulate sounds, while a grin wrinkled his cheeks. He might have spoken, but I did not hear....



Victor "escapes" and flees down the stairs. He cannot rid himself of the image of this horrible monster he has created. When morning comes and the gates are unlocked, Victor traverses the streets, hoping to "ease the load that weighed upon [his] mind." After a while, Victor stops before an inn and notices a Swiss carriage approaching the inn. It halts just where Victor stands, and as the door opens, Henry Clerval sees him:



"My dear Frankenstein...how glad I am to see you! how fortunate that you should be here at the very moment of my alighting!"



At the sight of his dear friend, Victor temporarily forgets his "horror and misfortune." But, his joy at seeing Clerval becomes so excessive that his laughter is exaggerated by fright; moreover, there is a wildness in his eyes that worries Henry, who asks Victor what is wrong.



"Do not ask me," cried I, ...for I thought I saw the dreaded spectre glide into the room; "he can tell.--Oh, save me! save me!" I imagined that the monster seized me; I struggled furiously, and fell down in a fit.



Victor falls down with a fever that confines him in bed several months; an uncomprehending Henry stays and acts as his only nurse. Convinced that he is best for this task, Henry does not notify Victor's father or Elizabeth for a while. When he does, Henry merely writes that Victor has been very ill. On his part, Victor profusely thanks Henry for caring for him when he has been well. Then, Henry shows Victor a letter from his "cousin" Elizabeth.


Because he has spent so much time caring for Victor, Henry has not been able to begin his studies in exotic languages. But, the companionship of Henry has benefited Victor because Clerval "called forth the better feelings of [Victor's] heart," re-teaching him to love nature and "the cheerful faces of children."

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