The very start of the novel begins with a letter from Captain Robert Walton, remarking on his passage and expedition to the North Pole. The novel also ends with Walton confronting the creature and eventually turning back from his expedition. Initially, he describes it as a place of “beauty and delight”, even though he attempts to persuade himself of its dangers. I took interest in Shelly’s use of the North pole as a framing device, and I find that the location fits well with the themes of the book. The mystery, the sense of the unknown, and the sense of danger that the North pole presents lends itself well to the narrative and there are clear connections that can be drawn between the setting, and the tone of the book.
In Shelly’s time, the nature of the poles was still largely unknown. Frankenstein is set in the late 1700s, a time when polar exploration was not widespread. Its writing and publication, however, was in the early 1800s, a time when exploration of the poles was really starting to take off; there was clear interest related to the discovery of its nature and of course, economic gain. Some of the very first expeditions were conducted with the hope of finding a “northern passage”, a theoretical trade route that would be able to act as a shortcut for merchant ships (Connors). However, the largest source of expeditions would actually be done in the post-Napoleonic age, through military expeditions (Beck, 1).
There had been a few expeditions before the turn of the century, notably the voyage of Captain Cook, who in 1778 managed to “Penetrate the arctic circle” and sail through the Bering strait (Beck,2). Many of the following expeditions mainly charted islands that were found north of Siberia, as well as regions of Alaska. David Buchanan is a notable explorer, whose story seems to have some similarities with that of Walton. Buchanan was a Scottish naval officer who set off with fellow officer John Franklin in 1818 due to new reports of the Arctic ice having cleared up. Unfortunately, by the time they had reached the Arctic circle the ice had returned. They were trapped in the ice for a few weeks but eventually managed to escape. Buchanan wished to continue exploring, but Franklin overruled him, and they eventually returned home (Hayes). This story seems somewhat reminiscent of Walton’s journey, though it is likely unrelated as Shelly published Frankenstein in 1818.
The frigid setting of Walton’s journey, and Walton himself to an extent, seem to tie very clearly to Victor Frankenstein’s own characteristics and motives. Walton remarks at the emptiness of the land, a clear parallel to the isolation that Victor forces on himself. Walton desperately seeks friendship, yet he has willingly brought himself to one of the most isolated places on earth. Victor created the monster in a place of isolation, and the creature remarks that he “shall seek the most northern extremity of the globe; I shall collect my funeral pile, and consume to ashes this miserable frame, that its remains may afford no light to any curious and unhallowed wretch, who would create such another as I have been” (Shelly,158), dying in a place of isolation.
The pursuit of forbidden knowledge is another theme that is mirrored in this setting. Victor hopes to unravel the secrets of life, something that is taboo in and of itself, and Milton seeks to reveal the secrets of the North pole and magnetism, another great mystery of the natural world; in the case of Walton, he sacrifices his well being and the safety of his crew for the sake of knowledge.
Sources:
Connors, Tiffany. “How North Pole Expeditions Work.” HowStuffWorks, HowStuffWorks, 1 Apr. 2008, https://adventure.howstuffworks.com/outdoor-activities/snow-sports/north-pole-expedition.htm#pt3.
Beck, Rudolf. “‘The Region of Beauty and Delight’: Walton’s Polar Fantasies in Mary Shelley’s ‘Frankenstein.’” Keats-Shelley Journal, vol. 49, Keats-Shelley Association of America, Inc., 2000, pp. 24–29, http://www.jstor.org/stable/30213044.
Hayes, Isaac Israel. The Open Polar Sea: a Narrative of a Voyage of Discovery Towards the North Pole: In the Schooner” United States”. London: Sampson Low, Son, and Marston, 1867.
The Materials of History, Thought, and Art 
Hi Aadish! This was a really interesting read. I agree that using the North Pole (and other cold, isolated settings such as Mont Blanc) fit well within the context of the novel and the character’s respective journeys. I think it is a fascinating and funny coincidence that the same year the novel was published, Buchanan and Franklin had set off on an Arctic expedition eerily similar to that of Walton’s. I also really like the way you connected the themes of the story and the different character’s struggles to the feelings of isolation and emptiness that images of the Arctic can evoke. Great post!