Preview

Women's Role In Frankenstein

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
587 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Women's Role In Frankenstein
September of 1818, Mary Shelley wrote a novel called Frankenstein. Mary Shelley was only 20 at the time of publishing this book. Shelley was the first and the most important feminist advocate. In this book it presents women in different aspects and characters in the novel have different views. For many years women in the world have been forced to live their life of not being able to do what males are in today's world. In my later paragraphs I will be sure to talk about the similarities and differences in the women's role within the Novel.
The female they talk about first in this novel called, Frankenstein is named Caroline Beaufort. Frankenstein's father faced Caroline while she was working forward to show she is caring and has no feeling to her dying father. She encountered that in life and she felt no fear at all that her father was dying, she is known for being a brave women. After her father's death she was still
…show more content…
Which is often done in today's world. Women are always accused or blamed for something. In the novel Justine was accused of murdering William Frankenstein. She was accused of something she has did not do and now she is a victim from being accused of doing the murdering. Even though she did not do the crime she had no power of explaining it as she says in the book. There were also two other women that were in the novel and the lived in the shack which were Agatha and Safie. Agatha is the young girl that tried to show her compassion at the creature in the novel Frankenstein. She is a women that shows the moral righteousness that was most common in the 1800’s which is an example of female character. Safie is different from the other characters in the novel she travels all alone, she doesn't follow her father's figure, she teaches herself and is very independent in things. She is driven for love and that is the reason she travels so she can see the man she loves. The man she loves is

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Powerful Essays

    Frankenstein is convinced that the monster murdered Clerval in a fit of rage and asks to see the body. To Frankenstein’s dismay, the body of Clerval had marks that matched the hands and fingers of the monster. Victor is held in prison, but becomes ill and only wakes up after he has fully recovered from his illness to find that he has been relieved of all charges. By this time. Frankenstein is due to marry Elizabeth, but fears that the monster will uphold his promise so he sends Elizabeth away. Frankenstein’s efforts are thwarted because the monster is waiting for Elizabeth and murders her. It is this point in the story that Frankenstein embarks on a mission to achieve revenge against the monster and it is on that mission that Frankenstein meets Walton (Shelley 198). Walton’s letters are resumed in the novel and it recounts Victor’s illnesses and his final days. Walton writes that he observed the monster, who had apparently been seeking Frankenstein as well, crying over the scientist’s dead body. The monster chose to see Victor Frankenstein’s death as a sense of release. The monster tells Walton that since his creator has demised, he too can die in peace. The monster leaves with feelings of hatred and anger toward his creator and the people who alienated him and surrenders himself to death by jumping off the ship…

    • 1769 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Victor Frankenstein, the main character in the book, is afraid of creating a female creature because of his fear of strong. These are just two of the many examples of how the people and events of the outside world affected Mary Shelly’s work Safie, the daughter of a Turkish merchant…

    • 618 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    As one reads Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, you notice that the women characters have more substance in comparison to their counterparts, the male characters. This is due to the period the novel was written where females were seen as inferior beings in comparison to the males. There are various factors in the novel that portray feminism. The three major points are women reflect on the men; women are shown as possessions that need protection from the men, and also women are shown as stereotypical women during that period.…

    • 815 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Feminist Criticism “In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, the author characterizes each woman as passive, disposable and serving a utilitarian function” (Haddad). For example the women in the story provide nothing more, but a channel of action for the male characters of the story. Justine’s character is very passive and she is tossed back and forth between the family and frankenstein, when she is accused of murdering Victor’s brother. This just shows a basic role of how women were put out to be just in this story. Many other women had their own role ofr what their character were based on of women in different ways.…

    • 420 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    As a female novelist in the 19th century, Shelley influenced the current world in many ways. It is surprising to see that one can learn mostly at home and end up so successful. With the use of Godwinian novel, she clearly demonstrated how oneself and society can affect each other. Shelley deserves much respect for writing a novel that illustrated many issues that even occur today. With women's rights being such an issue during the time of Shelley’s life, she clearly proved to everyone that women can do as much as a man. In the novel Frankenstein, Shelley uses the monster and the society he lives in to show the ongoing issue of judging a person by their looks or beliefs. The monster became evil and even got his name because he did not look like others. It is sad to see that the monster had to die only trying to be good while no one understood what he was doing. Although it would have been nice if the monster did get accepted by society, the outcome of him seeking revenge and dying by himself crying also proved that he still had good in his heart. In order to show the goodness of the monster, Shelley successfully used Godwinian novel and did not disappoint. Finally, It is pleasing to see that Shelley never even thought of writing this novel until she was given it as a challenge. Thanks to Byron’s idea of writing their own horror stories, a masterpiece was created from a small joke. No one would have expected especially a women to write such an award winning, creative, and emotional…

    • 2191 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Shelley dominates her novel with male narratorial voices who marginalize women against their weak, subservient, and otherwise completely unheard voice upholding traditional ideas about woman as the object of male desire. While the women assume assigned roles of marriage and procreation, their purpose is to show the cruelty of the patriarchy and undermine seemingly male superiority that showcases the need for women and equality to have a fully functioning society. Although the men are the centre of the novel, they are morally flawed: Walton dismisses his sister’s advice in letters, Victor objectifies women and attempts to rid females from the equation of family, and his creature who murders women out of revenge. The perfection women is shown…

    • 174 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    To begin a class discussion on March 2nd, a thought-provoking question was asked: where are the women in "Frankenstein"? Perhaps this question would not be nearly as interesting had it not been followed with a small insight into the biography of Mary Shelley. As a student, it was brought to my attention that the author was left motherless as a result of her birth, and more fascinating to me, her mot her was a well-known feminist. With that being said, the initial question now held much more meaning; and although I am tempted to discuss the psychology of Shelley in writing "Frankenstein", now knowing some background, perhaps it is more fitting to simply discuss the creating of Safie. While all of the women in "Frankenstein" seem to be these soft, subdued characters that are not representative of what, perhaps, a strong feminist's daughter should create, they are necessary to illuminate Safie's strength and power.…

    • 558 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In regards to women being ‘significantly absent’ we see the character of Margaret Saville, Robert Walton’s sister, follow this idea. Within the opening letters of the frame narrative of ‘Frankenstein’ we are made aware of ‘dear Margaret’ being the recipient of Roberts’s letters informing the reader of his whereabouts. We never hear from Margaret herself yet we know she’s disapproves of Robert’s excursion, Shelley intentionally provides the views of Margaret second handily; whatever we know about her is conveyed through Roberts writings. Throughout the novel any mention of women comes from either Robert or Victor and the reader is never made aware of the thoughts and feelings of the women directly and therefore a gender bias is apparent. The absence of a female narration also reflects the male dominance present at the time the novel was written mirroring the submissive woman.…

    • 726 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Scary stories are not always just forms of entertainment, some of them provide readers with great insight into various social and ethical topics of the time. Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley acquired immediate popularity after publishing Frankenstein in 1818. The novel became known worldwide as a result of the author’s style of writing which allows the reader to be entertained as well as informed and it is known as “the first true work of science fiction” (Aldiss). Frankenstein is a reflection of Shelley’s personal life as well as some topics of interest during the Romantic era as it incorporates themes such as the importance of receiving affection and family relationships, the characterization of women in the novel with feminist ideals as well…

    • 130 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Women In Frankenstein

    • 764 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Imagine if in this world, women were still considered a part of the minority. In the novel, Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, women are forced to live on the outskirts of a male dominated society. Stereotypically speaking, women are seen as possessions rather than human beings, the reader sees this throughout the novel. Female characters like Elizabeth, Justine, Margaret and Agatha are the backbone of the story for all the men, living their fictional lives, not for themselves, but to impact the men’s life.…

    • 764 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    When Mary first wrote “Frankenstein”, she originally wrote it for a short story competition between her and other authors. This competition was held by Lord Byron, who was a renowned Romantic author of the time who also wrote “Promethean poems” (Rider). At only nineteen years of age, Mary was a young and inexperienced author who most likely drew her ideas from “her father, William Godwyn, and those of her lover, Percy Bysshe Shelley” (James). Her father was famous novelist and political philosopher that help shaped Mary’s opinions and writing style that helped her to incorporate the ideas of her father into her own works. Her husband, Percy, also was a well renowned author who released his own novel, Prometheus Unbound, shortly after Mary completed Frankenstein. This title reflects the subtitle of Frankenstein, The Modern Prometheus, and helps to illustrate the major influence the Prometheus myth had on many of these…

    • 992 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Mary Shelley was able to hide highlights of her own society into her book Frankenstein. In Shelley’s time, men never listened to women in society and rejected their ideas. This frustrated the women of Shelley’s time and would even be frustrating in today’s time. Women would fight back and Shelley wrote the book despite the social push not to.…

    • 307 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In early hunter-gatherer societies, labor was divided based on sex. Women were the sole reproductive force, and thus needed to bare, breastfeed, and raise children, which confined them to the settlement for the majority of their lives—increasing their dependence on men for information and resources. Over time this led to the development of gender roles, or societal norms that dictate the types of behaviors which are generally acceptable for people based on their biological sex. Masculine behaviors are usually associated with strength, aggression, and dominance—while feminine roles are usually associated with passivity, nurturing, and subordination. It is important to note that gender and sex are distinct concepts: sex refers to the biological…

    • 1187 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Feminism is defined as the advocacy of women's rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men. Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley has never been a stranger to the ideals that this word entails, as she was born to two widely known progressive writers in their time. Therefore, when Mary Shelley wrote the story of Frankenstein, the blatant passivity of the women in it was demonstrative of the disasters in a world where women are not held to the same status as men.…

    • 929 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the era in which Frankenstein was written, the role of women was strictly submissive. Although written by a female author, Mary Shelley identified every female character as an objectified, used, abused, and easily discarded being. Characters such as Elizabeth and Justine are passive and gentle women who are placed in the story as more of a supporting role for men instead of being independent individuals. They are also put under false consequences such as Justine being framed guilty because of her gender. Some critics claim that the negative roles women have in the novel are entwined with Mary Shelley’s life as a woman,…

    • 984 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays