They were for ever ardent and craving
In the connotations of Mary
Shelley's time, this phrase, in combination
with the "impotent passions" described two sentences earlier, would seem
to suggest that the Creature has suffered deeply during his existence from
unconsummated sexual desire. Ironically, his desire for intercourse has
been pure and unsublimated, whereas that of Walton and Frankenstein has
been strongly channeled away from human interaction and into their
respective projects (see 2.9.3 and note).
