Frankenstein
Prompt #14 · Frankenstein
Prompt Type: Character Arc
Analyze Elizabeth Lavenza's role throughout the novel, from idealized companion to victim of Victor's choices. How does Shelley use Elizabeth's characterization to critique the passive role of women in Romantic-era society and to illustrate the collateral damage of Victor's obsession? Explain how it contributes to the meaning of the work as a whole.
Quote 1
"I have a pretty present for my Victor—tomorrow he shall have it." And when, on the morrow, she presented Elizabeth to me as her promised gift, I, with childish seriousness, interpreted her words literally and looked upon Elizabeth as mine—mine to protect, love, and cherish.
Chapter 1
Argument
Early in the novel, this quote establishes Elizabeth's baseline as a passive possession, literally described as Victor's 'promised gift' to 'protect, love, and cherish,' revealing how Shelley critiques the objectification of women who exist solely in relation to male ownership and protection.
Quote 2
"When I reflect, my dear cousin," said she, "on the miserable death of Justine Moritz, I no longer see the world and its works as they before appeared to me. Before, I looked upon the accounts of vice and injustice that I read in books or heard from others as tales of ancient days or imaginary evils; at least they were remote and more familiar to reason than to the imagination; but now misery has come home, and men appear to me as monsters thirsting for each other's blood."
Chapter 9
Argument
At a turning point following Justine's execution, Elizabeth's disillusionment demonstrates her growing awareness of injustice and monstrosity in the world—yet she remains powerless to act, illustrating how women's moral insight is rendered ineffectual by their passive social position.
Quote 3
“A grin was on the face of the monster; he seemed to jeer, as with his fiendish finger he pointed towards the corpse of my wife.”
Chapter 23
Argument
In the final stage of Elizabeth's arc, her murder is depicted through the Creature's 'fiendish finger' pointing at 'the corpse of my wife,' reducing her to a mere object of Victor's punishment and completing her transformation from idealized companion to collateral damage, the ultimate consequence of her enforced passivity.
Quote 4
Chapter 20
Argument
This direct threat from the Creature marks the turning point where Elizabeth's fate becomes sealed by Victor's choices, transforming her from companion to predetermined victim—the wedding-night becomes not a celebration but a death sentence imposed by Victor's obsession.
Quote 5
“I gazed on my victim, and my heart swelled with exultation and hellish triumph; clapping my hands, I exclaimed, "I too can create desolation; my enemy is not invulnerable; this death will carry despair to him, and a thousand other miseries shall torment and destroy him."”
Chapter 16
Argument
The Creature's murder of William demonstrates how Victor's family members serve as instruments of revenge rather than autonomous individuals, foreshadowing Elizabeth's similar reduction to collateral damage and illustrating how women and children become expendable pawns in conflicts between men.