Comparing Dostoevsky's Crime And Punishment

Words: 1199
Pages: 5
Open Document
From the beginning of Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment, the reader is given indications that the main character, Rodion Raskolnikov, is mentally unhinged. However, even in his state of mental instability, as a human being, he has a set of morals ingrained in his psyche. Therefore, when he commits murder, he goes through a psychological battle with himself in which he feels guilt for going through with the murders and simultaneously provides himself with fabricated reasons why it was justified. Raskolnikov’s understanding of justice is unique in that it is partially based on the idea that those who are extraordinary get to overstep the obstacles set for the average citizen in order to advance human society or put themselves in positions of power. To him, regular people, who he refers to as “trembling creature[s]” (Dostoevsky 361), are not mentally fit to deal with the stress that comes with such actions, which is why they adhere to normal laws. Upon not being able to completely come to terms with his feelings about committing the crime, his morals settle in and he realizes that he is not what he considers to be extraordinary, and eventually confesses to his crimes. In this sense, his search for justice is successful only because he gains a sense self-awareness as he gains a greater understanding of his reaction to committing the crimes. The significance of his search to the work as a whole lies in its relation to the focus of the novel, …show more content…
While many novels about murder are whodunits with an array of grandiose suspects, Dostoevsky’s novel is more of a “whywasitdun” involving the mental trials of a lone, realistic character in Raskolnikov. With his unique, radical understanding of justice and self-learning during his search for it in his particular situation, he brings a naturalistic, relatable flare to a subgenre that very much so needed it and has held a lasting influence on the sub
Show More

Related Documents: Comparing Dostoevsky's Crime And Punishment

Comparing Dostoevsky's Crime And Punishment

In Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment, Raskolnikov endures what Fay Weldon likes to call, “spiritual reassessment”, along with “moral reconciliation” as he finds his place in society. While in Serbia, his punishment serves to break his isolation from society, bring him closer with Sonia, and renew him as a person who can function in society despite his past. After the gruesome axe murder of the pawnbroker and her sister, Raskolnikov feels isolated from society, constantly bickering himself, trapped…

Words 583 - Pages 3

Philosophy 241 Lecture Note Essay

on contemporary moral issues, such as abortion, the death penalty, torture, poverty, etc. 341 has a higher number than 241 only because it was created later. 241 is more theoretical. In this course (241), we use particular moral issues (such as punishment) to test moral theories and to compare and contrast them with each other. 2. Normative ethics (the emphasis in this course): theories of the ethical distinctions between right and wrong, good and bad (desirable and undesirable, good and bad as…

Words 7807 - Pages 32