1. Briefly summarize what we learn about Victor’s family and background. Remember, we are trying to see how things from his childhood would affect him to build the man he becomes.
In the first two chapters of Frankenstein we learn about Victor's background. His childhood friend, Elizabeth Lavenza, who came into his family because her mother passed away. His father was very successful and he was always 'compared' to Elizabeth since she was so perfect and beautiful in every way. Despite all the attention Elizabeth got, Victor Frankenstein still had a wonderful childhood life, which foreshadows him going down hill and becoming mad.
2. We see some immediate evidence of this old concept that people ARE their looks, or rather, that their looks are their personalities. Look for this in these chapters and evaluate.
You can easily see that Victor IS his look, he is described to look a little bit "insane" which matches his personality throughout the story. On the inside, he is the real monster. Victor's cousin, Elizabeth, is beautiful and always getting attention which makes Frankenstein to crazy.
3. Compare the personalities and essential nature of each of the three young friends - Victor, Henri Clerval and Elizabeth. A chart would be handy for this.
**get from evernote**
4. Do some research and give me a brief outline of the three thinkers whom Victor studied in his youth: Cornelius Agrippa, Paracelsus and Albertus Magnus.
Cornelius Agrippa: Best known for his books, Born in 1486.
Paracelsus: Born in 1493, known for his tract on medicine and gave Zinc it's name.
Albertus Magnus: a German Dominican friar and a bishop, who achieved fame for his comprehensive knowledge of and advocacy for the peaceful coexistence of science and religion.
5. Describe Victor’s interest in these thinkers and consider why they appealed to him.
Victor was interested in these thinkers because they all had power, and Frankenstein is power-hungry. Also, the demonstration of electricity got him interested.
6. Describe and evaluate the moment of epiphany he had after the lightning storm in Belrive and explain how it changed his thinking.
The lightening gives him the idea that the energy will be strong enough to bring his monster to life.
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