Could the dæmon who had (I did not for a minute doubt) murdered my brother also in his hellish sport have betrayed the innocent to death and ignominy?
Chapter 8 · Victor Frankenstein
Context
Victor watches the trial knowing the creature murdered William. He reflects in anguish on whether the creature has also deliberately framed Justine, adding a second victim to his crime.
Analysis
Victor's term 'hellish sport' imagines the creature as a sadistic game-player, but the rhetorical question itself does the same work—it performs horror without committing to action. The phrase 'I did not for a minute doubt,' inserted parenthetically, shows Victor's certainty, yet he speaks only to himself and the reader, turning his knowledge into private suffering rather than public testimony, making him complicit through silence.
Essay Tip
Use this to argue that Victor's demonizing language ('dæmon,' 'hellish') is a defensive strategy—by casting the creature as metaphysically evil rather than his own abandoned creation, he can frame himself as helpless witness rather than responsible maker.