Wretch!
At this late point in the novel this vocative is literally true, and the
Creature will acknowledge it so three paragraphs later. Still, we have to
recognize that we have come full circle: Walton addresses the Creature
with the appellation employed by Victor Frankenstein immediately after his
creation (1.4.1 and note) and again upon reencountering him
on the Mer-de-Glace of Mont Blanc (2.2.3 and note). Two sentences later he will
reiterate Victor's linguistic leap into transcendental terminology,
demonizing the Creature as a fiend. In his response the Creature picks up
on the shift in signification, comparing himself both to Adam and to
Satan.
