Many of the qualities Walton develops during his trip are symptoms of schizophrenia. His letters exude an aura of depression, loneliness, In his second letter, Walton emphasizes an obsession with his aspiration to lose his loneliness. He "desires the company of a man who could sympathize with [him]" (Shelley 7). According to Merrell Dow,

Preoccupations...are fixed ideas, not necessarily false (like delusions) but overvalued. They take on extraordinary importance and take up an ordinate amount of thought time. One idea often returns and returns...Characteristically, the worry grows and becomes unrealistic (par 16).

Walton reiterates his loneliness; even though he is surrounded by people on his ship, he "[has] no friend" (Shelley 7-8). Contributing to this feeli

With approximately one percent of the human race affected by this disease, one can see how the pressures of Walton's situation drove his mental state to a point of schizophrenia. Walton's mental battle between good and evil leads the reader to a better understanding of the dangers of intellectual solitude. Shelley warns us throughout this novel not to let the worst of things get the best of us.

His second mental creation, superego Victor, holds the qualities that Walton feels that he should possess himself. Victor holds morality very vital during his contact with Walton; he refuses to board the ship when found, even in his state of near death, until he knows the ship has good intentions on its mission. A pure superego could never expose itself to any being with a wicked purpose. Walton personally takes care of Victor; in reality, he must care for him because he does not really exist physically to the other shipmates. Walton claims that Victor intrigues the other shipmates, but actually, the sides of himself that Walton express due to his disorder intrigue the men. He believes the men aboard the ship adore Victor in the same respect as he adores Victor; of course, he would believe this--no one could dislike such a noble heart. Walton loves Victor; he fills the void that Walton longs to have filled. This superego side of his own persona, Walton believes of Victor, "is so cultivated" (Shelley 16). "[Victor's] constant and deep grief fills [Walton] with sympathy and compassion," and Walton finally feels as if he belongs to a true friendship (Shelley 16). In all actuality, this seems very upsetting because the only person he can find to relate to and befriend resides within the boundaries of his own imagination.

The superego and the id must constantly battle in order to keep Walton alive on this voyage. Walton may not return

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1247
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)