# Whether Mary Shelley Wrote Frankenstein

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whether-mary-shelley-wrote-frankenstein/97948>\
**Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\
**Created:** [March 12, 2002, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whether-mary-shelley-wrote-frankenstein/97948 "2002-03-12T23:43:31Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Cyclopatra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/90db22/32.png) [@Cyclopatra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cyclopatra)\
**Post date:** [March 12, 2002, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whether-mary-shelley-wrote-frankenstein/97948/1 "2002-03-12T23:43:31Z")

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Just read the answer by Son of Dex, and I wanted to add something. Percy Bysshe Shelley may not have written Frankenstein, but he did write the introduction under Mary’s name. This makes for an interesting new viewpoint when you read the intro (and the things it says about Percy, esp. how nothing Mary could have written could approach his writing) - he was an arrogant bastard.

Cyclopatra

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**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\
**Post date:** [March 13, 2002, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whether-mary-shelley-wrote-frankenstein/97948/2 "2002-03-13T13:55:08Z")

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Welcome to the Straight Dope Message Board, Cyclopatra, we’re glad you’re with us.

When commenting on a Staff Report, it is helpful if you provide a link, so that readers will know what’s already been said (makes life easier, otherwise we get people offering “comments” that just repeat what the Staff Report covered.) In this case, the link is [Straight Dope Staff Report: Did Mary Shelley not write “Frankenstein”?](http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mmaryshelley.html)

There have also been some prior discussions in this forum on this topic, you can get there by searching on “Frankenstein”.

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**Author:** ![zut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zut/32/2875_2.png) [@zut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zut)\
**Post date:** [March 13, 2002, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whether-mary-shelley-wrote-frankenstein/97948/3 "2002-03-13T17:28:48Z")

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When **Dex** writes this:

> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by C K Dexter Haven \*  
> …the link is [Straight Dope Staff Report: Did Mary Shelley not write “Frankenstein”?](http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mmaryshelley.html)

He really means this:

…the link is [Straight Dope Staff Report: Did Mary Shelley not write “Frankenstein”?](http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mmaryshelley.html)

He just didn’t preview.

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**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\
**Post date:** [March 14, 2002, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whether-mary-shelley-wrote-frankenstein/97948/4 "2002-03-14T14:09:04Z")

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::: Sigh :::

Thanks, Zut. I have fixed.