Foreshadowing - Novel Blog 2 (Frankenstein)

"I had determined, at one time, that the memory of theses evils should die with me, but you have won me to alter my determination. You seek knowledge and wisdom, as I once did; and I ardently hope that the gratification of your wishes may not be a serpent to sting you, as mine has been."

Frankenstein, page 13

Foreshadowing occurs several times in the novel. The first is in the quote above, before Victor dives into the real story of how he created Cornelius. He warns Robert Walton that knowledge and wisdom can lead to destruction and misery as his did. This lets us readers know that something went wrong with the creation, which will be totally clear in the next couple of chapters. Another instance of foreshadowing is when Victor has just created Cornelius and he goes to sleep, only to dream of Elizabeth. He imagines her dying a horribly just like his mother had recently; this foreshadows her imminent death (well, I'm not completely sure; it hasn't happened yet, but it seems likely). The third instance is when Cornelius is narrating and he says that he isn't going to tolerate the actions of his enemies. This is warning us of what happens when he comes in contact with people later and the destruction he causes. These are only three times foreshadowing occurs in the novel, but I'm sure they won't be the last times before it ends.

Some Theories and Speculation/Foreshadowing (Chapter 4/ Pages 37-48)

"That's why that afternoon by the pond, when Tommy was telling me about his talk with Miss Lucy, about how she'd said to him we weren't being "taught enough" about some things, the memory of that time in the library - along with maybe one or two other little episodes like that - started tugging at my mind."

~ Never Let Me Go, page 41

Remember the "other things" I mentioned in my last blog? Well, I have some theories about them now. I feel that Kathy's emphasis on Miss Lucy's seemingly unimportant ramblings is foreshadowing something quite important. So what aren't the students taught enough about? I believe it's the donations. I have this idea that the students are going to this school (Hailsham) to grow up to be donors or carers. At the beginning of the book, Kathy talked about her experiences as a carer and the "donations" that her patients had to make. This wouldn't be such a big deal, except that they had to make a large number of donations (the largest I remember was four which seems like a lot); I'm thinking organs, but there does reach a point where one must stop so his own body can function. (You could donate a kidney, blood, a spline, part of a liver, or an eye, but what else?) Anyway, I think that students go to Hailsham and other similar institutions with a very controlled environment to be taught proper behavior and social etiquette - along with academics, of course - so they can one day become a donor without opposition. I think that, as children, they are taught to be creative and to contribute their artwork to the school so that they are conditioned to give to society without question. Maybe this isn't the main goal of the school, but I think it definitely has significance.