Consider Walton’s response to Victor’s speech. He notes “I would rather die, than return shamefully—my purpose unfulfilled,” and later he says, “It is past; I am returning to England. I have lost my hopes of utility and glory.” What do these statements imply about the nature of “home?"

In his speech, Victor prevails upon the sailors not to return home “with the stigma of disgrace marked upon your brows.” It is clear from his comments that he is equating the sailors’ journey with his own attempts to create life, noting that they will be “hailed as the benefactors of your species” if successful. At first, Walton is swayed by Victor’s words, and he does hope that his men will also be moved, but from the outset he is doubtful. Although he does not want to return unsuccessfully, he believes his men are “unsupported by ideas of glory and honour” and will not be able to see beyond their present hardships. So, while Walton is moved by Victor’s ideas in principle, he accepts that they may not be feasible in practical terms. He sees the idea of returning home unfulfilled as distasteful, but it is not so terrible to him that he would rather squander everything, even his life. While Walton respects Victor, he has seen what Victor’s own determination has done to him.
After Victor has been lost, so too have been Walton’s “hopes of utility and glory.” While Victor lived, his words could stimulate Walton to keep going, but without Victor, he can no longer resist the desire of his men to return to England. He does not have the conviction Victor does that his purpose was “assigned by Heaven,” and in England he anticipates finding “consolation.” For Victor, his ambition was all or nothing, but for Walton “home” still represents a place where he will always be accepted and where he can gather himself together, recuperate, and find solace, even if he has failed in his mission.