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Character of Raskolnikov in crime and punishment
Character of Raskolnikov in crime and punishment
Essays on crime and punishment theme
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Crime and Punishment: A Reflection of Fyodor Dostoevsky
Crime and Punishment is one of the most well-known pieces of literature written by Fyodor Dostoevsky. It was written during a time of turmoil, when Dostoevsky’s wife and brother died and he was burdened with debts, which was made worse by his excessive drinking and gambling. As a result, Crime and Punishment reflects much of the author’s inner psyche, showing much of what the author thought of the world around him. In the book, Raskolnikov’s situation is not unlike Dostoevsky’s. They were both in debt and due to this they had a lot of experience with pawnbrokers. Raskolnikov did not want to rely on his family just like Dostoevsky did not have family to rely on because they had just died. However, the part of the book that reflected Dostoevsky the most was the character development of Raskolnikov, who exemplified Dostoevsky’s Slavophilic point of view, which is the belief that Russia should develop based on values based on Russia’s early history. Slavophilism is characterized by the rejection of Western European institutions such as the Roman Catholic Church and this shows itself at many points in the novel.
Raskolnikov first starts off the book with a strong belief in Nietzsche’s Übermensch theory, which was a Western ideology that was emerging at the time that Dostoevsky was working on the book. Right when the book starts, he has not paid his rent for a while, and he does not want to see the landlady “not because he [is] cowardly and abject” but because he does not want to listen to her “trivial, irrelevant gossip” and her “pestering demands for payment, threats and complaints” (3). From this, it can be seen that at this point in time, Raskolnikov believes that he is above...
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...itarianism and the Übermensch theory, and the acceptance of Christian Existentialism, which is devoting your life to Christian principles illustrates Dostoevsky’s Slavophilic tendencies. Utilitarianism and the Übermensch theory are both used to justify a crime committed by Raskolnikov, which eventually makes him break down, suggesting that Russia will also break down if it continues to try and abide by these Western ideologies, while Christian Existentialism is like a saving light to Raskolnikov and gives him a purpose in life. As a result, it can be understood that Crime and Punishment is very much a reflection of Dostoevsky’s Slavophilic beliefs and it is suggested throughout the entire book through the character development of Raskolnikov.
Works Cited
Dostoevsky, Fyodor M. Crime and Punishment. Trans. Constance Garnett. New York: Barnes and Noble, 2007. Print.
Often times in literature, we are presented with quintessential characters that are all placed into the conventional categories of either good or bad. In these pieces, we are usually able to differentiate the characters and discover their true intentions from reading only a few chapters. However, in some remarkable pieces of work, authors create characters that are so realistic and so complex that we are unable to distinguish them as purely good or evil. In the novel Crime and Punishment, Fyodor Dostoevsky develops the morally ambiguous characters of Raskolnikov and Svidrigailov to provide us with an interesting read and to give us a chance to evaluate each character.
As the story unfolds, Dostoevsky introduces the reader to Raskolnikov, a troubled young man who is extremely isolated from those who surround him. He lives in a small, dingy, dusty, and dirty room in a small unattractive house. He lives in an abstract world neglecting the real. He is quite separate from all the people with whom he has contact. In the opening chapter, Raskolnikov is said to be, "so completely absorbed in himself, and isolated from his fellows that he dreaded meeting, not only his landlady, but any one at all" (1). People come physically close to him, but everyone is forced to remain distant mentally. He walks through the crowded, noisy, dirty streets of St. Petersburg physically but somehow he never does so mentally, moving through the streets like a zombie, not a man. He is not aware of his location and often jostles bewildered pedestrians. Therefore, at the outset of the novel Dostoevsky illustrates the apparent schism between the mind and body of Raskolnikov.
In his book Crime and Punishment, Dostoevsky explores the paths of two men, Raskolnikov and Svidrigailov. These two men encompass many similar problems and obstacles throughout their lives. Both commit murders and are faced with the long and mentally excruciating journey of seeking redemption. They also share many characteristics of their personalities. The reason that the outcomes of their lives are so drastically different is due to the fact that they have completely different perspectives on life.
Dostoyevsky's writing in this book is such that the characters and setting around the main subject, Raskolnikov, are used with powerful consequences. The setting is both symbolic and has a power that affects all whom reside there, most notably Raskolnikov. An effective Structure is also used to show changes to the plot's direction and Raskolnikov's character. To add to this, the author's word choice and imagery are often extremely descriptive, and enhance the impact at every stage of Raskolnikov's changing fortunes and character. All of these features aid in the portrayal of Raskolnikov's downfall and subsequent rise.
Dostoevsky does not like all of Raskolnokv though. He hates his aloofness. Dostoevsky cannot stand anti-socialism and believes that people should be together and not dislike “meeting at any time'; with anyone. Constantly Raskolnokov alienates himself from all his friends and family to go alone about his way, which ends up getting him into trouble because of his radical thinking, like his theory that some people can transcend the law because of some extraordinary powers. The trouble that Raskolnokov gets into is Fyodor’s way of showing that continually parting yourself from society is unhealthy for a person and that they need other human contact to be complete.
In Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment, Raskalnikov undergoes a period of extreme psychological upheaval. By comparing this death and rebirth of Raskalnikov's psyche to the story of the resurrection of Lazarus, Dostoevsky emphasizes not only the gravity of his crimes, but also the importance of acceptance of guilt.
In such poor living conditions, those that the slums of Russia has to offer, the characters in Fyodor Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment1 struggle, living day to day. Raskolnikov, the protagonist, experiences multiple layers of suffering (the thought of his murder causes him greater suffering than does his poverty) as does Sonia and Katerina Ivanovna (1). Through these characters as well as Porfiry Petrovitch, Dostoevsky wants the reader to understand that suffering is the cost of happiness and he uses it to ultimately obliterate Raskolnikov’s theory of an ubermensch which allows him to experience infinite love.
Dostoevsky was made aware of the problems with Nihilistic ideas while he was exiled in Siberia. Crime and Punishment was Dostoevsky’s first attempt at a psychological analysis of a person’s inner struggles to rationalize this radicalism. Raskolnikov represents that intelligentsia and is being used by Dostoevsky to portray and warn against succumbing to these ideals. Dostoevsky uses Raskolnikov’s life to illustrate the implications and applications of this Nihilist to the public and then expands upon it in Demons.
Dostoevsky’s St. Petersburg is a large, uncaring city which fosters a western style of individualism. As Peter Lowe notes, “The city is crowded, but there is no communality in its crowds, no sense of being part of some greater ‘whole.’” Mrs. Raskolnikov initially notices a change in her son marked by his current state of desperate depression, but she fails to realize the full extent of these changes, even after he is convicted for the murder. The conditions and influences are also noticed by Raskolnikov’s mother who comments on the heat and the enclosed environment which is present throughout the city. When visiting Raskolnikov, she exclaims "I'm sure...
This shows that an idea like Raskolnikov's ordinary and extraordinary people can lead to horrible things like his murder of the two women but also hints at the fact it in the future may lead to a "great future deed". It is especially interesting to see that the idea put forth by Dostoevsky in the end is one of love being a transformative force. That this love comes from the severely religious Sonya, mirrors the idea of Christ's "new word" being love. Through careful examination of Raskolnikov's idea and its use as a metric for looking at the character one is better able to understand the novel, the character, and the possible larger implications of that message.
Dostoevsky, Feodor. Crime and Punishment. Trans. Jessie Coulson. Ed. George Gibian. New York: Norton, 1989.
One of the most profound and obvious changes in Raskolnikov’s character can be seen in the newfound appreciation for other people and human relationships he discovers at the end of the novel. When the reader is first introduced to Raskolnikov, Dostoevsky quickly makes it apparent that he has little to no regard for others, writing on the very first page that Raskolnikov was “so completely absorbed in himself, and isolated from his fellows that he dreaded meeting, not only his landlady, but anyone at all” (1). Indeed, in Raskolnikov’s mind, “to be forced to listen to [the landlady’s] trivial, irrelevant gossip […] and to rack his brains for excuses, to prevaricate, to lie” is the most loathsome thing imaginable (1). His disdain toward other people is so great that the mere thought of interacting with anyone for any length of time repulses him. On some occasions...
The moral side of Raskolnikov's mind requires absolution in a Christian manner. This need obliviates his claim to be a Nietzchean superman, and illustrates that all humans have a desire for morality. Throughout the book, he constantly desires to confess, even when visiting the police station. "I'll go in, fall on my knees, and confess everything" (p.84), he thought; later, he considered if it was "better to cast off the burd...
Dostoyevsky, Fyodor, Jessie Senior Coulson, and Richard Arthur. Peace. Crime and Punishment. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1998. Print.
By the end of Dostoyesky’s Crime and Punishment, the reader is no longer under the illusion of the possible existence of “extraordinary” men. For an open-minded reader, and even perhaps the closed-minded ones too, the book is a journey through Raskolnikov’s proposed theory on crime. It is a theory based on the ideas that had “been printed and read a thousand times”(313) by both Hegel and Nietzsche. Hegel, a German philosopher, influenced Dostoyesky with his utilitarian emphasis on the ends rather than the means whereby a superman existed as one that stood above the ordinary man, but worked for the benefit of all mankind. Nietsche’s more selfish philosophy focused on the rights to power which allowed one to act in a Hegelian manner. In committing his crime, Raskolnikov experienced the ultimate punishment as he realized that his existence was not that of the “extraordinary” man presented in his theory. In chapter five of part three in Crime and Punishment, this theory is outlined by its creator, Raskolnikov. Such an innovative theory would clearly have placed him in the “extraordinary” category, but when he fails to meet its standards, by submitting to the common law through his confession, the theory crumbles right before the reader’s eyes.