The Shadows of Light - Frankenstein Artwork

The Shadows of Light - Aishabella Sheikh

This visual representation is based on Mary Shelley's novel Frankenstein, published in 1818.
This whole drawing is split in two by the oak tree, which is a symbol of life and what Victor saw as a fifteen year old being "utterly destroyed" by the struck of lightning. On the right is the perilous mountain range which is where Victor first saw his monster while journeying back to Geneva at the news of his brother's murder. The mountains are jagged and cut into the stormy sky decorated with lightning, the source Victor used to spark life into his creation. The lake is a reflection of Victor's self in comparison to the monster. The lake is calm and placid but reflects the image of a stormy sky and spiky mountain tops, the constant inner battle between good and evil.
The house by the lake is a symbol of Victor's domestic and secluded upbringing which he has his back to; a past and innocence he can never return to. Victor reaches out to his beloved Elizabeth, who descends from the heavens as an angel, which is what she is always being described as in the novel. However, there is a shadow of the monster on the ground, because the monster follows Victor around. Whenever there is light and good in Victor's life, the shadow of the monster is always there to remind him of his laborious endeavors which he has turned his back to.