Women in the time of ‘Frankenstein’
The Role of Women
Domestic sphere Public sphere
- Submissive to male authority - World of men
- Strong and caring towards children - No control of finance
- Emotionally ‘round’ men in the house - No political debate
- In charge of the home- cooking, - Role is to be passive
gardening, cleaning - Pious and strong in
- Respect male counterparts with faith
adoration
- Do not interfere with public sphere
The Enlightenment and the Rise of Feminism
- Agrippa one of the scientists mentioned by Victor of his early
studies was a very early male feminist and wrote a book entitled
‘On the Nobility and Excellence of the Feminine Sex’
- Mary Wollstonecraft was a key player in the feminist
movement, as well as being Mary Shelley’s mother.
Wollstonecraft is credited of bringing the ‘light’ of the
Enlightenment age onto women. Many neglected women in
their visions of a better society a belief Mary Wollstonecraft
began to remove. Unofficial discrimination was the target of this
early feminism in order to change society’s mind before
changing the law
- Wollstonecraft wrote many works on the education women but
her most famous is ‘Vindication of the Rights of Woman’
The Women of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein
Mary Shelley- A women influenced by her mother’s beliefs (feminism), her father’s conscience (very
just man) and her own experience (her political criticisms were often discarded).
Margaret Saville- The passive recipient of Walton’s letters with no voice of her own.
Caroline Beaufort- Stoic woman in the world of men. A true altruist and compassionate figure.
Elizabeth Lavenza - The fated companion of Victor who were bound in companionship from a young
age. Strong sense of emotion and compassion.
Justine Moritz- the voiceless victim of discriminative society.
N.B. all the women of Frankenstein at one point are portrayed as a femme-fatale, a character
trope common in the Gothic genre
The Role of Women
Domestic sphere Public sphere
- Submissive to male authority - World of men
- Strong and caring towards children - No control of finance
- Emotionally ‘round’ men in the house - No political debate
- In charge of the home- cooking, - Role is to be passive
gardening, cleaning - Pious and strong in
- Respect male counterparts with faith
adoration
- Do not interfere with public sphere
The Enlightenment and the Rise of Feminism
- Agrippa one of the scientists mentioned by Victor of his early
studies was a very early male feminist and wrote a book entitled
‘On the Nobility and Excellence of the Feminine Sex’
- Mary Wollstonecraft was a key player in the feminist
movement, as well as being Mary Shelley’s mother.
Wollstonecraft is credited of bringing the ‘light’ of the
Enlightenment age onto women. Many neglected women in
their visions of a better society a belief Mary Wollstonecraft
began to remove. Unofficial discrimination was the target of this
early feminism in order to change society’s mind before
changing the law
- Wollstonecraft wrote many works on the education women but
her most famous is ‘Vindication of the Rights of Woman’
The Women of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein
Mary Shelley- A women influenced by her mother’s beliefs (feminism), her father’s conscience (very
just man) and her own experience (her political criticisms were often discarded).
Margaret Saville- The passive recipient of Walton’s letters with no voice of her own.
Caroline Beaufort- Stoic woman in the world of men. A true altruist and compassionate figure.
Elizabeth Lavenza - The fated companion of Victor who were bound in companionship from a young
age. Strong sense of emotion and compassion.
Justine Moritz- the voiceless victim of discriminative society.
N.B. all the women of Frankenstein at one point are portrayed as a femme-fatale, a character
trope common in the Gothic genre
