Hi! I'm studying Frankenstein for a subject and your observations are great. Even though the femenine roles are enclosed in the patriarchal schemes, they go beyond what is established for them. Safie (one of the characters inside the creature's tale) is a perfect example. In a deeper level, the role of the creature in society is paralleled with the position of women in society since the creature is "the other" (outside society), someone to fear, capable of getting education by its own, and confide in small places (the shed in De Lacey's house). In addition, the anger of the creature represents the anger of women for being repressed.
I'm studying Frankenstein in comparison with the bloody chamber and have an exam on it in 4 days. You have absolutely brought Frankenstein to life for me with this analysis.
Omg I'm studying and comparing Frankenstein with another novel, too. I haven't quite decided which book I'm comparing it to yet tho. Would you say that Bloody Chamber is a good option?
LOVE THIS VIDEO PIP, so well researched and so well reasoned and I love the examples and readings. I've read Frankenstein a few times now but have never considered the feminist slant to this extent, especially regarding the monster's wife - fantastic!
Wow wow wow, love this video! I’m doing Frankenstein in my a level English and this was so insightful, I’ll defiantly be making mention of these points in my essays!!
I read Frankenstein 3 years ago, well the 1831 version without knowing there was more than 1 version and what I read wasn't the original (I'm going to fix that this month) and really enjoyed it. Now I love it even more, and am even more excited to read it this month! The more I hear about Mary Shelley, the more I love her. Great video! :)
Thank you for watching and commenting. I was listening and reading this one at the same time - it was interesting to see the differences between the two! I hope you enjoy it on the re-read :)
It's amazing to think that Victor Frankenstein, known woman hater, would ever conceive that the "bride" of the monster could actually refuse the original monster's hand in marriage, simply bc shed never agreed to be a part of the marriage
It's almost like he realised you can't force powerful beings to do anything 💪🏻💪🏻 and without an established system of oppression the woman would be free to do as she pleases.
When I saw the title, I had my doubts, but you've done a great job analyzing this work from the women's perspective, especially the standards from that time. I just read it again because I watched an interview with a famous Spanish criminologist. He claimed that Dr. Jekyll, Mr. Hyde, and Frankenstein were the first literary stories about serial killers, and criminologists have been studying this for decades. Just think about Frankenstein's little brother. When the monster met him, he wanted to kidnap him to teach him to love him. He tried to appear harmless, but when he finds out the boy's last name, he breaks his neck. That's his true nature. The apparent "kindness" was just a mask, but as soon as things didn't work as he wanted, he became irascible and violent. Nowadays, people have been trying to humanize him, saying he is the only victim, but is it that different from a mass murderer? They are usually ostracized, made fun of, and bullied, which is WRONG, but does that give them the right to kill women and children? Inocent people? To cause terror and affect society's norms? Of course not. Maybe this is also a warning, intended to teach us what happens when we don't treat people well and deny them a minimal act of kindness.
I read Frankenstein in high school but don’t remember much about it lol! This was fantastic. I can’t imagine how much time went into this video, fantastic job Pip!
Wow That was awesome girl thanks for that thoughtful analysis ...I am working on my university project which is about a feminism reading of Frankenstein and you helped me figure out things I was really amazed by your thoughts that was gooood thank you ...🌹🌹🌹
I love how you pointed that part out in Frankenstein where the creature condemns Justine based on his claim that she will never smile at him. I think that's so funny because it makes me think of all the times that guys would ask me to smile for them, and would get annoyed because I wouldn't. These are strangers btw. Not to be mean guys, but I don't feel like smiling for you, just because you asked me to. I'll smile when I damn well please.
You go girl, this man who was raised by a single mother for half his life says. I'm same way about smiles I mean why do people want us to just do that? Oi
To add further to your analysis, I absolutely loved it because I am currently writing a research paper on Frankenstein from a feminist perspective and your video pretty much stated all the points I was going to bring up in my paper. So I'm glad that I'm on the right track lol Thank you and great video!
Oh wow this is really interesting! I am studying frankenstein at gcse (my exam is tomorrow :/) and have looked at concepts such as victor making the female monster on 'barren' land and the male monster at a university, but this is so insightful! Hoping i get a good question in my exam tomorrow so that i can use some of this in my analysis!!
Mary Shelly seemed to reject her mothers philosophy. Plus she dedicates the book to her father not her mother. I felt you used Mary Shelly and her master work for ideological purposes. What intrigues me is how Mary Shelly might consider herself as a monster or even Frankenstein.
This is a fabulous video, Pip, and so enlightening. I only read Frankenstein for the first time this year, so this really resonated with me in unpacking it in even more detail. Keep up your analysis - you're amazing!
Part of the 'joy' of reading books by female authors from that time, and slightly later, is how they actually create more rounded female characters If you can find any ! The book is nominally about a monster, but isn't really as you point out There are layers and meaning way beyond a 'simple' monster story It's a great book - definitely of its time but actually pretty cleverly written and deftly allegorical Cool post
I am LOVING these types of videos from you! I haven't read Frankenstein but you still give me food for thought and it's honestly just a great time to watch your content :D
Naw thanks so much!! I think my favourite part is how all my lady subscribers have come out and supported me making this video. So much lady-support warms my heart :D I plan to make more like this but boy do they take a lot of time holysmokes.
Super cool! Thanks for sharing. Little surprise Mary Shelley fought so hard to combat the vicious critics who went as far as to call her father a monster and her mother a prostitute. (Re the antijacobin magazine). Prior to writing Frankenstein Mary undertook careful analysts of both sides of the argument from the perspective of both jacobins and antijacobins with next year marking the 200th anniversary of the 1821 edition which was the first to attribute Mary Shelley as the author and the only such edition to do so during the lifetime of Percy Shelley.
I love this video, you have such a talent at presenting, the ABC should create a new book show and hire you as the host! :) I started reading Frankenstein online as something I can read at work on a Friday afternoon when no work is getting done haha and now I'm even more excited to keep reading!
Would u say women in Frankenstein are passive in some ways I.e Although Justine defends herself she still accepts her fate . Women are marginalised in society
I do not think that Frankenstein (the story) shared any idea that women were less than men or anything of that nature. They didn't have much part in this story and that isn't proof, the story just wasn't surrounding them Also I don't think that Frankenstein not wanting to create a second monster was for the the same reason I didn't belive earlier. You stated what the book said on why he didn't want to create her. It clearly stated that he did no want to duplicate the monster. He didn't want two of them. And importantly, he didn't want her to develop her own individualism and leave the monster and go out and roam society like he did. He said she would stay with him in the unknown parts of the world but could decide not to and go off on her own
It was also written by a woman whose mother became one of the more important feminist of that time period. At the time there were debates about women’s role in society, and what role they should fill. Mary Shelley had mixed feelings on marriage and was wed to an avowed atheist with a strong literary background. Also, around the time the novel was written she was already facing issues of childbirth, death, illegitimacy and marriage. All these things make their way into Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, but you may need more than just a quick reread to catch all the nuances going on.
I just read Frankenstein (for the first time) in September and three weeks later, I'm still thinking about it! I'm certain that I will re-visit again and again because I loved it that much. The story, to me, was so much more than a "monster/horror" story, and it was not at all what I was expecting. To say that I felt overwhelming compassion for "the monster" is an understatement! I so enjoyed hearing your thoughts and I appreciate the time and effort that it took!
I had so many underlines of the Monster's speeches - so good! I was also presently surprised by how it was all just about humans rather than about horror etc. Thank you for sharing your thoughts here :)
I love this video! It’s been a while since I read it, but my English teacher in high school made us read it for a feminism lesson, so I’ve only read it as a feminist novel and I loved it. I’ve been meaning to read it again to see if I could pick up on things I missed the first time. So glad I came across your video! One of my favorite discussions we had in class was on gender roles in the novel, specifically the way Henry takes care of Victor in a way women were usually expected to.
That's so cool! I really wish I paid more attention at school, we probably had all these awesome discussions that I was probably asleep for. I thought it was really interesting how Henry takes on that nurse role. Hmm... More unpacking to be done I think.
Mary Shelby created this book, the doctor's character, the role of women. The only thing you've proven in this video is that you have no rationality which is exactly what you're trying to disprove.
This book had absolutely nothing to do with feminism. This book is simply about the criminal mindset. The monster is like his creator in one way; they both spend their days considering their victimhood and this leads both of them to hate. Their hate harms not only others, but also themselves.
Hey there! I just finished the book myself today. At first, I didn't immediately think of any feminist themes. I was mostly focused on the role of life experiences, acceptance, nature vs nurture, and of course revenge. But I would argue there are certainly some feminist themes at play here. The entire story is about the creation of life and the obligation that comes with it. "You made life, now take care of it, whether or not you like it. Anything it does is your fault. You're responsible for it's happiness and if it grows up to be bad, you did a bad job." I don't know much of Mary Shelly's context or history, and was curious if there was some postpartum depression that might have influenced the story, seeing how Viktor immediately regrets his creation the very moment it comes to life, and all that follows after. His anguish at having made it at all, and his fear at bringing yet another into this world. Plus there's only so many women in the story, but the role of almost every one of them was "make other people happy at your own cost"; as a mother, a sister, a wife, a bride. The nurse when Viktor was imprisoned flat out said she hated him, but did her job anyway. Elizabeth was miserable at the idea that Viktor loved another and was willing to throw a marriage away for his sake. The mother died as a result of taking care of young Elizabeth. Plenty of examples of female sacrifice. And then on the make side we see a refusal to sacrifice: obviously with Viktor but also with Captain Walton at the end, begrudgingly wanting to continue the arctic expedition at the risk of his crew. At least that's my interpretation having just finished the story. Definitely want to ponder over it a bit more. What do you think?
I have never read "Frankenstein". Ever. It's on my eternal TBR, as are other "spooky" themed books, classics especially. Your video only makes me want to RUN OUT AND BUY IT NOW!!!!!! You brilliantly and so articulately pulled out so much feminist meaning and importance from the tale. Your biggest strength in this video is the backstory and cultural context you offered up first. Modern readers often struggle with classics because we simply don't know how life was "back then". And the commentary on emotional labor? Right. On. The. Money. I will probably watch anything you produce and can't wait to get my hands on "Frankenstein"! Bravo.
Thank you so much for your kind words! I'm so glad you connected with my thoughts. Happy reading and I hope you read it and enjoy it as much as I did :)
I'm no expert but there is plenty to unpack in this book, even the best friend performing trad. fem role as carer. A lot of creation stuff/ who creates life. Good luck 👍💪 you got this
10/10 would recommend. I am HERE for this content. Have you seen the movie Mary Shelley that's out in cinemas right now? Her family and her life is fascinating too.
+adamsalyce thanks so much for the support! I haven't seen the movie but i hear there is a lot of drowning. I will have to check it out. Thanks for the tip
Not many people especially men hate Man hating feminists who go through OLD books from 200 years ago and pick them apart and then go THATS SEXIST , even if the book is written by a WOMAN LOL. She’s an SJW type who says everything stores of dimes before 2016 is sexist , racist and other types of ists
You mean having your adoptive mother express as her dying wish that you marry your cousin/adoptive brother is not the pinnacle of romance? I am shocked, shocked I tell you, to discover this. Like Victor I shall have to go and look at some mountains to deal with my feels now.
Feminism? Yes! You ever trying to talk about literature? NO! You didn't even care to read the book. There are plenty fantastic videos on feminism and Frankenstein and this isn't one of them. Also, hating men isn't actually feminism, it's sexism
This is a really interesting discussion :) I think I would have enjoyed the book more if I'd maybe read it with other people and discussed themes like feminism, I really didn't pick up on any of this, and I'm sad to say I mainly just got the "man creates another man then sulks about it" vibes, the only way I previously viewed this is a feminist book was that she basically invented sci-fi which is so dominated by men nowadays, so I appreciated it a lot for that but I never picked up on any of the other stuff.
Occasionally I come across a book I desperately NEED to discuss with people, and it makes me wish I studied literature or whatever so I have the tools to talk about it. When I read this for the first time in highschool I barely got half-way and it didn't vibe with me at all. But now, haha, well I guess the video says it all (well most of my good thoughts anyway)
Aw well I thought the way you talked about it was very eloquent, I don't know if you felt like you didn't get across some things but it seemed like you expressed yourself well :) I know what you mean though because sometimes I can't get across what I feel about a book and I do wish I'd studied literature too. Yeah that makes sense, I read it in high school too, I didn't really enjoy anything I was made to read in high school, so I'm glad I gave it another chance even if I still didn't enjoy it haha
I think your interpretation is a little messy because you are jumping between different themes and reference levels, but it's very inspiring. Describing Frankenstein as someone who strongly demand emotional support from others but also refuse to give it to others is very interesting. That's a hierarchy as pure it can be, and it's distilled into one single individual. So through a feminist reading, frankenstein can be seen as the embodiment of the patriarchy. But I wouldn't say, Mary Shelly was giving the society a FU with this book. Maybe she was giving hierarchical mindsets a FU - of course this implies patriarchy in society too. But it could also apply on this crazy new exploitative capitalism under industrialisation. And on any other non consensual kind of hierarchy. It's interesting to know, that not only was Mary Shelleys mom, Mary Wollstonecraft, was one of the founding feminist philosophers, her dad, William Godwin, was also the first modern proponent of anarchism. So the values Mary Shelley grew up with certainly gave her an unconventional mindset for the time. The values of society must seem wrong and also familiar to her since she was a child. I personally (and I have done no research) don't have the impression that she gave anyone a FU in this book. You only give someone a FU if you feel betrayed from someone or something you had trust in beforehand. When there was one author who grew up with the deep belief, society is an injustice construct, then it must be her, the daughter of the a pioneer of anarchism and a pioneer of feminism. For Mary Shelley social injustice was the default setting, and writing something where her critical view on the society doesn't shine through would be very hard to do and absolutely unauthentic.
Quite a poor video which explains why the video has less than 5k views. Feminist interpretation 😂 why not a vegan interpretation or a transgender interpretation? I would like to see that
trust me I hate third wave feminism but for my lit class I had to read this book through a feminist lense and its actually a book full of feminist topics
her explanation and theories are just so good, i wish she was my English teacher lol
Omg you guys are too nice 😭
Literally why I kept pausing the video timings😂💕
This is brilliant! I'm studying Frankenstein at A Level and this has been so helpful!
Hi! I'm studying Frankenstein for a subject and your observations are great. Even though the femenine roles are enclosed in the patriarchal schemes, they go beyond what is established for them. Safie (one of the characters inside the creature's tale) is a perfect example.
In a deeper level, the role of the creature in society is paralleled with the position of women in society since the creature is "the other" (outside society), someone to fear, capable of getting education by its own, and confide in small places (the shed in De Lacey's house). In addition, the anger of the creature represents the anger of women for being repressed.
Love this reading of it! That's probably why it hit so hard, only an 'outsider' could write this book!
I'm studying Frankenstein in comparison with the bloody chamber and have an exam on it in 4 days. You have absolutely brought Frankenstein to life for me with this analysis.
Omg I'm studying and comparing Frankenstein with another novel, too. I haven't quite decided which book I'm comparing it to yet tho. Would you say that Bloody Chamber is a good option?
@purplehearts5938 it's a very good option when discussing feminism
LOVE THIS VIDEO PIP, so well researched and so well reasoned and I love the examples and readings. I've read Frankenstein a few times now but have never considered the feminist slant to this extent, especially regarding the monster's wife - fantastic!
Thanks Kyra this means a lot to me 😍😍😍
So true!!
Wow wow wow, love this video! I’m doing Frankenstein in my a level English and this was so insightful, I’ll defiantly be making mention of these points in my essays!!
I read Frankenstein 3 years ago, well the 1831 version without knowing there was more than 1 version and what I read wasn't the original (I'm going to fix that this month) and really enjoyed it.
Now I love it even more, and am even more excited to read it this month! The more I hear about Mary Shelley, the more I love her. Great video! :)
Thank you for watching and commenting. I was listening and reading this one at the same time - it was interesting to see the differences between the two! I hope you enjoy it on the re-read :)
It's amazing to think that Victor Frankenstein, known woman hater, would ever conceive that the "bride" of the monster could actually refuse the original monster's hand in marriage, simply bc shed never agreed to be a part of the marriage
It's almost like he realised you can't force powerful beings to do anything 💪🏻💪🏻 and without an established system of oppression the woman would be free to do as she pleases.
I am studying Frankenstein for GCSE and this was very useful and interesting- thank you!!
Good luck with your exams xx
When I saw the title, I had my doubts, but you've done a great job analyzing this work from the women's perspective, especially the standards from that time.
I just read it again because I watched an interview with a famous Spanish criminologist. He claimed that Dr. Jekyll, Mr. Hyde, and Frankenstein were the first literary stories about serial killers, and criminologists have been studying this for decades.
Just think about Frankenstein's little brother. When the monster met him, he wanted to kidnap him to teach him to love him. He tried to appear harmless, but when he finds out the boy's last name, he breaks his neck. That's his true nature. The apparent "kindness" was just a mask, but as soon as things didn't work as he wanted, he became irascible and violent.
Nowadays, people have been trying to humanize him, saying he is the only victim, but is it that different from a mass murderer? They are usually ostracized, made fun of, and bullied, which is WRONG, but does that give them the right to kill women and children? Inocent people? To cause terror and affect society's norms? Of course not. Maybe this is also a warning, intended to teach us what happens when we don't treat people well and deny them a minimal act of kindness.
I read Frankenstein in high school but don’t remember much about it lol! This was fantastic. I can’t imagine how much time went into this video, fantastic job Pip!
Thank you so much! I am still recovering I think. It's hard to come back after this...
Wow That was awesome girl thanks for that thoughtful analysis ...I am working on my university project which is about a feminism reading of Frankenstein and you helped me figure out things I was really amazed by your thoughts that was gooood thank you ...🌹🌹🌹
This is so wonderful! I’m reading Frankenstein for my grade 12 English class. ;)
I love how you pointed that part out in Frankenstein where the creature condemns Justine based on his claim that she will never smile at him. I think that's so funny because it makes me think of all the times that guys would ask me to smile for them, and would get annoyed because I wouldn't. These are strangers btw. Not to be mean guys, but I don't feel like smiling for you, just because you asked me to. I'll smile when I damn well please.
You go girl, this man who was raised by a single mother for half his life says. I'm same way about smiles I mean why do people want us to just do that? Oi
Women have died for so little. Breaks my heart this is still relevant 😔
To add further to your analysis, I absolutely loved it because I am currently writing a research paper on Frankenstein from a feminist perspective and your video pretty much stated all the points I was going to bring up in my paper. So I'm glad that I'm on the right track lol Thank you and great video!
Oh wow this is really interesting! I am studying frankenstein at gcse (my exam is tomorrow :/) and have looked at concepts such as victor making the female monster on 'barren' land and the male monster at a university, but this is so insightful! Hoping i get a good question in my exam tomorrow so that i can use some of this in my analysis!!
Good luck in your exams! You got this 💪💪💪
Pip Reads thank you!! :)
This helped me so much for my essay. Thank you MUAH!!!
Happy it helped!
Working on an essay right now, thanks for the inspiration and thoughts!
Great analysis! Great picks from the story.
Mary Shelly seemed to reject her mothers philosophy. Plus she dedicates the book to her father not her mother. I felt you used Mary Shelly and her master work for ideological purposes. What intrigues me is how Mary Shelly might consider herself as a monster or even Frankenstein.
I`m not a Novelist. I don`t read novels. But I have read Frankenstein. I`d love to have a scrap with this lass about its meanings.
this is really great🥰.i love the way you explain 🥰
This is a fabulous video, Pip, and so enlightening. I only read Frankenstein for the first time this year, so this really resonated with me in unpacking it in even more detail. Keep up your analysis - you're amazing!
Naw shucks, thanks so much :D These videos are so time consuming but I think they are worth it :)
Love the way u approached the novel esp from a feminist point of view
Part of the 'joy' of reading books by female authors from that time, and slightly later, is how they actually create more rounded female characters
If you can find any !
The book is nominally about a monster, but isn't really as you point out
There are layers and meaning way beyond a 'simple' monster story
It's a great book - definitely of its time but actually pretty cleverly written and deftly allegorical
Cool post
Thanks so much for your comments as always Paul!
Such a good explanation 💕💕
Wow, great video Pip!!!
Loved it !
+Book Breakdown thanks so much!
This video was amazing! So many good points, ooh I also really enjoyed the Mary Shelley film, she was so freaking cool! you’re awesome :)
+Codie's Book Corner no you are awesome. Thanks for the tip i will have to check it out!
“My new BFF context” 😂😂 I laughed out loud because of that!
this is amazing!!
Writing my final 20 page paper on this! Do you have any good sources?
Sorry, I have no idea what this means as I am not an english/literature academic. Do you want page numbers?
I am LOVING these types of videos from you! I haven't read Frankenstein but you still give me food for thought and it's honestly just a great time to watch your content :D
Naw thanks so much!! I think my favourite part is how all my lady subscribers have come out and supported me making this video. So much lady-support warms my heart :D I plan to make more like this but boy do they take a lot of time holysmokes.
have my uni exam about this book in an hour lol, thanks!
We used your video in our university course when we analyzed Frankenstein. :)
🤯🤯🤯🤯 whhaaaatt? This is crazy. I hope it helped. Good luck with your studies xx
Super cool! Thanks for sharing. Little surprise Mary Shelley fought so hard to combat the vicious critics who went as far as to call her father a monster and her mother a prostitute. (Re the antijacobin magazine). Prior to writing Frankenstein Mary undertook careful analysts of both sides of the argument from the perspective of both jacobins and antijacobins with next year marking the 200th anniversary of the 1821 edition which was the first to attribute Mary Shelley as the author and the only such edition to do so during the lifetime of Percy Shelley.
*mic drop - you win booktube. Fantastic - thanks for this!
+ThePoptimist *picks mic back up to say a big 'thank you' 🤩🤩
This is great. I LOVE your enthusiasm :D
Thank you!
7:44 I thought of this myself as well, I feel like a genius now 😜
I love this video, you have such a talent at presenting, the ABC should create a new book show and hire you as the host! :) I started reading Frankenstein online as something I can read at work on a Friday afternoon when no work is getting done haha and now I'm even more excited to keep reading!
You are too kind!! I hope you enjoy your reading, and please be sure to send me all of your thoughts!!!
I am studying English literature and your video helped me a lot :) Thank you. I am going to write an essay about feminism in Frankenstein.
A great topic! Good luck with your studies xx
Would u say women in Frankenstein are passive in some ways I.e Although Justine defends herself she still accepts her fate . Women are marginalised in society
Freakishly brilliant!
Thank you :) nice chatting last night
you are a beautiful human bean thanks for existing i hope you are doing well! and i lobe your smile and i really liked the book too
I do not think that Frankenstein (the story) shared any idea that women were less than men or anything of that nature. They didn't have much part in this story and that isn't proof, the story just wasn't surrounding them
Also I don't think that Frankenstein not wanting to create a second monster was for the the same reason I didn't belive earlier. You stated what the book said on why he didn't want to create her. It clearly stated that he did no want to duplicate the monster. He didn't want two of them. And importantly, he didn't want her to develop her own individualism and leave the monster and go out and roam society like he did. He said she would stay with him in the unknown parts of the world but could decide not to and go off on her own
It’s in the context of the book. Check out Mary Shelley’s Wedding Guest
It was also written by a woman whose mother became one of the more important feminist of that time period. At the time there were debates about women’s role in society, and what role they should fill. Mary Shelley had mixed feelings on marriage and was wed to an avowed atheist with a strong literary background. Also, around the time the novel was written she was already facing issues of childbirth, death, illegitimacy and marriage. All these things make their way into Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, but you may need more than just a quick reread to catch all the nuances going on.
I just read Frankenstein (for the first time) in September and three weeks later, I'm still thinking about it! I'm certain that I will re-visit again and again because I loved it that much. The story, to me, was so much more than a "monster/horror" story, and it was not at all what I was expecting. To say that I felt overwhelming compassion for "the monster" is an understatement! I so enjoyed hearing your thoughts and I appreciate the time and effort that it took!
I had so many underlines of the Monster's speeches - so good! I was also presently surprised by how it was all just about humans rather than about horror etc. Thank you for sharing your thoughts here :)
I love this video! It’s been a while since I read it, but my English teacher in high school made us read it for a feminism lesson, so I’ve only read it as a feminist novel and I loved it. I’ve been meaning to read it again to see if I could pick up on things I missed the first time. So glad I came across your video! One of my favorite discussions we had in class was on gender roles in the novel, specifically the way Henry takes care of Victor in a way women were usually expected to.
That's so cool! I really wish I paid more attention at school, we probably had all these awesome discussions that I was probably asleep for. I thought it was really interesting how Henry takes on that nurse role. Hmm... More unpacking to be done I think.
Mary Shelby created this book, the doctor's character, the role of women. The only thing you've proven in this video is that you have no rationality which is exactly what you're trying to disprove.
Thanks for the interaction and your donation to the SEO gods. Have a great day 😘
@@PipReads What?
This book had absolutely nothing to do with feminism. This book is simply about the criminal mindset. The monster is like his creator in one way; they both spend their days considering their victimhood and this leads both of them to hate. Their hate harms not only others, but also themselves.
Hey there! I just finished the book myself today. At first, I didn't immediately think of any feminist themes. I was mostly focused on the role of life experiences, acceptance, nature vs nurture, and of course revenge.
But I would argue there are certainly some feminist themes at play here. The entire story is about the creation of life and the obligation that comes with it. "You made life, now take care of it, whether or not you like it. Anything it does is your fault. You're responsible for it's happiness and if it grows up to be bad, you did a bad job."
I don't know much of Mary Shelly's context or history, and was curious if there was some postpartum depression that might have influenced the story, seeing how Viktor immediately regrets his creation the very moment it comes to life, and all that follows after. His anguish at having made it at all, and his fear at bringing yet another into this world.
Plus there's only so many women in the story, but the role of almost every one of them was "make other people happy at your own cost"; as a mother, a sister, a wife, a bride. The nurse when Viktor was imprisoned flat out said she hated him, but did her job anyway. Elizabeth was miserable at the idea that Viktor loved another and was willing to throw a marriage away for his sake. The mother died as a result of taking care of young Elizabeth. Plenty of examples of female sacrifice. And then on the make side we see a refusal to sacrifice: obviously with Viktor but also with Captain Walton at the end, begrudgingly wanting to continue the arctic expedition at the risk of his crew.
At least that's my interpretation having just finished the story. Definitely want to ponder over it a bit more. What do you think?
I have never read "Frankenstein". Ever. It's on my eternal TBR, as are other "spooky" themed books, classics especially. Your video only makes me want to RUN OUT AND BUY IT NOW!!!!!! You brilliantly and so articulately pulled out so much feminist meaning and importance from the tale. Your biggest strength in this video is the backstory and cultural context you offered up first. Modern readers often struggle with classics because we simply don't know how life was "back then". And the commentary on emotional labor? Right. On. The. Money. I will probably watch anything you produce and can't wait to get my hands on "Frankenstein"! Bravo.
Thank you so much for your kind words! I'm so glad you connected with my thoughts. Happy reading and I hope you read it and enjoy it as much as I did :)
I really should reread Frankenstein. This was an amazing video!
+MoreBooksMoreTea can recommend 👌👌
This helped me alot but I'm still struggling I have course work on frankenstkne and feminism, anyone want to give me a hand ??
I'm no expert but there is plenty to unpack in this book, even the best friend performing trad. fem role as carer. A lot of creation stuff/ who creates life. Good luck 👍💪 you got this
10/10 would recommend. I am HERE for this content. Have you seen the movie Mary Shelley that's out in cinemas right now? Her family and her life is fascinating too.
+adamsalyce thanks so much for the support! I haven't seen the movie but i hear there is a lot of drowning. I will have to check it out. Thanks for the tip
Why don't you have more subscribers? Your analysis is spot on!
Feel free to spread the good word ;)
Not many people especially men hate Man hating feminists who go through OLD books from 200 years ago and pick them apart and then go THATS SEXIST , even if the book is written by a WOMAN LOL.
She’s an SJW type who says everything stores of dimes before 2016 is sexist , racist and other types of ists
Great analysis, especially regarding the Monster’s mate. The whole relationship between Frankenstein and Elizabeth though... ugh.
+John-Alan Pascoe thanks so much! yeah, it's not something i would want for myself.
You mean having your adoptive mother express as her dying wish that you marry your cousin/adoptive brother is not the pinnacle of romance? I am shocked, shocked I tell you, to discover this. Like Victor I shall have to go and look at some mountains to deal with my feels now.
Also The books not about feminism , it’s about weather we should be come gods over men
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Ahhh such a fantastic video!!
Thank you!
Feminism? Yes! You ever trying to talk about literature? NO! You didn't even care to read the book. There are plenty fantastic videos on feminism and Frankenstein and this isn't one of them. Also, hating men isn't actually feminism, it's sexism
Thanks for taking the time to interact with this video 💁♀️
This is a really interesting discussion :) I think I would have enjoyed the book more if I'd maybe read it with other people and discussed themes like feminism, I really didn't pick up on any of this, and I'm sad to say I mainly just got the "man creates another man then sulks about it" vibes, the only way I previously viewed this is a feminist book was that she basically invented sci-fi which is so dominated by men nowadays, so I appreciated it a lot for that but I never picked up on any of the other stuff.
Occasionally I come across a book I desperately NEED to discuss with people, and it makes me wish I studied literature or whatever so I have the tools to talk about it. When I read this for the first time in highschool I barely got half-way and it didn't vibe with me at all. But now, haha, well I guess the video says it all (well most of my good thoughts anyway)
Aw well I thought the way you talked about it was very eloquent, I don't know if you felt like you didn't get across some things but it seemed like you expressed yourself well :) I know what you mean though because sometimes I can't get across what I feel about a book and I do wish I'd studied literature too. Yeah that makes sense, I read it in high school too, I didn't really enjoy anything I was made to read in high school, so I'm glad I gave it another chance even if I still didn't enjoy it haha
I think your interpretation is a little messy because you are jumping between different themes and reference levels, but it's very inspiring. Describing Frankenstein as someone who strongly demand emotional support from others but also refuse to give it to others is very interesting. That's a hierarchy as pure it can be, and it's distilled into one single individual. So through a feminist reading, frankenstein can be seen as the embodiment of the patriarchy.
But I wouldn't say, Mary Shelly was giving the society a FU with this book. Maybe she was giving hierarchical mindsets a FU - of course this implies patriarchy in society too. But it could also apply on this crazy new exploitative capitalism under industrialisation. And on any other non consensual kind of hierarchy.
It's interesting to know, that not only was Mary Shelleys mom, Mary Wollstonecraft, was one of the founding feminist philosophers, her dad, William Godwin, was also the first modern proponent of anarchism. So the values Mary Shelley grew up with certainly gave her an unconventional mindset for the time. The values of society must seem wrong and also familiar to her since she was a child.
I personally (and I have done no research) don't have the impression that she gave anyone a FU in this book. You only give someone a FU if you feel betrayed from someone or something you had trust in beforehand. When there was one author who grew up with the deep belief, society is an injustice construct, then it must be her, the daughter of the a pioneer of anarchism and a pioneer of feminism. For Mary Shelley social injustice was the default setting, and writing something where her critical view on the society doesn't shine through would be very hard to do and absolutely unauthentic.
Quite a poor video which explains why the video has less than 5k views. Feminist interpretation 😂 why not a vegan interpretation or a transgender interpretation? I would like to see that
trust me I hate third wave feminism but for my lit class I had to read this book through a feminist lense and its actually a book full of feminist topics
Exactly why this book sucks
this was so helpful. thank u. my feminist soul was THRIVING while watching this 😊😊😊
Thanks so much :) glad it was useful to you
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