Ellen Glasgow

popular name: Mary Shelley

date_of_death: February 1, 1851

age: 53

cause_of_death: Brain tumor

claim_to_fame: Writers and Poets

best_know_for: Mary Shelley (1797–1851) was an English novelist, best known for writing Frankenstein, one of the most influential works in the horror genre. She was born Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin, the daughter of the feminist writer Mary Wollstonecraft and philosopher William Godwin. Her mother died only 11 days after her birth, leaving her with a strong intellectual legacy and a challenging childhood. In 1814, at the age of 16, Mary began a romantic relationship with the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, who was already married. Despite societal taboos, they eloped to France in 1816, where they faced personal hardships, including the death of their first child. That same year, during a summer spent with Lord Byron at Lake Geneva, she conceived the idea for Frankenstein, which was published in 1818 when she was just 20. Percy Shelley died in 1822 in a drowning accident, leaving Mary a widow with a young son. She continued to write and publish, but struggled financially and emotionally. She wrote novels, short stories, travelogues, and biographies, though none gained the lasting fame of Frankenstein. She also edited and promoted Percy’s works. Mary Shelley died on February 1, 1851, from a brain tumor at the age of 53. She left behind a legacy as a pioneering figure in Gothic literature and a trailblazer for women in literature, particularly through her groundbreaking work with Frankenstein, which explored themes of creation, responsibility, and the human condition. She was laid to rest at St. Peter's Church in Bournemouth UK.

popular name: Norman Mailer

date_of_death: November 10, 2007

age: 84

cause_of_death: Acute renal failure

claim_to_fame: Writers and Poets

best_know_for: Norman Mailer was a writer and serial philanderer and homophobe who enjoyed violence against women - both in his writings and in real life. He wasn't just callous and amoral, he relished violence. Mailer stabbed his wife, Adele Morales, in a drunken rage in November 1960 and beat his fourth wife repeatedly. And if that weren't bad enough, Mailer championed the release of an inmate, Jack Henry Abbott, who murdered a young waiter in Greenwich Village just weeks after getting parole in 1981. Consequently his standing as a great American writer quickly diminished upon his death.

popular name: Simone de Beauvoir

date_of_death: April 14, 1986

age: 78

cause_of_death: Pneumonia

claim_to_fame: Writers and Poets

best_know_for: Simone de Beauvoir was a French writer, intellectual, existentialist philosopher, political activist, feminist, sexual predator, and social theorist. Though she did not consider herself a philosopher, she had a significant influence on both feminist existentialism and feminist theory. Beauvoir wrote novels, essays, biographies, autobiographies and monographs on philosophy, politics, and social issues. She was known for her 1949 treatise The Second Sex, a detailed analysis of women's oppression and a foundational tract of contemporary feminism; and for her novels, including She Came to Stay and The Mandarins. Her most enduring contribution to literature is her memoirs, notably the first volume, “Mémoires d’une jeune fille rangée” (1958), which have a warmth and descriptive power.