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The Representation Of Women In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

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Mary Shelley was the daughter of one the first and most important advocates for feminism, Mary Wollstonecraft, and writer of the novel Frankenstein published in 1818. Growing up Mary Shelley was strongly influenced by her mother's writing. After her mothers passing, her father continued to expose her the feminist works from a very young age. These radical and feminist views changed her way of thinking and shaped her work and life (study.com, 2003). The representation of women in the novel Frankenstein, no doubt inspired by her mother's Vindication of the Rights of Woman, are complex and contradictory ,on one hand, she presents an argument for the importance of women in the household, but on the other hand, women are depicted in traditional …show more content…

In 1815, women were treated as inferior to men. The society which Victor Frankenstein inhabits is based on the division of sex roles: men are able to go out to work and to travel, while women are confined to the house, for example, when Victor leaves on one of his many travels, Elizabeth was not permitted to go with him and “regretted that she had not the same opportunities of enlarging her experience and cultivating her understanding”. (p. 151). Anne K Mellor states that “As consequence of this sexual division of labor, masculine is kept outside of the domestic realm; hence intellectual activity is segregated from emotional activity”, This statement implies that victor can only focus on one thing at a time and since he is so focused on his “outside realm” ie, his science and the creation of his monster, he began to neglect his friends and lover Elizabeth. The separation of masculine works and feminine affections, ultimately caused the downfall of Frankenstein. (Mellor, 2012) The women in this story are portrayed as nurses, child care providers, housewives, or even as servants. While the male figures in the story are depicted as strong, independent, smart individuals who can roam freely, travel the world, and do whatever they please. Due to this division of roles, many women are unnecessarily killed throughout the duration of the novel and die because based of Victors extensive fear of female …show more content…

Throughout the novel, Elizabeth is not afraid to share her thoughts about any given situation, specifically when Justine is tried for murder. Elizabeth is adamint that Justine was not at fault for the murder of William, and she wasn’t afraid to share her truth with anyone who was doubtful. Elizabeth is considered an independent woman, this is what Victor fears the most and the ultimate reason he destroys his female monster. What would the world do if there was a female figure that was so independent and strong minded? For the 19th century, this type of independance in a woman is considered too powerful. Victor believed that his female creature, “like rousseau’s natural man…” (Mellor, 2003), would be ten thousand times more evil than his first creation, and would kill for her own pleasure. (Mellor, 2003). In this novel, women are depicted as “sexless”, Elizabeth’s relation with Victor is more like a brother-sister relationship. The murder of Elizabeth on her wedding night is extremely significant. Elizabeth was thrown across the bed in an “erotic” fashion, and the object of man’s desires, this is shown to the reader so Victor's greatest fear is

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“‘Cooped Up’ with ‘Sad Trash’” Analysis Dr. Johanna M. Smith, the author of the scholarly article “‘Cooped Up’ with ‘Sad Trash’”, is an associate professor of English at the University of Texas at Arlington. In her article “‘Cooped Up’ with ‘Sad trash’” her approach to the novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley is one that takes a feminist viewpoint. In her article, Smith divides her argument into two sections, one that focuses more on the notion of an unpayable debt of gratitude, and the other that focuses on Victor Frankenstein’s transition from alchemical science to chemistry and how that relates to the “tensions and conflicts of contemporary gendered science” (324). Both articles, although presented as two separate entities, flow together magnificently and

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To him, femininity is synonymous with weakness, and masculinity is synonymous with power, and he creates his characters accordingly to this belief. Similarly, author Mary Shelley also creates characters in a sexist manner in her novel Frankenstein. She creates female characters who serve little purpose other than to be disposed of by males. This can be seen in the way the Creature values the lives of females in the novel. In an attempt to seek revenge on Victor Frankenstein, the Creature frames servant to the Frankenstein family, Justine, for the heinous crime of murdering Victor’s young brother.

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In the award winning article, “Passages in Mary Shelly's Frankenstein: Towards a Feminist Figure of Humanity?” Cynthia Pon addresses masculinity and feminism in terms of conventions, ideals, and practices (Pon, 33). She focused on whether Mary Shelly's work as a writer opened the way to a feminist figure of humanity like Donna Haraway argued. The article has a pre-notion that the audience has read Frankenstein and Haraway's article. Pon has a slight bias, due to her passion as a feminist writer.

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As per usual, advancements in a story are made through various literary elements, Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley's Frankenstein is of no exception. Though what sets this authors use of these elements apart is the effectiveness in which they are presented in what can be considered a prologue of sorts, the letters. As a foreshadowing to what may occur between characters of differing sexes, gender roles are established. For the development of the a main character, Robert Walton, season (a key factor in character development as discussed in the literary work To Read Like A Professor) is described in thorough detail by non other than Walton himself, as he also goes on to discuss his opinion on it. Gender roles remain an important developmental tool

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Following the American and French Revolutions, the people’s trust in authority lessened, this, combined with England’s Industrial Revolution, which increased the socioeconomic gap between the upper and lower class, many writers to use their works to pose questions society desperately needed to answer. These questions ranged from the topics of democracy to freedom and education, all of which can be seen in Godwin and Wollenstonecraft’s works. This is the world Mary Shelley grew up in, and the world in which Frankenstein was written. Following her elopement with Percy Shelley, Mary Shelley lost contact with William Godwin, which is when she “rejected her utopian and radical heritage and opted for a more conservative and pessimistic view of the world” (Sterrenberg). This can be shown in Frankenstein, where the protagonist, Victor Frankenstein, is shown to be both repulsed and astounded by his “monster.”

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In James Davis’ literary essay “Frankenstein and the Subversion of the Masculine Voice,” he discusses the oppression of women and the minor roles of females in Mary Shelly’s novel Frankenstein. With a feminist perspective, Davis claims, “He [Victor Frankenstein] oppresses female generation of life and of text; he rends apart both the physical and the rhetorical ‘form’ of female creativity. In fact, all three male narrators attempt to subvert the feminine voice, even in those brief moments when they tell the women’s stories” (307). Throughout his essay, Davis demonstrates the underlying message of Shelly’s subversion towards men and the social consequences of misogyny. Davis draws parallels between the three men, Robert Walton, Victor Frankenstein, and Victor’s creation, Frankenstein, in which they

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By denying both main characters the sensation of domestic affection, or any other kind of social belonging, Mary Shelley highlights the importance thereof. The resulting isolation became the driving force behind both Frankenstein and his creation’s abominable actions which, in turn, shows that trying to avoid isolation and seeking the feeling of social belonging is the primary message of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and of

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Victor is stirred by his work, but not in a positive manner. He goes on to explain his feelings towards the creature by saying, “… my heart sickened and my feelings were altered to those of horror and hatred” (136). Victor is so bewildered and repulsed by the creature that he misses key signs of violence, from the creature, that may have saved Victor’s family had he not been so

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While Mary made quite a statement with Frankenstein about the problems arising from lack of family relationships and parental abdication of responsibility, it is doubtful whether she consciously meant to indict her own father for his treatment of her in childhood. Nevertheless noticing that reading Frankenstein and Mary's other work within the context of her life allows us to understand her more clearly. It is my contention that this understanding will be affected most clearly by reading Mary's life and work with the framework of psychosocial theory.” (Ginn, 2003)  Shelley’s interest in

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Even when close to death or dead, Victor describes Justine innocent, despite her surroundings in jail, and Elizabeth as beautiful as she once was when she was alive. Their beauty and youths give them an advantage, in

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Frankenstein is one of the most famous and adapted novels of all time, and many say that Mary Shelley invented the genre of science fiction through it’s creation, but can Frankenstein add feminism to it’s list of virtues? At first glance, it seems as if not. The novel focuses mainly on the conflict between two men, and the main female character in the novel, Elizabeth, falls into the classic gothic trope of the perfect, angelic heroine, who has little to no flaws or agency. Yet upon further examination, it is clear that Shelley parodies and builds on the gothic trope of the perfect woman in order to bring to light the detrimental effects of writing flat female characters, ultimately giving Frankenstein a feminist tone.

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The presentation of women in Frankenstein Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein”, first published in 1818, was written in a time period where society’s general opinion was that a woman’s role was predominately to be a loving, caring mother and a faithful, docile companion to her husband. This attitude is reflected in Shelley’s portrays of women in her novel as passive, self- sacrificing, loyal, and completely dependent on men. They are a means by which emotions are invoked within male characters and serve only as companions and beautiful possessions. Caroline Beaufort, mother of the protagonist Victor Frankenstein, is an example of the embodiment of this ideal. She is the wife of Alphonse Frankenstein and within the novel plays the role of a perfect daughter, wife, and mother.

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Because of this, Elizabeth had to play all feminine roles towards Victor: mother figure, sister, and wife. While Elizabeth becomes like a mother, Victor had already formed a friendly bond with her. Victor describes Elizabeth as “gentile and affectionate” (20), motherly characteristics, but Victor would never be able to see Elizabeth as a mother. Elizabeth and Victor had grown up together since the age of four. She was the only one who could make him forget his troubles, and he was the only one who could console her after the death of William and Justine.

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Victor Frankenstein is the protagonist and the creator of “The monster.” As displayed in the book and article, he becomes the way he is by his relationships. His relationship with Elizabeth is an example of an important relationship. His cousin, adoptive sister, and eventual wife, she was always close to him. Elizabeth was dear to Victor’s heart in a way no one else was.

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Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein Critical Analysis About the author Naomi Hetherington is a member of the University of Sheffield, the department of lifelong learning. She is an early researcher in sexuality, religious culture, the 19th-century literature, and gender. She holds a BA in Theology and religious studies, an MA and a Ph.D. in Victorian Literature. She currently teaches four-year pathway literature degree at Sheffield University for students who have already attained foundation degrees. Among the books, she has written the critique of Frankenstein.

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