*writes down a list of all the highly recommended books mentioned on here*
Reading as a pastime is something that I'm just beginning to try. Though that is not to say that most of the books that I had to read in high school were bad. Not at all. Some of the books that I really enjoyed reading in English class include "The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald, "How to Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee, and "Frankenstein" by Mary Shelby, which is by far my favorite book.
The writing style is absolutely superb and the bittersweet atmosphere of beauty and tragedy blew me away. The mood, the astonishing amount of details, and the romanticism and the subtle elements of naturalism (especially evident when Mary briefly describes the beautiful mystique of the Arctic poles and the sublime scenery of the French Alps) not only made the story a satisfying read but it also inspired me to pursue my dreams and explore my horizons without losing my mind and all sense of reality like Victor Frankenstein. He allowed his twisted passions to consume all aspects of his waking life, and because of that, he had to endure an ineffably great emotional suffering later on his life when his foolish past came back to haunt him and ruin his life.
He cowered away in fear when he saw his creation teeming with life. All those years in which Victor had put forth all the effort that his body and mind could feasibly provide, which eventually lead to his successful bestowal of life onto an inanimate being, were deemed immediately null in just one moment. His success turned out to be a grave mistake to which he only looks at with regret, disgust, and despair. He didn't even try to fix his mistake. He just abandoned his lab, his creation, and desperately tried to regain his old life and loved ones back. He fled like a coward and admittedly, that is something we can all relate to at some point in our lives; there are moments in our lives where we know we did wrong but refuse to quickly owe up to our mistakes like we ought to. One of the many things we can learn here is that running away from your mistakes will only cause you harm later on down the road.
Needless to say, this book had a great impact on my life, philosophy, and perception of the world around me.