I repassed, in my memory, my whole life; my quiet happiness while residing with my family in Geneva, the death of my mother, and my departure for Ingolstadt. I remembered, shuddering, the mad enthusiasm that hurried me on to the creation of my hideous enemy, and I called to mind the night in which he first lived.
Chapter 21 · Victor Frankenstein
Context
On the ship leaving Ireland, Victor reviews his entire life in memory, from his happy childhood through his creation of the creature.
Analysis
Victor structures his life as a narrative arc—'quiet happiness,' 'death of my mother,' 'departure'—but when he reaches the creation, the language changes: 'mad enthusiasm that hurried me on' uses the passive voice to make ambition something that happened to him. The creature is 'my hideous enemy,' a phrase that names Victor's relationship to it (possession: 'my') while denying kinship ('enemy'). The euphemism 'he first lived' avoids saying 'I brought him to life,' erasing Victor's active role even in a sentence ostensibly about taking responsibility.
Essay Tip
Use this to argue that even when Victor 'remembers' his past, he narrates it in ways that minimize agency—the passive voice ('hurried me on') and euphemism ('he first lived') let him tell the story without fully admitting what he did.