I trembled and my heart failed within me, when, on looking up, I saw by the light of the moon the dæmon at the casement.
Chapter 20 · Victor Frankenstein
Context
Victor looks up from his work and sees the creature watching him through the window by moonlight.
Analysis
The moonlight isolates the creature in a frame—'by the light of the moon the dæmon at the casement'—staging him as a Gothic intruder rather than a person waiting for a promise to be kept. This visual framing lets Victor (and Shelley lets the reader) see the creature as monstrous spectacle first, erasing the fact that he is simply checking on work Victor agreed to do. The image replaces obligation with dread.
Essay Tip
Use this to argue that Shelley shows how Victor uses Gothic imagery to rewrite his moral failures—he frames the creature as a threatening 'dæmon' in the window, turning his broken promise into a scene of victimization.