The Role of Women in Frankenstein Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, is a famous novel about a scientist named Victor who creates a monstrous creature in a scientific experiment. It is easy to realize that men seem to be dominant throughout the story and that all the main characters are male. As a result, the role of women in the book seems to be less important and significant to the story. Why did Mary Shelley, daughter of a prominent feminist who wrote the book A Vindication of the Rights of Women to express her belief that women should be treated equally, create a book like Frankenstein, which depicted women as inferior to men? The explanation lies behind the roles of the female characters in the book: Caroline Beaufort, Elizabeth Lavenza, Justine. In the novel, Elizabeth Lavenza seems to be the most important female character. At the beginning of the story, Mary Shelley focuses more on describing Elizabeth's physical beauty. It is worth mentioning and remembering that Shelley does not talk much about the appearances of other women in the story, which help to underline the significance of Elizabeth. Under Mary's excellent and romantic pen, Elizabeth is portrayed as if she were an angel on stage. First of all, she is presented to Victor Frankenstein as a “gift”: “I have a nice present for my Victor, he will have it tomorrow” ( 21). Undoubtedly, she is equated with an object, rather than a person. Consequently, Victor considers Elizabeth as his possession: “I, with childish seriousness, interpreted his words literally and considered Elizabeth as mine, mine to protect, love and care for […], since even after death she would be only mine. "(21). Throughout the story, she makes no options or choices and is extremely rarely explicit. It is no exaggeration to say that Elizabeth exists only as the purpose of Victor's actions and ambitions. Her passivity is also manifested in the letters she writes to Victor: I confess to you, my friend, that I love you and that in my airy dreams of the future you have been my constant friend and companion. But it is your happiness that I desire as well as my own when I declare to you that our marriage would make me eternally unhappy if it were not the dictate of your free choice.