“Ohana means family, and family means no one gets left behind,” – Lilo, from the movie Lilo and Stitch. (Chris Sanders and Dean DeBois) I’m sure most of you have heard this quote, or at least heard of the Disney movie in question. For the most part, this quote rings true. Family is a very important thing in one’s life, and the same is true for Robert Walton in Frankenstein.
Robert cares a great deal for his sister, Margaret. This is immediately apparent when you realize she’s the one he’s writing letters to. And if the fact that he is writing his sister letters about his travels and his safety isn’t enough to make you think he cares for her, the way he speaks to her should be. At the very end of his first letter, he writes “farewell, my dear, excellent, Margaret. Heaven shower down blessings on you, and save me, that I may again and again testify my gratitude for all your love and kindness. Your affectionate brother.” (Shelley 54) The way he says goodbye to her is filled with affectionate words and kindness that you don’t always see amongst siblings. He thanks her repeatedly for her love and that’s not something he would do if he didn’t feel the same way about her in return. Additionally, the way he addresses her speaks volumes. He doesn’t just put one kind adjective before her name, but two. If that doesn’t say “I love you,” I don’t know what does. And once again, if this isn’t enough to convince you, his farewell in the second letter quite literally spells it out. He says “I may receive your letters […] on some occasions when I need them most to support my spirits. I love you very tenderly.” (Shelley 56) Not only does he literally tell her that he loves her, but he also tells her that her letters make him happy and lift him up when he’s feeling down, should he need them to.
All of this being said, no matter how much he loves and cherishes his sister, he still feels something is missing in his life; a friend. He tells Margaret “when I am glowing with the enthusiasm of success, there will be none to participate my joy; if I am assailed by disappointment, no one will endeavor to sustain me in dejection,” (Shelley 54) when referring to the absence of a friend. Now, the fact that he needs a friend so desperately when he has Margaret, whom he loves so much, might seem questionable to some, but let’s be fair. No one really wants to just have their siblings as their friends. Believe me, I love my sisters to death, and I love sharing my feelings with them, but when I’m really in a pickle, the first person I go to is my best friend, so I can imagine Robert’s sadness.
When Robert pulls the stranger aboard his ship, he immediately sees him as a possible friend. The prospect excites him so much, that he writes to Margaret about it as well. However, the stranger doesn’t quite reciprocate these feelings. He has lost his friend and life, and “cannot begin life anew,” (Shelley 61) crushing Robert’s hopes of him becoming his friend.
Now, I might be jumping the gun a little bit (because honestly, I’ve never read or seen Frankenstein, and all I know about it are the stories I’ve heard of a man building another one) but could this severe desperation for friendship drive poor Robert Walton to the very last option? Is he going to have to build a friend?
I think so, folks.
P.S. How adorable is Stitch? http://www.pudgybunny.com/images/stitchbig.gif
I agree with you entirely. Walton constantly shows that he loves his sister through all the affectionate words he uses to address her. Although Walton has his sister, he knows that besides her he has no one else. He did make the stranger his friend, but what I found interesting was that although they spoke to each other alot he still referred to the man as stranger.
It is true, humans are always looking for companionship, and sometimes family just isn’t enough. Robert Walton has his sister, but needs a friend so much more. He also will not be able to see his sister for possibly many years, and writing to her does not satisfy his desire for a friend during this lonely time. He may not consider the stranger a friend now, but maybe once the man confesses his story, Walton and him will form a strong bond.