The Story of Frankenstein Learn English through story level 3
chapter one
captain
something is moving on the ice
look over there
the sailor stood at the top of the mast
high above the captain
his hand pointed away from the ship
across the miles of ice that covered the
sea
the captain looked to the north
where the sailor was pointing
he saw something coming fast towards the
ship across the ice
he put his telescope to his eye
and through it he could see the shapes
of ten dogs pulling a sledge over the
ice
he could also see the driver of the
sledge
a huge figure
much bigger than a man
the sledge came nearer and nearer to the
sea
soon it was only a quarter of a mile
from the ship
no one needed a telescope now to see the
huge figure of the driver
suddenly the sledge went behind a
mountain of ice
and disappeared
at that moment
another sledge appeared
it too was moving fast
and was clearly chasing the first sledge
this driver was a smaller figure
more like an ordinary man
and faster the dogs ran
then the second sledge also disappeared
behind the mountain of ice
two hours
passed the sledges did not appear again
nothing moved on the ice
soon night came
and in the night there was a storm
in the morning the sailors saw the great
pieces of ice were floating around the
ship
suddenly the sailor on the mast shouted
again
captain
i can see a man on the ice
the sailor was pointing to a piece of
ice that was floating near the ship
a man was sitting on the ice
and near him was a broken sledge
the man was nearly dead from cold and
could not walk
the sailors carried him carefully onto
the ship
and took him to the captain who said
welcome to my ship
i am the captain and my name is robert
walton
thank you captain walton
the man said
my name is frankenstein
victor frankenstein
then he fainted
and said no more
two days passed before the man was
strong enough to talk
and then the captain asked him to tell
his story
i am trying to catch someone
said frankenstein
that is why i have come so far north on
the ice
we saw you following someone the captain
said
he was huge
much bigger than a man
we saw his sledge just in front of you
on the night before the storm
i am pleased you all saw that huge
figure
frankenstein said
perhaps that will help you to believe my
story
during the days
while the captain worked on the ship
frankenstein wrote down his story
and each evening he read what he had
written to the captain
here is victor frankenstein’s story
chapter 2
victor frankenstein’s story begins
i was born in switzerland
in the town of geneva
my parents loved each other very much
and i learned from the example of their
love
i learned that to love and to be patient
are the most important things in the
world
my mother hoped to have a daughter after
i was born
but for five years i was the only child
and then
my mother found a sister for me
she was helping a family in which there
were five children
they were very poor and the children
were thin and hungry
one of the children was a little girl
with golden hair and blue eyes
her name was elizabeth
my mother took the little girl into our
family and elizabeth became the daughter
that my mother had always wanted
as i grew older
my love for elizabeth became stronger
all the time
later
my mother had two other sons
ernest and william
a young woman called justine came to
live in the house to help my mother with
the children
we loved her as much as she loved us
the years passed happily and we had
everything that we needed
at school i met another very fine person
his name was henry claval
and he was very clever
my family also liked him very much
so he was a welcome visitor to our house
i studied very hard at school
i wanted to know the secrets of life
and most of all
i wanted to know how to make living
things
i read all the books that i could find
one day
something happened that added a new idea
to the ideas that i already had
i was 15 at the time
and we were on holiday in the mountains
there was a wild storm
and with it came the most frightening
thunder and lightning that i have ever
seen in my life
about 20 meters in front of our house
was a great tree
suddenly
a huge fork of lightning hit the tree
after a few seconds
there was nothing left of it except a
black piece of wood
two meters high
the lightning had destroyed it
i saw how strong electricity was
i began to read all the books that i
could find about electricity and its
terrible power
chapter 3
for 17 years my life was very happy
then
the first sad thing happened
my mother became very ill
and soon she knew that she was dying
just before she died
she asked elizabeth and me to go to her
room
she held our hands and said
my children
i am very happy because you love each
other
and because one day
you will get married
everyone in the family loves you
elizabeth
will you take my place in the family my
dear
i can die happy if you will look after
them when i have gone
my mother died
and we were very sad
because we loved her dearly
elizabeth was brave and helped us
her sweet smile gave her some happiness
in the unhappy days after my mother’s
death
the time came for me to go to university
i did not want to leave my sad family
but we all knew that i should go
it was hard to leave too because the
parents of my good friend henry claval
would not let him go to university with
me
and so i had to go alone
on my first day at the university i met
my teacher
professor waldman
who was one of the greatest scientists
in the world
he gave a wonderful talk to all the
students who were starting at the
university
he ended his talk by saying
some of you will become the great
scientists of tomorrow
you must study hard and discover
everything that you can
that is why god made you intelligent
to help other people
after the professor’s talk
i thought very carefully
i remembered the storm when i was
fifteen
i remembered how the lightning had
destroyed the tree
i wanted to use electricity to help
people
and i wanted to discover the secrets of
life
i decided to work on these two things
i did not know then
that my work would destroy me and the
people that i loved
i started work the next day
i worked very hard and soon professor
woldman and i realized that i could
learn to be a very good scientist
the professor helped me very much
and other important scientists who were
his friends helped me too
i was interested in my work and i did
not take one day’s holiday during the
next two years
i did not go home
and my letters to my family were very
short
after two years
i had discovered many things
and i built a scientific machine that
was better than anything in the
university
my machine would help me answer the most
important question of all
how does life begin
is it possible to put life into dead
things to answer these questions about
life
i had to learn first
about death
i had to watch bodies from the moment
when they died and the warm life left
them in the hospital and in the
university
i watched the dying and the dead
day after day
month after month
i followed death
it was a dark and terrible time
then one day
the answer came to me
suddenly
i was sure that i knew the secret of
life
i knew that i could put life into a body
that was not alive
i worked harder and harder now
i slept for only a short time each night
and i did not eat much food
i wrote to my family less often
but they loved me and did not stop
writing to me
they said they understood how busy i was
they did not want me to stop work to
write or to see them
they would wait until i had more time
they hoped to see me very soon
the professors realized that i was doing
very important work
and so they gave me my own laboratory
there was a small flat above the
laboratory where i lived
and sometimes i stayed inside the
building for a week and did not go out
above the laboratory i built a very tall
mast
it was
150 meters high
and higher than the tallest building in
the city
the mast could catch lightning and could
send the electricity down to my machine
in the laboratory
i had never forgotten the lightning that
had destroyed the tree
there had been so much power in the
electricity of that lightning
i believed i could use that electricity
to give life to things that were dead
i will say
no more than that
the secret of my machine must die with
me
i was a very clever scientist
but i did not realize then
what a terrible mistake i was making
chapter four
in my laboratory
i made a body
i bought or stole all the pieces of
human body that i needed
and slowly and carefully
i put them all together
i did not let anybody enter my
laboratory or my flat while i was doing
this awful work
i was afraid to tell anybody my terrible
secret
i had wanted to make a beautiful man
but the face of the creature was
horrible
its skin was thin and yellow
and its eyes were as yellow as its skin
its long black hair and white teeth were
almost beautiful
but the rest of the face was very ugly
its legs and arms were the right shape
but they were huge
i had to use big pieces because it was
too difficult to join small pieces
together
my creature
was two and a half meters tall
for a year i had worked to make this
creature
but now it looked terrible and
frightening
i almost decided to destroy it
but i could
not i had to know if i could put life
into it
i joined the body to the wires from my
machine
more wires joined the machine to the
mast
i was sure that my machine could use
electricity from lightning to give life
to the body
i watched and waited
two days later i saw dark clouds in the
sky
and i knew that a storm was coming
at about one o’clock in the morning the
lightning came
my mast began to do its work immediately
and the electricity from the lightning
traveled down the mast to my machine
would the machine work
at first
nothing happened
but after a few minutes
i saw the creature’s body begin to move
slowly
terribly
the body came alive
its arms and legs began to move
and slowly
it sat up
the dead body had been an ugly thing
but alive
it was much more horrible
suddenly i wanted to escape from it
i ran out of the laboratory and locked
the door
i was filled with fear at what i had
done
for hours i walked up and down in my
flat
at last i lay down on my bed and fell
asleep
but my sleep was full of terrible dreams
and i woke up suddenly
the horrible thing
that i had created was standing by my
bed
its yellow eyes were looking at me
its mouth opened
and it made strange sounds at me
on its yellow face
there was an awful smile
one of its huge hands reached towards me
before it could touch me
i jumped off the bed
and ran downstairs into the garden
i stayed there all night
but i could not think clearly
i was afraid
and when morning came
i went out into the town and began to
walk about
i did not notice where i was walking
but soon i came to the station
a train from geneva had just arrived and
the passengers were leaving the
station one of them ran towards me when
he saw me
it was my dear friend henry claval
he was very pleased to see me
he took my hand and shook it warmly
my dear victor
he said
what a lucky chance that you are here at
this station
your father and elizabeth and the others
are very worried about you
because you have not visited them for a
long time
they asked me to make sure that you are
well
and i have very good news my father has
agreed to let me study at the university
so we shall be able to spend a lot of
time together
i was very happy to hear this news
and
for a moment
i forgot my fears
i took henry back to my flat and asked
him to wait outside while i went in to
look i was afraid that the creature was
still there
but it had disappeared
at that time
i did not think of other people
and what the creature could do to them
i took henry into the flat and cooked a
meal for us
but henry noticed how thin i was
and that i was laughing too much and
could not sit still
suddenly he said
my dear victor
what is the matter with you
are you ill
has something awful happened
don’t ask me that
i cried
i put my hands over my eyes
i thought i could see the horrible
creature there in front of me
i pointed wildly across the room and
shouted
he can tell you
save me
save me
i tried to fight the creature
but there was nothing there
then i fainted
and fell to the floor
poor henry
i do not know what he thought
he called the doctor
and they put me to bed
i was very ill for two months
and henry stayed and looked after me
his loving care saved me from death
i wanted to go home and see my family as
soon as possible
when i was well enough i packed my
clothes and books
all my luggage was ready
and i was feeling very happy
when the postman arrive with some
letters
one of the letters ended my short time
of happiness
chapter five
the letter was from my father in geneva
and this is what he wrote
my dear victor
i want you to know before you arrive
home
that an awful thing has happened
your dear youngest brother william
is dead
he was murdered
it happened last thursday evening when
elizabeth and i and your two brothers
ernest and william went for a walk
outside the city
william and ernest were playing
william had hidden from ernest and
ernest asked elizabeth and me to help
find william
we all began to search for him
but we couldn’t find him
we searched all night
at five in the morning
i found him
he was lying on the grass
white and still
i could see the marks of fingers on his
neck
the murderer had strangled him
elizabeth had let him wear a gold chain
of hers round his neck
on the chain was a very small picture of
your mother
we all think that someone murdered
william to steal the gold chain
poor elizabeth is terribly unhappy at
william’s death
she thinks she died because she let him
wear the chain
hurry home my dear victor
you are the only one who can help
elizabeth
and we all need you
with all our love
your father
henry helped me to catch the train
the journey seemed very long
and it was late at night before the
train reached geneva
i decided to spend the night in a
village outside the town
and go home early in the morning
i wanted to see the place where william
had died
as i started my walk a storm broke and
lightning lit the sky
the police had put posts around the
place where the murderer had strangled
william
so i found it easily
i cried sadly as i stood there
my poor brother had been a kind and
happy boy
and we had all loved him
again the lightning lit the sky
and i saw a huge figure
standing in the rain
when i saw it
i knew at once what it was
it was the creature that i had made
what was he doing there
but although i asked myself the question
i knew the answer
he had murdered my brother
i was sure that i was right
i decided to try and catch him
but as i moved
he ran towards the mountains
he ran much faster than any man
he climbed the mountain easily reached
the top
and disappeared
i stood there in the dark and the rain
and knew that i had created a monster
and he has murdered my brother
chapter six
at first i decided to tell the police my
story
but would they believe me
i had been very ill
when the police learned about my illness
they would think the monster was just
one of my bad dreams
i decided
that i could not tell anybody
i went home to my family
and they were very pleased to see me
then they told me that the police had
found the murderer
perhaps you will think that this was
good news
but i have not told you who the police
had arrested
as i went into the house
i noticed that one person did not come
to meet me
it was justine
the young woman who had looked after the
children
and who was like a sister to us
and it was justine that the police had
arrested
a few days after the murder
the police had searched the house
and had found the gold chain in
justine’s coat pocket
everyone in the family knew that justine
had not murdered william
i knew who the murderer was
but i could not tell
anyone we were sure that justine would
be free after the trial
because nobody could believe that she
was a murderer
but we were wrong
the trial did not go well for justine
there were a number of strange facts
that were difficult to explain
and the judge decided that she was the
murderer
the punishment for murder
was death
we argued and cried
we said she could not murder anyone
but nothing could change the judge’s
order
so i got up early
and went to the judge’s house
and told him about the monster
he did not believe me
he thought i was lying in order to save
justine’s life
in the prison
justine waited quietly for death
we spent many hours with her
and she spoke calmly and kindly to
us she was happy because we believed
that she had not killed william
and she was almost looking forward to
death
because then she would be with william
and our dear mother
in a place of peace
her love and gentleness added to my
great unhappiness
i knew she was going to die
because of me
i knew my brother had died because of me
i had brought nothing but sadness and
misery to my family
i took a boat
and went out on lake geneva
why didn’t i end my life then
two things stopped me
my father was old and another death
would probably kill him
and i had to stay alive
to keep my family safe from the monster
fear for my family and hate for my
monster were with me day and night
i became ill again
and elizabeth’s love could not help me
i needed to escape for a while
to leave my unhappiness behind me
so i went to walk alone in the alps
i hoped the wild beauty of the mountains
would help me
slowly i became calmer among the
beautiful mountains
i learned to sleep again
and for days i did not see anybody
then one morning
i saw a figure coming towards me
faster than any man could go
it jumped easily over the rocks and i
saw with horror
the monster that i had created
on his face was a look of deep sadness
but also of evil
at first i could not speak
because i hated him so much
but at last i said
you are an evil creature
i shall kill you if i can
because you have killed two people that
i love
the monster’s yellow eyes looked at me
i
am the unhappiest creature
in the world
but i shall fight for my life
he said
i am bigger
and stronger than you
but i will not start the fight
i shall always be gentle to you
because you are my king
and creator
you made me and you should love me
and be kind to me
like a father
william and justine died
because you did not love me
why did you create me
if you were not ready to love me
we are enemies
i said
leave me now
or let us fight until one of us is dead
you are a murderer
how can i be kind to you
you say
i
am a murderer the monster said
but you
want to kill your own creature
isn’t that wrong too
i ask you to do one thing for me
listen
come with me to a warmer place
and listen to my story
then you can decide
i thought carefully about what he had
said
it was true that i had given him life
but i had not given him love
i decided to go with him
and listen to his story
he took me to a mountain hut where he
lit a fire
we sat down by the fire
and he began to tell me his story
chapter 7
the monster’s story
after i left the laboratory
i escaped into the country outside the
town
i soon felt hungry and thirsty
and my first food was fruit
which i found on some trees near a river
i drank from the river and then lay down
and went to sleep
at first
my eyes and ears did not work very well
but after a while i began to see and
hear clearly
one day
snow began to fall
of course
i had never walked in snow before
and i found that it made my feet
very cold
i realized that i needed food and a
place to get warm
soon i saw a small hut where an old man
was cooking his breakfast over a fire
when the old man saw me
he shouted loudly and ran away as fast
as he could
i did not understand what the man was
doing
but i wanted to be near the fire
so i sat down in the warm
and ate the man’s breakfast
then i walked across empty fields for
some hours
until i reached a village
i went into one of the houses
but there were children inside
they began to scream when they saw me
and their mother fainted
the whole village came to see what was
the trouble
some of the people ran away when they
saw me
but the others shouted and threw stones
at me
they wanted to kill me
i was badly hurt
but i escaped and ran into the open
country
later
i found an empty hat
which was built against the wall of a
small house
i was afraid to go into the house after
what had happened in the village
so i hid in the hut
there i was safe
and could escape from the cold and hide
from people who wished to hurt me
and then i found that there was a small
hole in the wall between the hut and the
house
through this hole i could see into the
room next to the hut
three people lived in the house
a beautiful girl
an old man
and a young man
day
after day
i watched the three people
i saw how kind they were to each other
i wanted so much to go into the house
and be with them
but i knew i must stay in the hut
i could not forget how the village
people had hurt me when i tried to go
into the house there
each night
after the people in the house had gone
to bed
i stole some of their food for myself
but soon i realized that the old man was
blind
and i realized too
that often the three of them did not
have enough to eat
i saw the two young people put extra
food on the blind man’s plate
although they were hungry themselves
when i saw that
i stopped stealing their food
their life was already hard enough
so i went back to the wild fruit in the
woods
i tried to help them in other ways too
during the night i cut forward for them
and added it secretly to the wood which
the young man had cut during the day
i was very happy to see how much this
pleased the young man
after a while
i began to understand some of the noises
that the people made to each other
the first words that i understood were
words like
fire
and
bread
i also learned that the three people
called each other by names
the girl was agatha
the young man was
felix
and the old man was called
father
i tried to make the noises that they
made
and slowly
i began to speak
the two young people were very beautiful
one day i saw my own face in the water
of the river
it was a terrible face
i understood why people were frightened
why they shouted and threw stones
i knew then
that i could not let these beautiful
people see me
they would be frightened by my horrible
face and body
summer was coming
and i continued to watch and learn
i also continued to help the two people
and their father
and did many jobs for them in the night
they were always surprised in the
morning when they saw what i had done
i heard them talk about the
good creature
who did these
wonderful things
but the family were often sad
and i wished i could make them happy
i looked forward to the time when i
could speak well enough to talk to them
and i was happy
because i was sure i would soon have
three good friends
chapter eight
one day in summer
a lady on horseback rode up to the house
and knocked on the door
she had dark hair
and was very beautiful
family were all very pleased to see her
i soon learned
that her name
was
sophie
she could not speak the family’s
language
and each evening felix taught us some
words
this was a very great help to me
because i was able to learn the meaning
of many words that i had not been able
to understand before
felix taught sophie from books
about what had happened in the world in
the past
so i learned about the greeks and romans
and about christ
and about the first white men in america
and the sad story of the indians
i could not understand why men who knew
all about good and evil
could hate and kill each other
i learned other things too
i learned that people think it is very
important to have money
and to come from a good family
i learned of the love between mother and
father and child
and i realized
that i had no family
the more i learned
the more i thought and the more unhappy
i became
soon i discovered who sophie was
the two families had met in france after
sophie and her father arrived there from
turkey
their own country
sophie’s father was put imprisoned by
the french
but felix and his father had helped him
to escape and leave france
when the french discovered this
felix and his family lost all their
lands and money
and had to leave france forever
now i knew why they were so sad
and why they were poor
but that was not all
sophie and felix loved each other
and sophie’s father had promised that
they could marry
then
when he learned that felix had lost all
his money
he broke his promise
but sophie loved felix very much
so she took some money
and escaped from her father to search
for felix
i had learned to love these good people
and i could not wait another day to
introduce myself
i decided to speak first to the father
because he was blind
and would not be frightened by my
terrible face and body
one day
the three young people went for a walk
while the old man rested
when they had gone
i went to the door of the house
and knocked on it
the old man told me to enter and to sit
down
thank you
i said
i am a traveler and i’m tired and sad
i have no family or friends
the people that i want to have as my
friends
have never seen
me if they don’t take me into their home
i shall be alone in the world
don’t be so sad
the old man said
you will find that the hearts of men are
full of love
if these friends are good people
they will welcome you
they are kind
and the best people in the world
i said
but when they meet me
they may not see a kind creature who has
helped them
instead
they may see a monster
and they will hate me
that mustn’t happen
the old man said
my family and i have had our difficult
times
and we’ll help you
you
are a very good man
i said
and
if you help me
i shall be able to live with my friends
and enjoy their love
at that moment
i heard the young people returning from
their walk
i caught the old man’s hand and cried
now is the time
save me and help me
you and your family are the friends that
i am talking about
then the door opened
and in came felix
sophie and agatha
their faces were filled with horror and
fear when they saw me
agatha fainted
and sophie ran out of the house
felix ran forward
and pulled me away from his father
he threw me to the ground and hit me
again and again with his heavy stick
i did not lift a hand against him
i did not want to hurt him
or any of them
my heart was heavy
and all hope left me
i ran out of the house
and later returned silently
to my heart
nobody saw me
chapter nine
i sat in my dark hut
and felt both angry
and sad
one half of me wanted to hurt the people
who had hurt me
the other half of me still loved them
in the end
i decided to try and speak to the old
man again
i fell into an unhappy sleep
but when i woke in the morning
the family had gone
they had left the house during the night
i knew the name
of only one other person
although i had seen you frankenstein
for only a few moments
i knew that i belonged to you
when i had left your house
i picked up a small
bag there was a book in the bag
and i could now read it
from it i learned my creator’s name and
address
you had made me
but why had you not looked after me
and saved me from this pain and
unhappiness
i decided to go to geneva to find you
one day as i was traveling
i saw a young girl running along the
side of a river
suddenly she fell into the water
i jumped into the river
fought against the fast-moving water
and brought her back to land
while i was doing this
the girl’s father who was looking for
her reached us
he was carrying a gun
and when he saw me
he fired
the bullet hit my arm and broke it
i fell to the ground in great pain
and the man and the girl ran into the
woods as fast as they could
and left me
the bullet was deep in my arm and i lost
a lot of blood
after some days my arm began to get
better but i became sadder and angrier
than before
i had saved the girl’s life
and how did they thank me
with a bullet in the arm
i began to realize that there was no
happiness for me in life
hate grew stronger in me every day
hate for you my creator
who had made me
two months later
i reached geneva
that evening i hid among some trees
outside the town
and went to sleep
but i woke when a little boy ran into my
hiding place
i thought i would catch the child and
make him my friend before he was old
enough to be frightened of my terrible
face
i caught the little boy
but when the child saw me
he covered his eyes with his hands
and screamed loudly
let me go you monster the child shouted
let me go or i will tell my father mr
frankenstein
he will call the police and they’ll
punish you
frankenstein
i shouted
you belong to my enemy
the man that i want to hurt
the child fought and screamed
and i put my hand round his neck to stop
him shouting
in a moment
the child lay dead at my feet
i looked down at his body
and was pleased with what i had done
i knew that the death of this child
would hurt you
victor frankenstein
my creator
then i saw something bright ran the
child’s neck
it was a gold chain
and on the end of it was a picture of a
very beautiful woman
i knew that a beautiful woman would
never smile at me
and i wanted to run into geneva and kill
as many people as i could
but i stopped myself
and went to look for another hiding
place
soon i found a hut
which seemed to be empty
but when i entered
i saw a pretty young woman asleep on the
floor
i hated her because she was pretty
so i put the gold chain into one of her
pockets
and then
before she could wake up
i ran away
i knew the police would think that she
had killed the little boy
chapter 10
victor frankenstein continues his story
the monster finished telling me his
story
and then he said
i am alone and miserable
only someone as ugly as i am could love
me
you must make another creature like me
a woman monster
to be my wife
i shall never make another creature like
you
i shouted
you have done enough evil on your own
if you don’t help me
i shall make you more miserable than you
have ever been in your life
you will wish you were dead
the monster said
but
if you make another monster to be my
friend
we won’t hurt anyone
be kind to me now
and i will learn to love and be kind
i thought long and hard about the
monster’s words
i felt sorry for him
he was so miserable
perhaps i should help him
i shall do what you ask
i told him
but you must promise to live somewhere
in the world where nobody lives
you must promise to stay away from other
people
i promise
i promise
he cried
please
start your work
i shall watch you
and when you are ready
you can be sure
i will come back
he turned and left me
and ran down the mountain
i went back to geneva immediately
my family were very worried when they
saw me
i was pale
my eyes were wild
i could not forget my promise to the
monster
and the awful work that waited for me
but i had to do it
it was the only way to keep my family
safe
safe from his murdering hands around
their necks
i needed to study for several months to
make a woman monster successfully
i heard that an english scientist had
done some useful work
so i decided to go to england
before i went
my father asked me
are you going to marry elizabeth or do
you love another woman
is this why you are so unhappy
no father
i replied
i have always loved elizabeth and i want
to marry her
but
i must do one more piece of scientific
work
before we can marry
i must go to england to do the work
and i want to marry elizabeth when i
return
my father and elizabeth did not want me
to go to england alone
because i had been so ill
they spoke to my old friend henry claval
and he was very happy to travel with me
i was pleased that he could come
although i did not want him to discover
anything about my horrible work
henry and i reached london in early
october and stayed there for a few
months
i met and talked with english scientists
and learned many useful things from them
then henry was invited to visit some
friends in scotland
i planned to travel with him
but i told him that i wanted to go
walking in the mountains alone
henry was not happy with my plan
but in the end he agreed
i bought all that i needed for a
laboratory and sent everything to
scotland
henry and i traveled to edinburgh
together
and then i went further north to find a
good place for my laboratory
at last i found the right place on an
island off the north coast it was a wild
and lonely place
only five people lived on the island
so i could work alone
and nobody would discover my awful
secret
there was a large empty hut on the
island
and i brought builders from scotland to
make the hut into a laboratory for me
i showed them how to build my mast
and soon everything was ready for me to
start work
on the woman monster
chapter 11
one evening two months later
i was sitting in my laboratory
most of my work was done
and i could finish the woman monster
that night
but i wondered if i should finish the
work
was i making a monster more evil than
the first creature
perhaps a thousand times more evil
how could i know
perhaps the woman monster would be
another murderer
she had not promised to stay away from
other people
perhaps the two monsters would hate each
other
and would kill
and murder and destroy
without end
as i thought these things
i looked up at the window
suddenly
in the moonlight
i saw the monster’s awful face looking
at me
and in his yellow eyes i could see only
hate and evil
i knew he would not keep his promise
i went over to the laboratory table
where the new creature was lying
i pulled off the wires that joined her
to my machine
i took a sharp knife
and cut through the body that i joined
together so carefully
through the window
the monster saw me destroy his woman
with a loud and miserable scream of
sadness and lost hope
he ran into the laboratory
you have destroyed all my hopes of
happiness
he cried
you have left me with one feeling
hate
and with one wish
to destroy your happiness
you will be sorry that you were ever
born
remember this
i shall be with you on your wedding
night
he ran quickly out of the laboratory
and i watched him as he left the island
in his boat
and sailed away across the sea
i sat and cried as i thought of the
danger to elizabeth
but i knew that the monster would not
visit us until our wedding night
i would not die easily
and i would try to kill him before he
could kill me
the next morning
i received a letter from henry
he told me that he was waiting for me to
return
i decided to clear the laboratory and to
leave the island on the following day
so i returned to the laboratory where
the pieces of the woman monster’s body
still lay on the floor
i put them all in a large bag with some
heavy stones
then i took the bag to my boat and
sailed out to sea
i threw the bag into deep water
and watched it disappear
i was happier than i had felt for months
i knew i had done the right thing
and now there would be no second monster
to follow the first
i was very tired
and i went to sleep in the boat
i do not know how long i slept
but when i woke up
i was in the middle of a storm
the wind was driving me further out to
sea and my boat began to fill with water
i knew i was in great danger
after some hours the storm passed
and i saw land to the south
soon i could see the beach
and a crowd of people standing and
watching me
their faces were cold and unfriendly
as i landed
four of the men came towards me and took
me by the arms
we are taking you to mr cohen the judge
he wants to ask you some questions about
the murder of a man here last night
one of the men told me
i was sad to hear of the murder
but i did not worry about it
i had been far away at the time and knew
nothing about any murder
it would be easy to explain that
so i went with the men to the large
house where judge kerwin lived
chapter 12
the judge was an old kind man
but his face was very serious as he
looked at me
he asked a number of men to tell me what
they had seen and found the night before
the first man told his story
he and his son were coming home from a
long days fishing
it was a dark night
and on the beach they had fallen over
the dead body of a man
they had carried the body to the nearest
house
and found that it was a good-looking
young man about 25 years old
there were the marks of fingers around
his neck
when they spoke of the marks of fingers
i remembered the murder of my brother
and i felt a terrible fear
the son then told his story
he had seen a boat with a man in it not
far from the beach
he thought it was my boat
a woman had also seen a man in a boat
sailing away from the beach
she thought i was the man
then i was taken to the room where the
dead body lay
how can i tell you what i felt when i
saw the body
i put my arms around it and cried
what have i done
my friend
my dear friend
the body
was henry claval’s
and so now
i had destroyed another person
this third death was too much for me
i fell down in a kind of madness
and they had to carry me from the room
for two months i was very ill
and wished only to die
but slowly
my madness left me
and my health began to return
at last i was able to speak to judge
cohen
and i asked for news of my family
there is someone here who can answer
your question better than i can
he said
your father arrived a few minutes ago
and is waiting to see you
for the first time since henry’s death
i felt some happiness
i held out my hands to my father as he
came into the room
and he took me in his arms
he gave me the good news that elizabeth
and ernest were safe and well
i was really too ill to travel
but i asked my father to take me home
immediately
the police had found somebody who had
seen me on my island at the time of the
murder
and so the judge let me go free
my father looked after me on the long
journey home
and sat with me for every minute
night after night while i was asleep
i shouted that i was the murderer of
william justine and henry
my father asked me why i said these
awful things
i wanted to answer his question
but i could not tell him my terrible
secret
he thought that i was still a little mad
we stayed for a few days in paris on the
way home
and elizabeth wrote to me at our hotel
this is what her letter said
my dearest victor
i am so happy to know that you will soon
be home
but i’m afraid that henry’s death is not
the only reason for your sadness
do you still want to marry me
or do you love another woman
you must tell me
i love you victor
and i dream of the day when i shall be
your wife
but i do not want you to marry me
just because your parents wanted it
i can only be happy
if you are happy
do not answer this letter
wait until you arrive before you give me
your answer
but if you are well
and if i can make you smile
i need nothing more to make me happy
with all my love
elizabeth
i replied immediately
i told her that i loved her very much
and wanted to marry her
i remembered the monster’s promise to be
with me on the night of my wedding
let him come
we would fight to the death on that
night
and after that fight
i would either be dead and at peace
or alive and free
free to be happy with elizabeth
we arrived in geneva soon after my
letter had reached elizabeth
it was wonderful to see her again
she ran into my arms and i held her
close
she cried when she saw how thin and old
i looked
she too was thinner because she had
worried about me so much
but her gentleness and her love
made her as beautiful as ever
we agreed that the wedding would be in
ten days time
as the day came nearer
i became more and more afraid
i tried to hide my fear and laughed and
smiled as often as i could
elizabeth knew that i was unhappy
but she was sure she could give me
happiness
she looked forward to our wedding
i began to carry a gun and a knife with
me everywhere i went
chapter 13.
after the wedding a large number of our
friends came to a party at our house
when the party had started
elizabeth and i said goodbye and left
for our honeymoon
we traveled first by boat and planned to
spend the night at a hotel on the other
side of the lake
the mountains and the lake were calm and
beautiful
and at last elizabeth and i were
together
for the first time for months
and for the last time ever
i enjoyed the feeling of happiness
in the evening the wind became stronger
and soon a great storm broke above us
every noise frightened me
and i kept my hand on my gun under my
coat
i saw the monster in every shadow
suddenly i realized how terrible the
fight would be for elizabeth
i asked her to go to bed
and i decided to search for the monster
i planned to join her when i was sure he
was not in or around the hotel
elizabeth left me
and i searched every corner of the hotel
every dark doorway and staircase
i could not find him
and i began to hope that he had not
followed us to the hotel
but suddenly
i heard a loud and terrible scream
it came from our room
then
too late
i understood
the monster had promised to be with me
on my wedding night
but he had not planned to kill me
the scream came again
and i ran to our room
why did i not die there and then
on the bed
elizabeth lay still
in the cold sleep of death
i took her in my arms
and saw the marks of the murderer’s
fingers on her neck
other people in the hotel had heard the
screams and came into our room
i sent one of them to call the police
the others left me alone with my misery
i held elizabeth close
and as i held her
i saw the monster watching me through
the open window of the room
there was an evil laugh on his face
i pulled my gun from my coat and fired
him
i missed
and he ran from the window and jumped
into the lake
the other people heard the noise of the
shot and came back into the room
i showed them the place where the
monster had jumped into the lake
we searched the edge of the lake
but we could not find him
i returned to our room
and lay on the bed next to my dear wife
suddenly i had another terrible thought
at this very moment perhaps my father
was fighting the monster
with ernest dead at his feet
i left the hotel
and returned to geneva as fast as i
could
my father and ernest were safe
but the awful news of elizabeth’s death
killed my father
he had loved elizabeth dearly
he became ill
and after a few days
he died in my arms
so the evil monster had brought
unhappiness and death to a dear old man
who had never hurt anybody
i do not know what happened next
i think i left the real world
and entered a dangerous world of dreams
and madness
later i found that they had put me in
prison because of my madness
after many months they let me free
i had only one wish
to find
and kill the monster
chapter 14.
i decided to leave geneva forever
i took all the money that i needed
and left the town
before i left
i went to visit the place where william
elizabeth and my father lay at rest
i stood there and promised them that i
would stay alive until i had killed the
monster
a loud evil laugh rang out through the
silent night
then i heard the monster’s voice
it pleases me that you have decided to
live
because that is just what i want
i ran towards the voice
but i could not catch the monster
i saw him running away
but he ran faster than any man could go
too fast for me to catch
but i followed him
and i have been following him since that
day
i shall stay alive until i can catch him
he wants me to live as long as possible
he wants me to feel day after day
the pain and misery that he has given me
he leaves messages to tell me where he
is
he knows that i shall follow him
i am only happy
when i am asleep
i dream that i am with my family
and elizabeth and henry
when i am awake
i look forward to my death
to the day when i shall be with them
in his last message
the monster told me that he was going
north
he wanted to take me where the cold
would hurt me and make me more miserable
i followed him to the cold lands of the
north and bought dogs and a sledge
until now
he has always left me further and
further behind when i chased him but the
dogs were very fast and i was getting
closer and closer to him
soon he was only one day’s journey in
front of me
he was going towards the sea and i hoped
to catch him before he reached it
the chase over the ice continued for
about three weeks
the pain from the cold was very great
and i began to lose hope
i thought i would never catch him
my dogs could not run much further and
one of them died
then i saw something on the ice in front
of me
it was the monster and his sledge
suddenly i was full of hope again
and i gave a great shout of happiness
i got closer and closer to him
then a great storm started
the ice began to break
and the sea carried him away from me
my sledge was broken and i lost my dogs
i was left on a piece of ice that was
becoming smaller all the time
many hours went by
and then i saw your
ship the rest you know
i ask you captain walton
to chase the monster and kill him
do not listen to what he
says he knows how to argue and perhaps
you will feel sorry for him
but remember that he is evil
remember the deaths of william
justine
henry claval
elizabeth
my father
and remember me
victor frankenstein
there is no more for me to say
except to thank you captain walton
for your help and kindness
thank you also for listening to my story
i want you to tell the world that the
monster is a danger to everyone
i know that i have only a few hours left
to live
but i can feel my loved ones near me
and i welcome death
goodbye
this is the end of victor frankenstein’s
story
chapter 15
captain walton’s note
i
captain robert walton
have added this final note to the story
when you have read it
you will know that victor frankenstein’s
story was true
victor frankenstein died a few hours
after he had written his last word
i was sad to see him die
because he had become a good friend
but he will not be unhappy or in pain
anymore
and i am happy for him
we laid his body in a cabin near my own
later
i heard a voice coming from the cabin
i went into the cabin and saw a huge
shape standing over the dead body
i knew that the horrible creature which
was standing there
was frankenstein’s monster
so
i have killed you too
the monster said to frankenstein’s body
oh frankenstein
forgive me
how i wish you could answer me
i went towards him
and said
it is too late for frankenstein to
forgive you
he is dead
his pain is ended
you do not know how much pain and
unhappiness i have felt
said the monster
i knew that i was doing evil things
but i could not stop myself
do you think i enjoyed killing people
my heart was made for love
like a man’s heart
after i killed henry clavel
i hated myself
but i could not stop myself from more
murder
frankenstein would not give me a wife
but he hoped to find happiness with a
wife of his own
he was not fair to me
but now
it has ended
frankenstein
is the last person
i shall kill
i have done all those evil things
but am i the only person who has done
wrong
i wanted love and friendship
think about felix and his family
who hated me after i had given them love
think about the man who shot me
after i had saved his little girl from
the river
but i know that i have done evil
and i hate myself more than you hate me
my own death is near
i shall leave this ship
and go north across the ice
i shall build a great fire
and lie down on it to die
i shall welcome the pain of the fire
because it will help me to forget the
pain in my heart
i have felt more pain than frankenstein
and when the fire has died down
i shall be at peace
the monster jumped from the cabin window
as he said this
he got into the small boat in which he
had reached the ship
the sea soon carried him away
and he was lost in the darkness
you