Chapter IV

Victor devotes himself almost entirely to natural philosophy and chemistry, attending lectures and befriending M. Waldman, whose gentle guidance accelerates Victor’s progress. Even M. Krempe’s bluntness cannot slow him. After two years of rapid advancement and some minor discoveries, Victor considers returning to Geneva.

Curiosity about the principle of life redirects Victor to physiology. He studies anatomy and, without superstition, haunts vaults and charnel-houses to observe decay. Through relentless labor, he believes he discovers the cause of generation and the means to bestow animation upon lifeless matter, a revelation that fills him with rapture and ambition.

Warning his listener not to seek this secret, Victor resolves to use his power. Preparing a suitable body proves difficult, so he decides to create a being of gigantic stature to ease construction. He spends months collecting materials and envisioning a new species that would honor him as creator, even imagining one day reversing death.

Victor’s obsession intensifies. He isolates himself in an attic workshop, gathering bones from graves and materials from dissecting rooms and slaughterhouses. Though sickened at times, he is driven by a frantic impulse, neglecting letters and the nature he once loved, despite knowing his father would be pained by his silence.

Seasons pass as Victor grows pale, emaciated, and nervously overwrought, yet he presses on, convinced that completion will restore his health. As autumn arrives, his work nears its end, and his anxiety rises, marking the final approach to the moment of creation.