Commentary Writing: Frankenstein

Sample Commentary (Passage Analysis)

Sample Prompt: Analyze the effects of diction and /or imagery in the passage below. How

does Shelley use these devices to make a commentary on Dr. Frankenstein’s manipulation of

human life?

An Excerpt from Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein

It was on a dreary night of November that I beheld the accomplishment of my toils. With an

anxiety that almost amounted to agony, I collected the instrument of life around me, that I might

infuse a spark of being into the lifeless thing that lay at my feet. It was already one in the morning;

the rain pattered dismally against the panes, and my candle was nearly burnt out, when, by the

glimmer of the half-extinguished light, I saw the dull yellow eye of the creature open; it breathed

hard, and a convulsive motion agitated its limbs.

Analysis of each device should follow a pattern:

1. Quote the text

2. Identify Literary device

3. Explain the effect of the literary device

4. Make inference

5. Tie back to thesis/ passage as a whole

6. Repeat

Vicky Valkyrie

Ms. Teta

English II – C Block
 27 September 2015

A Close Analysis of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein

This passage from chapter 5 of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein depicts the moment that Dr. Victor

Frankenstein creates his notorious monster. In this particular passage, Shelley utilizes negative

diction and death imagery to illustrate the destructive power of unchecked ambition and science.

Shelley comments on Dr. Frankenstein’s monstrous creation largely through her use of

negative diction. Many of Shelley’s word choices – “toils”, “anxiety”, “agony”, and “dismally”, for

example – are associated with excruciating pain, and thereby help to convey a distantly morbid

mood. This mood is strengthened by Shelley’s use of death imagery early in the passage. Images

like the “lifeless thing” and the “burnt out” candle convey a distinct sense of death and destruction,

enhancing the morbid and “dreary” mood of the passage. This mood undoubtedly hints at the

potentially destructive nature of “Dr. Frankenstein’s creation – a creation that resulted from

Frankenstein’s boundless ambition and obsession with scientific advancement.

However, the passage takes an interesting turn just as Frankenstein creates his monster. As

the passage progresses, Shelley slowly begins to utilize diction associated with light, life, and

motion. Words such as “spark”, “glimmer”, “light”, and “open” all have a distinctly positive

connotation. The word “spark” in particular conveys a strong sense of vigor and is heavily

associated with life and hope. However, despite these positive diction choices, the mood of the

passage remains largely dismal and terrifying due to the overwhelmingly negative diction that

Shelly’s utilizes even in the midst of this hope and excitement. The passage ends with the phrase

“a convulsive motion agitated its limbs”. Here, Shelley utilizes negative diction choices like

“convulsive” and “agitated”. This juxtaposition of positive and negative diction suggests that

Frankenstein’s monster will ultimately destroy any hint of goodness or life. Thus, this again

emphasizes the idea that Frankenstein’s scientific advancement will bring about only death and

destruction, despite its appearance of brilliance.

Ultimately, Shelley’s tone of death imagery and negative diction creates a dismal mood,

allowing her to illustrate the destructive power of Dr. Frankenstein’s unnatural and scientific

manipulation of human life.