 The words that Shelley uses to describe Frankenstein's process of creation suggest that it is analogous to pregnancy and childbirth. Just as pregnant women in the 18th century were confined to a room before going into labor, Frankenstein describes himself as "emaciated with confinement" and beset by a "slow fever" (Shelly 55, 57). He repeatedly refers to his "midnight labors" and anticipates the day when his "labors would [...] end" (Shelley 55, 57). Why might Shelley compare the male protagonist's process of creation with a woman's biological process of giving birth? What is the purpose of the comparison?
Primary Blog Expectations (respond to the prompt above): 100-150 words, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm tonight 2-24-2025! Secondary Blog Response Expectations (read everyone's primary responses, select two that interest you, and respond to their ideas): 100-150 words EACH, minimal errors in grammar and usage, thoughtful and thorough writing. Please use the name you were assigned in class as your nom de plume and be sure to add word count. Due by 11:59pm Thursday night 2-28-2025!
31 Comments
Kusumoto Ine
2/24/2025 01:16:59 pm
Shelly might compare Victor Frankenstein’s process of creation to a woman’s biological process of giving birth due to the fact that both processes resulted in giving life. The purpose of this comparison is to give the reader another lens so that they would be able to establish the connection of life and the fact of actually bringing someone into the world more distinctly. Victor brings life to this creature which looks upon him as father-like since Frankenstein is his own creator. This is similar to how a child sees the mother after birth due to the fact that as the baby is born and placed into the mother’s chest to establish a parental relationship. The parental relationship established in both processes relates to providing life to a once “lifeless” being but then also settling down with the parental figure in their life whether that be Victor, or the mother.
Ida Augusta Keller
2/24/2025 08:57:29 pm
I like your interpretation of Mary Shelley’s usage of the comparison between Victor's “labor” and mothers actual childbirth labor. It definitely shows how labor isn’t just a woman giving birth but rather a parent bringing in life and making, or not making, that connection with their child once alive. However the only difference is that victor doesn’t really fall into his parental role and instead wants the creature to leave, which will later affect him in the future, where I believe Mary Shelley is possibly connection Victor’s experience not only to childbirth but how not stepping up to be a parent can cause issues or problems in the future for that child,the creature in this case.
Huang lu
2/25/2025 07:28:47 pm
Your comparison between Victor's actions of creating life and the biological process of childbirth is very compelling. The idea that both processes can bring life into the world yet can result in different outcomes can highlight Shelly's critique of unnatural creation. Unlike a mother who nurtures her child, Victor on the other hand neglects his own creation. This leads to consequences to occur later on in the story. Shelly suggests that true parental duty lies not only in giving your life but also in offering guidance.
Emily Siedeberg
2/26/2025 07:10:35 pm
Your analysis highlights the striking link between childbirth and Victor’s creation process in an easy and thoughtful way. I like how you note that both acts bring life and form a unique parental bond, whether it is the natural bond between a mother and child or the unnatural bond Victor forms with his creature. Your view shows that life, when created, demands care, love, and responsibility. It also reminds us that science and nature are connected. I agree that this comparison reveals the pain and isolation involved, and it forces us to consider the true meaning of family and loss.
Huang Lu
2/24/2025 03:52:36 pm
In Frankenstein, Mary Shelly compares Victor Frankenstein's creation to childbirth. This can emphasize his responsibility to look after what he brings into the world. Just like a mother endures pain and sacrifice to give birth, Victor suffers physically and mentally while creating this "creature" of his to bring onto earth. However unlike a mother who nurtures, loves, and protects their children. Victor rejects his creation and abandons it out of fear. Shelly's comparison of Victor and a mother giving birth can suggest that bringing life into the world comes with an obligation to care for it. Overall, Victor being blinded with his obsession with creating life consumes him. This mirrors the sacrifices a mother makes to bring a child into existence, However the mother protects and looks after them, while Victor does the opposite.
Ida Augusta Keller
2/24/2025 09:00:59 pm
This is a good interpretation of the comparison that Mary Shelley used that I didn’t really think to look into. Not only did Victor feel the pains of being a child or thing into the world, he also has to take care and responsibility of this creature. He can’t just simply create it and believe that he can let it run wild, which he did end up doing eventually. I think with victor bringin the creature to life and realizing the challenge he just put on himself, he separates himself from a average mother who would take care of that child to the best of their abilities, but instead wanting the creature to leave, and once it did, never bothering to find it or take ownership of it, or its actions it may make while on its own in the world.
Irma Goldberg
2/26/2025 08:17:32 pm
You bringing up the comparison between Victor Frankenstein and a mother giving birth shows the type of responsibility that comes with creating life. When a mother gives birth to a baby it shows the pain and suffering that many women have to go through and this is also shown when Victor was creating his “creature”. Victor had to go through so many things physically and emotionally when creating his “creature” and that can also reflect the pain of childbirth. Just like when a mother gives birth and they get to meet their child they become joyful, yet when Victor met his creation he was scared and rejected him. Victor failed to be a parent to his creation because of the responsibility it holds to take care of someone.
Emily Siedeberg
2/24/2025 07:06:47 pm
Shelley compares Victor Frankenstein's creation process with the process of childbirth to highlight the unnatural way in which he brings life into the world. Childbirth was considered a natural and painful process for women. Victor's "midnight labors" and physical suffering, however, are a symbol of the suffering that accompanies pregnancy. Unlike a mother, however, he rejects his creation and does not care for it.
Kei Okami
2/26/2025 09:48:49 am
Mary Shelley made these comparisons to childbirth, not to contrast it but to actually agree. In this time period, it was believed that isolation was best for the mother since it gave her time alone. Sometimes this was beneficial since she had peace and quiet, but it also gave her time to really connect with her baby. In this case, the same insolation and intensity related entirely to Victor's creation. The Creature was rejected and forced to raise himself, and having rejection from his "father" and society itself, causing him to be isolated from humanity. I also agree on how Shelley used her pain on losing her newborn and poured on her emotions on how the Creature may have felt at these moments (Hurt, terrified, desperate).
Maria Estrela
3/3/2025 07:46:57 am
I really like how you worded this. I completely agree with Mary using the idea of childbirth to cope with her own struggle. I also liked how you mentioned Victor's midnight labors and its significance. Even looking at the possibility of Mary showing abandonment of your creations through this novel is interesting. I also agree she might relate to Victor over the loss of parents as well.
Ida Augusta Keller
2/24/2025 08:51:19 pm
Throughout reading Frankenstein and learning about Mary Shelley as a person and writer, it isn’t surprising that she has analogies to real life scenarios or challenges she faced appear in her own novel. A good example of this would be her analogies or contrast with Victor's feelings of “labor” to a woman's childbirth experience, and I believe the reason for that was for Shelley to voice her own experience of childbirth through a character the readers have a better understanding of. Throughout Frankenstein their are numerous characters who have little traits or backstories that can be related back to Mary Shelley’s personal life, and the main reason I believe she does this is to try to get readers to understand how she felt or what she was going through during those times, after all, sometimes writing how we feel is better than verbally saying are pains and sorrows to others.
Irma Goldberg
2/26/2025 08:45:12 pm
I completely agree with your point on how Mary Shelley uses analogies in Frankenstein to reflect her personal experiences and emotions. Mary Shelley's use of Victor’s “labor” in creating the creature is a great example of the physical and emotional toll of childbirth. Not only for the isolation that many women go through during pregnancy but also the consequences that come with it after giving birth. This reflects Mary Shelley's struggles with not having a mother and also motherhood. It’s clear that Mary Shelley was using her writing as a way to reflect her personal life with grief and loss that she went through.
Kristen Bonnevie
2/24/2025 09:29:38 pm
Mary Shellley creates a parallel between Victor Frankenstein's creation and childbirth to represent the unnatural and isolating aspects of his efforts. By taking on a role traditionally reserved for women, Victor disrupts the natural order, illustrating his overreach and lack of ethical consideration.This comparison critiques his ambitions and brings light to the emotional and physical strain of his obsession it also reflects current concerns about gender roles and the risks associated with science when it attempts to mimic nature.
Emily Siedeberg
2/26/2025 07:11:46 pm
Your response offers a clear look at how Victor’s act of creation mirrors the isolation of childbirth. I like how you point out that by taking on a role meant for women, Victor breaks natural rules. This view shows his ambition as both dangerous and lonely. You remind us that science should respect natural limits and that care and ethical thinking are needed. Your ideas also bring out modern worries about gender roles and the misuse of science. I agree that this parallel makes us question whether pushing nature too far is worth the cost.
Irma Goldberg
2/24/2025 10:02:13 pm
During Frankenstein, Mary Shelley makes a comparison between the male protagonist's process of creation and a woman's biological process of giving birth. This serves many purposes, one purpose is to show the life threatening process of childbirth. Not only for the mother but also for the child. Giving birth is always hard for women and when comparing it to Victor creating life it was somewhat the same. When Victor had created his monster he then abandons it, showing that oftentimes creating life is hard. Victor then neglected his “creation” after bringing it to life and this foreshadows postpartum depression for women after childbirth. Shelly uses this to present the responsibility and the natural processes of creating life.
Huang Lu
2/25/2025 07:55:37 pm
Your analysis highlights on the connection that Shelly makes between Frankenstein's creation and the challenges of child birth. The comparison to life threatening nature of giving birth adds depth to the idea that creation comes with both physical and emotional burdens to life. Victors abandonment of his own creation as you mentioned, reflects a failure to take responsibility of your own actions. This can contrast with the natural maternal instinct to nurture. You compare postpartum to depression which is very interesting as it also suggest that Shelley is not only commenting on "creation" but also on that struggles that follow with it as well
Maria Estrela
2/24/2025 11:39:57 pm
I believe that Mary Shelley connected child birth and the birth of Frankenstein to reflect on her personal experiences. In class we learned of Mary Shelley's troubles with miscarriages and child birth. It impacted her life and was a heavy emotional weight on her. In Frankenstein, Victor is creating a creature in order to learn the secrets of creating life. I think Mary used this character in order to reflect on her own longing to create life. It is a solid connection and shows how Frankenstein was more than a story for her. It allowed her to express her feelings and be vulnerable in a form of literature.
Kusumoto Ine
2/27/2025 09:45:59 pm
I really found it interesting that you not only connected Victor to childbirth but also reflected this upon Mary Shelly as well. I didn’t think about it this deeply but this got me thinking about it now. I also like how you connected Mary Shelly’s emotional weight to Victor while he was creating the creature. Victor would spend days confined in a space in the dark, similarly to how women when they were pregnant. I feel like this aspect of it will definitely have an impact on the emotional and mental well being of both characters. Especially with Mary Shelly and all of her miscarriages. (Word Count: 150)
Teresa Ratto
2/25/2025 08:13:14 am
I think that Mary Shelley compares what victor is doing to child birth to compare the pain of both. The women's pain is natural and birth is natural and very painful and take it time for the baby to be ready. Victor is forcing nature to create something very unnatural, and i belive that cause for the creature to take its time being created. Just like a mother takes 9 months to give birth.Giving someone live again can be painful especially for the creature. Vitor is basically playing god and forcing the unnatural and giving us the perspective of males of how they see the female of the nature of giving birth. they know is painful but they never feel it.
Mary A. Alberston
2/25/2025 08:52:34 am
I feel like Mary Shelley’s comparison of process of birth through women versus the process of birth through man is related to this concept, “birth without the gendered body.” Frankenstein in mind body and spirit is essentially an infant, who shares very little thoughts and experiences. Mary Shelley utilizes the promethean tale to craft this birth myth that explores postpartum trauma and subsequent death. I think it's important to note that the entirety of this novel is written from a male perspective and that the woman's point of view is disregarded by the reader. This fixation on the male perspective plays on this idea of isolation that women during this time period endured through childbirth.
Kusumoto Ine
2/27/2025 09:54:03 pm
Marie-Anne Lavoisier
2/26/2025 07:37:18 am
In Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein," a comparison is drawn between Victor Frankenstein's act of creation and the process of childbirth. This analogy emphasizes his obligation to care for that which he has brought into existence. Much like a mother who endures significant pain and makes sacrifices to give life, Victor experiences both physical and mental torment while bringing his "creature" into the world. However, in stark contrast to a mother who nurtures, cherishes, and safeguards her offspring, Victor ultimately rejects his creation, abandoning it out of fear. Shelley's comparison suggests that the act of bringing life into the world inherently carries a duty to provide care and protection. Ultimately, Victor's obsession with the creation of life consumes him, presenting a stark juxtaposition to the sacrifices made by a mother. While a mother embraces her role and cares for her child, Victor's actions epitomize neglect and abandonment. 3/2/2025 02:59:43 pm
Your analysis of the creature growing up “motherless” is a really insightful way to view his development. Just like a child without parental guidance, he is forced to learn about the world on his own, often through painful experiences. I also find it interesting that, unlike a traditional mother, Victor does not show any nurturing instincts toward his creation. Instead of love and care, he responds with horror and rejection. This lack of maternal affection might explain why the creature turns to violence—he was never taught kindness or empathy. Shelley could be using this to emphasize how much of a child’s development is shaped by early relationships. If Victor had embraced his role as a creator the way a mother embraces a child, the creature’s fate might have been entirely different.
Kei Okami
2/26/2025 09:43:49 am
Mary Shelley has an amazing way of comparing her own experiences to the creation of the creature. In my opinion, the creature is a way of expressing the way that her loss newborn may have felt. For instance, the creature goes through a whole process where he's scared, frightened, and alone. Childbirth and the beginning stages of life are really important for a baby. Instead of the basic needs a mother may provide for a child, Victor instead pushes his creation in fear and rejection instead of being proud of his creation that he took so long to create (resemblance to childbirth). Due to this, the Creature needed to raise itself. I also wonder if the Creature became the way he is considering the fact he also grew up "motherless".
Mary A. Alberston
2/27/2025 10:19:35 am
I agree with this! I think an interesting view to consider would be the fact the creature represents the newborn more in a negetflect manner. Mary Shelley might as felt as though she was unable to give her baby the life it deserved (by not being able to bring it into the world), and so the sense of guilt is a projection onto the creature. It could be her idea of what she thinks what life could be like for her child in the after life. I think it could also be her perception of her own fears of being a mother given she never grew up with a "normal" childhood.
Cleotilde Tambroni
3/2/2025 02:54:45 pm
I really like your connection between the creature’s experience and the loss of Mary Shelley’s newborn. The idea that the creature represents the emotions of a child who feels abandoned is powerful, especially considering how crucial a mother’s care is in early life. Just like an infant, the creature is vulnerable and in need of guidance, yet Victor immediately rejects him. This lack of parental love forces the creature to navigate the world alone, much like how an abandoned child might struggle without support. Your point about Victor’s fear overtaking his responsibility is also interesting—rather than embracing his creation, he distances himself, which ultimately leads to tragedy. Shelley’s personal grief might have shaped this theme, showing how neglect, rather than creation itself, is what leads to true monstrosity.
torine torines
2/26/2025 07:48:12 pm
Mary Shelley used Frankenstein as a metaphor for childbirth because of the creation of life. the same way that a woman nurtures a child in her womb, Victor gathered materials and worked tirelessly to bring his idea to life. the important part of the comparison is the significant amount of emotion and physical investment. I think that Mary Shelley juxtaposes the care and nurture of a mother to how victor views Frankenstein. A mother is meant to care for her child, and she would see her kid as the most precious thing in the world, but victor abandons his creature and views his creation as an abomination
Nadezhda Aleksandrovna Bobrinskaya
2/27/2025 08:34:38 am
I believe that Mary Shelley linked childbirth with the creation of Frankenstein to resonate with her own experiences. In class, we discussed the difficulties Mary Shelley faced with miscarriages and childbirth, which deeply affected her and weighed heavily on her emotionally. In "Frankenstein," Victor seeks to create a creature to uncover the mysteries of bringing life into existence. I think Mary used this character to reflect her own desire to create life. This connection is significant and illustrates that "Frankenstein" was more than just a story for her; it served as a means for her to convey her emotions and express her vulnerability through literature.
Maria Estrela
3/2/2025 11:28:44 pm
I agree that Mary Shelley linked her struggles with childbirth to Frankenstein. I also liked how you mentioned her using Frankenstein as a way to express her pain about these situations. I agree with the idea that literature was a form of therapy for Mary Shelley. I also agree with the idea that Mary Shelley uses Victor's desire to create life as a way to show her desire as well. I think it adds more realism to the story and makes it more of an emotional read.
Cleotilde Tambroni
3/2/2025 02:51:32 pm
Mary Shelley’s comparison of Frankenstein’s creation process to pregnancy and childbirth serves to highlight the unnaturalness of his scientific endeavor. By taking on a role traditionally reserved for women, Frankenstein disrupts the natural order, reinforcing the novel’s themes of unchecked ambition and the consequences of defying nature. The language of confinement, labor, and fever mirrors the physical toll of pregnancy, yet Frankenstein’s “birth” results in a grotesque and tragic outcome rather than new life. This comparison also critiques the Enlightenment-era fascination with scientific progress, suggesting that attempts to control life and creation outside of natural means lead to destruction rather than advancement. Additionally, by framing Frankenstein’s suffering in childlike terms, Shelley emphasizes his responsibility for the creature, drawing attention to his failure to nurture his “child” and the disastrous consequences that follow.
Maria Curie
3/4/2025 10:33:14 pm
I noticed that Mary Shelley used Frankenstein and linked it with childbirth giving it a deeper meaning. When Victor made the "creature" the first thing the reader notices is his immediate rejection of it. This parallels the fear and anxiety some mothers may feel after giving birth, especially in cases of postpartum depression. Shelley contrasts the expectations of creation where a mother usually expected to love and nurture her child. Instead of taking responsibility for what he brought into the world, he runs away, which ultimately leads to destruction while also critiquing the dangers of rejecting ones creation whether it be child or creature. Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
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