your own free choice
The inclusion of this resonant diction seems intended to
establish a linkage between the personal and more public
conceptions of responsibility that can be traced through the
novel. Although Victor, and recently his father too, think of
him as haunted by a destiny over which he has no control (3.4.9), Elizabeth's language is
firmly rooted in the primacy of choice in all human relations.
Her rejection of a male concept of honor here seems to link it to
stereotypes of behavior that at once shackle the will and suspend
the individual's ultimate responsibility for actions and their
consequences.
- Critical Approaches:
- Themes:
