Victor is a wreck of a human being, having worked to create a second creature and enduring the toils of a prisoner. The "shadow of a human being," Victor is not himself because a "fever night and day" threatens his "wasted frame." Alphonse fears that his son will not survive the trek back to Geneva.
The ironic twist to the tour that Victor and Henry started is that they both wanted an adventure for pleasure and relaxation, but it has turned to tragedy for both, "You travelled to seek happiness, but a fatality seems to pursue you. And poor Clerval — ."
