{"id":573,"date":"2025-11-16T02:33:23","date_gmt":"2025-11-16T02:33:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lalossandabortiondoula.com\/?p=573"},"modified":"2026-03-21T14:20:47","modified_gmt":"2026-03-21T14:20:47","slug":"frankenstein-reproductive-power-the-responsibility-of-creation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lalossandabortiondoula.com\/?p=573","title":{"rendered":"Frankenstein, Reproductive Power &amp; the Responsibility of Creation"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">An Open-Thought Reflection for Women at the Crossroads of Choice (For Women Not Currently Pregnant &#8211; Possibly Waiting on Results&#8230;)<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-audio\"><audio controls src=\"https:\/\/www.lalossandabortiondoula.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/NoteGPT_Speech_1774102028718-1.mp3\"><\/audio><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Yesterday, I finished reading <strong>Frankenstein<\/strong> \u2014 Mary Shelley\u2019s original 1818 novel \u2014 and I was struck not just by its gothic power, but by how deeply it speaks to reproduction, creation, and the fear that often surrounds it. Shelley didn&#8217;t just write a horror story; she wrote a meditation on the act of creating life, and she gave it to a man. And while the creature\u2019s unfortunate aesthetics are the result of an outlandish, unnatural creation story \u2014 no one is comparing babies to monsters \u2014 it\u2019s important to remember that <em>life is life<\/em>, and that is the focus. Shelley forces us to examine what happens when creation is stripped of love, support, and humanity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"\ud83d\udcda Frankenstein (abridged) \ud83d\udcd6 Full Audiobook \ud83d\udde3\ufe0f Read by Christopher Lee \u270d\ufe0f Written by Mary Shelley\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/uNJZSoRU5r4?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>In a time when women\u2019s voices were barely acknowledged, let alone respected \u2014 when publishing as a woman was rare, and reproductive life was something women experienced but men legislated \u2014 Shelley wrote a story that placed the power of creation entirely in a man\u2019s hands. Victor Frankenstein becomes the curator of life. The one who conceives, constructs, assembles, and ultimately abandons his \u201cchild.\u201d Shelley\u2019s brilliance is that she made this artificial method of creation feel both unnatural and deeply familiar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>She turned the reproductive world on its head \u2014 not by imagining a world where women have more freedom, but by imagining one where <strong>men<\/strong> bear the burden, the guilt, and the horror of creating life without love, community, or connection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And this is where it becomes more powerful still:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Mary Shelley wrote this in <strong>1818<\/strong> \u2014 more than a century before Margaret Sanger popularized birth control in the U.S., before women had the right to control their reproduction, before contraception and abortion were framed as tools of bodily autonomy rather than \u201ccrimes\u201d or \u201cmoral failings.\u201d In an era when women were expected to suffer silently through pregnancy after pregnancy, creating new life whether they wanted to or not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So what does it mean that Shelley \u2014 a woman \u2014 imagined a world where a man creates life and immediately regrets it?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>What does it mean that he could create, but he could not nurture?<br>That he could generate life, but he could not mother it?<br>That he turned away, ashamed, terrified, overwhelmed?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Shelley doesn\u2019t just critique Victor \u2014 she critiques a system. A world where the <strong>act of creation<\/strong> is separated from the <strong>act of care<\/strong>. A world where responsibility is optional for some and inescapable for others. A world where women carry the emotional, physical, and social labor of reproduction, while men historically carried the authority.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Victor Frankenstein becomes the literary embodiment of what happens when creation exists without compassion, without accountability, without community. He wanted the glory of creation without the demands of caretaking. And Shelley shows us \u2014 painfully, intentionally \u2014 what that leads to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In many ways, the novel mirrors the quiet truth women have known for centuries:<br><strong>Creating life is not the same as caring for it.<\/strong><br><strong>Conception is not the same as connection.<\/strong><br><strong>And power without responsibility is a danger to us all.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here is where Aristotle\u2019s famous quote cuts to the core:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>\u201cIt is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.\u201d<br>\u2014 <em>Aristotle, Metaphysics<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>And it is equally the mark of a responsible woman \u2014 living in a time when birth control, reproductive education, and information are more accessible than ever \u2014 to <em>think critically<\/em> about bringing another soul into the world. To entertain the question not with fear, nor shame, nor panic, but with clarity. With reflection. With both responsibility and reality in both hands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To weigh desire against circumstance.<br>To measure capability alongside love.<br>To consider what is <em>possible<\/em>, not just what is <em>biologically available<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Mary Shelley gave us more than a gothic tale \u2014 she gave us an invitation.<br>To think before we create.<br>To honor what we make.<br>And to know that bringing life forth \u2014 or choosing not to \u2014 is a sacred act of power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Reflecting on Today<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For women who are not yet pregnant, or who may never choose motherhood, Shelley\u2019s story is still relevant. Life does not require us to act blindly. And motherhood \u2014 or the conscious decision not to mother \u2014 is a responsibility, not merely a possibility. Thinking critically about when, if, or whether to have children is not hesitation. It is discernment. It is a recognition that <strong>creation is meaningful, and that each soul deserves thought, care, and intention<\/strong> before being brought into the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Today, the power to choose is more accessible than in Shelley\u2019s time. Access to contraception, reproductive healthcare, and education allows women to weigh the responsibility of creation against the realities of their lives \u2014 emotionally, physically, and socially. Shelley\u2019s story reminds us that such reflection is not optional; it is essential. That the act of bringing life into the world is inseparable from the commitment to care for it, nurture it, and honor it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Conclusion<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Creation is powerful.<br>Choice is powerful.<br>And the responsibility that accompanies both is sacred.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Mary Shelley imagined a world where creation was separated from care \u2014 and in doing so, she illuminated a truth that still matters: the ability to create does not equal the readiness to nurture. Women today, with education and access at their fingertips, have the chance to bridge that gap. To pause, reflect, and consider the weight of creation before stepping forward. Whether we choose motherhood now, later, or never, the act of thinking critically, honestly, and intentionally about bringing life into the world is one of the most profound exercises of responsibility and power a woman can undertake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As Always,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>~Talitha<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>An Open-Thought Reflection for Women at the Crossroads of Choice (For Women Not Currently Pregnant &#8211; Possibly Waiting on Results&#8230;) Yesterday, I finished reading Frankenstein \u2014 Mary Shelley\u2019s original 1818 novel \u2014 and I was struck not just by its gothic power, but by how deeply it speaks to reproduction, creation, and the fear that [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":582,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[179],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-573","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-grey-in-between"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lalossandabortiondoula.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/573","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lalossandabortiondoula.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lalossandabortiondoula.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lalossandabortiondoula.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lalossandabortiondoula.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=573"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.lalossandabortiondoula.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/573\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":658,"href":"https:\/\/www.lalossandabortiondoula.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/573\/revisions\/658"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lalossandabortiondoula.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/582"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lalossandabortiondoula.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=573"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lalossandabortiondoula.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=573"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lalossandabortiondoula.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=573"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}