Dostoyevsky ‘Notes from Underground’ Critique Essay

However, instead of mocking the idea of optimism and trying to instill becoming far more realistic to get out of situations -such as those that Pangloss went through-, the underground man decides to remain motionless. The Underground man believes that “Suffering is the sole origin of consciousness” (Dostoevsky); In other words the pain that one feels when dealing with reality leads to consciousness and then hyperconsciousness. The Underground Man’s hyperconsciousness leads him to thinks that there are too many causes and that one cannot act on primary causes. He believed that “an intelligent man cannot become anything seriously and it is only the fool who becomes anything” (Dostoevsky 11). Because of so many primary causes the Underground man could not make up his mind and make one decision, so his hyperconsciousness led to conscious inertia where instead he “was sitting with the hands folded [doing nothing]” (Dostoevsky 10).

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

In Part II, Chapter III, he describes most of his childhood, and he reveals how troublesome it truly was. He was an orphan sent off to a school by his distant relatives. The Underground Man says that he was also treated horribly at said school because he was different from the rest of them. His experiences are already unfavorable as he mentions that his “schoolmates received me with spiteful and pitiless jibes because I wasn’t like any of them,” (744). These personal and social events in his young life are the beginning of his struggles, and starts the negative and self-conscious mindstate he accumulates as he

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.

During the late 1940’s through 1952, the Invisible Man tries valiantly to overcome the image society has given him, but his efforts could never break from the grasp of the black society. This hold was constructed and glued together by the white society during this novel. The stereotypes of a racist society had blacks to behave only in savage and compelling ways, never letting them to act in their own free will. Also the actions of black activist leaders seeking equality for the black community are manipulated and lied to. Throughout the entire novel, the Invisible Man encounters many heart

As a matter of fact, the man seems rather flat. The author, by barely giving us any information regarding the man's personality, his life, or his physical appearance, helps in his dehumanization. By not even giving us his name as well, he keeps us strangers to him. Indeed, all throughout the story the narrator makes references to him by calling him "the man" and "he" (100). The minimum of details is revealed, and the narrator emphasizes his tendency to be insensitive and unaware of the environment he is in: "But all this--[…] the tremendous cold, and the strangeness and weirdness of it all--made no impression on the man" (101). As if the man was not consciously aware of the danger, we have trouble entering his mind; so what is really going through his head? Unable to answer the question, we may feel upset about his lack of

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.

For this creative project, Maia, Austin, and I took Maia’s idea for her adaptation and made it a reality. Maia’s adaptation was for the book, Notes from the Underground. Notes from the Underground is a book narrated by a misanthropic man who lives in St. Petersburg, Russia during the 1860’s. This anonymous man is a veteran of the Russian civil service who could retire because he came into some money. This novel includes self-contradicting and confusing notes and his thoughts on modern society.

While the Underground Man’s heart hurt, he feels as if he deserves the pain and enjoys the torture the pain brings him. At the same time, he views himself as being far more intelligent and observant than everyone else in St. Petersburg. One aspect of this is his hyperconsciousness that makes him unable to have normal human interacts, and he sees it as being one of his strengths. He feels as if he is the only one who views the world as it truly is, which is in a very pessimistic light. He sees life as being meaningless and utterly pointless.

Adaptation plays a large role in “The Overcoat” and “The Man Who lived Underground”. Bureaucracy does not affect Akaky because he is used to constant oppression. Daniels initially is oppressed by his surroundings until he learns to interact with them beneficially. Daniels, unlike Akaky, mentally transcends all forms of oppression by believing that he is a God. Daniel’s transcendence from social restrictions allows him to live ignorantly in his oppressive world. Akaky and Daniels both interact with oppressive environments; however, they only experience subjugation from their environments when they are aware of the oppression. Ignorance of their circumstances allows the two to avoid experiencing the oppression unless there is a change in their status quo.

Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s novel, Notes from the Underground Man, uses the idea of a modern dystopia by depicting a story that revolves around a distressed older man. Throughout the novel, the main character has a narcissistic belief that he is better than everyone else because of his acute sense of consciousness. His awareness however, also causes him to believe not only are people ignorant to the world around him but that they are also against him. In contrast, critics believe that the main character, the underground man, actually suffers from psychological disorders that causes him to reason this way. Psychological disorders are defined as a wide range of conditions that can affect mood, behavior and thinking, and based on his conduct in the novel, the underground man presents himself as an individual who is subjected to obsessive compulsive behavior, social repression and paranoia.

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).

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?”

The critically acclaimed American author, William Faulkner, once said, “We must be free not because we claim freedom, but because we practice it.” The concept of free will has been a widely discussed topic that presents both end of the spectrum to bring forth their own point of views. In Notes from Underground by Fyodor Dostoevsky, the idea of freedom is argued against a deterministic view that actions and decision are predetermined and can be calculated using advancement of humanity through “present day” technology. The debate between the two-opposing side will be analyzed through a recount on the deterministic point of view, an exploration about free will with its connection to the provided text, and an opinion piece of the matter.