Frankenstein
As I dwelled deeper into the book, I began to notice that most of the fallen victims in the book are women. The first victim in the book is Victors own mother, Caroline. She grew ill while Victor was studying at the University and the text mentions that Victor gave very little attention to his family during his stay at the University because he was too focused with his studies. Although Victor was not the root cause for his mothers illness, the text is implying that his departure from his family accelerated his mothers illness. The text later introduces other female characters that are ultimately killed as a result of Victors creation.
In the text, we find out that Victors brother, William, was found in the woods killed by something/someone. Victor is well aware that his creation was the one responsible for his brothers death, but Justine (a girl who used to live with the Frankenstein family) was labeled the killer. Victor was mortified that his creation was a burden and was causing trouble to people close to him. In the text he says, “Justine also was a girl of merit, and possessed qualities which promised to render her life happy: now all was to be obliterated in an ignominious grave; and I the cause! A thousand times rather would I have confessed myself guilty of the crime ascribed to Justine.” The popular trend in this text is that women are dying and the one to blame is the men (in this case victor and his monster creation). We can assume that Mary Shelley (the daughter of the famous female writer Mary Wollstonecraft) has possessed her mothers ideas and is finishing her job b
I think you’re noticing something interesting. There is definitely something going on with gender, and I like how you connect that gender to Shelley’s infamous Women’s Rights pioneer mother. I think though so many people die that it’s hard to say that it is just the women b/c three males die too (if we don’t count Frankenstein) himself. I think what you can say is that all the primary female characters die (except presumably the DeLacey women). I think for a close reading you have too broad a topic. Notice how you can make your point really without quoting any text. I think it would be worth looking at all these deaths and seeing if you notice any specific textual patterns (images, ways of describing the deaths or the absence of the female characters). If you do that work, you will narrow your scope, get your reading closer to the text, and be able to say more about what’s at stake in this pattern you’re seeing.