Frankenstein Quotes
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Source: Frankenstein
Author: Mary Shelley
"Who was I? What was I? Whence did I come? What was my destination?"
"I was dependent on none and related to none. The path of my departure was free, and there was none to lament my annihilation. My person was hideous and my stature gigantic. What did this mean? Who was I? What was I? Whence did I come? What was my destination? These questions continually recurred, but I was unable to solve them."
Context
At this point in Frankenstein, the monster is telling his story—and boy is he dramatic.
This dude is one bundle of existential questions, and (spoiler alert!) they don't end well.
Where you've heard it
The monster wasn't the first person—er...being—to ask these kinds of questions, and he certainly wasn't the last. In fact, it's a pretty human question to ask.
- There's an entire Radiolab podcast dedicated to the topic.
- Jackie Chan directed and starred in a movie called "Who Am I?"
- Plenty of personality tests take this name.
- It's the name of a Snoop Dogg song.
- It's the name of digital series on Oprah.com.
- A British science museum has an exhibit called "Who Am I?"
Pretentious Factor
If you were to drop this quote at a dinner party, would you get an in-unison "awww" or would everyone roll their eyes and never invite you back? Here it is, on a scale of 1-10.
It's only human (and monster) to ask these kinds of questions.