Gender Roles In Gothic Literature

During the eighteenth and nineteenth century, gender roles were extremely strict and ridged, with a male dominant society. Men were the prominent moneymakers of the household and held important religious, political, and public positions. On the other hand, women were expected to be the homemakers, staying at home to take care of the house and children. Novels written during this time sometimes challenged these gender stereotypes, specifically works in the gothic genre. Novels such as Villette by Charlotte Bronte and Frankenstein by Mary Shelley use characters to portray and challenge the obvious gender expectations during the 1800s.

The characters of Villette are easily associated either comparing or contrasting the common gender roles during the time the novel was written, 1853. A character in the novel who portrays the female gender

role during the nineteenth century is Polly, later in the novel referred to as Paulina. Lucy Snowe, the narrator describes Polly in many different ways, all representing the expected characteristics of females. On page 14, she says Polly has a “tiny stature and trim, neat shape.” Lucy also compares Polly to a doll, insisting on the perfection of the child. Throughout the novel, the character of Polly embodies the stereotypes of the nineteenth century woman: dainty, polite, and beautiful. Along with the physical attributes, Paulina also obeys every man’s wishes, especially Graham, her lover, and her father. In putting men before herself, Paulina clearly shows and follows the gender role of the female in the nineteenth century. Contrasting Paulina in Villette in Madame Beck, the proprietress of the school Lucy Snowe teaches. Instead of being entirely submissive to men, Madame Beck holds a place of power and authority. Lucy describes her in a more masculine way, especially compared to her description of Paulina. Another aspect of Madame Beck that is not consistent with the expected gender roles in that she does not show complete interest in her children. “She was solicitous about her family, vigilant for their interests, and physical well-being; but she never seemed to know the wish to take her little children upon her lap, to press their rosy lips with her own, to gather them in a genial embrace, to shower on them softly the benignant caress, the loving word” (Bronte 93). With her position of authority, masculine traits, and un-loving attitude towards her children, Madame Bronte challenges the gender roles of the nineteenth century.
Furthermore, the characters of Frankenstein almost entirely follow the gender roles during the nineteenth century.

While Villette does show some female characters that challenge stereotypes, Frankenstein does not, holding a complete “male dominant” story. Each female character, including Elizabeth, Safie, and Justine, is passive and virtually unimportant to the story, besides for further male advancement. This can be seen in the character of Safie. Her character is important to the story because as she learns, the creature observes and learns from himself, showing the progressing male and the passive female. Elizabeth, Victor’s lover, also portrays the female gender role. She is beautiful and submissive to Victor, who refers to her as a piece of property. The creature kills Elizabeth, the most important possession of Victor’s, in order to inflict the most pain upon him. Again, a female is used in the novel for further male advancement. The absence of a female protagonist in Frankenstein, and the presence of passive, insignificant female roles, the novel conveys and follows the typical gender roles during the nineteenth

century.
Overall, the novels of Villette and Frankenstein convey and challenge the gender roles during the nineteenth century. With the contrast of Polly and Madame Beck, Charlotte Bronte shows that a female can, in fact, be in power. On the other hand, Frankenstein does not challenge the gender stereotypes, but follows them, with a novel concentrated around the use of females for male advancement.