Gothic Women In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein

The women in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein pose as passive, virtuous and pure, parallel to alternative gothic novels. When in fact they are, the foundation of the novel and hold strength in their self-sacrifice that is simply repressed by a society dominated by men who impose strict gender roles. Women in the novel are stripped from possessing a voice of their own and are powerless; therefore, are badly represented in the text. The women play into the generic role of being inserted into the position of second place to male figures in novels who hold all the power, politically and domestically. The female characters are never truly seen as independent people, they are seen as pawns into a larger picture to opposing characters in the novel. The two characters that fall into this category is Justine, Elizabeth and to a certain extent the idea of the female monster. The existence of Justine Moritz in Frankenstein may be a small role compared to the role of Elizabeth, however she further impersonates the characterization of damsel in distress into the hands of a male character. The persona of Justine occupies the complexion of an orphaned female as the nature of gothic female individuals. Losing her intimate family and is placed into a family who apprises her to a certain level. Highly adored by …show more content…
The author is able to demonstrate the consequences of men when they fully exclude or ignore women in society matters. The creation of Victor’s creature explores the concepts of eliminating females out of the equation altogether by creating his own person and generated astonishing consequences that essentially affected all characters. Shelley advocates education for women in her novel in regards to demonstrate that women can be equal intellectuals as the men in