How does Mary Shelley present relationships in Frankenstein?

FORM
In 'Frankenstein', Mary Shelley presents relationships as dependent on each other through the use of the V form.
- Walton's narrative is on the surface and Victor's one goes beneath thus the monster's narrative goes on deeper in to a darkness.

• However, the linear nature of the narrative allows the audience to acknowledge how Walton, Frankenstein and the monster influence each other. The monster is only given a single opportunity to reveal his tales  (he spends much of his time talking about the De Lacey family as he says "they made me what I am") but still has an impact on the rest of the narratives. 
• From the monster's smaller narrative in comparison to Victor and Walton who narrative the novel twice, one might suggest that the monster is being treated with contempt by the other characters, However, Victor's narrative  depends on the monster's and the monster provides the foundations of the novel. 
• Shelley may be alluding to the French Revolution as signs of people power began to seep through the political, economic and social systems of France and overpower them in its entirety. By Shelley associating the French revolution in 'Frankenstein', the monster who is treated with contempt, overpowers the novel as he changes the direction of the novel as shown through the V shape and offers another side of the argument. 
• Hence, the audience may be forced to reconsider their views on the monster and see how the monster connects Victor to Walton as Victor is provided with a story to share with Walton.
•  Victor's story which is created by the monster causes Walton to admire Victor even more which amplifies how their narratives have a domino effect on their relationships. 
• As synonymous to the French Revolution, the impact of actions by Napoleon for instance shows that regardless of inherited power, each persons actions affects someone else and those who seemed most powerless in French society (the peasants) caused a change in direction as to how France was governed overall which suggests that everyone depends on each other.

LANGUAGE 

In 'Frankenstein', Mary Shelley presents relationships as materialistic through the use of the lexical field of physical elements.

• In Walton's letter to Mrs Saville, his sister, he informs her of how he "desires the company of a man ... whose eyes would reply to" his. Moreover, Victor reflects on his past and says how his future was in his "hands". Additionally, the noun "eyes" may appeal to the reader as it may evoke a sense of intimacy between the characters and perhaps reflects Walton's desire to be physically close to someone as opposed to emotionally close. Moreover, one might suggest that the fact that '"eyes" can see suggests relationships are more appealing to him visually which echoes ideas opposite to Romanticism (a strong belief of Shelley's). The author felt more pleased by supernatural elements and therefore may have preferred an emotional experience. She may be creating an ominous effect as her father provided her with physical aid through work and education but he was emotionally distant from her. Thus, Shelley may be intent on making the audience experience the consequences of growing emotionally distant to loved ones and being more focused on objects and materials like Victor and Walton. Victor and Walton spend their time focusing on their ambition which for Victor, is to create life and for Walton it is too see life, both encapsulating physical elements. However, Shelley foreshadows the danger as Victor experiences the grief from his mother, and may be subconsciously and dangerously trying to heal himself using reason and science. Reason was a key belief in the Enlightenment era which opposed Shelley's belief in Romanticism so the lexical field of humans reminds the audience of the difference between Victor, Walton and the monster. The monster appeals to emotions as felt "impressed deeply" by the De Lacey family. "Deeply" suggested the monster was pleased beneath the surface which suggests he felt good on the inside  of his body thus emotionally. So the contrast and lexical field amplifies how materialistic Victor and Walton's relationships are.

STRUCTURE

In 'Frankenstein', Mary Shelley presents relationships as destructive and discombobulated through the use of juxtaposition and intertextuality.

• Victor and Elizabeth's relationship and the Monster and Satan's relationship differ. 
• Victor speaks of Elizabeth as having saintly features such as her hair being the "brightest living gold" and her "soft looks of compassion" which is synonymous to the benign natures of angels. 
• "Brightest" connotes ideas of light thus heaven. An Elizabethan audience would have been deeply knowledgeable on religion and a modern audience would be familiar with heaven's association with light and angels. 
• These heavenly ideas contrast with the monster's verbatim of Satan in Paradise Lost ("evil thenceforth became my good"). The juxtaposition between the angelic nature of Victor's relationship and the diabolical nature of the Monster's relationship with Satan may induce sympathy from the reader as John Milton's 'Paradise Lost' causes many members of the Elizabethan readership to feel sympathy for Satan. 
• The audience may feel rather confused as Satan is often seen as a negative and dangerous person like the monster. Shelley may be challenging the audience to think in an open minded fashion as opposed to clinging onto traditional views that Satan was awfully bad. 
• Shelley often defied traditional beliefs as women were often seen as inferior to men. She was an advocate egalitarianism between men and women  in particular, having suffered from the patriarchy society she lived in (in 1818, 'Frankenstein' was published anonymously).
•  Additionally, the monster and Satan seem to be so akin that the monster may be perceived as destructive as Lucifer was in the epic poem by Milton. The contrast seems clear but the audience may have to reconsider their beliefs on the seemingly opposing relationships,