Guilt in Charles Brockden Browns’ Wieland Essay -- Charles Brockden Br

Guilt in Charles Brockden Browns Wieland there are patchy ways to decide what makes a man guilty. In an ethical sense, there is more to guilt than just committing the crime. In Charles Brockden Browns Wieland, the ratifier is presented with a moral dilemma is Theodore Wieland guilty of death penaltying his wife and children, even though he claims that the command came from God, or is Carwin guilty because of his history of using weighty voices, even though his role in the Wieland familys murder is enigmatic? To answer these questions, one must consider what determines guilt, such as responsibility, motives, consequences, and the identification number itself. No matter which view is interpreted on what determines a mans guilt, it can be concluded that Wieland bears the fault in the murder of Catharine Wieland and her children. To any religious person, hearing a command from the voice of their immortal is reason enough to carry out the proposed action, but in the pi llowcase of Wieland, a third party must take a deeper discover at such a command from a God whose cognize character does not line up with the order He purportedly gives. This makes Wielands motivation questionable, especially to those who believe that a mans motive determines a mans guilt. In his testimony to the court, Wieland, a pious man, reveals his motive in the murders as he recounts God as saying, Thy prayers are heard. In proof of thy faith, render me thy wife. This is the victim I chuse. squawk her hither and here let her fall (190). Being a beloved Christian, it is very likely that Wieland would be familiar with the Ten Commandments listed in Deuteronomy 5, and specifically, poesy 17 which states, You shall not murder. Though in Isaiah 558 the Lord tells Christians to ... ...Gods voice. As Wieland retells his approaching his sisters phratry before he hears the voices, he says, On my way my mind was all-embracing of these ideas which related to my intellectu al condition. In the torrent of fervid conceptions, I lose sight of my purpose. Some propagation I stood still some times I wandered from my path, and experienced some difficulty, on recovering from my fit of musing, to resume it (188). Despite all of the other reasons slow Wielands guilt, this quote shows that he was not in his right mind on the night he murdered his wife and children. Many different views can be taken on determining guilt, but Wielands illogical motive behind killing his family, the disturbing consequences of his actions, his responsibility of his own deeds, and his questionable mental health all point to his guilt in the murder of Catharine Wieland and her children.