The Role of Women in Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein"

Paper Summary:

This paper explains that without the roles of Elizabeth Frankenstein and Justine, "Frankenstein" would simply be another Gothic novel written by a young and precocious girl, Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, in early 19th century England. The author points out that Elizabeth, and not Victor's mother, expresses all of the compassion of the Frankenstein family, a trait quite familiar in many English families of the early 19th century. The paper concludes that Elizabeth and Justine are pivotal characters who tend to move the plot forward and serve as symbols of femininity set against the decadence of Victor Frankenstein and the monster he created, quite differently from other well-known, English, romantic novels of the time.

From the Paper:

"In Chapter Six, in a letter written to Victor by Elizabeth, we are introduced to Justine Moritz who like Elizabeth is taken into the Frankenstein family as one of its own. Elizabeth tells Victor in this letter that Justine, "thus received in our family, learned the duties of a servant, a condition which, in our fortunate country (being Switzerland), does not include the idea of ignorance and a sacrifice of the dignity of a human being" (50). With this, Elizabeth is saying that Justine is a much like a maid in the Frankenstein household but has also been somewhat educated and is treated with respect and admiration."

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