Crime And Punishment Ap Psychology

Keeping this in mind, it comes as no surprise that Raskolnikov would feel utterly abhorred when Svidrigaïlov refers to them as “birds of a feather”(p.340; Part 4, Chapter 1). While Svidrigaïlov is rather keen of their shared similarities, such as their status as murderers, Raskolnikov willingly fails to realize these associations. Raskolnikov’s better side objects to the hedonistic behavior of Svidrigaïlov, decrying him as a man of the most abject nature. The dramatic irony lies in the fact that Raskolnikov desires to be an “extraordinary” man, the very epitome of Svidrigaïlov, a man he holds in no high regard. Despite their superficial variances and dissidences, Raskolnikov had slowly rendered himself into a facsimile of the man he detested, Svidrigaïlov. Although both men, whether knowingly or unknowingly, desire to transcend above the ordinary masses, it is only a matter of time before self-realization indicates the folly of their ways.

However, Dostoevsky does not hold Raskolnikov completely accountable for the emotional and social defects that lead up to his crime, ultimately outlining his beliefs on how man should be punished. Dostoevsky makes apparent the idea that Raskolnikov at times acts out of his own control, seemingly under the influence of a higher power. Before his murder, he pleads to be stopped by God or any influence, but “in spite of his dread, he was driven into crime, like a mere tool of Fate” (Lavrin 31). He is used by Dostoevsky to make an example and represent all of man at times. During the murder, Dostoevsky describes the event as though Raskolnikov were possessed, “He seemed not to use his own strength in this. But as soon as he had once again brought

The first thing to address while discussing the author’s purpose is to examine the motivation of the main character, Raskolnikov. In Crime and Punishment, Raskolnikov becomes an ubermensch, and part of this is that he does not take into account

    The confusion in Raskolnikov’s soul is best seen when he tries to help a girl in the street who has been raped and left to the whims of whoever may

First, let me introduce you to the main character himself otherwise known as the murderer in this story. Raskolnikov is the main protagonist of the novel, making the story in his point of view. He is very alienated from society due to his

In his novel, Crime and Punishment, Fyodor Dostoevsky argues that people must accept the sins of their past and understand the sequential consequences they must endure in order to feel and live freely again. He explores the relationship between the protagonist, Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov -- a well known, poverty-stricken drunkard -- the sins that he has committed, and how he deals with them.

After Raskolnikov had committed the murder, he began to go through a long period of trials and upheaval. By using the story of Lazarus, Dostoevsky begins to explain further the death and rebirth of Raskolnikov’s psychological wellbeing and the importance of the acceptance of guilt. By incorporating the story of Lazarus, Dostoevsky allows readers to see a direct reflection of Raskolnikov’s own mind. Just as Lazarus lay slowly dying of illness, Raskolnikov’s guilt was inducing a slow and withering death of his psychological wellbeing. Lazarus’s death symbolizes Raskolnikov’s falling off the edge of insanity, showing forth the death of his mind. The story of Lazarus also symbolizes Sonya as Raskolnikov’s saviour. Just as Raskolnikov slips into his emotional death, Sonya reaches in to pull him out, as if she was bringing him back alive much like how Jesus Christ brought Lazarus back. She accomplishes this by providing Raskolnikov with the spiritual steadiness he that he had lost during the committing of his murders. Sonya affects Raskolnikov through her basic character, just as Christ actively portrayed his beliefs through the manner in which he lived his

In the novel Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, the murder of Alyona Ivanovna leaves many characters scratching their heads. While authorities come up with several suspects, they are unable to connect the suspects to the crime without reasonable uncertainty. When discussing the murder, Razumikhin says “In this one case alone, one might open up a whole new approach. From the psychological information alone it would be possible to show how to get on to the right track. “We’ve got the facts,” they say. But facts aren’t everything; at least half the battle consists in how one makes use of them” (164). For Razumikhin, the “whole new approach” is using the psychology of the murderer to understand the facts and recreate the narrative.

From declaring he wanted to become a Napoleon to wishing for financial independence to murdering for his own sake, he rattles off various motives, showing his obsessive rationalization (394-397). By presenting his conflicting intentions, Dostoevsky exhibits the chaos within Raskolnikov’s mind.

Even when Raskolnikov was asleep he received painful messages of others who were suffering, just as he was. In one particular instance, before the double-murder, Raskolnikov is brought back to the poverty he suffered throughout his childhood. He once again feels a great empathy toward the suffered, but this time

As Raskolnikov’s shame takes over him, his mental health gradually deteriorates, despite his previous belief that he held enough intellectual and emotional

Through Raskolnikov’s exemplification of the impracticality of this principle\, Dostoevsky makes his greatest point in Crime and Punishment. His commentary on the subject seeks to discredit the theory in the circumstance of an individual “superman” by displaying Raskolnikov as a character who is difficult for readers to identify with because of his inanity. Even Raskolnikov’s name is a symbol of nihilistic ideas, the word “raskol” meaning schism in Russian, illustrating the shift from an older school of thought (social utopianism) to a darker philosophy: nihilism and utilitarianism. Raskolnikov seems to fluctuate back and forth between the two philosophies, acting on one and then mentally chastising himself for it, immediately and almost erratically changing his mind. This symbolizes the more human side of him struggling

Therefore Amoia notes that, "as the implications of the deed unfold in his conscience, Raskolnikov attempts to jusitfy his actions as a 'rational' crime" (53). Though he understands that he will be able to escape the physical punishement for the crime, he has yet to comprehend the burden that comes with such an unethical action. Even when Porfiry suggests that the criminal who murdered the pawnbroker may run away but, "psychologically he won't escape" (287), Raskolnikov becomes infuriated and accuses Porfiry of trying to scare him. However, Raskolnikov fails to understand the meaning behind Porfiry's words perhaps because he still chooses not to rely on his conscience and confess to the crime.While the superiority complex sets him apart from the society in the beginning, his piercing conscience distances him from people later on in the novel. He refuses to speak to Razumuikhin or to his family. It only before he goes to jail, that he decides to see his mother. Even when he does so, he is relieved that Dunya is not in the room. He later admits to Dunya that he doesn't, "even remember why [I] even went" to meet his mother. His conscience does not allow him to face his loved ones and eventually, he tries to isolate himself from society. While Raskolnikov tries to alienate himself from his own conscience, he is alienating himself from humanity in general.

The main character of the story is Raskolnikov, who is described in the novel as “exceptionally handsome, above the average in height, slim, well-built, with beautiful dark eyes and dark brown hair… He was so badly dressed that even a man accustomed to shabbiness would have been ashamed to be seen in the street in such rags.” Raskolnikov alternates between two

During this interactive oral, it was pointed out that the dreams in this novel are very influential to a character’s state of mind and actions. We discussed the graphic dream in which Raskolnikov, as a child, watches a mare as it is beaten to death. This dream is interpreted by Raskolnikov as a cue to murder the old woman. The mare seems to be a parallel to the