Title: This Dark Endeavor
Author: Kenneth Oppel
Date of First Publication: 2011
Place of Publication: Simon and Schuster
Type: Novel
Characters: Victor Frankenstein; Elizabeth Frankenstein; Justine Moritz; Henry Clerval; Alphonse Frankenstein
Themes: BYRONIC HERO; POSTHUMAN; RACE/POLITICS; SYMPATHETIC MONSTER; RETRO SF
Critical Summary: Victor and Konrad Frankenstein, Elizabeth Lavenza, and Henry Clerval lead relatively care-free lives. They live in luxury, study at home with instruction from Alphonse Frankenstein and dream of adventure until their adventures become an all too real possibility when Victor’s twin brother Konrad falls suddenly ill. A trip to the Frankenstein Dark Library reveals forgotten and outlawed alchemical potions and elixirs; among them is the recipe for The Elixir of Life. A bitter love triangle ensues between Victor, Elizabeth, and Konrad but the brotherly bond between the twins ushers Victor, Elizabeth, Henry to set off to acquire the necessary elements for the elixir that may save Konrad’s life. They employ the help of a wheelchair bound alchemist by the name of Julius Polidori to help decipher the recipe for their elixir and his lynx, Krake, to collect the ingredients. The ingredients: lichen (unsea lunaria), coelacanth oil, and human bone marrow. Their quest to gather the ingredients leads to harrowing adventures. Their search for lichen takes them to the tallest tree in Strumwald where they are forced to climb to top, fight off three lammergeiers, and brave a lighting storm to collect the ingredient. The coelacanth oil leads them to a network of caves and caverns where the ancient fish resides. Victor nearly loses his arm to the enormous creature, but they succeed in decapitating the fish and narrowly escape the rising waters of the caves with their prize. The final ingredient, human bone marrow, spurs inner conflict in Victor when posed with the decision of having either his right-hand pinky and ring fingers removed for the elixir or Elizabeth’s. Victor volunteers his own flesh and bone for the procedure. Polidori, using an old chisel and mallet removes his fingers and completes the task. What Victor, Elizabeth, and Henry did not expect was that Julius Polidori sought to keep the elixir for himself. Victor, Elizabeth, and Henry engage in a struggle with Polidori over the Elixir of Life. They escape his laboratory and the vicious Krake and race back to the Frankenstein Chateau in Bellerive to administer the elixir to Konrad. Konrad begins to recover but his illness soon claims his life. With Konrad’s death, Victor is left with disfigurement and failure.
This Dark Endeavor is young adult novel packed with adventure. It is a tale of a sixteen-year-old Victor Frankenstein’s thrust into his journey of becoming the Mad Scientist that gives life to the creature in Mary Shelly’s 1818 novel Frankenstein. In this novel Victor embodies the characteristics of the Byronic Hero in his perseverance of the Elixir of Life. Victor becomes obsessed with the elixir in order to defeat death and create something beyond the limits of humanity, something Posthuman. Julius Polidori is a persecuted alchemist that has been barred from practicing his trade through laws enacted by Victor’s father, Alphonse Frankenstein, the Magistrate of the republic of Geneva, bringing in the theme of Race and Politics. Retro Science Fiction is very prevalent and brings into question the difference between alchemy, which is akin to witchcraft and magic, and their modern-day science. In his pursuit to save Konrad, Victor becomes the Sympathetic Monster, putting aside morality and regard for the rule of law.
Administrative Notes: Eulices Ponce, CSUF