Mary, Mary, quite contrary...

Hi!

If you've done your homework this week, you know the story of Mary Shelley, the author of Frankenstein, and it wasn't a life of joy. So, as you may have guessed, what I'd like you to address in this post are the details of her life, many of which are present within the Preface and Introduction to the book.

I do find one discrepancy, perhaps there are more. It says on the first page of the book that "Harriet Shelley--Percy's wife--drowned herself and her unborn child after he ran off with Mary." But in the Introduction, on p. viii in my version, the paragraph beginning "Mary's first child by Shelley..." says, essentially, that "By the second anniversary of (Mary's) alliance with Shelley she had been pregnant most of the time and given birth twice. In October, while she was writing the early parts of her novel, her half-sister, Fanny Imlay, committed suicide, and in December Shelley's wife drowned herself in the Serpentine." Now if Shelley's wife was pregnant at that time by her husband, that was a LONG pregnancy (poor thing! no wonder she killed herself!) OR she was not pregnant OR she was involved with someone then (perhaps Percy again?). What is the truth?

Is there anything else that does not agree?

Anyway, I like a good mystery -- solved. So if someone wants to figure out the truth about Mrs. Shelley (not Mary), I'd appreciate it. Otherwise, tell us some facts about Mary Shelley, making sure you don't repeat a fact given by a classmate.

That's all, folks!
Love,
Mrs. D