The Gender Battle in Mary Shelleys Frankenstein Essay -- Frankenstein

The Gender Battle in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein The fight for domination amongst the sexes is a battle as old as civilization, where the ideas of gender hierarchies first began. These conflicts often manifest themselves unwittingly through literature, showing subtle signs of deeper tension that has ensued for centuries. The struggle between masculine and feminine becomes apparent through Frankenstein, a battle that results in the death of the potentially most powerful figure in the book. Frankenstein yields characters motivated by complicated thinking, specifically the title character, Victor Frankenstein. Victor is a brilliant 19th century Swiss scientist who succeeds in generating life with electricity, creating a creature that eventually turns on his master and begins a reign of terror wherever he roams. Understanding Victor in relation to feminist studies is possible through examining his actions regarding the monster’s request of Frankenstein to fashion him a partner. Unable to win the love of his maker, Frankenstein, or his makeshift step brother, man, the monster believes the only being capable of loving him would be a creature equally horrifying as himself. Frankenstein initially refuses to comply with the demand because of guilt he already feels for the evil his monster has done. Eventually moved to pity, Frankenstein agrees to design a female on the grounds that she and her mate will "quit the neighbourhood of man" and never be seen again (Shelley 144). Victor partially completes the project before he "[tears] the thing to pieces," reasoning that he cannot have any part of making another creature who, like her mate, could become a "curse upon mankind" (Shelley 144-145). His decision seems noble to the reader, as we... ...ect mankind, but rather a wish to keep order in the masculine world. Destroying the female monster ensures that there is no feminine force created the male counterpart cannot combat, be that Victor or the monster. The female monster is a symbol in Frankenstein of an unstoppable feminine force. Only through the demise of such a character is Victor Frankenstein assured that he has not allowed that force to commandeer the control he and mankind have over femininity. Works Cited Kiely, Robert. The Romantic Novel in England, Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard Univ. Press, 1972. Liggins, Emma 2000. 'The Medical Gaze and the Female Corpse: Looking at Bodies in Shelley's Frankenstein' Studies in the Novel, number 32: 129-146 Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft. Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus. Ed. D.L. Macdonald and Kathleen Scherf. Peterborough: Broadview Press, 1994. The Gender Battle in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein Essay -- Frankenstein The Gender Battle in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein The fight for domination amongst the sexes is a battle as old as civilization, where the ideas of gender hierarchies first began. These conflicts often manifest themselves unwittingly through literature, showing subtle signs of deeper tension that has ensued for centuries. The struggle between masculine and feminine becomes apparent through Frankenstein, a battle that results in the death of the potentially most powerful figure in the book. Frankenstein yields characters motivated by complicated thinking, specifically the title character, Victor Frankenstein. Victor is a brilliant 19th century Swiss scientist who succeeds in generating life with electricity, creating a creature that eventually turns on his master and begins a reign of terror wherever he roams. Understanding Victor in relation to feminist studies is possible through examining his actions regarding the monster’s request of Frankenstein to fashion him a partner. Unable to win the love of his maker, Frankenstein, or his makeshift step brother, man, the monster believes the only being capable of loving him would be a creature equally horrifying as himself. Frankenstein initially refuses to comply with the demand because of guilt he already feels for the evil his monster has done. Eventually moved to pity, Frankenstein agrees to design a female on the grounds that she and her mate will "quit the neighbourhood of man" and never be seen again (Shelley 144). Victor partially completes the project before he "[tears] the thing to pieces," reasoning that he cannot have any part of making another creature who, like her mate, could become a "curse upon mankind" (Shelley 144-145). His decision seems noble to the reader, as we... ...ect mankind, but rather a wish to keep order in the masculine world. Destroying the female monster ensures that there is no feminine force created the male counterpart cannot combat, be that Victor or the monster. The female monster is a symbol in Frankenstein of an unstoppable feminine force. Only through the demise of such a character is Victor Frankenstein assured that he has not allowed that force to commandeer the control he and mankind have over femininity. Works Cited Kiely, Robert. The Romantic Novel in England, Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard Univ. Press, 1972. Liggins, Emma 2000. 'The Medical Gaze and the Female Corpse: Looking at Bodies in Shelley's Frankenstein' Studies in the Novel, number 32: 129-146 Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft. Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus. Ed. D.L. Macdonald and Kathleen Scherf. Peterborough: Broadview Press, 1994.