The Problem of Moralistic Thought

This paper argues that moralâ€”and, critically, moralisticâ€”vocabulary in Frankenstein and Jane Eyre commands a pivotal role in shaping and guiding the actions of the booksâ€™ characters.
More specifically, the motivating premise here is that the moral words used by the authors and the characters denote ways of thinking which form channels along which the charactersâ€™ story flows.
Admittedly, this may not seem clear at first. Another way to think of this is in terms of value-laden categories â€“ the charactersâ€™ choices to think of their actions or options in particular moral terms implicitly categorizes those actions and options.

The way the characters use particular moral words to, essentially, pre-categorize their choices works to pre-determine the actions which ensue.
Moral words are words of action before any actions occur. And, in so delimiting the space of possibilities, the courses of stories are shaped.
A natural reaction to this thesis would be to ask why it is significant â€“ why does it deserve attention? One (potential) reason is that it is moral vocabulary which strikingly links stories as seemingly different as Frankenstein and Jane Eyre.
Moreover, it is the moral modes of thought denoted by that moral vocabulary which drives the two stories.

Thus, ultimately, this paperâ€™s thesis may be a mini-contemplation on the problem of the role of moral thought in shaping our choices and the courses of our lives.
In a previous discussion of Jane Eyre, I argued that Janeâ€™s personal morality is a highly rational one. Here, â€˜rationalâ€™ referred to a more technical sense of the word, as broadly in keeping with the moral theory offered by the philosopher, Immanuel Kant. The idea I put

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