During the voyage, the crew spots a dog sled driven by a gigantic figure. A few hours later, the crew rescues a nearly frozen and emaciated man named Victor Frankenstein.

Frankenstein has been a pursuit of the gigantic man observed by Walton's crew. Frankenstein starts to recover from his exertion; he sees in Walton the same obsession and has destroyed him. and recounts a story of his life's miseries to Walton as a waring. The recounted story serves as the frame for Frankenstein's narrative.