Dostoyevsky: An Analysis

Children have a reputation for being innocent and naive. This is mainly because their experiences with the world are few and sheltered. As the children grow up they are exposed to more and more of the unfiltered world. Some parents do everything they can to keep their children from seeing that world. That is because as they see more of the world they become less innocent. Normally adults are the only ones who have truly lost their innocence. Unfortunately, there are exceptions, as there are to every rule, and they are not good. Children who have lost their innocence have had horrible things happen. Elie Wiesel writes in the novella Night how he lost his innocence. Elie has suffered a loss of innocence because he is desensitized, he has lost

In the novel Notes from the Underground which was written by Dostoyevsky, the main theme is Spite. The definition of Spite is a desire to hurt, annoy, or offend someone. Dostoyevsky brings this theme to life through the main character The Underground Man. He fantasizes about slapping Zverkov in the face and he irritates his former classmates, and he makes Liza cry as he is basically telling her that she is disgusting because she is a prostitute. He is a borderline sadist because he takes pleasure in hurting people and seeing them upset. It’s almost like he thrives off of the sadness/ pain of others. Dostoyevsky calls himself “a realist in the highest sense” to find the meaning you have to know the definition of a realist. A realist is a person

The battle between society and man, the social creature, would be a definition of social alienation. As a result of the wounds casted upon a man from society, that man begins to alienate himself and retreat. Fyodor Dostoyevsky, in “Notes from Underground,” shows us the Underground Man who, after expecting the world to work like it does in literature, finds himself being isolated for the last twenty years of his life. Ralph Ellison, in “Invisible Man,” shows us an Invisible Man who, in the beginning has social hopes and aspirations, eventually becomes completely alienated on. While Dostoyevsky and Ellison show us somebody alienated from society in different eras and environment, they differ on why one becomes alienated.

Poverty is an essential motif in Crime and Punishment that enables characters to expose their isolation from society. Raskolnikov demonstrates the true effect that poverty can have on an unemployed man in the 1860s. Razumikhin is seen as Raskolnikov’s foil character that reacts to his form of poverty in the opposite way of Raskolnikov towards society. The weight of being desperately pour effects Marmeledov to extensive lengths that ultimately ends in his death.

“For what is freedom? That one has the will to assume responsibility for oneself.” (Nietzsche. Twilight of the Idols. Trans. Hollingdale. Sect. 38). Everyone desires freedom but everyone cannot handle the responsibilities of freedom. I will compare J.S. Mill’s views on the social function of freedom with that of Fyodor Dostoevsky’s characters from both, the novel Notes From Underground and the excerpt; The Grand Inquisitor, also drawing supplementary arguments from Friedrich Nietzsche, while expressing my views alongside.

Ivan believes that children are innocent and therefore they should not suffer aggression and torture from adults. When aggression, maltreatment, and torture are done to children, there is where Ivan might ask himself questions like, where is God?, why doesn’t he interfer? Ivan said that he wants to be present the day that Jesus come back to earth to judge dead and alive because he is curios and therefore, he would like to know what are all the sacrifice of humans for. Ivan believes that Jesus makes justice but, he can not simply understand why God doesn’t have mercy of defenseless children who are unreasonable torture.

In Dostoevsky’s The Brothers Karamazov, Rakitin responds to a central question throughout the novel, “What is permitted?” when he proudly states to Dmitry that “An intelligent man can do anything he likes as long as he’s clever enough to get away with it” (788). While Rakitin has found his answer to this question, multiple characters in the novel are still stuck on that question. Throughout the novel, Dostoevsky seems to separate these characters into two groups: the characters like Dmitry who wonder if all actions are permitted and the characters like Ivan who wonder if all thoughts are permitted. These groups seem completely separate until Book 10 when a boy named Koyla Krasotkin comes onto the scene who seems to be in both groups at once as he tests for himself exactly what thoughts and actions are permitted. In Dostoevsky’s The Brothers Karamazov, Dostoevsky uses Book 10 and Kolya to introduce the idea that the “free thinkers” and the “free doers” are one in the same in that they are wondering who will punish those who go beyond “what is permitted” and by extension sets up an argument between moral and legal punishment throughout the rest of the novel.

The Grand Inquisitor is a chapter in Dostoyevsky’s classic novel “The Brothers Karamazov.” The Greater novel itself is a philosophical debate on God, free will, human nature and morality written by Dostoevsky over 2 years and published in 1880. As with all of Dostoyevsky’s novels it is set in a modernizing Russia and it is a deep psychological study of faith and reason, as well as the doubt, psychology, moral decisions and the thought processes that occur during man’s journey to enlightenment and greater awareness. Although The Brothers Karamazov itself is a work of art and one of the greatest novels ever written the true genius of “The Grand Inquisitor” chapter is that

Debauchery, dueling, infidelity, orgies, and even monastery life are all used to help Fyodor Dostoevesky define his characters in The Brothers Karamazov. At the beginning of the novel, the reader becomes filled with contempt for a few members of the Karamazov family, yet filled with admiration for others. The legitimate members of the Karamasov family each represent a separate aspect of human character, which is applicable to society. In some ways the characters resemble separate factions and cliques of society that most often argue, but together can be productive. This is shown not by direct implication, but rather the reader discovers the fact on their own by becoming infuriated

The lackey, the atheist, the murder, Pavel Fyodorvich Smerdyakov is a character who Dostoevsky portrays in The Brothers Karamazov as the most deplorable and despicable man. He exemplifies the most contemptible traits in people and is in many ways, the antithesis of a number of the other characters. Smerdyakov embodies the lack of empathy and love, the contemptibility of false intelligence, and the dangers of mindless atheism.

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).

“Nothing has ever been more insupportable for a man and a human society than freedom.” –The Grand Inquisitor” “Above all, don't lie to yourself. The man who lies to himself and listens to his own lie comes to a point that he cannot distinguish the truth within him, or around him, and so loses all respect for himself and for others. And having no respect he ceases to love.” - Father Zosima. These two quotes voice the polarized philosophies that impregnate the book, The Brothers Karamazov. Ivan, the second of the three sons, and Zosima, the old monk, are huge commentators on the question, “Is the burden of free will to much for a human to bear?”

     Friedrich Nietzsche once said, “Dostoevsky, the only one who has taught me anything about psychology.” The two writers share many similarities and differences. Dostoevsky clearly had an effect on the thinking of Nietzsche. The two would be considered both philosophers and psychologists. Both writers became prominent in the late 19th century in Germany and Russia respectively. Dostoevsky was noted for his Russian literary classics and would be responsible for a flowering of late 19th century Russian literary culture. His Russian contemporaries include Leo Tostoy and Anton Chekov. Dostoevsky’s most famous works include The Brothers Karamozov, The Idiot, and Crime and Punishment.

Dostoevsky 's The Brothers Karamozov seems to be particularly interested in the concept of personhood. Specifically, how outside perspectives shape that person. Many characters within the novel, most notably Mitya and his thief or scoundrel dilemma, are heavily concerned with their image, or how they are perceived by others. This leads to an internal disjunction between who the characters are and who they want to be, causing massive amounts of conflict within individuals. Following her male counter-parts, Katerina Ivanova, in her keen awareness of position, seems to exemplify the dissonant perception that many characters have of themselves because of the judgments of outside spectators. However, it is her manipulation of people 's

Anton Chekhov said “In displaying the psychology of your characters, minute particulars are essential.” (Chekhov) These particulars are not always given to the reader by a description, the author may put clues to the personality of a character through describing other things pertaining to the character. An example of this is how the use of literary devices to describe a character’s home may give the reader insight into the characters personality. In both the poem Dead Souls written by Nikolai Gogol, and the novel The Idiot by Fyodor Dostoevsky, the literary devices used to describe character’s homes gives the reader an indication of the characters personality and convictions.