I must absent myself from all I loved while thus employed. Once commenced, it would quickly be achieved, and I might be restored to my family in peace and happiness.
Chapter 18 · Victor Frankenstein
Context
Victor justifies his decision to travel to England to complete the creature's mate, convincing himself the task will be quick and then he can return to normal life.
Analysis
The syntax enacts wishful thinking: 'Once commenced, it would quickly be achieved' compresses the gruesome months-long labor into a tidy conditional clause, as if speed and certainty were guaranteed. Victor has already failed this promise once (the chapter opens with his paralysis), yet he narrates the future with false confidence. The passive 'might be restored' also dodges agency—restoration will not happen automatically; he would have to choose honesty and reconciliation.
Essay Tip
Support a thesis that Victor repeatedly uses optimistic grammar to wish away consequences—the brisk pace of 'once commenced, quickly achieved' is a self-soothing fiction that ignores his proven inability to follow through.