Fetyukovitch's defense speech is set up at the end of the prosecutor's summation. The courtroom has just heard a weighty accusation, Dmitri has sat silent through it, and everyone waits to see what the famous Petersburg lawyer can make of the case. The entry is safe here because the speech is about to begin, but its arguments unfold only after this point.
XII-X. The Speech For The Defense. An Argument That Cuts Both Ways
Fetyukovitch begins simply and directly, saying that the case contains an overwhelming chain of evidence but no separate fact that can stand criticism. His first move is to turn the prosecution's psychology back on itself.
XII-XI. There Was No Money. There Was No Robbery
He argues that there was no proven robbery, since the court cannot prove that the three thousand roubles were in the envelope when Fyodor Pavlovitch was killed.
XII-XII. And There Was No Murder Either
He extends the argument to the murder itself, keeping Smerdyakov in view as a possible alternative and insisting that suspicion is not certainty.
XII-XIII. A Corrupter Of Thought
The speech rises into a plea about fathers, children, and mercy, asking the jury not to destroy Dmitri where evidence remains uncertain.
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