the next chapter he is not the only one who has traversed the open seas southwest
of the Orkneys to land on the northeast coast of Ireland. Although it has been suggested
that including Ireland in the expansive geographical range of the novel may be Mary
Shelley's means of honoring her mother, who served as a governess there, the strangeness
of this repositioning of setting has never been adequately accounted for.
From Victor's reference to "a line of high land" (III:3:26), we may suppose that Mary
Shelley has in mind geological features like the Giant's Causeway, a line of huge
islets, or the cliffs of Fair Head.