A common reading of Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein” is that it is a cautionary story about the dangers of going too far with science and meddling with what one does not understand. The novel does deal with themes of negligence and lack of care, but not necessarily in the arena of science itself. Rather, the novel uses the story of Victor, a figure who is at once a mother and a father, to display themes of parental negligence and the negative outcomes that this produces in the child. However, this negligence is not due to Victor being inherently less inclined to being a caregiver due to his sex. It’s because of his own personal failings.
Victor’s behavior, its consequences, and his relationship to the Creature will be analyzed through a feminist lens, particularly …show more content…
After Victor becomes feverish and bedridden following the creation of the Creature, he says that Henry was “[his] only nurse” and “I could not have a more kind and attentive nurse than himself” (Shelley 62). Henry takes on two traditionally feminine roles here: nursing and nurturing. Nursing was considered an acceptable role for a woman because women were considered natural caregivers in the 19th century, and so it made sense that they would be able to extend that ability to unrelated individuals. Besides nursing, Henry takes on the more broad role of a nurturing caregiver, Victor himself stating that Henry’s demeanor was “kind” and “attentive”. Victor also mentions that Henry has spent “the whole winter (...) in my sickroom” (Shelley 63). This shows that Henry was not merely there in between his own studies, but fully devoted his time and attention to being Victor’s caregiver. Both Henry and Victor are from families in comfortable economic situations, and so a nurse could have been hired to care for Victor. Instead, Henry, a male character, fully assumes the “feminine” role of nurturer and successfully fulfills
Victor’s behavior, its consequences, and his relationship to the Creature will be analyzed through a feminist lens, particularly …show more content…
After Victor becomes feverish and bedridden following the creation of the Creature, he says that Henry was “[his] only nurse” and “I could not have a more kind and attentive nurse than himself” (Shelley 62). Henry takes on two traditionally feminine roles here: nursing and nurturing. Nursing was considered an acceptable role for a woman because women were considered natural caregivers in the 19th century, and so it made sense that they would be able to extend that ability to unrelated individuals. Besides nursing, Henry takes on the more broad role of a nurturing caregiver, Victor himself stating that Henry’s demeanor was “kind” and “attentive”. Victor also mentions that Henry has spent “the whole winter (...) in my sickroom” (Shelley 63). This shows that Henry was not merely there in between his own studies, but fully devoted his time and attention to being Victor’s caregiver. Both Henry and Victor are from families in comfortable economic situations, and so a nurse could have been hired to care for Victor. Instead, Henry, a male character, fully assumes the “feminine” role of nurturer and successfully fulfills