| Elizabeth Frankenstein | |
|---|---|
 Victor departs from Elizabeth to study in Ingolstadt. Engraving by Theodor von Holst for the 1831 edition. | |
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Real Name |
Elizabeth Frankenstein (Lavenza) |
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First Appearance |
Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus, vol. 1 (1818) |
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Original Publisher |
Lackington, Hughes, Harding, Mavor & Jones |
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Created by |
Mary Shelley |
Origin[]
Elizabeth Frankenstein (née Lavenza) is a fictional character first introduced in Mary Shelley's 1818 novel Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus. In both the novel and its various film adaptations, she is the fiancée of Victor Frankenstein.
Born in Italy, Elizabeth Lavenza was adopted by Victor's family. In the first edition (1818), she is the daughter of Victor's aunt and her Italian husband. After her mother's death, Elizabeth's father—intending to remarry—writes to Victor's father and asks if he and his wife would like to adopt the child and spare her being raised by a stepmother (as Mary Shelley had unhappily been). In the original novel, then, Victor and Elizabeth are cousins. In the revised third edition (1831), Victor's parents, during a stay on Lake Como, find Elizabeth being raised by a foster family after her German mother's death and the disappearance of her Italian father.
In the abridged version of Great Illustrated Classics intended for younger audiences, there is a fourth revision, where the Frankensteins and Lavenzas had been longtime friends. After the death of Elizabeth's parents in an avalanche, Victor's parents become Elizabeth's legal guardian and are pleased to include a girl in their family of all sons. Thus, in the revised edition she is unrelated to Victor, who still describes her as "my more than sister." Victor describes her as his perfect woman: young, beautiful, and completely devoted to him. Elizabeth continually writes letters to Victor, encouraging him and acting as a positive force against his guilt at creating the monster.
After the monster begs Victor to create a mate for him and he agrees, he is furious when Victor destroys it before completion and vows, "I will be with you on your wedding-night." This grim foreboding turns out to be true; on the day of Elizabeth's marriage to Victor, the monster breaks into the bridal suite and strangles her. Her death is significant because it gives Victor a unique understanding of his creation; he now knows what it feels like to be completely alone in the world, with nothing to live for but revenge.
Public Domain Literary Appearances[]
- Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus (1818)