Frankenstein by Mary Shelley Women

¶ … Frankenstein" by Mary Shelley

Women in those days were looked upon as a possession of the males. Those days were of a male oriented and dominated society and women did not have much of a say. They were often looked as a possession or priceless possession by man. Elizabeth is also looked upon by Victor as his possession not after their marriage but from childhood. "I looked upon Elizabeth as mine ... A possession of my own" (p. 21). Here we see that Victor always considered Elizabeth to be an object which belonged to him even when they were not married. Shelley has portrayed gender inequality in her book where wives are seen to require protection from their husband. Elizabeth is Victor's "pretty present" whom he takes care of and gives protection to. Women's role in society then was limited to the household work where they would take care of the house and the family. Men were the sole bread earners and would go out for work. Women were supposed to be obedient to their husbands without having any say in the house. However it is this slave type obedience which causes the death of Elizabeth. Shelley has tried to show through her novel that women's silent obedience and the role given to her by the male dominated society will be the cause of their destruction. Hence, as one can see all the women characters in the book die one after another. These women did not and could not save themselves because they were limited to the roles which the men of those days had kept for them. Women did not have the right to think and function with autonomy and hence we find cases of Justine who was executed although she never committed the crime and Elizabeth could not save her. Elizabeth could not even save herself on the wedding night. The intellectual part of a human's functioning was limited to the role of the males. The women were limited to the emotional part and were not allowed to do anything else. They were after all just a possession -- a pretty present.

The Victorian thought and attitude towards female sexuality was a link between sexuality and death. This is seen in the nightmare experienced by Victor. "I thought I saw Elizabeth, in the bloom of health, walking in the streets of Ingolstadt. Delighted and surprised, I embraced her; but as I imprinted the first kiss on her lips, they became livid with the hue of death" (p. 58). There is a clear link between sexuality, femininity and death. The feminine aspects which Victor had cut himself from were all represented by Elizabeth. He literally feared the female sexuality and this is seen in the nightmare where he kisses Elizabeth, realizing her sexual needs and recognizing her to be a sexual being rather than a pretty present, and she dies thus creating the link between sexuality and of course death. The Victorian society feared the awakening of female sexuality and Shelley has done a remarkable job in bringing this out in her book. The males thought that if the female sexuality arouses, they will become a threat and hence the dream written by Shelley shows that the moment Victor kisses Elizabeth, i.e. gives rise to her sexuality, Elizabeth dies therefore portraying what was in the minds of the males of that society. A simple message that was present which stated that the female sexuality should not be given room to come about for it would have dangerous effects. Female sexuality was observed to be as a danger to the male dominated society.

The Victorian thought was along the line that a female who would think, use her brain, be sexually liberated and have the desire to have children would be a danger to the male domination that was existent in the society back in those times. This is seen explicitly in the events that Shelley has expressed after the monster asks for a mate. The monster had promised to leave the human populated areas and go into the forests and live there. He only asked from Victor to make him a female counterpart with which he could sit and talk to and relate to. Victor at first thinks that it would be a remarkable idea and the society would be clean of the monster. However, when he thinks about the matter, he feels that giving the monster a mate could prove to be disastrous. Victor knows that the female would have a mind of her own to think and decide and if she would disagree to the agreement made before her creation, behind her conscious self, then that would create problems for everyone and more blood would be shed. The fear of man is seen here with regards to female autonomy in expressing her views and actions. Moreover he knows that a woman whose sexuality is aroused will make the choice of leaving a man just because of his looks for another who is better looking. Victor probably feared the same in the case of Elizabeth just like everyone else feared the same in the Victorian male mindset. A sexually liberated female was feared by the males of those times. Moreover they felt that any desire of the women, that are sexually liberated, to have children would mean the continuation of generations belonging to their thought and mindset and that would again prove to be a threat to society. "One of the first results of those sympathies for which the demon thirsted would be children, and a race of devils would be propagated upon the earth" (p. 165). The nearly completed mate for the monster is torn down to pieces by Victor who fears a woman with a free will, a woman who is not scared of the male and does not consider herself to be answerable to man or finds a reason to be obedient to man. He fears a woman who might resist and deny complying with any agreement made by the male dominated society prior to their birth, agreements like those which led to the death and destruction of Elizabeth because she complied. Victor, who represents the patriarchal society in those days, fears a woman who can speak for herself, her rights, is sexually liberated and expresses her right to choose a spouse.