Frankenstein: Summaries of Paradise Lost, The Sorrows of Young Werther and Plutarch's Lives

Paradise Lost

In Hell, Satan and his followers are recovering after a war against God. They build a palace called Pandelmonium where they decide whether to go back to war. They decide to explore a new world where revenge can be planned. Satan goes on this trip alone. At the gates of Hell he sees his offspring, Sin and Death, who open the gates for him. Whilst on his journey across chaos he sees the new universe floating near heaven. God sees Satan flying towards this world and foretells of the fall of man. His son, listening, offers to sacrifice himself for mankind. Satan enters the universe and goes to the sun where he tricks an angel, Uriel, into showing him where man lives. Satan goes into the Garden of Eden and finds Adam and Eve, whom he becomes jealous of. He overhears them talking about how God has told them not to eat the forbidden fruit. Uriel warns Gabriel and his angels of Satan's presence. Satan is apprehended and banished from Eden. God sends Raphael to Eden in order to warn Adam and Eve of Satan. Raphael tells them how Satan was jealous of God's son and waged a war against God, which led the son of God (Messiah) to cast Satan and his followers to Hell. God created mankind to eventually replaced the fallen angels in Heaven. Satan returns to Earth as a Serpent. He persuades Eve to eat the forbidden fruit and Adam follows in her footsteps. They lose their innocence and become aware of their nakedness. They become hostile to each other, out of shame and despair. The Son of God goes to Earth to judge the sinners, and delays their death sentence. Sin and Death build a highway to Earth, sensing Satan's success. When Satan returns to Hell, however, him and his followers become serpents as a punishment. Adam reconciles with Eve. God sends Michael to expel Adam and Eve from Paradise. Adam learns of his future tending the Earth as his punishments, but is happy to learn of the future coming of the Saviour of mankind.

Sorrows of the Young Werther
Werther sends letters to his friend, Wilhelm. In these letters he writes of his stay in a village called Wahlheim. He admires the simple lives of the peasants. He meets a young girl named Charlotte and, despite knowing she is engaged to a man 11 years senior to her, falls in love with her. Charlotte looks after her siblings following her mothers death. Although he is heartbroken, Werther has a close relationship with both Charlotte and Albert. His pain eventually gets too much, though, and he leaves to go to Weimar. Here he becomes acquaintances with Fraulein von B. He has an embarrassing experience when he goes to visit a friend, forgetting that the entire aristocratic set usually meet there. he returns to Wahlheim, where he is in even more pain, partly because Charlotte and Albert are now married. Out of pity for Werther and respect for her husband, Charlotte decides Werther mustn't visit so often. in one final visit, the pair are overcome with emotion. Werther realised before this incident that one of the three had to die. Unable to take another life, he decides to take his own and writes a suicide note. He convinces Albert to give him two pistols, saying that he is going on a journey. Werther shoots himself in the head and his buried under a tree he is fond of. His burial is not attended by clergymen, Albert or Charlotte.

Plutarch's Lives

Plutarch creates character sketches of great leaders based on key events in their lives. He describes not only their public character, but also their private lives, to give a better indication of them as characters and their motivations.