Mary Shelley文档格式.docx

Mary Shelley文档格式.docx

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sstepsister,ClaireClairmont,theyleftforFranceandtravelledthroughEurope;

upontheirreturntoEngland,MarywaspregnantwithPercy'

schild.Overthenexttwoyears,sheandPercyfacedostracism,constantdebt,andthedeathoftheirprematurelyborndaughter.Theymarriedinlate1816afterthesuicideofPercyShelley'

sfirstwife,Harriet.

In1816,thecouplefamouslyspentasummerwithLordByron,JohnWilliamPolidori,andClaireClairmontnearGeneva,Switzerland,whereMaryconceivedtheideaforhernovelFrankenstein.TheShelleysleftBritainin1818forItaly,wheretheirsecondandthirdchildrendiedbeforeMaryShelleygavebirthtoherlastandonlysurvivingchild,PercyFlorence.In1822,herhusbanddrownedwhenhissailingboatsankduringastormintheBayofLaSpezia.Ayearlater,MaryShelleyreturnedtoEnglandandfromthenondevotedherselftotheupbringingofhersonandacareerasaprofessionalauthor.Thelastdecadeofherlifewasdoggedbyillness,probablycausedbythebraintumourthatwastokillherattheageof53.

Untilthe1970s,MaryShelleywasknownmainlyforhereffortstopublishPercyShelley'

sworksandforhernovelFrankenstein,whichremainswidelyreadandhasinspiredmanytheatricalandfilmadaptations.RecentscholarshiphasyieldedamorecomprehensiveviewofMaryShelley’sachievements.Scholarshaveshownincreasinginterestinherliteraryoutput,particularlyinhernovels,whichincludethehistoricalnovelsValperga（1823）andPerkinWarbeck（1830）,theapocalypticnovelTheLastMan（1826）,andherfinaltwonovels,Lodore（1835）andFalkner（1837）.Studiesofherlesser-knownworkssuchasthetravelbookRamblesinGermanyandItaly（1844）andthebiographicalarticlesforDionysiusLardner'

sCabinetCyclopaedia（1829–46）supportthegrowingviewthatMaryShelleyremainedapoliticalradicalthroughoutherlife.Mary

Literarythemesandstyles

MaryShelleylivedaliterarylife.Herfatherencouragedhertolearntowritebycomposingletters,[131]andherfavouriteoccupationasachildwaswritingstories.[132]Unfortunately,allofMary'

sjuveniliawerelostwhensheranoffwithPercyin1814,andnoneofhersurvivingmanuscriptscanbedefinitivelydatedbeforethatyear.[133]HerfirstpublishedworkisoftenthoughttohavebeenMounseerNongtongpaw,[134]comicverseswrittenforGodwin'

sJuvenileLibrarywhenshewastenandahalf;

however,thepoemisattributedtoanotherwriterinthemostrecentauthoritativecollectionofherworks.[135]PercyShelleyenthusiasticallyencouragedMaryShelley'

swriting:

"

Myhusbandwas,fromthefirst,veryanxiousthatIshouldprovemyselfworthyofmyparentage,andenrolmyselfonthepageoffame.Hewasforeverincitingmetoobtainliteraryreputation."

[136]

Novels

Autobiographicalelements自传元素

CertainsectionsofMaryShelley'

snovelsareofteninterpretedasmaskedrewritingsofherlife.Criticshavepointedtotherecurrenceofthefather–daughtermotifinparticularasevidenceofthisautobiographicalstyle.[137]Forexample,commentatorsfrequentlyreadMathilda（1820）autobiographically,identifyingthethreecentralcharactersasversionsofMaryShelley,WilliamGodwin,andPercyShelley.[138]MaryShelleyherselfconfidedthatshemodelledthecentralcharactersofTheLastManonherItaliancircle.LordRaymond,wholeavesEnglandtofightfortheGreeksanddiesinConstantinople,isbasedonLordByron;

andtheutopianAdrian,EarlofWindsor,wholeadshisfollowersinsearchofanaturalparadiseanddieswhenhisboatsinksinastorm,isafictionalportraitofPercyByssheShelley.[139]However,asshewroteinherreviewofGodwin'

snovelCloudesley（1830）,shedidnotbelievethatauthors"

weremerelycopyingfromourownhearts"

.[140]WilliamGodwinregardedhisdaughter'

scharactersastypesratherthanportraitsfromreallife.[141]Somemoderncritics,suchasPatriciaClemitandJaneBlumberg,havetakenthesameview,resistingautobiographicalreadingsofMaryShelley'

sworks.[142]

Novelisticgenres

MaryShelleyemployedthetechniquesofmanydifferentnovelisticgenres,mostvividlytheGodwiniannovel,WalterScott'

snewhistoricalnovel,andtheGothicnovel.TheGodwiniannovel,madepopularduringthe1790swithworkssuchasGodwin'

sCalebWilliams（1794）,"

employedaRousseauvianconfessionalformtoexplorethecontradictoryrelationsbetweentheselfandsociety"

[144]andFrankensteinexhibitsmanyofthesamethemesandliterarydevicesasGodwin'

snovel.[145]However,ShelleycritiquesthoseEnlightenmentidealsthatGodwinpromotesinhisworks.[146]InTheLastMan,sheusesthephilosophicalformoftheGodwiniannoveltodemonstratetheultimatemeaninglessnessoftheworld.[147]WhileearlierGodwiniannovelshadshownhowrationalindividualscouldslowlyimprovesociety,TheLastManandFrankensteindemonstratetheindividual'

slackofcontroloverhistory.[148]

Shelleyusesthehistoricalnoveltocommentongenderrelations;

forexample,ValpergaisafeministversionofScott'

smasculinistgenre.[149]Introducingwomenintothestorywhoarenotpartofthehistoricalrecord,Shelleyusestheirnarrativestoquestionestablishedtheologicalandpoliticalinstitutions.[150]Shelleysetsthemaleprotagonist'

scompulsivegreedforconquestinoppositiontoafemalealternative:

reasonandsensibility.[151]InPerkinWarbeck,Shelley'

sotherhistoricalnovel,LadyGordonstandsforthevaluesoffriendship,domesticity,andequality.Throughher,Shelleyoffersafemininealternativetothemasculinepowerpoliticsthatdestroythemalecharacters.Thenovelprovidesamoreinclusivehistoricalnarrativetochallengetheonewhichusuallyrelatesonlymasculineevents.[152]

Gender

Withtheriseoffeministliterarycriticisminthe1970s,MaryShelley'

sworks,particularlyFrankenstein,begantoattractmuchmoreattentionfromscholars.FeministandpsychoanalyticcriticswerelargelyresponsiblefortherecoveryfromneglectofShelleyasawriter.[153]EllenMoerswasoneofthefirsttoclaimthatShelley'

slossofababywasacrucialinfluenceonthewritingofFrankenstein.[154]Shearguesthatthenovelisa"

birthmyth"

inwhichShelleycomestotermswithherguiltforcausinghermother'

sdeathaswellasforfailingasaparent.[155]ShelleyscholarAnneK.Mellorsuggeststhat,fromafeministviewpoint,itisastory"

aboutwhathappenswhenamantriestohaveababywithoutawoman...[Frankenstein]isprofoundlyconcernedwithnaturalasopposedtounnaturalmodesofproductionandreproduction"

.[156]VictorFrankenstein'

sfailureasa"

parent"

inthenovelhasbeenreadasanexpressionoftheanxietieswhichaccompanypregnancy,givingbirth,andparticularlymaternity.[157]

SandraGilbertandSusanGubarargueintheirseminalbookTheMadwomanintheAttic（1979）thatinFrankensteininparticular,ShelleyrespondedtothemasculineliterarytraditionrepresentedbyJohnMilton'

sParadiseLost.Intheirinterpretation,Shelleyreaffirmsthismasculinetradition,includingthemisogynyinherentinit,butatthesametime"

conceal[s]fantasiesofequalitythatoccasionallyeruptinmonstrousimagesofrage"

.[158]MaryPooveyreadsthefirsteditionofFrankensteinaspartofalargerpatterninShelley'

swriting,whichbeginswithliteraryself-assertionandendswithconventionalfemininity.[159]PooveysuggeststhatFrankenstein'

smultiplenarrativesenableShelleytosplitherartisticpersona:

shecan"

expressandeffaceherselfatthesametime"

.[160]Shelley'

sfearofself-assertionisreflectedinthefateofFrankenstein,whoispunishedforhisegotismbylosingallhisdomesticties.[161]

Feministcriticsoftenfocusonhowauthorshipitself,particularlyfemaleauthorship,isrepresentedinandthroughShelley'

snovels.[162]AsMellorexplains,ShelleyusestheGothicstylenotonlytoexplorerepressedfemalesexualdesire[163]butalsoaswayto"

censorherownspeechinFrankenstein"

.[164]AccordingtoPooveyandMellor,Shelleydidnotwanttopromoteherownauthorialpersonaandfeltdeeplyinadequateasawriter,and"

thisshamecontributedtothegenerationofherfictionalimagesofabnormality,perversion,anddestruction"

.[165]

Shelley'

swritingsfocusontheroleofthefamilyinsocietyandwomen'

srolewithinthatfamily.Shecelebratesthe"

feminineaffectionsandcompassion"

associatedwiththefamilyandsuggeststhatcivilsocietywillfailwithoutthem.[166]Shelleywas"

profoundlycommittedtoanethicofcooperation,mutualdependence,andself-sacrifice"

.[167]InLodore,forexample,thecentralstoryfollowsthefortunesofthewifeanddaughterofthetitlecharacter,LordLodore,whoiskilledinaduelattheendofthefirstvolume,leavingatrailoflegal,financial