Wieland Or The Transformation By Charles Brockden Brown

In the novel Wieland, or the Transformation by Charles Brockden Brown there are many scenes that are ambiguous to the reader. One scene that was especially confusing was when Carwin confesses to Clara about his role in the demise of the Wieland family. It is an important passage in the text because it forces the reader to question Wieland’s and Carwin’s responsibility in the deaths of Catherine and her children.
First, it is important to question who to blame for the murders because they occur very abruptly and at first seem to have no cause. Shortly after the murders, Wieland is arrested and at his trial admits that he killed his family but only because a voice he thought was an “element of heaven” (Brown 161) told him to do so. Although

He describes his ventriloquism as being something he had vowed “a thousand times” (Brown 192) not to use, and then he stated that he used it to avoid being caught on the Wieland’s property because it was the easiest way he could avoid detection. This statement suggested that he did not want to use his voice to trick the Wieland family but not only did he repeatedly use ventriloquism to manipulate them he also admits to using it just for fun. An example of Carwin using his talent for what he called his “sweetest triumph” (Brown 201) when he tricked Pleyel into thinking that Clara was having an affair with Carwin. When Carwin chose to trick Pleyel he was planning on leaving the city therefore his actions were not necessary and it in contrast with his claims of not wanting to use ventriloquism. The fact that Carwin is so eager to use his ability when he gained nothing from the situation leads the reader to question if he truly did vow to not use ventriloquism. Carwin says that he felt some “regret” (Brown 202) for tricking Pleyel but as he thought about the consequences of his actions his feelings turned into “pleasure” (Brown 202). This also seems suspect because if he genuinely did feel that using his ability was wrong, as he first lead the reader to believe, then he shouldn’t have used it so eagerly nor should he have felt any

However, the evidence suggests that Carwin had a key role in murders. Carwin denies that he is responsible but he admitted to receiving joy while manipulating the lives of the Wieland family and his story is questionable. It is logical to conclude that Carwin would be willing to add to his crimes and he clearly has no trouble lying as shown after Clara found him hiding in her closet and he admitted that he decided to “pretend” (Brown 200) that the strange voice did not belong to him. Thus, since he has proven himself to be a talented liar it’s difficult to trust him when he says that he is