Who are the creature's victims in Frankenstein and how are their crime scenes described?

Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus is an 1818 gothic thriller and science fiction novel written by English novelist Mary Shelley. It was originally published anonymously in three volumes, and it tells the story of a young and ambitious science student by the name of Victor Frankenstein who decides to play God and creates a humanoid creature by assembling his body from stolen body parts. Unfortunately, the creature ends up very ugly and horrific; Victor is appalled, and thus abandons him. Tormented by loneliness, abandonment, isolation, and the never-ending feeling of fear that he will never be loved, the creature sets out to destroy his creator, both physically and metaphorically.

I find it interesting to mention that the creature is neither good nor bad; rather, he manages to behave in a very human way and even shows that he is capable of feeling guilt, remorse, and compassion—unlike his creator. The book has several descriptions of death, and about ten people die, but only four of them are murdered; three of these are killed by the creature, while one is executed as punishment for a crime she did not commit.

Thus, in chronological order, the creature's three murder victims are William Frankenstein, Henry Clerval, and Elizabeth Lavenza.

William Frankenstein, Victor's spoiled little brother, is the first murder victim of the creature. In chapter 16, the sleeping creature is approached by the young William, whom he describes as a "beautiful" child. The creature then decides to take William and make him his companion and friend, as he is incredibly lonely and believes that a child could not be as prejudiced as an adult might be. However, when William sees the creature's face and body, he screams in horror and mentions that he is a Frankenstein by telling the creature that his father will protect him. The creature thinks,

Frankenstein! you belong to my enemy—to him towards whom I have sworn eternal revenge; you shall be my first victim.

When the creature learns that William is a Frankenstein, he grabs him by the throat and the boy dies instantly. As William lies dead at the creature's feet, he says:

I gazed on my victim, and my heart swelled with exultation and hellish triumph; clapping my heads, I exclaimed, "I too can create desolation; my enemy is not invulnerable; this death will carry despair to him, and a thousand other miseries shall torment and destroy him."

I would like to mention the death of Frankenstein's housekeeper, Justine Moritz, as well. Even though the creature doesn't kill her with his own hands, I believe that he is indirectly responsible for her death. In the same chapter, after murdering William, the creature proceeds to look for a place to hide and rest, and he comes near a barn in which Justine is sleeping peacefully. Feeling bitter and angry that the now-dead William was terrified of his ugliness, the creature thinks that someone like Justine will never treat him kindly; if she awakes, she will probably scream as well and accuse the creature of being a murderer. Thus, the creature puts the portrait of Caroline Frankenstein (Victor's and William's mother), which William always carried with him, in the folds of her dress, successfully framing her for the murder of the youngest Frankenstein:

Thus she would assuredly [denounce me if she] beheld me. The thought was madness; it stirred the fiend within me—not I, but she, shall suffer; the murder I have committed because I am forever robbed of all that she could give me, she shall atone. The crime had its source in her: be hers the punishment!

Being the religious woman that she is, Justine confesses to the murder, afraid that she will go to Hell if she doesn't. Thus, she is executed.

The second murder victim is Victor Frankenstein's friend, Henry Clerval. The creature slowly becomes aware that he holds some level of power, especially over Frankenstein. However, he also realizes that if he were to have a mate, he would be able to live happily without Frankenstein, and together, the two creatures could create a new race on their own. Knowing that Frankenstein is the only one who can make this possible, the creature decides to get his revenge by attacking everyone and anyone that is dear to Frankenstein. Thus, in chapter 21, he goes for Frankenstein's closest friend, Henry. Essentially, the creature strangles Henry because Frankenstein wasn't able to keep his promise and create a companion for the creature. However, the creature also expresses deep remorse, grief, and sorrow for doing such a horrible deed, which tells us that perhaps Victor Frankenstein is the real "evil creature" of the story.

Think you that the groans of Clerval were music to my ears? My heart was fashioned to be susceptible of love and sympathy, and when wrenched by misery to vice and hatred, it did not endure the violence of the change without torture such as you cannot even imagine.

Interestingly enough, Victor is later accused of murdering Henry, but he is soon released, as there is no concrete evidence of him ever committing such a crime.

The third murder victim of the creature is Frankenstein's adopted cousin (sister, in some versions) and later wife, Elizabeth Lavenza. In chapter 23, the creature thinks that it is justifiable to kill Frankenstein's wife and leave him without a mate and companion, much like Frankenstein left the creature alone and isolated form the rest of the world. The creature tells Frankenstein that he will come for him on his wedding night, and Frankenstein, being the selfish man that he is, doesn't tell his wife of the creature's plans, as he arrogantly assumes that the creature is out to get him; thus, he tries to protect himself as much as he can and leaves his poor wife alone. He soon hears her terrifying screams and rushes to the bedroom. In this paragraph he describes his wife's dead body:

She was there, lifeless and inanimate, thrown across the bed, her head hanging down and her pale and distorted features half covered by her hair. Everywhere I turn I see the same figure—her bloodless arms and relaxed form flung by the murderer on its bridal bier.

In which chapters of Frankenstein are crime scenes and victims described? Who commits the crimes?

Frankenstein's creature details his murder of William, Victor's youngest brother, in chapter 16. In the twenty-sixth paragraph, the creature explains that he snatched William, hopeful that the child might be young enough that he will not have developed any prejudice against the creature for his ugly appearance. He hopes to educate William to be his friend so that he will not be so completely alone in the world. He explains his plan to abduct the child and how the child's admission that he is a member of the Frankenstein family led him to kill the child instead. The creature says,

I gazed on my victim, and my heart swelled with exultation and hellish triumph; clapping my heads, I exclaimed, "I too can create desolation; my enemy is not invulnerable; this death will carry despair to him, and a thousand other miseries shall torment and destroy him."

Thus, the creature describes the crime he commits, the murder of William, and he briefly describes his victim in the paragraphs surrounding this. Further, in this same chapter, he frames Justine for the murder of William. He went looking for a place to sleep, and he found Justine asleep in a barn. He became aware that if she woke up, she would scream and likely denounce him as the child's murderer. He says,

The thought was madness; it stirred the fiend within me—not I, but she, shall suffer; the murder I have committed because I am forever robbed of all that she could give me, she shall atone.

In his bitterness, he realizes that someone like Justine will never smile for him, and so he blames her for his misery. Thus, he frames her, committing another crime. He describes her appearance in this chapter as well.

In chapter 23, Victor and Elizabeth—now married—go away for their honeymoon. Victor describes the precautions he takes to prevent the creature from killing him; however, it somehow does not occur to him that, when the creature promised to be with him on his wedding night, the creature meant that he would kill Elizabeth. It seems obvious that the creature would deny Victor his love and mate just as Victor has denied the creature his own companion. In the seventh paragraph of the chapter, Victor describes how he heard Elizabeth scream, and he ran to her. He describes her appearance in the next paragraph.

She was there, lifeless and inanimate, thrown across the bed, her head hanging down and her pale and distorted features half covered by her hair. Everywhere I turn I see the same figure—her bloodless arms and relaxed form flung by the murderer on its bridal bier.

Thus, it is here that the creature's crime against Elizabeth is described, as is her body and what the scene looked like. You can also go to chapter 21 to find descriptions of Clerval, yet another victim of the creature. The creature strangled Victor's friend.

While I do not want to suggest that the creature is only a victim and not responsible for the crimes he commits and the lives he takes, he does so because he is so miserable and alone. He was created and then completely abandoned, a veritable infant, to fend for himself. Such neglect would be a crime in our world. He wants to compel his creator, Victor, to make another creature like him so that he will not be so lonely and unhappy. He seems to want to force Victor into the same condition: friendless and alone. He kills William, Clerval, and Elizabeth, and his actions indirectly lead to the deaths of Justine and Victor's father. In the end, he tells Walton that he did not enjoy committing these crimes. He says,

A frightful selfishness hurried me on, while my heart was poisoned with remorse. Think you that the groans of Clerval were music to my ears? My heart was fashioned to be susceptible of love and sympathy, and when wrenched by misery to vice and hatred, it did not endure the violence of the change without torture such as you cannot even imagine.

Thus, the creature who commits these crimes is culpable; he knows right from wrong. However, his motive, remorse, and willingness to take responsibility for his wrongdoing sets him apart from Victor, who declares that his "past conduct" is in no way "blamable."