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Summary Of Conflict In Dostoevsky's Cuckoolsky

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Part II: Close Reading/ Literary Term Analysis
1st Entry: Part I (Conflict)
Conflict: Conflict is a struggle that happens between two opposing forces. There are two main types of conflict, internal and external. Internal conflict is the struggle between man and himself. External struggles include man versus man, man versus nature and man versus society.
Example: “I wonder what people are most afraid of? I babble too much… maybe I babble because I don’t do anything. I’ve learned to babble over this past month, lying in a corner, thinking about… Cuckooland. Why on earth am I going now? Am I really capable of that? (4).
Function: In the first few pages of the novel, the author establishes the mental state that Raskolnikov is in and his constant self-doubt that he faces. By using internal conflict, Dostoevsky can show the way Raskolnikov is constantly questioning himself, his preparation for his crime and how he might react in the aftermath of committing his crime. In the opening paragraphs of Crime and Punishment, readers can see Raskolnikov questioning himself and going back and forth about every thought that enters his mind. These thoughts include what people are afraid of, whether he babbles too much, why he babbles and when and why he is going to Cuckooland. By vividly describing the internal conflict that Raskolnikov is facing, readers are able to establish a sense of how Raskolnikov handles situations and his thought process. By establishing this now, Dostoevsky gets

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