Throughout Frankenstein, we see what isolation and loneliness can do to someone. This whole novel is filled with characters who either isolate themselves or are shunned by society and we can see what it does to their emotional and physical state. When we are introduced to Robert Walton, he is writing to his sister about how pained he in by his lack of friends. When Robert finally meets Victor Frankenstein, he is incredibly emaciated, his limbs frozen and he is nearly dead. Not only that, but when Frankenstein is telling Walton his tale, he talks about the isolation that came from his dark secret and how that separated him from his family during a time of need, which caused great anguish. The creature also suffers from these woes of isolation. The creature mentions to the old man that he is “an unfortunate and deserted creature; I look around, and I have no relation or friend upon the earth.” (102, Shelley). He tries hard to gain the trust of the blind father, but once the rest of the family comes in, they are disgusted, beat him and cast him away. Instead of retaliating, the creature retreats as his “heart sunk within [him] as with bitter sickness”(103). Instead of trying to meet others, the monster gives up and vows revenge on humanity.
Is loneliness this detrimental to someone? What about introverts, or people that prefer to work alone? Why do Walton, Frankenstein and the creature all seek to isolate themselves when it could cause all this pain? Society does reject them at points, but some of their isolation is self-inflicted. Is community essential to humanity?
As social creatures, the idea of being left alone or outcast from society is detrimental. We thrive in community settings for various reasons like gathering food, finding shelter, and staying safe. The concept of introversion is different because that is more about how we process ideas and less about if we are gregarious. I think Walton and Victor isolate themselves through work to forget how alone they truly are. I think the creature is forced into isolation because he doesn’t meet the norms of society. The idea of community is essential but only allowed to those who can fit in.
I feel that loneliness definitely can be detrimental to someone if its a constant in their life. Humans are innately communicative, so if someone’s experience is constantly loneliness, it is detrimental to them. I prefer to work alone, and have spent a lot of time alone, using it to better my knowledge and myself, but at the very least I had close friends and family, and never truly felt alone. I think some introverts handle loneliness better than others, and if its a preference its better than if its used as a face mask of sorts to protect somebody. I think their isolation differs by person. Walton feels outcasted by his lack of friends, Victor ran off to be alone so he could study, and the creature is hated by humanity so he is forced into exile. I think community is essential to organized and progressive humanity, people have been communal for its entire existence.
I feel that while Loneliness can be good for a person it is only good in bursts. People need to be with other people because sometimes people don’t want to be left with their own thoughts for too long because then a person could go mad. As an Introvert while I like my time alone that doesn’t mean I don’t have being with other people I just need to have time alone in order to function or regain energy, but If I leave myself alone for too long I can see myself getting too lost in a project that I came with to pass time. I think that the characters in the book have different reasons for isolating themselves, but all learn a lot about themselves through their isolation. While they are alone they are only left with themselves which leaves them with a lot of self reflection and lessons learned because of all of the events that have happened during that time.
Loneliness could be detrimental to someone if they don’t frequently socialize. People who like to work alone can often feel more peaceful. Walton, Frankenstein, and the creature cause themselves pain in an attempt to avoid it. Community is what keeps our society together.
In my personal experience, loneliness is detrimental to people, but it doesn’t mean that you have no one around or no friends at all. Loneliness is the wrong word to use because some people like to be alone for a number of reasons. As a fellow introvert and someone who likes to be alone a lot, I have plenty of friends, but sometimes I like being alone and working by myself. I believe Walton, Frankenstein, and the creature isolate themselves when it causes them so much pain because they could not communicate the things that are important to them. My connection to the text is that nobody understands you better than yourself, so why let people make you seem less normal or less than. if you are not considered “normal” you will not fit in with the community, so community does not equal humanity.
I believe one of the necessities of survival is company, right up there with food, water, and shelter. I haven’t seen the film, so this might not be entirely accurate, but Wilson in Castaway comes to mind. Regardless of that, I definitely think that isolation and extreme loneliness are detrimental to someone’s well being. There’s also a huge difference between being an introvert and choosing to be alone for a little while, versus being alone for an extended period of time with no agency in the matter.
I think that its important to look at their past experiences with people. All these characters have had a bad experience with other humans and due to that I think that’s why they have distanced themselves so much. While people do need to be around others and spend time with them, I think that they believe that is it safer to just distance themselves instead of trying to be around people again.