There are a plethora of popular mother-daughter duos in today’s world: Kim and North Kardashian-West, Debbie Reynolds and Carrie Fisher, Kylie and Kris Jenner. But of all the prominent pairs that permeate our society, there are few that have been as influential as Mary Wollstonecraft and Mary Shelley. In Frankenstein by Shelley and The Vindication of the Rights of Woman by her mother, Wollstonecraft, the two introduce revolutionary philosophies concerning the importance of education and appearance through the use of Romantic imagery, which helped to shape societal mores for centuries to come.
Both in Frankenstein and The Vindication of the Rights of Woman, there is a prevailing theme of education. Both authors feel that a person's flaws can be attributed to a lack of learning and discipline. In Frankenstein, Shelley writes that Victor’s father was “not scientific”…show more content… In Frankenstein, this is illustrated in the treatment of the Creature. On page 111, the Creature, explaining an interaction with a man in a hovel, says that “upon perceiving me, he shrieked loudly, quit the hut, and ran across the fields in great speed.” The man had only just laid eyes on him whenever he fled the home, screaming. The horror that struck the man was so great, he submitted his home to the Creature. His appearance overrode the man’s sense of security and rationality. Another instance that proves the heavy weight put on one’s appearance is shown on page 121, when Shelley writes, “I did not entirely know the fatal effects of this miserable deformity.” The monster’s suffering was in a great deal due to his horrific appearance, despite his good intentions and solitary lifestyle. The Creature is able to recognize that he does not belong by looking at himself in a puddle on the ground, which is integral in forming his
