Frankenstein Chapter 5-10

Victor succeeds in bringing his creation, an eight-foot man, to life in November of his second year. Excited and disgusted at "the monster" he had created, he runs from the apartment.He wanders the streets of Ingolstadt until Henry Clerval finds him in poor condition. Henry had come to see about his friend and to enroll at the university.

Henry and Victor return to Victor's apartment to find the monster gone. Victor finds the disappearance of his monster a source of joy and falls down in a fit of exhaustion from the release of anxiety over his creation. Henry spends the rest of the winter and spring nursing Victor back to health after the tumultuous fall. Henry advises Victor to write home, as a letter had recently arrived from his family in Geneva.

Elizabeth's letter is the kind one would expect from a concerned family member. It is full of news from home that delights Victor and restores him to better health. Elizabeth tells of Justine Moritz, the Frankenstein's housekeeper and confidant. Even though Justine was treated poorly by her own family, she is a martyr for being a good, loyal friend to the Frankenstein family.Victor introduces Henry to his professors, who praise Victor highly.

Victor and Henry begin their studies together, studying ancient and foreign languages in order to engage their minds. Both men are happy to be hard-working college students.Plans are made for Victor to return to Geneva in the fall, after his spring recovery, but weather and other delays make the trip impossible, and winter sets in. He revises his plans to depart in May.

Victor receives a letter from his father telling him to return home immediately.

William, the youngest in the family, has been murdered by strangulation. The family were out on an evening stroll near their home when the young boy ran ahead of the group. He was later found "stretched on the grass livid and motionless; the print of the murder's finger was on his neck." Missing was a locket that Elizabeth had given William of their mother.

When Victor arrives at the city gates, they are closed, so he must remain outside the city in Secheron until the gates are reopened at dawn. It is at this time that he realizes that he had been gone six years from home and that two years have passed since the creation of his monster.While near Secheron, on Mont Blanc, Victor catches a glimpse of the monster between flashes of lightning. Having a nagging feeling that the murder of his little brother could be the handiwork of his monster, Victor questions, "Could he be (I shuddered at the conception) the murderer of my brother?" The monster disappears when he realizes that he has been seen by his creator. Now fully believing that his creation murdered William, Victor knows that he cannot reveal the source of the crime without some serious inquiry about his creation. Thus, Victor is torn between revealing the monster and risking inquisition on his past or letting the criminal justice system free the accused.

Finally at home, Victor engages in a conversation with his family. He learns that Justine is accused of the murder with circumstantial evidence. He relays his assertion of Justine's innocence and states that she will be found not guilty. His words reassure Elizabeth in a time of great need.

The trial for Justine Moritz begins at 11:00 the next morning. Victor suffers silent torture while the entire scene plays out in front of him. Yet, he can do nothing to stop it. Justine carries herself calmly at the trial, answering the charges and getting a sterling defense from Elizabeth. Although Justine proclaims her innocence, she is convicted of the crime.

Her sentence is to die by hanging the following day.Elizabeth and Victor go to see Justine in prison where both learn that Justine had given a false confession under stiff questioning. Justine goes to her death with no fear, leaving Victor to ponder the deaths of two innocent victims.

Victor finds no relief at the end of Justine's trial. Haunted by the thoughts of how he ruined so many lives, he cannot sleep or rest. He sinks into a deep depression from which he cannot escape.

He tries boating on Lake Geneva and a trip into the Swiss Mountains. He escapes to the Chamounix valley region to rest and recover his senses.

Victor takes a tour of a nearby mountain and glacier on Mount Montanvert to refresh his tortured soul. While on the glacier, the monster confronts his maker. Victor seems ready to engage in a combat to the death, but the monster convinces Victor to listen to his story. The two go to the monster's squalid hut on the mountain, and the monster begins to tell his tale.