It is rather surprising that a novel written by the daughter of so prominent a feminist should be so strikingly devoid of strong female characters. Many critics agree that Mary Shelley’s Gothic novel Frankenstein is littered with passive women that suffer placidly, then expire once exposed to the transgressions of the world . An initial reading of the novel might produce the notion that Shelley had very little to say on the subject of women. The entire cast of female characters appears to remain within the domestic realm, quietly performing their duties as mothers, sisters, wives and daughters for the men. Some might even say Shelley ardently agreed with the position in which they found themselves and the securely fixed roles during the Victorian era.
When reading Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, one cannot help but notice that the women characters seem to have little substance compared to the male characters. This may have been caused by the time period in which she wrote: one in which females were considered inferior to males. This difference between the sexes can be looked at using a variety of different perspectives. Johanna M. Smith, a professor at the University of Texas at Arlington, discusses this issue using feminist eyes in her essay entitled "'Cooped up': Feminine Domesticity in Frankenstein." The main points in Professor Smith's essay are that the female characters are there only to reflect the male characters, and that the Frankenstein family has a weird style of living, which she describes as a "bookkeeping mentality" (Smith 279).
One has got all the goodness, and the other all the appearance of it.” It this Elizabeth is stating that Wickham is basically evil and that Darcy is not. However at first glances of both characters we (as readers) are in the same boat as Elizabeth, unaware of the real personalities of these two characters. Wickham had come across at the beginning of the novel to be a character full of ‘goodness’ and for Darcy to be the opposite, but we now know that this is really the opposite as Wickham makes you believe that he is ‘all good’. She also says… “And your defect is to hate everybody.” “and yours,” he replied with a smile, is wilfully to misunderstand them.” In this small conversation with Darcy, Elizabeth thinks that Darcy hates everyone. Jane Austen subtly hints at the fact that maybe Elizabeth does not really understand Darcy.
“Gothic and Romanticism” – David Punter Frankenstein: The Modern Prometheus and a Monster’s inevitable doom In Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein, it appears that Shelley attempts to draw an important analogy between the lone genius Prometheus, the archetypal seeker after forbidden wisdom, and her own protagonist Victor Frankenstein, who also dares to transgress boundaries in order to create life. Thus the subtitle The Modern Prometheus. However, it is crucial to note the invariable difference between both old and modern Prometheus. Whereas old Prometheus suffers alone for his sin, in the case of Shelley’s Prometheus, Frankenstein, the monster involuntarily partakes in the sin, by being its final product, and therefore has to suffer too. To the reader, it seems that Shelly consistently reminds us of the lack of responsibility on the part of Frankenstein, and the monster’s inherent innocence, who is only made evil by his circumstances.
Unsex Me Here In her essay Shakespeare’s Sister, Virginia Woolf analyzes the reasons behind the lack of female authors in Elizabethan England despite it being such a prominent time for literature. She discovers that, according to the history books, women at the time had very little rights and were tragically mistreated members of society. On the contrary, the women pictured in the works of art at the time were smart and cunning, or at the very least had strong, influential personalities. One of these women being Lady Macbeth from The Tragedy of Macbeth by William Shakespeare. Woolf interprets the contrast between the women in fiction and the real women of the period as evidence that the famous characters are nothing but impossibilities imagined upon by men.
In the most important aspects of Frankenstein; Frankenstein is compelling in and of itself. This book has stories that surround other stories, setting them up in one way or another. Frankenstein is a gothic novel that focuses on mysterious or supernatural features. It takes place in dark, often exotic settings. Readers feel uneasy and in terror after reading the novel.
His inactiveness is best expressed in one of his most memorable lines to Lily: “The only way I can help you is by loving you.” It’s a great line, and Selden is very pretty in speech, but it is also a great untruth, and one that shows how unhelpful he is in Lily’s life. And it seems to rub off on her: One of the factors ultimately leading to Lily’s downfall is her own passivity: Her unwillingness to use Bertha Dorset’s letters, her declining to marry Rosedale, these things
“A little talent is a good thing to have if you want to be a writer. But the only real requirement is the ability to remember every scar.” ― Stephen King. Not only has Mary Shelly remembered the scars of her life, she was able to reflect every painful memory through her book, Frankenstein. While there is beauty in novel, there is also an overall sense of sadness and futility that reflects on her life experiences. This book is an illustration of the destruction she experienced in her life, and her inability to control any of it, just as how Frankenstein and The Creature did not have any control over their tragedies.
Critics have held diabolically opposed views of Isabella's character. One faction sees her as one of Shakespeare's strongest and best female characters, a woman of great virtue and magnificent purity. They point to her brilliant speeches with Angelo on Christianity, power, and mercy, and to her fiery denunciation of Angelo's treachery and her brother's cowardice. She is seen as the symbol of goodness and mercy set against a background of moral decay. The other faction sees her as self-righteous and hypocritical.
Vereen M. Bell states, “Hindley cannot forgive Heathclff for unsurpuring the love of his father, so once he master of Wuthering Heights he sees that Heathcliff is methodically humiliated and degraded” (Bell). Catherine, however, accepted Heathcliff and liked him from when he first came to her house. She liked to spend time to him. She even began to love him, Catherine states that, “My love for Heathcliff resembles the eternal rocks beneath: a source of little visible delight, but necessary. Nelly, I am Heathcliff!