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Throughout the reading, it is clear Victor is innocent. Victor is in no way responsible for his creations crimes because it is clear that the creation knows right from wrong, understands how society functions, and has free will. Because the creature possesses these attributes, it should face the consequences of its own actions. It is apparent that the creature possesses free will and has a moral compass when it states, "I had been accustomed, during the night, to steal a part of their store for my own consumption, but when I found that in doing this I inflicted pain on the cottagers" (Shelley 99). This means that the creature knows when he is doing wrong and therefore should be responsible for its actions, not Victor. Evidence proving the creature understands society is when it states, "I obtained a cursory knowledge of history and a view of several empires at present existing in the world; it gave me an insight into the manners, governments, and religions of the different nations of the earth" (Shelley 107). With this evidence one can conclude that the creature is guilty and Victor should be in no way punished for its actions.

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Towards the end of the book, Victor is once again proven to be innocent. Before his wedding he explains, “I was anxious and watchful, while my right hand grasped a pistol which was hidden in my bosom; every sound terrified me, but I resolved that I would sell my life dearly and not shrink from the conflict until my own life or that of my adversary was extinguished” (Shelley 185). This shows that Victor is scared of his creation and now wants nothing to do with it and wishes death upon it in a sense. Why would he create something that he is afraid of? Or something that would kill the person he loves, such as Elizabeth? Demonstrating yet again, Victor has no control over the actions of the creatures, making him not guilty.

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Throughout the reading, Victor is shown to be innocent through the confessions of himself and through his own monster. In the end, the monster admits to the murders he has committed. He states, "But now crime has degraded me beneath the meanest animal... No guilt, no mischief, no malignity, no misery, can be found comparable to mine" (Shelley 211). In this quote, the monster admits to his own actions as he states that no other crime will be comparable to his own crimes. The monster is aware that he is responsible for his crimes and he knows that his crimes are his. Some may say that Victor admitted to the murder. However, Victor is shown to believe that the monster is the true killer. Victor goes to the magistrate and files a search for the murderer of his family. Victor himself believes that the monster is the murderer. He states, "This is the being whom I accuse and for whose punishment I call upon you to exert your power" (Shelley 190). This is showing that Victor knows that the monster is the true, actual killer of his family.

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Throughout the book, the characters blame Victor for being responsibly for the murders and crimes his creation committed. The author argues "My destruction might indeed arrive a few months sooner, but if my torturer should suspect that I postponed it, influenced by his menaces, he would surely find other and perhaps more dreadful means of revenge"(Shelley 179). This shows that the crimes the creature committed were due to him wanting revenge because the creature found out Victor postponed something he wanted. Victor could not control how far or what he intended to do to gain that revenge he needed. How could Victor have know what he was going to do and why would he help the creature get revenge on himself. This proves that Victor is yet again innocent of the crimes the creature himself committed.

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In the book it states, "Of what materials was I made, that I could thus resist so many shocks, which like the turning of the wheel, continually renewed the torture?" Which in other words means that Victor does not like the bad things that the monster has done and it scares him that he can have similar traits like the monster so why would he tell the monster to do something he was so terrified to be true about himself. Victor did not have anything to do with what the monster did. He just built the monster and he did not have any control of anything the monster chose to do after that.

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Throughout “Frankenstein,” many find Victor guilty of crimes against humanity and believe he has brought death to innocent human beings through immoral acts of experimenting with dead bodies to recreate human life. However, throughout the story there are several instances that show why Victor would never do such a thing, and prove him innocent of any crimes. One such example that supports the belief that Victor is innocent of crime and murder is Victor’s constant expression of his love for his family, as well as the entirety of the human race. As Victor’s journey concludes with his voyage coming to an end, Victor is found to have landed and journeyed into Paris. Through having time to reflect on his life as he explores new land, Victor reflects on his relationship with human beings and the beauty of creation. Victor feels strongly connected to the humans surrounding him in life, and feels as if they are of such a beautiful nature. Victor describes his strong love for humanity and the creation that is human beings through his self-reflections, by which he states, “They were my brethren, my fellow beings, and I felt attracted even to the most repulsive among them, as to creatures of an angelic nature and celestial mechanism” (Shelley 175). Victor’s deep thought through his personal, self-reflections reveal his true appreciation of humanity. This, as well as Victor’s fear of losing those he loves, especially Elizabeth, all provide clear evidence that Victor is not guilty of any murder or for that matter, the creation of the creature, as why would Victor make a creation that would destroy or wipe out one of the things he loves greatly and holds very dear to him?

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Throughout chapter 17 we notice Victor once again does not influence the actions of his creation, the monster willingly admits he committed many crimes and now believes if Victor creates him a companion, he will stop doing bad. The monster says, “…’the love of another will destroy the cause of my crimes, and I shall become a thing of whose existence everyone will be ignorant… I shall feel the affections of a sensitive being and became linked to the chain of existence and events from which I am now excluded’” (Shelley 137). This shows he is more than capable of feeling, and feels as if he had someone like him to go about with his life then he would stop harming others. Victor is innocent not only because the monster has feelings and is aware of his conscience but because he knows he causes harm.

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Although many believe Dr. Frankenstein is to blame for the monster's actions, Dr. Frankenstein is still innocent of the monster's crimes. Throughout chapter 17, the monster and Frankenstein argue over the creation of a female monster. However, throughout the argument, the monster shows many instances of confession. One example from the text states, "I am malicious because I am miserable, am I not shunned and hated by all mankind?... I will revenge my injuries, if I cannot aspire love, I will cause fear" (Shelley 134). This quote shows the monster's confession of his conscience to Dr. Frankenstein. The monster is aware of his miseries and the sources of his miseries. The monster is even stating that he will gain revenge and will cause fear because of his miseries. The monster is at fault for the murders, not Victor Frankenstein. The monster himself says he will cause fear and gain revenge, not Victor.

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Many believe Victor Frankenstein is guilty of crimes against God and humanity, praticulary, many believe that Victor has re-created life through experimenting on dead human bodies.Throughout the story, several instances prove Victor's innocence of any crimes, specifically including the various scenarios by which he continually rejects the creature that roams the earth, seeking to destroy humanity.  One particular instance is found in chapter 17, by which Victor is telling the creature to leave him and to stay away from him, as he states, "Begone!" (Shelley 134) Not only does Victor continue to try and avoid the creature and want no part of being associated with it, Victor also is a lover of mankind, especially his family, as seen in chapter 19 through the description of Victor's desire to settle down and marry Elizabeth in safety, as well as his expressed relief and happiness to be home with his family once again. Why would Victor create a creature or monster  if he knew it would kill those he loved or innocent people, especially if he loves life and the people he is surrounded by?

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Throughout these chapters we find more and more evidence that Victor had no part in the crimes the creature has committed. After Victor goes back home to create the creature a companion he has a conversation with his dad about the murders that we committed by this creature. Victors say that " My dear father, reassure yourself. I love my cousin tenderly and sincerely. I never saw any women who excited, as Elizabeth does, my warmest admiration and affection" (Shelley 140). This quote shows that Victor loved Elizabeth and would never have done anything to hurt her. If he was truly guilty for committing this crime alongside the creature he would have told the creature to go through with it but would never happen because he loved her so much. This also proves that the creature did this without Victor knowing and that Victor had no control over what the creature did. This shows that he is innocent because he would have never lead the creature to kill Elizabeth because her loved her so much.

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In this section of the novel we see more evidence arise that pushes the idea that Victor Frankenstein is truly not responsible for the actions of his creation. In chapter 17-18, the creature finally tracks down Victor, and requests a female representation/counterpart of himself, promising to never hurt another soul as long as he has that companion. Victor reasonably states that  "‘You swear to be harmless; but have you not already shown a degree of malice that should reasonably make me distrust you? May not even this be a feint that will increase your triumph by affording a wider scope for your revenge?’ (Shelly 117), showing Victor's understanding of the murderous hatred the monster had committed itself to against the very man it was now trying to speak diplomatically to. Victor's point and previous chapters show that the monster has conjured up its complete revenge story purely out of its own malicious thoughts on Frankenstein and itself, bringing murder through those thoughts and not through any influence whatsoever by Victor.

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Throughout chapter 15 Victor Frankenstein is shown to not be guilty once again. The monster stumbles upon some books and Victors old journal while in the woods one night and became very intrigued. Then the monster says, “‘As I read, however, I applied much personally to my own feelings and condition. I found myself similar yet at the same time strangely unlike to the beings concerting whom I read and to whose conversation I was a listener. I sympathized with and partly understood them, but I was unformed in mind; I was dependent on none and related to none’” (Shelley 117). This shows that the monster is now fully aware of his actions because he willingly admits that he isn’t controlled by anyone, proving Victor is innocent because he has no control over the actions of the monster. Within Victor’s journal, the monster discovers that Victor is ashamed of him, once again demonstrating that although he is remorseful of his creation and its actions, he doesn’t control it.

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In chapter 12, it showed that the monster stole food from the neighbors which also showed that the monster is responsible for the actions he decided to commit. It also shows that Frankenstien the monster stopped stealing because he saw how angry it made the neighbors which gives evidence that he has feeling and that he can do as he believes in, not to do as instructed by Victor if someone wanted to argue that aspect.

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Dr. Frankenstein is yet again shown to be innocent throughout this section of the reading. Throughout this section, the monster tries to do good and make relationships with humans. However, every attempt he makes, he always gets rejected, fueling his hatred and rage towards humans. For example, after after the monster saved the girl from drowning, her father still shot the monster with a gun. The text states how the monster feels, "This was then the reward for my benevolence! I had saved a human being from destruction, and as a recompense I now writhed under the miserable pain of a wound that shattered flesh and bone" (Shelley 130). This quote is showing how the monster had wanted to create a relationship of friendship and love with human beings. However, he only gets rewarded with hate and fear. Because of this, the monster is fueled with anger and rage. The monster vows to himself, and only himself, that he will gain revenge on humans to compensate for the way they mistreated him. The text states, "I vowed eternal hatred and vengeance to all mankind... My daily vows rose for revenge - a deep and deadly revenge, such as would compensate for the outrages and anguishes I endured" (Shelly 130). In this quote, the monster himself is saying that he is the way he is because of the way humans have mistreated him. The monster never calls out Dr. Frankenstein for the way the humans are treating him. The monster experienced the world around him by himself and endured the mistreatment of the humans by himself. The monster then vows to himself, and only himself, to gain revenge on the humans. Dr. Frankenstein was not involved in the way humans have mistreated the monster, and Frankenstein had nothing to do with the monster's vengeance against human beings.

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Victor Frankenstein is yet again proven innocent through my reading of chapter 13. A quote I found that proves he is innocent is "These wonderful narrations inspired me with strange feelings. Was man, indeed, at once so powerful, so virtuous and magnificent, yet so vicious and base? He appeared at one time a mere scion of the evil principle and at another as all that can be conceived of noble and godlike" (Shelley 107). This quote explains that a human can be loving and kind at one time then instantly mean and horrible the next. Someone can have all the power and follow the virtues yet be so violent. Victor created this monster to be like humans which includes they way they act and their behavior. If he created the monster as a human than the monster can be both kind in one moment and evil in the next like us humans. If this is so, than is it really the creators fault that the monster committed these crimes or was he just following the behaviors of a human person? This proves that yet again he is innocent.

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While many have accused Victor Frankenstein of being guilty of crimes against God and humanity, the text in chapters 12-16 supports the argument that he is indeed not guilty of these accused crimes. One specific instance by which this can be seen is found in chapter 13 of Mary Shelley's infamous "Frankenstein." Throughout the story, Victor is constantly thinking about his life, especially in chapter 13. Victor describes how he feels, which ultimately proves that he is a man with character and in a way, compassion, furthermore showing that he would never be one to go against laws or commit immoral actions considered crimes against God and humanity. As found in chapter 13, Victor states, "I admired virtue and good feelings and loved the gentle manners and amiable qualities of my cottagers..." The provided quote describes and shows that Victor is truly an innocent man and one who is going about his life enjoying the company and happiness of others. Through being around the cottagers, Victor is able to express his true self as well as a great peace, which shows his true colors which are those of an innocent, kind, and caring man, certainly not a man of the kind that would commit immortal actions.

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Victor Frankenstein is yet again shown to be innocent of any wrongdoing in this section of the book. The section shows Frankenstein's creation observing and learning from some cottagers, using both applied learning from their actions and books he had taken from them to form his own language and thoughts on his situation. Through his readings he comes to his own hastily-made conclusion that he is a horrid monster, saying  "Accursed creator! Why did you form a monster so hideous that even you turned from me in disgust? God, in pity, made man beautiful and alluring, after his own image; but my form is a filthy type of yours, more horrid even from the very resemblance." (Shelly 155).
Through this self-revelation the monster, under his own accord and not under any semblence of control from Victor, swears revenge against the doctor who created him, most likely leading to more unneeded bloodshed meditated only by the monster under its own thoughts, proving Victor's innocence.

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Victor Frankenstein is innocent of any and all actions charged against him or his creation. Victor had no direct involvement regarding the death of William. When Victor found out the news of Williams death, he did not handle the situation in a manner that someone guilty would. Frankenstein said that, "I was unable to rest, I resolved to visit the spot where my poor William had been murdered" (Shelley 62). It is obvious that Victor is going through grief when dealing with the loss of William. Would he feel this way if he had been the one who had murdered him? As the chapter progresses we soon find out that Victors creation was responsible for Williams death. As of right now nobody is aware of who the killer is and there is no valid evidence, so why pin the blame on Frankenstein? It was clear that Victor did not intend for his creation to do such a thing when he said, "What did he there? Could he be (I shuddered at the conception) the murderer of my brother?"(Shelley 63). Victor has no control of what he created and it killed William itself. Yes, Victor gave life to the creature, but that also means that the creature had free will. Therefore, this was not Victors doing but his creations fault. When Victor sees the devil he says, "That I could, with the extinction of your miserable existence, restore those victims whom you have so diabolically murdered!" (Shelley 86). This shows that the deaths were the devils doing and not his.

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Frankenstein – Defense

Throughout Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein,” the ideas of science and the creation of life are explored, particularly through scientific-enthusiast Victor Frankenstein. As a devoted follower of science, Victor constantly studies the many broad fields science has to offer, both big and small. One field of science his interest peaks in particularly is the process of creation and how life starts. This peak of interest leads Victor to be devoted to the study of creation of life, resulting in non-stop time exploring the ideas of the field. However, despite how innocent one man’s interest may be in the sciences, Victor’s strong interest in science, particularly the process of creation of life, has led him to be accused of crimes against God and humanity. While this is all occurring, a killer, whom has not been identified, has killed many innocent lives, leading many to believe Victor has created life through scientific means and is using it to prey on innocent human lives. Victor’s strong interest in how life is created has led to the accusation that he has re-created life and in doing so, created a monster that has killed various innocent lives. Despite these strong accusations, there are many examples throughout the text that describe Victor’s innocence, that he has not recreated life or committed crimes against God and humanity, proving he is another of many that has a deep love and devotion to the study of science, not a crazy, crime-motivated experimentalist. One specific instance in the story that shows the innocence of Victor Frankenstein takes place while Victor is in the court room, for Justine’s trial. While Victor has been accused of creating this “killer monster,” Justine has been also accused of murder. Ultimately, Justine admits guilty of the murder, as stated in the text, “but she as confessed,” as well as, “Her mild eyes seemed incapable of any severity or guile, and yet she has committed a murder” (Shelly 72). The text describes Justine’s own, self-admittance to attempting and completing a murder, proving that she is the “killer monster,” as she is the one who has admitted to killing innocent life. The finding of Shelly as guilty of murder, as well as her own admittance of being guilty, proves Victor innocent of any murder or harm to human life, any crimes against God and humanity, and ultimately, innocent of creating a monster through recreating life.

Another example in Shelly’s writing that supports the idea that Victor Frankenstein is not guilty of crimes against God and humanity describes Victor’s lack of desire to be even associated with the alleged monster he has created. Victor goes as far as calling the alleged being he created, his “enemy.” Would one whom has been accused of re-creating life call his recreated life his own enemy? Victor has no association to this monster, whom many have accused him of creating, and he has no desire to associate with him. As Victor states in the text, “Begone! I will not hear you. There can be no community between you and me; we are enemies” (Shelly 87). If Victor was as crazy as all have accused him of being, he would justly want to be with his alleged created being, as being a devoted follower of science, which promotes power through creation, Victor realistically would want rule and unity with anything he creates, which proves that he did not create this monster, as if he did, he would want to live in unison with him.

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Victor Frankenstein is innocent of all the charges made against him. The monster he created could not be controlled by him or anyone even though he tried to stop it. When victor came face to face with his creation he asked him and confronted him by saying " That I could, with the extinction of your miserable existence, restore those victims whom you have so diabolically murdered" (Shelley 86). This shows that victor wasn't involved in the killing of the people and is trying to restore what the monster destroyed. The creature responds with this, " Do your duty towards me, and I will do mine towards you and the rest of mankind. If you will comply with my conditions, I will leave them and you at peace; but if you refuse, I will glut the maw of death, until it be satiated with the blood of your remaining friends" (Shelley 86). This shows that the monster had a reason to kill his friends and that he can't be stopped or controlled. The quote "These motives urged me to comply with his demand" (Shelley 89) , also shows that the monster can't be controlled because when victor complied with the monsters demand, the monster still hurt his friends even though he said he wouldn't. Victor is also innocent because when he was creating this thing. his intentions were good. He wanted to create something to help his fellow beings. The book states "Yet my heart overflowed with kindness and the love of virtue. I had begun life with benevolent intentions and thirsted for the moment when I should put them in practice and make myself useful to my fellow beings" (Shelley 78). This quote shows that Victor never intended for his creation to be bad or kill people but wanted it to help people and make their lives better. All of these facts prove that victor is innocent of all of the charges made against him.

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Victor Frankenstein is not at fault for the deaths of the people his creation has caused. When Frankenstein created the monster, he wanted it to be beautiful and did not intend to do harm. In chapter 5, the text states, "His limbs were in proportion, and I had selected his features as beautiful... but now that I had finished, the beauty of the dream vanished" (Shelley 43). In this quote, Frankenstein shows that he has good intentions with his creation. However, it didn't go the way he wanted to. In chapter 11, the monster tells the story of his life and how he learned and functioned through the early stages of his life. In this story, he describes how humans have made him feel excluded and miserable. Because of this unhappiness, the monster is motivated to make other humans miserable too.  Frankenstein had nothing to do with this. The reason for the monster's unhappiness is the villagers and humans who treated him badly. Also in chapter 11, the monster shows that he has a mind. He can think and make decisions for himself, therefore, he must take full responsibility for his own actions.

1. Frankenstein did not intend for his creation to kill. Chapter 5 (43-45)
2. Frankenstein had nothing to do with the life of the Creature. Chapter 11
3. The Creature has free will and a mind of its own. He's responsible for his actions. Chapter 11

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We sense a huge feeling of remorse from Victor, especially when he says, “Sleep fled from my eyes; I wandered like an evil spirit, for I had committed deeds of mischief beyond description horrible, and more, much more (I persuaded myself) was yet behind. Yet my heart overflowed with kindness and the love of virtue. I had begun life with benevolent intentions and thirsted for the moment when I should put them in practice and make myself useful to my fellow beings” (Shelley 77). This quote can be used to defend Victor because although he did create a monster, he does not have any control over its actions. Though Victor is very ashamed of himself, he had no intention of doing any harm. Victor is innocent because he did everything in his power to keep his creation under control and was not the cause of the actions of the monster. In chapter 11, we see that the monster is explaining its feelings to Victor, the monster willingly knowing he will never be treated normally proves that he's fully aware of his conscience and Victor is not guilty.

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Victor Frankenstein is innocent of any of the actions his creation has caused. He already was not too fond of the monstrous sentient amalgamation of corpses he had created and attempted to keep it away from the rest of the world. It was always known that Victor had no control of the monster, and if he did it would be very unlikely to kill Victor's own friends and family or cause chaos in the town. The monster attacked on its own accord and Victor valiantly tried to prevent this by doing his best to keep his creation away from the world at large, and is thus innocent of murder caused by his creation.

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Victor should not be accused of the deaths of those people because although he did create the monster, he did not tell him to kill people nor did he have anything to do with it. A man would not kill his own father and his own spouse just because without any reason to do so. Victor did not control what the monster he created did just like how your parents cannot control what you do even though they created you.

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This is a test post from Mr. Bohnak: I am checking to make sure that this board is working correctly.