St. Andrew's

St. Andrew's is a Scottish town mentioned in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein as part of the journey that Victor Frankenstein and Henry Clerval undertake through Scotland in the late summer and autumn of 17—. It appears only briefly in the narrative, yet it forms part of the geographical and emotional passage that leads Victor toward the remote Orkney Islands, where he attempts to fulfill his promise to create a female companion for the monster. The town's inclusion anchors the novel's Scottish episode in real, recognizable places, lending an air of authenticity to the otherwise extraordinary events that unfold around Victor's secret labor.

Place in the Journey

St. Andrew's is mentioned in a single sentence as Victor and Clerval travel from Edinburgh toward Perth. After visiting Edinburgh, the two friends leave the city and pass through Coupar, St. Andrew's, and along the banks of the Tay before reaching Perth, where their Scottish friend expects them. This itinerary places St. Andrew's on the eastern coast of Scotland, north of Edinburgh, and situates it within a route that moves steadily away from the familiar comforts of Geneva and toward the desolate northern periphery where Victor intends to work. The mention of St. Andrew's is part of a rapid enumeration of places, suggesting that Victor, preoccupied with his inner turmoil, registers the landscape only as a series of names rather than as sources of pleasure or interest.

Emotional and Narrative Significance

Victor's state of mind during this leg of the journey is one of profound alienation. He has come to Scotland not for enjoyment but to complete the loathsome task of creating a female creature, a promise extracted from him by the monster's threats. The journey through St. Andrew's and the surrounding countryside occurs while Victor is haunted by the fear that the monster may be following him and may harm his family in Geneva. He waits for letters from Elizabeth and his father with feverish impatience, and when they arrive, he hardly dares to read them. The passing of St. Andrew's thus becomes part of a larger pattern of dislocation: Victor is physically moving through beautiful and historic places, but his mind is fixed on the horror of his mission and the dread of what may happen to those he loves.

Contrast with Clerval

The brief mention of St. Andrew's also highlights the contrast between Victor and his companion, Henry Clerval. While Victor is sunk in gloom, Clerval responds to the Scottish landscape with enthusiasm and admiration. Earlier in the journey, Clerval had delighted in the beauty of Edinburgh, its romantic castle, Arthur's Seat, St. Bernard's Well, and the Pentland Hills, finding compensation for his preference for Oxford's antiquity. Victor, by contrast, visits Edinburgh with "languid eyes and mind," indifferent to its charms. The passage through St. Andrew's, though not described in detail, belongs to this same emotional geography: Clerval sees a country rich in history and natural beauty, while Victor sees only a series of obstacles between himself and the solitary labor that awaits him. This divergence underscores the extent to which Victor's obsession has cut him off from the world and from the friendship that once sustained him.

Aftermath and Isolation

Immediately after passing through St. Andrew's and reaching Perth, Victor tells Clerval that he wishes to make the tour of Scotland alone. He asks Clerval to remain at Perth as a rendezvous point while he travels to a remote spot to finish his work. Clerval, though reluctant, agrees and entreats Victor to write often. Victor then traverses the northern highlands and settles on one of the remotest of the Orkney Islands, a barren rock beaten by the waves, where he hires a miserable hut and begins his detested labor. The mention of St. Andrew's thus marks the last stage of Victor's journey before he deliberately severs himself from human society, choosing isolation as the setting for the creation that will ultimately lead to the destruction of his hopes and the deaths of those he loves. The town itself, with its famous university and ecclesiastical ruins, stands in implicit contrast to the godless and unhallowed work Victor is about to undertake, a silent reminder of the civilized world he is leaving behind.