A problem of care, not only invention
Victor’s decisive failure comes after the experiment succeeds. He creates life, sees a being who needs guidance and immediately abandons the relationship his work has made.
Nested voices change the verdict
Walton, Victor and the creature each tell a persuasive story about ambition and injury. Reading well means noticing where those stories resemble one another and where sympathy is being recruited.
A useful first question
At each major decision, ask what Victor believes he owes and what he actually does. The gap is the novel’s most durable source of tension.
