Mary Shelley

Author profile

born

in Somers Town, London, England, The United Kingdom

August 30, 1797

died

February 01, 1851

gender

female

genre

Literature & Fiction, Horror, Science Fiction & Fantasy

influences

Percy Bysshe Shelley, John Milton, George Gordon Byron

About this author

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Mary Shelley (née Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin, often known as Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley) was a British novelist, short story writer, dramatist, essayist, biographer, travel writer, and editor of the works of her husband, Romantic poet and philosopher Percy Bysshe Shelley. She was the daughter of the political philosopher William Godwin and the writer, philosopher, and feminist Mary Wollstonecraft.

Mary Shelley was taken seriously as a writer in her own lifetime, though reviewers often missed the political edge to her novels. After her death, however, she was chiefly remembered only as the wife of Percy Bysshe Shelley and as the author of Frankenstein. It was not until 1989, when Emily Sunstein published her prizewinning biography Mary Shell...more Mary Shelley (née Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin, often known as Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley) was a British novelist, short story writer, dramatist, essayist, biographer, travel writer, and editor of the works of her husband, Romantic poet and philosopher Percy Bysshe Shelley. She was the daughter of the political philosopher William Godwin and the writer, philosopher, and feminist Mary Wollstonecraft.

Mary Shelley was taken seriously as a writer in her own lifetime, though reviewers often missed the political edge to her novels. After her death, however, she was chiefly remembered only as the wife of Percy Bysshe Shelley and as the author of Frankenstein. It was not until 1989, when Emily Sunstein published her prizewinning biography Mary Shelley: Romance and Reality, that a full-length scholarly biography analyzing all of Shelley's letters, journals, and works within their historical context was published.

The well-meaning attempts of Mary Shelley's son and daughter-in-law to "Victorianise" her memory through the censoring of letters and biographical material contributed to a perception of Mary Shelley as a more conventional, less reformist figure than her works suggest. Her own timid omissions from Percy Shelley's works and her quiet avoidance of public controversy in the later years of her life added to this impression.

The eclipse of Mary Shelley's reputation as a novelist and biographer meant that, until the last thirty years, most of her works remained out of print, obstructing a larger view of her achievement. She was seen as a one-novel author, if that. In recent decades, however, the republication of almost all her writings has stimulated a new recognition of its value. Her voracious reading habits and intensive study, revealed in her journals and letters and reflected in her works, is now better appreciated. Shelley's recognition of herself as an author has also been recognized; after Percy's death, she wrote about her authorial ambitions: "I think that I can maintain myself, and there is something inspiriting in the idea". Scholars now consider Mary Shelley to be a major Romantic figure, significant for her literary achievement and her political voice as a woman and a liberal.(less)

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Mary Shelley's Books

Average rating: 3.67 · 474,408 ratings · 9,308 reviews · 246 distinct works · Similar authors

	Frankenstein 3.66 of 5 stars 3.66 avg rating — 466,182 ratings — published 1818 — 377 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Frankenstein / Dracula / Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde by Mary Shelley, Bram Stoker, Robert Louis Stevenson 4.23 of 5 stars 4.23 avg rating — 845 ratings — published 1999 — 16 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Last Man 3.28 of 5 stars 3.28 avg rating — 865 ratings — published 1826 — 70 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Frankenstein The Graphic Novel: Original Text by Mary Shelley, Jason Cobley, Joe Sutliff Sanders 3.75 of 5 stars 3.75 avg rating — 217 ratings — published 2001 — 5 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Mathilda 3.24 of 5 stars 3.24 avg rating — 262 ratings — published 1819 — 27 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Frankenstein & Dracula (Classic Library Series) by Mary Shelley, Bram Stoker 4.17 of 5 stars 4.17 avg rating — 110 ratings — published 1990 — 6 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Transformation 3.51 of 5 stars 3.51 avg rating — 115 ratings — published 2004 — 6 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Mortal Immortal: The Complete Supernatural Short Fiction of Mary Shelley by Mary Shelley, Jacob Weisman (Editor), Michael Bishop (Narrated by) 3.78 of 5 stars 3.78 avg rating — 97 ratings — published 1831 — 6 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Valperga: Or, the Life and Adventures of Castruccio, Prince of Lucca 3.35 of 5 stars 3.35 avg rating — 68 ratings — published 1823 — 16 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Mary Shelley Reader by Mary Shelley, Charles E. Robinson (Editor), Betty T. Bennett (Editor) 4.29 of 5 stars 4.29 avg rating — 38 ratings — published 1990 — 3 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Quotes by Mary Shelley

“Beware; for I am fearless, and therefore powerful.”
― Mary Shelley, Frankenstein

1,817 people liked it

“Nothing is so painful to the human mind as a great and sudden change.”
― Mary Shelley, Frankenstein

tags: change, human

592 people liked it

“I have love in me the likes of which you can scarcely imagine and rage the likes of which you would not believe. If I cannot satisfy the one, I will indulge the other.”
― Mary Shelley, Frankenstein

346 people liked it

See all Mary Shelley's quotes »

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Frankenstein and Middlemarch Run-Off Poll--last day to vote is Tuesday, May 15.

George Eliot

6 votes, 54.5%

Mary Shelley

5 votes, 45.5%

11 total votes

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Mary Shelley

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Quotes by Mary Shelley

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Mary Shelley's Books