the structure of languages, nor the code . . . of various states
This careful specifying of Victor's intellectual passions and gaps
is added to the 1831 text to prepare us for the kind of obsessiveness
Victor develops when, in the ensuing chapter, he arrives at the
University
of Ingolstadt. Yet, intentionally or
not, the emendation also introduces
a remarkable contrast in character development between Victor and his
Creature. In contrast to Victor's nostalgic memory of an indulged
childhood, the Creature experiences no parental kindness whatsoever and
must begin life from an existential nadir. In doing so, he is forced
to educate himself exactly in the elements of knowledge for which Victor
has no interest: language, law, and politics. See 2.4.3, 2.5.3 and 2.5.4.
