The Trial of Love

by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley

"The Trial of Love" was published in 1834 as part of the Keepsake. "The Trial of Love" is best seen as a retelling of the suspected love triangle between Mary Shelley, her husband Percy Bysshe Shelley, and her half-sister Claire, during their 1818 stay in Italy. While the retelling adds more of a paternal love than what existed in real life, the parallels are glaringly obvious. The story contains themes of familial obligation and identity, all which ultimately hint at the subjective nature of history.

Genres: Short Stories, Classics, Fiction, Romance, Historical, Mary Shelley, Swedish Literature

30 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1835

About the author

Mary Shelley (née Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin, often known as Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley) was an English novelist, short story writer, dramatist, essayist, biographer, travel writer, and editor of the works of her husband, Romantic poet and philosopher Percy Bysshe Shelley. She was the daughter of the political philosopher William Godwin and the writer, philosopher, and feminist Mary Wollstonecraft.

Mary Shelley was taken seriously as a writer in her own lifetime, though reviewers often missed the political edge to her novels. After her death, however, she was chiefly remembered only as the wife of Percy Bysshe Shelley and as the author of Frankenstein. It was not until 1989, when Emily Sunstein published her prizewinning biography Mary Shelley: Romance and Reality, that a full-length scholarly biography analyzing all of Shelley's letters, journals, and works within their historical context was published.

The well-meaning attempts of Mary Shelley's son and daughter-in-law to "Victorianise" her memory through the censoring of letters and biographical material contributed to a perception of Mary Shelley as a more conventional, less reformist figure than her works suggest. Her own timid omissions from Percy Shelley's works and her quiet avoidance of public controversy in the later years of her life added to this impression.

The eclipse of Mary Shelley's reputation as a novelist and biographer meant that, until the last thirty years, most of her works remained out of print, obstructing a larger view of her achievement. She was seen as a one-novel author, if that. In recent decades, however, the republication of almost all her writings has stimulated a new recognition of its value. Her voracious reading habits and intensive study, revealed in her journals and letters and reflected in her works, is now better appreciated. Shelley's recognition of herself as an author has also been recognized; after Percy's death, she wrote about her authorial ambitions: "I think that I can maintain myself, and there is something inspiriting in the idea". Scholars now consider Mary Shelley to be a major Romantic figure, significant for her literary achievement and her political voice as a woman and a liberal.

Reviews

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Calendar Novella #3

Congratulate the woman who doesn't succeed in marrying the rotten apple. Pity the one who does. As semi-autobiographical texts go, this one is quite explosive in all its "lovey-dovey-ness".

[Leo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short stories nor Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley's writing isn't something I always gel with. But this one was an unique experience. She manged to pack so much feeling in a short story and it made me intrigued to research more into her own triangle drama that apparently inspired this story a bit. I don't know much about it but definitely sounds interesting, feel like I would get the whole picture then and see the significance with the story

[John Hatley · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is another situation in which I have now read the English original of a short story that I first read in a Swedish translation. It is astonishing how much tragedy Mary Shelley (yes, the same Mary Shelley who wrote Frankenstein) was able to compress into so few pages.

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eldig passion, löften om avhållsamhet i ett helt år, vänskap så djup. Det var mycket som rymdes i denna novell.

Jag gillar den skarpt.

[Maren · Rating 2 out of 5]

This only got two stars because it was a bit hard for me to follow, I don’t know if it was because of the Swedish or how it was written. I thought it could be a nice storyline, but I got so confused and didn’t really get the end tbh😬

[Regitze Xenia · Rating 2 out of 5]

Synes nærmest den var sørgelig, på den måde at den udfoldede sig på.

[Jens · Rating 3 out of 5]

Läser eftersom eleverna läser…

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I haven't actually read that many of her books/stories, more just books about her. But when I stumbled upon this one at the library, I figured I should give it a go.
When this book came out, it was outrageous and created quite a scandal. Imagine the drama when a woman published a book about cheating men, love triangles, and women full of sexual desire in the 1800s.
To make it even more scandalous, the book is based on her, her husband, and her own sister. Pretty wild for a woman of her time, right?

So the book itself was good. I get bored a bit easier with some of the classics, but this one is short and straightforward. It has a lot of humor to it, and it is so damn dramatic. Honestly, this book is hilarious.
So if you're like me and quickly get ''scared'' of the classics, this is an excellent place to start.

[d · Rating 5 out of 5]

You know a book is good when you wish you had written it

[Inês · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5
Estou a adorar ler short stories (vai ser os mini livros que me vão faz3r chegar aos goals do goodreads ahah)

[Linnéa Engman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kanske 5/5 ändå, blev tagen av berättelsen och lite förskräckt av händelseförloppet, även om jag kunde se det komma. Kanske ingen ”romance” såsom vi ser på genren idag men väldigt bra!

[Elna Plöen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Meget fin og smuk

[Annasara · Rating 3 out of 5]

1 800-talets telenovela?

[Lotta · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jag gillade novellen, men historien är hemskt jobbig att läsa. Det är verkligen feelbad när två fina kvinnor och vänner faller för samma man, en man som i slutändan inte var bra för någon av dem. Tråkigt slut på historien.

[BriiWrites · Rating 5 out of 5]

«Sería sería absurdo describir la variedad de tormentos por los que pasó la desdichada joven. Su piedad su resignación su noble y generosa naturaleza acudieron en su ayuda y le sirvieron de apoyo cuando sentía que sin ellos podía morir.» —Mary Shelley

⭐⭐⭐⭐🌟/5

Angeline e Ippolito se amaban tanto que querían casarse, pero dado a la diferencia de clases sociales su padre no bendijo su unión. Sin embargo, les hizo jurar que a cambio de su bendición debían prometer no verse ni hablarse por un año, con la esperanza de que en ese tiempo su hijo encontrara a una joven merecedora de tal unión. Ambos a regañadientes accedieron, manteniendo este juramento en secreto.

Faltando tan solo un mes para que se cumpliera el plazo, Ippolito busca a su aba Angeline, pero ella le es indiferente tratando de cumplir su promesa, a lo que él lo toma como desamor. Tras un accidente en el que Ippolito sale herido tratando de salvar a Angeline y su amiga Faustina, esta última se enamora perdidamente de él, siendo ajena a la promesa entre su amiga y su valiente salvador.

✔️
💍Está en 3ra persona, es ágil, concisa, para nada denso. Me sorprendió.
💍Es un cuento súper corto, pero potente. Me hizo llorar mares😭
💍Angeline🤧💔
💍El final es predecible, pero te cala en los huesos.
💍La autora tiene un forma de describirte los sucesos que ni sientes que estás leyendo un cuento y no una novela.
💍Vas a encontrar: Triángulo amoroso, clasismo, malos entendidos y falta de comunicación.

❌
🤐 Faustina.
🤐 Padre de Ippolito.
🤐 Ippolito🤦🏽‍♀️

Nunca había leído a Mary Shelley antes, y me gustó lo ágil que es leerla. Me tomó por sorpresa pensando que es densa. Es la idea que se tiene de autores, relatos y novelas clásicas, pero no es así.

Esta historia me enamoró tanto como me destruyó la vida. Quiero leer más de la autora.

[Julezz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nu läste jag versionen på svenska till en skoluppgift och eftersom jag är bekant med Mary Shelly förut så tänkte jag att det skulle vara en bra idé att läsa ytterligare en av hennes noveller.

På en sådan kort intervall lyckades hon infiltrerar smärta i berättelsen, en tragisk kärlekshistoria. Det är svårt att säga just en person som orsakade utkommet i boken utan en fråga om vilka och varför? Såklart är vissa mera skyldiga än andra däremot spelade alla en viktig roll, även om igen av dem fick som de ville betyder det att det var dåligt slut.

Boken handlade mycket om hur kärleken kan påverka bilden av en person och hur det faktiskt ser ut utan de ”ros-tingade glasögonen.” Kärlek är större än livet själv och att hamna i ett giftermåls som deras är verkligen ”en på miljoner” för det finns tussen till varför två personer kan bli kära i varandra men det är ju inte det kärlek handlar om. Det bara händer, det gör ont men det är också en av det mest underbara känslorna som finns.

Jag också vilja tro att vi har mer än enbart en person som vårt ”livskärlek.”

[Gautam Gopal Krishnan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short story by Mary Shelley, The Trial of Love is wonderfully written and has the powerful capability of making the reader emotional. Despite it being published a long time ago in 1835, it has a timeless feel because of the universal themes of love, family and kinship. The author packs a lots of emotion and doesn't leave any loose ends in this short and concise tale. Miscommunications that happen in life are brilliantly captured in this narrative and form the crux of the story.

The story follows a principled and pious woman in her early twenties, whose love is put to the test due to circumstances around her. The characters that appear are very well depicted and they feel life like. It is considered by many to be based on the love triangle between Shelley's husband, her half-sister and the author herself. Being easy to read and possessing depth for the mature reader to ponder on, makes this a must read short story.

[Lara · Rating 2 out of 5]

Relato incluido en "Cuentos de amor victorianos".
Este primer relato no me ha gustado mucho a pesar de la mano de Mary Shelley, ya que la historia es muy típica y sabes lo que va a pasar en todo momento.

[John Hatley · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this complex story of love and friendship, one of the three main characters passes "The Trial of Love". Writing any more here would spoil the plot for anyone who wishes to read this brilliant little tale.

[josefinessen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hjärta och smärta under första halvan av 1800-talet. Något helt annat än Frankenstein, som är det enda jag tidigare har läst av Shelley, och jag gillade denna novell bättre.

(Novelljulkalender 2023 - egenmixad)

[Agneta Lind · Rating 4 out of 5]

Söt novell

[Pauisreading · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow.
"Deja ir lo que no es tuyo, por algo no lo es"
Esa es la enseñanza que me dejó una historia tan corta y tan sorpresiva.

[Ella Baroudi · Rating 3 out of 5]

så mycket känslor på så lite sidor, imponerande

[Elina Purmonen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rätt dramatisk och även förutsägbar…

[Lucia Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was like a perfectly triangular love triangle

[Anetq · Rating 3 out of 5]

En lille novelle om dobbelt ulykkelig kærlighed.

[Marion · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pas emballée par l'histoire, bien écrite cependant
Le fait que je lise jamais de nouvelles a peut-être pas aidé

[Marie Rubæk · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

Skøn og trist historie. Især hvis man tænker at den eftersigende skulle være baseret på eller inspireret af hendes egen historie med hendes halvsøster og hendes mand.

[Leon · Rating 4 out of 5]

1/24

[Zookswag · Rating 2 out of 5]

A love triangle ‘twixt man and friended women. Utterly predictable. Nothing very special. Could have been written by a neighbor down most streets.