The monster begins his own education, reading the books and notes that he found in Victor's jacket in the nearby woods. In the jacket pocket are Milton's Paradise Lost, Plutarch's Lives of Illustrious Greeks and Romans, and Goethe's Sorrows of Werter. The list is a virtual required reading list of books that are all influenced by the Romantic movement in England.
Plutarch compares and contrasts the lives of Greek and Roman statesmen or soldiers for historical perspective. Goethe's work is a novel of letters written by a youth who is very sensitive and steadfast, who kills himself after being so uncompromising and idealistic. Milton's book is about the creation story and Adam, which causes the monster to question his own creation and place in the world. Finally, the monster discovers Victor Frankenstein's own notebooks, which explain how the monster came into existence. The monster is both intrigued and horrified at learning how he came into existence.
The monster also sees that his "adopted family" is doing better with the arrival of Safie.
