Crime and Punishment Essay

A detailed Summary of Crime and Punishment Essay

Fyodor Dostoyevsky's work in Crime and Punishment can be cited as largely autobiographical. Although the author never committed anything like the atrocious murders depicted in the novel, the nihilistic traits of his protagonist, Raskolnikov, closely resemble his own ideals as a youth. In 1947, Dostoyevsky joined the revolutionary Petrashevist cause. The author and this group of radical socialists narrowly escaped death after being arrested by police. They received a pardon from the czar only moments before a firing squad was to take aim. They were sentenced instead to four years in a Siberian labor camp. In his penal servitude Dostoyevsky examined his revolutionary intents and was swayed by the Russian nationalists whom he encountered (McDuff 13). He became aware of the apparent sinfulness of his rebellious socialist efforts. The author embraced God and invested himself in promoting the Russian people's sobernost. Dostoyevsky uses his novel Crime and Punishment to call for this return to traditional Russian values.

After the Petrashevists' 1848 revolt, during the rule of Nicholas I, educated Russians became divided in their values (Brown 52). One group advocated a western approach of politics

Raskolnikov's extraordinary man theory closely parallels the radical work of one of Dostoyevsky's contemporaries, Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche. Nietzsche, a German philosopher and classical scholar, was also a precursor to Existentialism. Like Raskolnikov, he was an atheist who promoted a sort of "master morality." He opposed Christianity for venerating the weak and humble and believed that one should celebrate his time on earth without striving for a heavenly after-life. Nietzsche believed each person possessed a "will to power." While the common people chose to exert power over their passions, Nietzsche's "superman" was able to channel his passions for a purpose. In this way, the "superman" was able to "live dangerously" and rule with dominance.

y 314). This reference to a Utopian socialist paradise stresses Raskolnikov's liberal interest in communism. Communism is the complete antithesis to the czarist regime the conservative author hoped to preserve.

Raskolnikov's radical theory fails him. As the book progresses, his senses leave him. He is driven by the guilt of his crime to near insanity. After becoming gravely ill, he discovers that he is not the Napoleon figure that he hoped to be. Because Raskolnikov is not able to get past the murder he committed, he concludes he is not one of the extraordinary. Raskolnikov's intense disappointment in his failure, his emotional and physical exhaustion, and prompting from Sonya to do 'what is right' leads him to confess himself. With Sonya's crucifix in hand, he goes to 'bear his cross' and accept his responsibility.

Raskolnikov's political convictions are what rationalize the crime he commits. Over the course of the book and through his punishment, he transforms from a troubled, adolescent atheist to a contented, matured Christian. He rejects his socialist movement and chooses a sedate, satisfied life with family and God. The acute contrast of these two images demonstrates Dostoyevsky's purpose in glorifying the conservative cause and condemning a radical youth. Crime and Punishment is more than a fictional masterpiece; it is the author's device to make a social statement about Russia.

and economics. Another group demanded a return to "old Russia." Their objectives included the re-establishment a czarist regime, a return to simple country life, and the re-inst

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Approximate Word count = 1580
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)

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