Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (1797-1851) was an English novelist, dramatist, and short story writer, universally known for her Gothic novel "Frankenstein: or, The Modern Prometheus". "Lodore" is the novel focused on the theme of power and responsibility for the family. The story follows the wife and daughter of Lord Lodore, who is killed in a duel at the end of the first volume, leaving a trail of legal, financial, and familial obstacles for the remaining family to solve.