In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, Justine Moritz is put on trial for the murder of William Frankenstein.

At the opening of the trial, Justine appears calm. She is dressed in mourning clothes (presumably black). Shelly describes her face as being solemn and beautiful. While she did not tremble at those who had gathered at her trial, those in attendance seemed to weigh heavily upon her given the fact that she had to constrain her true feelings. Shelly sates that her confusion, when first accused, was looked upon as her guilt of the crime, Justine put on a face of courage.

As Justine entered the court room, she immediately began to look around for the Frankenstein family. Upon finding them, "a tear seemed to dim her eye."

When questioned about her presence near the scene of William's death, Justine "looked very strangely and only returned a confused and unintelligible answer."

Once called to her own defense, Justine's courage broke. Instead of putting on a face of restraint, Justine reacted with surprise, misery, and horror. At times during her defense, Justine "struggled with her tears, but when she was desired to plead, she collected her powers and spoke in an audible although variable voice."

When Elizabeth testified on Justine's behalf, Justine cried during the testimony. In the end, Justine was found guilty--the ballots had been taken and "they were all black."