Examples Of Justice In Frankenstein

The Flaw of the Justice System

In Frankenstein; Or, The Modern Prometheus written by Mary Shelley, the justice system demonstrates its fundamental flaws and biases. These flaws lead to deleterious consequences for women and those without power. For example, Justine, an innocent woman, finds herself in the wrong place at the wrong time, goes to trial for the murder of William. She attempts to prove her innocence by giving an explanation for that night, and tries to prove her character, but the jury and the public both have a preconceived notion of her guilt and her attempts fail. Justine, proved culpable, goes to jail. While there, her confessor consistently berates her and orders her to admit her false guilt. In contrast, when Victor falls

into a state of severe sickness after his arrest, Mr. Kirwin, a complete stranger, provides him a nurse and medicine, and he gets treated excellently. After returning to good health, Mr. Kirwin proves Victor innocent and Victor can leave. Given this evidence, people should understand the degree of corruption that exists in this justice system. Laws, juries, and lawyers have a fundamental bias against the powerless should overcome these biases to see people with an egalitarian point of view.
After the creature frames Justine for the murder of William, the police arrest her and she goes to trial. At her trial, witnesses provide seemingly incriminating evidence against her and she tries to prove her innocence by begging for “permission to have a few witnesses examined concerning [her] character; and… their testimony shall not overweigh [her] supposed guilt” (Shelly 55). This plea leads to “several witnesses… called, who had known her for many years… but fear, and hatred of the crime of which they supposed her guilty, rendered them timorous and unwilling to come forward” (56). Justine has no power, and her life depends upon the decision of the court. She begs for witnesses because she believes she has a chance to confirm her innocence and prevail over the strong biases of the court. Unfortunately, because of her gender and lack of power, even those who know that she could not have committed this dreadful crime, refuse to stand up for her. The public fears the crime she may have committed and no one wants to risk having an unfavorable reputation. Eventually, Elizabeth sees “even this last resource… about to fail the accused, when although violently agitated, she [desires] permission to address the court” (56). Elizabeth delivers a compelling speech with concrete evidence and facts, causing “a murmur of approbation… excited [by] her generous interference, [but] not in favor of poor Justine, on whom the public indignation was turned with renewed violence, charging her with the blackest ingratitude” (56). Elizabeth stands up for Justine and brings forth a compelling argument with logical facts. While people value Elizabeth’s courage, her speech fails to provide aid to Justine, who the public continues to see as guilty, even with a compelling argument with strongly based facts. Justine fails to fight the justice system and people look at her with violence and hatred. If the public had not believed in her preconceived guilt and kept a tolerant view, the justice system’s strong bias would not have lead to the conviction of Justine.
While in jail, Justine confesses to the murder of William.

After hearing about her confession, Victor and Elizabeth visit her in jail. They find her “sitting on some straw at the further end; her hands were manacles, and her head rested on her knees” (57). Victor and Elizabeth question Justine, wondering why she would admit to something she did not do. She responds by confessing, “ever since I was condemned, my confessor has besieged me; he threatened and menaced, until I almost began to think that I was the monster that he said I was. He threatened excommunication and hell fire in my last moments, if I continued obdurate” (58). Justine’s confessor, a religious figure, spreads toxic messages into her mind, and berates, insults, and menaces her, calling her a monster. Justine has no power in this situation because her confessor is a man with religious power, and she is a poor, uneducated young woman. Additionally, this demonstrates the horrendous and disturbing conditions that Justine has to spend her time in while her confessor abuses her. In these moments, Justine feels alone. She immediately regrets her confession, proven when she reflects that she “confessed, that [she] might obtain absolution; but now that falsehood lies heavier at [her] heart than all other sins” (58). Even with her confessor promising heaven after her death, she knows she did the wrong thing. She recalls in anguish, “All looked on me as a wretch doomed to ignominy and perdition. What could I do? In an

evil hour I subscribed to a lie; and now only am I truly miserable” (58). She feels as if everyone hates her and she can do nothing to prove her innocence. The confessor only gave her one choice; one that leads to increased misery and death. Justine knows she has no guilt; however, a major power imbalance exists, and he uses this to his advantage to force Justine to confess to something she did not do. Those with religious authority should not be able to use their power to exemplify the biases in court.
Victor finds himself in a similar situation as Justine, when the village people accuse him of murder. When he wakes up he describes finding himself “in a prison, stretched on a wretched bed, surrounded by all the miserable apparatus of a dungeon… The physician [comes] and [prescribes] medicines, and the old woman [prepares] them for [him];” (127-8). He describes his surroundings as torturous and miserable; however, after staying at the prison for a longer amount of time, he learns that “Mr. Kirwin had shewn [him] extreme kindness. He had caused the best room in the prison to be prepared for [him] (wretched was indeed the best); and it was he who provided a physician and nurse” (128). At first, Victor believes that the guards puts him in the worst possible prison cell. He wakes up in a small bed surrounded by prison equipment and he feels miserable. He receives a physician and nurse but still feels badly treated. In perspective, when Justine goes to prison she only gets some straw for a bed, and has to sit, handcuffed. Victor receives the best room, and Mr. Kirwin provides him with proper medical care. Mr. Kirwin, a complete stranger, cares about Victor, but even Justine’s closest friends don’t stand up for her. As a man, Victor receives superior treatment as compared to Justine because of the biases in his favor. Victor has an easier time leaving prison. Eventually, “the season of the assizes approached. [Victor] had already been there months in prison...[he] was obliged to travel nearly a hundred miles to the county-town, where the court was held” (131). Mr. Kirwin helps him out by charging “himself with every care of collecting witnesses, and arranging [his] defence… The grand jury rejected the bill, on its being proved that [he] was on the Orkney Islands at the hour of the body of [his] friend was found, and a fortnight after my removal [his] was liberated from prison” (131). Mr. Kirwin helps Victor to prove his case of his innocence. Mr. Kirwin helps to prove Victor’s location at the time of the murder to reject the bill. Victor has an easy time proving his innocence, and a complete stranger stands up for him, unlike Justine who proves her character and location and still nobody believes her. She has stronger evidence to support her and yet, her closest friends believed in her supposed guilt. The justice system has a strong bias for power and men. Victor had both of these advantages and therefore had no trouble getting out of his situation, proving the biases of the court. The Grand Jury should have taken similar steps when dealing with Justine as they did with Victor, who receives an unfair advantage.
Mellor argues that Victor contributes to a creation of a gender divide in both a cultural and physical sphere of life by viewing things in a gender binary, wherein nature has inherently feminine characteristics.

Victor works to escalate the dehumanization of women by executing an experiment that leads to a creature of the male gender, and none of the female gender (361). While the possibility that Victor consciously attempts to see everything through a strictly masculine lens has no proof anywhere in the novel, Mellor’s point that Victor’s refusal to create a woman creature escalates the dehumanization of women has some validity. When Victor starts to create a female creature, he reconsiders the possibility that “she might become ten thousand times more malignant than her mate, and delight, for its own sake, in murder and wretchedness” (Shelly 118). Victor reconsiders his decision to create a female being. He worries that a female creature would be more vicious and evil than the original creature. She may murder more people and do more harm. This demonstrates how Victor, and more people of the time think that women inherently have evil and murderous characteristics. Victor does not give a female creature a chance, similar to how the justice system didn’t give Justine a chance because of her femininity and lack of power. Victor and the juries should keep a more open mind when considering the characteristics of

femininity.
People should realize that juries, laws, lawyers all contribute to the degree of corruption and bias that exist in the justice system and should overcome these biases by seeing things in an egalitarian view. Victor gets the best room in the prison, along with a physician, to make sure his suffering decreases. Mr. Kirwin treats him well and helps Victor prove his innocence. Victor leaves prison after proving his location. Justine had to do much more than this, and she still died with people believing in her guilt. During her trial, no one stands up for her. Finally, Elizabeth stands up for Justine, but no one changes their mind. Even in jail, Justine continues to experience harassment. Her confessor consistently menaces and berates her and forces her to stay in terrible conditions. In Frankenstein, or, The Modern Prometheus written by Mary Shelley, the justice system shows its fundamental flaws in its laws, juries, and lawyers which all lead to the supposed guilt of anyone who does not have power.