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"That is also my victim!" he exclaimed. "In his murder my crimes are consummated; the miserable series of my being is wound to its close! Oh, Frankenstein! Generous and self-devoted being!"

Letters, Walton, _in continuation._ · The Creature

Quote Type: DialogueDifficulty: ★★★Quotability: ★★★★☆

Context

The creature stands over Victor's corpse and declares that with Victor's death, his own crimes and existence have reached their conclusion, addressing the dead creator as 'generous and self-devoted.'

Analysis

Calling Victor his 'victim' inverts the expected moral hierarchy—the creature recasts himself as perpetrator and Victor as casualty, yet he also praises Victor as 'generous,' creating irony so thick it's nearly sarcasm. The phrase 'my crimes are consummated' uses the language of marriage or religious completion, making murder sound like the fulfillment of a vow, which disturbingly elevates revenge to the level of sacred ritual.

Essay Tip

Use this to argue that the creature's grief is inseparable from his rage—he mourns Victor while also claiming him as a victim, showing how the novel refuses simple villain/hero binaries and leaves moral judgment genuinely uncertain.

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