Analysis Of The Book ' Dostoevsky '

During the course of The Baron’s Cloak, Sunderland takes us through Russia’s western borders and St. Petersburg. He then takes us to the Far East side of the empire to Siberia and the eastern edges of Mongolia and China. We are exposed to the often misunderstood politics of nationalism and imperialism of Eurasia at this time of the 20th century.

Perry Smith and Dick Hickock are two remarkably different characters. In the beginning of the novel, they’re known only as the murders of the Clutter family, but Truman Capote tells their life stories in such a way that they become more than that. Even though these two men are basically introduced as murderers, they quickly become relatable and interesting characters. So much is learned about their feelings and lives that one can not help but almost look past their reckless ways. Both of these men have unique character traits that amalgamate in an intriguing way. Throughout In Cold Blood, Capote includes many instances that show how Dick and Perry, when combined, make the perfect murderer.

While reading “The Raid” by Leo Tolstoy, one is instantly struck by the strong contrast between the peaceful nature scenes and the violent battle scenes. One minute the sounds of crickets and frogs are charmingly echoing through the night, and the next you can hear the “clang of a heavy gun” and the “sound of bayonets touching one another” (Tolstoy 20). In one scene, the generals and majors stand watching the gory battle below, yet they continue to discuss the beautiful nature around them as if nothing else could possibly be worth their attention (Tolstoy 25). However, upon closer readings, it becomes evident that the war and nature scenes are not as separate as they seem. As the story progresses, the two begin to weave together, until distinguishing them is nearly impossible. Indeed, this subtly merger can be seen throughout multiple scenes as the story evolves.

In Russia, Westernization was nothing new as the late nineteenth century had rolled around, for they had already been immersed in political conflicts of Western Europe by the earlier parts of the century. Russia’s Westernization had even been started by Peter the Great. Being so well adapted to the politics of the West, the conservative Russian nobility had feared revolutions by the liberal West. Russia then had attempted to

Mansur Abdulin takes his experiences on the front ranks and shares them in great detail in his book Red Road From Stalingrad. By describing all the things that are happening in the day to day combat, Abdulin is also giving the readers a glimpse at himself. He tells of mental and physical aspects of battle and shows how it effects all involved. His descriptions and feelings bring the readers into his mind and heart and they see the real Abdulin. His intent is to show and share the “real” life of war and battle. He cares for the cause and is a strong passionate Soviet soldier; however he also creates a different kind of hero by letting his loyalty and conscience to be his guide.

“I pity the Tsar. I pity Russia. He is a poor and unhappy sovereign…He is obviously a good and quite intelligent man, but he lacks will power, and it is from that character that his state defects developed, that is, his

Dostoevsky’s believes in existentialism, and the idea that individual freedom is essential to the development of the mind (Copleston 165). He speaks through his characters by presenting them as “continually defeated as a result of their choices” ( “Existentialism”). Though Raskolnikov is allowed to make his own decisions he ended up making the wrong ones. He is forced to face his consequences of the murders he committed. Dostoevsky’s blend of philosophy with the novel allows

Tolstoy's emphasizes deeply with the Chechen people as he details their suffering at the hands of

The confusion at the lack of freedom in Russia despite the success the country has experienced through newly built cities, construction sites, and military victories, is exemplified by Grossman early in the novel through the use of Ivan Grigoryevich, a Russian citizen recently released from the Gulag (49). As daunting as that is, it is understandable why it is so. Freedom gives those who have it the opportunity to choose as they wish, do as they wish, think as they wish, and say as they wish, but to Grossman, that is not

In its historical context Notes from the Underground was written at a time when Russian writers were attempting to revive opposition to Reformation. These writers emphasized the ills of “separation, egotism and autonomy” that permeated much of 19th century Russia (Golstein 1998, p. 194). Russian writers were expressing the opinion that humanity was lacking in meaningful direction. In this regard, Dostoevsky’s Notes from the Underground is a representation of the hero who embodied separation but invariably fails, thus embodying the concept of anti-heroism (Golstein 1998, p. 194).

Well earlier back like in the 1930’s to 1950’s philosophers thought that talk about God was meaningless because we as humans, couldn't detect Good by any of our 5 senses, so therefore he probably didn't exist. But now, most philosophers say that because the possibility of God DOES exist, then he MUST exist. The chances of the Big Bang happening are slim, and because of the problem or reactivity or NONreactivity. For the universe to happen, there would have to be the right chemicals in the right environment or else nothing would've happened if there was an imbalance in the atmosphere or chemicals.

In this paper, I plan to explain Dostoevsky’s criticism of Western Individualism. Dostoevsky’s first criticism resides in the idea to “love life more than the meaning of it, “which is presented by the character Alyosha (Dostoevsky 3). Allowing this character to discuss this topic, along with the commentary of Ivan, demonstrates their mindset to solely focus on their own lives, opposed to caring for others. This leads to them living for the now, and not focusing on how their decisions will affect their future or others. Dostoevsky disapproves of this notion because living by this mentality encourages the guidance of logic, which is dangerous because it could tell you to kill yourself. From Dostoevsky’s Eastern Orthodox background, he believes that the only way from living from this situation is to deny it. By denying this way of living, the focus toward life will not be directed toward yourself, but toward the way you can impact the environment around you. Ivan clearly does not believe in these values, due to his intentions to commit suicide at the age of thirty. As said before, living by the idea to “love life more than the meaning of it” leads to death, and Ivan indulges in this to the fullest (Dostoevsky 3).

Fyodor Dostoevsky’s Raskolnikov is criminally insane. He is unable to control his actions despite having the understanding that they are morally wrong. In addition to his illness he lives in St. Petersburg, a city that was at the forefront of Russian cultural exchange with Europe. As a result of this exchange, the mentally unstable Raskolnikov was introduced to the Nietzschean philosophy of the Ubermensch. This lead Raskolnikov to kill an elderly moneylender and her disabled sister. Using a violent mentally unstable criminal as his narrator allowed Dostoevsky to reveal the deleterious effect Western philosophy would have on Russian society if it was not counteracted by a return to traditional belief.

Falsity is defined by the online Oxford dictionary as “the fact of being untrue, incorrect, or insincere”. In the novel Notes from Underground, Fyodor Dostoevsky highlights the falsity, or artificiality of not only Russian individuals, but of Russian culture as a whole. The novel describes falsity as people who are superficial and shallow. While the main character, the Underground Man, did not consider himself a slave to the falsity, he observed it in others he came into contact with. A good example of this is when the Underground Man went to dinner with his “friends” (they were hardly so). At this dinner, he mentions how the individuals are good-looking on the outside but rather unintelligent on the inside. At one point, he even says that one of them has a “handsome but silly face” (Dostoevsky), thus indicating that on the outside, his face was “handsome” but at the same time he was also “silly”, or foolish and shallow. They were not who the portrayed themselves to be.

The author showed his opinion on the structure of the society, social norms and beliefs. He expressed his disagreement with “The Extraordinary Man Theory”. He told the audience that all people have feelings and emotions and cannot rely only on logic and calculations. People cannot hurt others and go unpunished. The ending of the novel helped to strengthen his ideas and convictions. In the end, everyone in the novel received the deserved punishment assigned either by the law or by fate. Raskolnikov and Svidrigailov realized that their actions were wrong and contradicted to the all social norms. They recognized that they were not extraordinary men. Dostoevsky made this novel very educative and filled with morality. It is great for people of all times and generations. It reveals what is good and wrong; it teaches how to be a