An Introduction to Dostoevsky’s Novel

Crime and Punishment is a modern novel because: of its intense focus on the psychology of the central character.

Originally planned as a 1st person confessional. Later turned into a 3rd person narrative with all of the feeling of an "I" narrative. As a result, the other characters become almost spectral creations of Raskolnikov's psyche. Example: Porfiry as objectified conscience The psychology of the novel cuts two ways: Raskolnikov → Porfiry Porfiry → Raskolnikov

Balance between: The law of self-preservation The law of self-destruction While he struggles to suppress his crime, Raskolnikov's actions work to betray him. Other psychological precepts: Memory and the subconscious Masochism Sadism Raskol = "schism"

1865 (What was going on here?) Major reform: the emancipation of the serfs (1861) This freed the serfs, but did not increase the well-being of either serfs or landowners. Like many Russians, Dostoevsky equated "freedom" with "license" (i.e. liberty = crime). Crime as a very contemporary phenomenon. Major revision of the legal system (1863-4) = Luzhin.

Don’t get Excited Proliferated after reforms in 1863 and 1865 created to control the sale of alcohol. Marmeladov drinks his money away; his daughter, Sonya, then must become a prostitute just to support her family.

A group of writers identified principally by their depiction of low-life urban themes. Gogol influenced this mixture of pathetic, bizarre, and humorous elements. Raskolnikov absorbs and internalizes the low-life of St. Petersburg. Raskolnikov is supposedly attacking Alena out of some sort of Robin Hood-esque motive; the reality is that he is killing her to elevate himself: First, out of poverty. Then, above the rest.

Thus, Raskolnikov murders out of practical and ideological reasons. Dostoevsky sought to express his ideas in a meiotic way: self- dividing into both symbiotic and antithetical ideas. The ideological motive thus develops into the "article on crime" written by Raskolnikov. The Principal Argument: The right of the exceptional individual to "step over," to commit crimes with impunity: Russian: Perestupit: step over Prestuplenic: crime

Napoleon III: The History of Julius Caesar “Heroes” vs. “ordinary” people Other influences on Raskolnikov: Darwinism: Natural selection; "survival of the fittest" Utilitarnianism: J.S. Mill and enlightened self-interest In Russia, Mill's ideas became "rational egoism."

"Socialist" doctrine Charges reason with full control of social altruism where the commune was the center of life. Dostoevsky satirizes Chernyshevsky's ideas of "self-interest" in the characters of Luzhin and Lebezyatnikov. Points out that these ideas are anti-Christian ideas as well. Raskolnikov points out that the relationship between self-interest and criminality can lead to a crime just like his: "Carry to its logical conclusion what you were preaching just now, and it emerges that you can cut people's throats" (Part 2, Ch. 5).

The weapon of peasant unrest Found by accident Difficult to conceal Crude and gory action The peasants in Siberia disapprove of his actions

How does this fit with the concept of the "exceptional man" or "hero" who has the right to step over and commit crime? Crime, illness, and dream all seem interconnected: The old mare The oasis The beating of the land lady The Siberian dream of nihilism

1. How does Dostoyevsky achieve and sustain the suspense in his novel? Which scenes strike you as being particularly suspenseful? How does he use description to enhance the turmoil in Raskolnikov's mind? 2. What role does chance play in the development of the novel? In which scenes does coincidence figure heavily in the outcome? Is Dostoyevsky interfering too much with the natural course of events in order to move his story along, or is he making a point about the randomness of life, free will, and divine intervention? 3. Compare the characters of Raskolnikov, Luzhin, and Svidrigailov. How is each of these men a "villain," and to what extent are they guilty? How does each man face his guilt, and how does each suffer for it?

4. Compare the major female characters: Sonya, Dunya, Katerina Ivanovna. Do you think they are well-rounded characters or stereotypes? How does each figure in Raskolnikov's actions? 5. Discuss the scene in which Raskolnikov meets Sonya in her room and he asks her to read the story of Lazarus. What makes this scene so effective? What does Raskolnikov mean when he tells Sonya she is "necessary" to him? (p. 388) 6. Later, in confessing the murder to Sonya, Raskolnikov claims, "Did I really kill the old woman? No, it was myself I killed.... And as for the old woman, it was the Devil who killed her, not I." (p. 488) What does he mean by this? What motive does Raskolnikov give for his murder? Why does he confess to Sonya? Why doesn't the confession ease him of his inner torment? 7. Discuss Raskolnikov's theory of the ordinary versus the extraordinary man. What is Dostoyevsky's attitude toward this theory? Can you think of modern- day examples of this theory put into practice?

8. Does the fact that Raskolnikov never uses the money he stole from the pawnbroker make him less-or more-guilty? Why do you think he never recovers the stolen items or cash? 9. Why does Raskolnikov reject his family's and Razumikhin's attempts at solace and comfort? Why, when they are at their most loving, does he have feelings of hatred for them? What is Dostoyevsky saying about guilt and conscience? 10. Raskolnikov emerges as a dual character, capable of cruelty and compassion, deliberation and recklessness, and alternating between a desire for solitude and companionship. Why has Dostoyevsky created such a complex psychological portrait?

Exam Character Studies Motive and Symbol