Rowena Chen
English 2301-08
Ms. Fredericks
Final Paper
December 7th, 2015
Women Roles and Expectations Reflected through Literature
The industrial revolution was an important occurrence that played an important role in the late 18th and 19th century, causing a sharp discrepancy between the roles of men and women. The expected gender roles greatly differed since women were seen as the weaker of the two genders, possessing less intelligence and inferior to men. In many ways, they were often seen as a mere complement to their husbands, and were expected to care for their husband’s interest and reflect credit on him (Fortin). The mindset, social roles and expectations of women during that period of time were clearly depicted and reflected in
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many works and writings during the time, for example in Mary Shelley’s novel, Frankenstein. Mary Shelley, a writer of the 18th century, was well aware of the social expectations of women during her time. Her novels along with the character traits she gave to her female characters within the novel clearly reveal to her audiences the gap between how women were viewed and treated within society during that time as opposed to the men (Fisch 48). In Frankenstein, Shelley crafted her novel in the way where all her female characters evidently have little or even close to no substance and significance compared to the male characters. Although the female characters all still play a role within the novel, the importance and value of them appeared to be a lot inferior to that of the male characters, mirroring their status in society. One of the major ways Shelley accomplished illustrating women’s insignificance in value and status compared to men in society is through Frankeinstein’s storytelling. The novel, in its entirety, was narrated exclusively through the male characters’ observations and point of view. Through the entire novel, none of the women were given a voice and spoke directly. Instead Shelley made Robert Walton, Victor Frankenstein, and Frankenstein’s monster the three and only main narrators of her story. We can only know of the female characters’ thoughts and feelings through the narrators that chose to tell. For example, when Justine’s brothers and sisters died, Victor only told us that she was feeling troubled and that “she began to think that the deaths of her favorites were a judgment from heaven to chastise her partiality” (Shelley 66). Nonetheless, we were unaware of all the other hardships Justine might have been going through emotionally and were left to deem that that was Justine’s perspective on the deaths of her loved ones. With the lack of female’s voice and only the male characters narrating, we were unable to see the plot through any of the female’s perspective. Thus, through Shelley’s structure of the novel’s narrative, specifically the lack of women’s leading roles, it is inevitable for readers to learn that the females’ point of view is not as important and that they lack value within society in comparison to men. Following the lack of voice within the novel, the female characters all seem to be submissive demonstrate passivity in their actions and response to surrounding events or speech.
One of the most passive characters seen within the novel would be Elizabeth. Instead of standing up and thinking about what she truly wants for herself, Elizabeth merely accepted that she had to marry Victor, who was never really by her side. Her attitude towards her own marriage was as if she had no choice as to whom she could choose to love or marry. In other words, Elizabeth simply accepted the fate that Victor believed in and did not seek to look for her true heart’s desire—“…I, with childish seriousness, interpreted her words literally and looked upon Elizabeth as mine..my more than sister, since till death she was to be mine only” (Shelley 37). Another main female character that was extremely passive was Justine. Justine, like Elizabeth was not only passive but also a rarely vocal character within the novel. Not only was Justine stuck in between the issues of her family and the Frankenstein’s, she was also framed by the monster for his wrongdoings and murder of William Frankenstein. Instead of fighting for her own innocence, Justine acted passively and simply accepted her charge—“..how heavily and fatally this one circumstance weighs against me, but I have no power of explaining it.. I am only left conjecture concerning the probabilities by which it might have been placed in my pocket..” …show more content…
(Shelley 85). Instead of being the gentle and kind woman, Justine left with society seeing her as a ‘monster’ in peoples’ eyes because of the false accusation. All these could have been changed if Justine was not that passive and fought for her own innocence. Nonetheless, this false accusation of Justine also portrayed to us how women at the time were also often docile victims of situations (Mellor 133). Instead of picking on any other possible characters within the novel, Shelley intentionally chose Justine, our innocent, kindhearted female character to be the victim of the monster’s accusation which eventually led to her tragic death sentence. Likewise, Elizabeth was also another major female character who lost her life due to the monster even though she was completely innocent. Shelley made Elizabeth a mere tool of revenge for the monster towards Victor. Due to the monster’s awareness that Elizabeth held a significant importance in Victor’s life, the monster murdered Elizabeth in attempt to inflict just as much pain and suffering upon Victor as he had experienced since his creation. Like Justine, Elizabeth was yet another victim of the conflict between Victor and the monster. Furthermore, unlike Henry Clerval, Victor’s life long friend’s death, where Victor expressed sorrow, when Elizabeth was murdered, we were barely told of how Victor felt towards losing her—showing an imbalance of care and concern. Nonetheless, the fact that all these female characters end up being killed or dying by the end of the novel, was a clear indicator of how women were viewed as disposable and served only as a utilitarian function (Heiland 102). The ruthless treatment of women as well as the incorporation of suffering and death of these female characters within the novel suggested during Shelley’s time it was acceptable. Not only that, women during the 1800s were also considered to people there as the men’s ‘possession’ (Fisher 53). The most obvious example would be the relationship between Victor and Elizabeth. Victor himself admitted that he “looked upon Elizabeth as mine (Victor’s)” suggesting that he owned Elizabeth even before they were married (Shelley 37). Not only that, he also sounded very possessive and protective of his own ‘property’ that is Elizabeth when he continued on proclaiming, “till death she was to be mine (Victor’s) only (Shelley 37). Furthermore, the dehumanization of women could be clearly seen through Victor’s attitude towards Elizabeth. Victor not only thought of Elizabeth as his possession but that anything good or any praise that Elizabeth received should always be seen as a result of his personal doings and credited to him: “All praises bestowed on her, I received as made to a possession of my own” (Shelley 45). In addition, during Shelley’s time, women were also considered hold a lower status in society compared to men.
They were not only seen to be a ‘possession’ of their male counterparts and but have always seen to be in need of their protection and care (Fisher 49). Their values seem to only lie within how they needed to carry out their duties as a daughter, sister, mother, and wife. They were seen as merely caretakers and supporters of the male figures that surround them. Caroline Frankenstein was one of the examples of how women were expected to behave. Within the course of the novel, Caroline was described as the ideal daughter, wife, and mother. She was always caring and selfless even up to the point where she would sacrifice herself for the good of others. For example, when Elizabeth become ill with the scarlet fever in chapter three, Caroline insisted in looking after her even though she was utterly ill herself—“During her illness many arguments had been urged to persuade my mother to refrain from attending upon her…She attended her sickbed; her watchful attentions triumphed over the malignity of the distemper—Elizabeth was saved, but the consequences of this imprudence were fatal to her preserver” (Shelley 44). Not only that, Caroline also put in her everything in order to nurse and take care of her father when he had fallen ill. Her qualities of always nurturing others, being a caretaker, and selflessness reflect the social expectations of women during that time (Fasick
98). Nevertheless, through novels like Frankenstein we are definitely able to learn a lot about women of the late 18th and early 19th century. Shelley’s characterization, structure, and plot of her novel clearly revealed that women used to be treated unequally, treated with less importance, lived behind the shadows of their husbands, and even be considered as their husbands’ ‘possession’. Fortunately, many things have changed for the better and progressed for women today. As women of our current society, we no longer have to face the injustice and inequality that the women had undergone back then. Instead, we now are seen as equals and treated with great importance. Nonetheless, it is important for us to recognize the hardships women in the past had to face and appreciate the equality, voice, and rights that we now possess within society. Bibliography Fasick, Laura. Vessels of Meaning: Women’s Bodies, Gender Norms, and Class Bias. DeKalb, IL: Northern Illinois UP, 1997. Print. Fisch, Audrey A. Frankenstein: Icon of Modern Culture. Westfield, Hastings, East Sussex: Helm Information, 2009. Print. Fisher, Jerilyn, and Ellen S. Silber. Women in Literature: Reading through the Lens of Gender. Westport, Ct: Greenwood, 2003. Print. Fortin, Elaine. "Early Nineteenth Century Attitudes Toward Women and Their Roles as Represented By Literature Popular in Worcester, Massachusetts." Early Nineteenth Century Attitudes Toward Women and Their Roles as Represented By Literature Popular in Worcester, Massachusetts. N.p., n.d. Web. Heiland, Donna. Gothic & Gender: An Introduction. Malden, MA: Blackwell, 2004. Print. Mellor, Anne K. Mary Shelley: Her Life, Her Fiction, Her monsters. New York, NY: Routledge, 1989. Print. Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft. Frankenstein. New York, NY: Penguin, 1818. Print.
Therefore, the information provided by them can be misleading and in my opinion, often a lot is missed out of what men did not consider as relevant but in fact is the information which really needs be shared. Above that, the stereotype existed during this time. Men were considered as the breadwinner and women were supposed to do the household work and take care of children. But in fact, Industrial Revolution in part was fuelled by the economic necessity of many women, single and married, to find waged work outside their
Industrialization had a major impact on the lives of every American, including women. Before the era of industrialization, around the 1790's, a typical home scene depicted women carding and spinning while the man in the family weaves (Doc F). One statistic shows that men dominated women in the factory work, while women took over teaching and domestic services (Doc G). This information all relates to the changes in women because they were being discriminated against and given children's work while the men worked in factories all day. Women wanted to be given an equal chance, just as the men had been given.
Certainly the male characters in ‘Frankenstein’ are more developed that those of the females. Elizabeth Fay has suggested that the female characters are ‘idealised figures’ in much of Shelley’s work, particularly in the descriptions of Caroline and Elizabeth, the two mother figures in the novel.
A huge part of the economical grow of the United States was the wealth being produced by the factories in New England. Women up until the factories started booming were seen as the child-bearer and were not allowed to have any kind of career. They were valued for factories because of their ability to do intricate work requiring dexterity and nimble fingers. "The Industrial Revolution has on the whole proved beneficial to women. It has resulted in greater leisure for women in the home and has relieved them from the drudgery and monotony that characterized much of the hand labour previously performed in connection with industrial work under the domestic system. For the woman workers outside the home it has resulted in better conditions, a greater variety of openings and an improved status" (Ivy Pinchbeck, Women Workers and the Industrial Revolution, 1750-1850, pg.4) The women could now make their own money and they didn’t have to live completely off their husbands. This allowed women to start thinking more freely and become a little bit more independent.
...are more complex such as the monster, some such as the old man are put in to make a point, and some such as Elizabeth are created in a way that augments the imperfections of others. Each of the characters in Frankenstein has a role or purpose in the story and is created in a way that adds to the story line and the novel in general. By creating each character and shaping them to a specific likeness, Shelley has creates a complex story and one of English literature's greatest classics.
Victor was born into an upper class family, and experienced a pleasant childhood. ...during every hour of my infant life I received a lesson of patience, of charity, and of self control, I was so guided by a silken cord that all seemed but one train of enjoyment to me. (Shelley, Frankenstein, P. 33). However, the Frankenstein's were mainly concerned with physical appearance. Victor's father married Caroline because of her exquisite beauty, and Elizabeth was adopted into the family, also because she was beautiful. Victor was also a product of idealistic education; the explicit goal of this form of education is to make a contribution to civilization. For Victor, the contribution would be the study of life sciences and the formation of the soul; however, he had no one on his side encouraging him and supporting his educational involvement. As a result of this childhood, Victor is left with no sense of inner beauty. His disillusionment with parenthood, especially mothering after he lost his mother to scarlet fever, led to post-partum depression and neglect. He experienced the burden of loneliness by living in a superficial society and did not have the character to cope with it. For Victor, parenting had become an issue ...
In Frankenstein, there are many women that are mentioned who seem to initially play minor roles. Elizabeth is one of the most important female characters and is the embodiment of the consistently passive woman in the novel. She is a great friend to Victor whom she is expected to marry someday. Elizabeth takes on conventional feminist ideals by acting out the role of a "good girl," but as the story goes, it seems that she is merely there to suffer and die (Williams). Elizabeth is helplessly waiting for Victors return from his tour of Europe. She sends Victor a friendly letter telling him of how much she wants him to come home. She is very intent on getting Victor back so she can marry him. Elizabeth's death by the creature changes Victor's character because he is so close to her...
...nd the images of Robert Walton, Victor Frankenstein, and the fiend supplement each other. If we take one of them away, Frankenstein's plot will be different. Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley uses the same methods to create the male and female characters, and makes women even more positive, selfless, and purer, than men. The presence of women adds romanticism to the novel, without which Frankenstein loses its spirit. Mrs. Margaret Saville, Elizabeth Lavenza, and Justin Moritz act independently, and in the most difficult moments of their lives they encourage the men, and take care of them forgetting about themselves. So, both the female and the male characters in Frankenstein are important, and we cannot manage without them. The only question about the position of women in the novel remains open: if the author of Frankenstein were a man, would the fiend become a woman?
The three points that contribute greatly to the passive role of women are the lower rank women in society compared to men, women being seen as possessions for men to protect, and women admired for their superficial beauty. To begin with, Victor describes how his mother, Caroline Beaufort, meets his father, Alphonse Frankenstein, after Caroline’s father died in poverty. Victor mentions, “He came like a protecting spirit to the poor girl, who committed herself to his care; and after the interment of his friend, he conducted her to Geneva, and placed her under the protection of a relation” (Shelley 28). Even though Caroline is younger than Victor’s father, she has no choice, but to marry him. Without marrying Victor’s father, Caroline will still be in poverty, with nobody to support her.
When reading Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, one cannot help but notice that the women characters seem to have little substance compared to the male characters. This may have been caused by the time period in which she wrote: one in which females were considered inferior to males. This difference between the sexes can be looked at using a variety of different perspectives. Johanna M. Smith, a professor at the University of Texas at Arlington, discusses this issue using feminist eyes in her essay entitled "'Cooped up': Feminine Domesticity in Frankenstein." The main points in Professor Smith's essay are that the female characters are there only to reflect the male characters, and that the Frankenstein family has a weird style of living, which she describes as a "bookkeeping mentality" (Smith 279).
Anne Mellor, author of “Frankenstein: A Feminist Critique of Science” argues that Victor Frankenstein represents the patriarchal society. Mellor also argues that Victor is afraid of the female sexuality. “A fear of female sexuality is implicit in a patriarchal construction of gender” says Mellor. She continues with her argument, saying that the death of Elizabeth Lavenza, Victor’s bride-to-be, is extremely significant to the feminist backbone of the story.
From the beginning of time in history, women have always been portrayed as and seen as the submissive sex. Women especially during the time period of the 1800s were characterized as passive, disposable, and serving an utilitarian function. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is a prime example displaying the depiction of women. The women in Frankenstein represent the treatment of women in the early 1800’s. Shelley’s incorporation of suffering and death of her female characters portrays that in the 1800’s it was acceptable. The women in the novel are treated as property and have minimal rights in comparison to the male characters. The feminist critic would find that in Frankenstein the women characters are treated like second class citizens. The three brutal murders of the innocent women are gothic elements which illustrates that women are inferior in the novel. Mary Shelley, through her novel Frankenstein, was able to give the reader a good sense of women’s role as the submissive sex, through the characters experiences of horrific events including but not limited to brutal murder and degradation, which is illuminated by her personal life experiences and time period of romanticism.
In conclusion, in Mary Shelly’s novel Frankenstein, the female characters always fulfill the limited and archetypical roles that are set for them by society. In this novel, many female characters are considered to be possessions. In fact, they are considered to be the servants of men. “I have a pretty present for my Victor—tomorrow he shall have it.” (Mary Shelly, Pg. 70)
Within Frankenstein, the level at which a female is portrayed is quite low. Like we have heard in class, women were not necessarily respected as much as men were when the novel was written. Published in 1818 by Mary Shelley, her story tells of the adventure of young Victor Frankenstein and the creation of his creature. Though deep within this narration of Frankenstein’s life, there seems to be an underlying theme seeping through Shelley’s writing. Shelley seems to venture into the idea of feminism and grotesquely show how men are treated much better than women. Her novel includes various concrete examples to support this hypothesis.
In Mary Shelley’s novel there is a defined contrast between the characteristics and behaviors of Justine and Victor. For example, Justine’s actions during her unfair trial undoubtedly represent the quiet, menacing strength of women and highlights the insufficient masculinity of Victor. Justine, the wrongfully accused murderer of William Frankenstein,possesses unwavering courage which is illustrated when Shelley writes, “ The appearance of Justine was calm and she appeared confident in innocence and did not tremble”(64). This statement refutes the absurd interpretation of Shelley’s women characters as being feeble and weak. It superbly demon...