The Motif of Poverty Throughout Crime and Punishment by Dostoyevsky

unable to pay his rent for quite some time. Raskolnikov begins to think about killing a pawnbroker for her money to bring himself and others out of their abject poverty. Raskolnikov goes to the woman’s house for a test run of the murder but feels sick after just thinking of the act. In one bar Raskolnikov speaks with a man who also lives in poverty. Everything in his household shows their economic strife. The man is an alcoholic and his daughter, Sonya, is forced to prostitute herself to provide for the…

A Study of the literary techniques used by Fyodor Dostoyevsky in Crime and Punishment to convey the downfall and subsequent rise of the main character. "Crime and Punishment" by Fyodor Dostoyevsky is the story of a young student Raskolnikov and his need to murder an old woman to prove one of his many philosophies. The book begins with the murder, but the primary focus is on his reasoning and reactions before and after the act. It is set in St Petersburg where the main character, Raskolnikov…

Guilt in Crime and Punishment In Crime and Punishment, Fyodor Dostoyevsky tells a story of a young man that has been forced out of his studies at a university, by poverty. In these circumstances, he develops his theory of an extraordinary man (Frank 62). This conjecture is composed of the ideas that all great men must climb over obstacles in their way to reach their highest potential and benefit human kind. In Raskolnikov's life, the great obstacle is his lack of money, and the way to get…

Guilt, Suffering, Confession and Redemption in Crime and Punishment "You keep lying!" screamed Raskolnikov, no longer able to restrain himself. "You're lying, you damned clown!" And he flung himself on Porfiry, who retired to the doorway, but without a trace of panic. "I understand everything, everything!" He approached Porfiry. "You're lying and taunting me so Ill give myself away-" "You can't give yourself away any more than you have already, Rodion Romanovich, old man. Why,…

Russia's poverty-stricken. This became known as Nihilism. According to Whitney Eggers on "Philosophies in Crime and Punishment," "Nihilists argued that there was a distinction between the weak and the strong, and that in fact the strong had a right to trample over the weak" (Eggers). Nihilism is commonly linked to utilitarianism, or the idea that moral decisions should be based on the rule of the greatest happiness for the largest number of people. Raskolnikov, the protagonist in Crime and Punishment…

Passage of Crime and Punishment What important themes, characters, atmosphere and images are set out in the first chapter of Part one of Dostoyevsky's 'Crime and Punishment' ? From the very first word of this extraordinary piece of literature, the thoughts and transgressions of Raskolnikov penetrates the heart and mind of the reader with exceptional insight, skillfully constructed suspense plots and a dynamic, autonomous hero. It is true to state that 'Crime and Punishment' had a profound…

Reflective Statement During the discussion several ideas were brought up surrounding key ideas in Crime and Punishment, mainly focusing on the concepts of dreams and setting. Before the discussion I believed that Raskolnikov differed from society somehow, and often was portrayed as crazy within his dreams/hallucinations. I also thought that St. Petersburg was a dirty and disgraceful town located somewhere within Russia. Afterwards I learned that really, Dostoevsky was using dreams to show Raskolnikov’s…

paper on crime and poverty Crime and Poverty Many factors can be viewed as reasons for crime. The amount of morality needed in order to rise against the temptation to commit crime can be difficult. It is even harder when you are coming from a place where crime is considered to be a normal part of society and looked at as a way of daily living that is supposed to be incorporated into daily lifestyles. The question can be posed. What is the main cause of crime in areas…

“Sometimes one can't stand things,” a simple but meaningful quote for Crime and Punishment and Huckleberry Finn. This quote indicates an individual's inability to bare a certain situation. Concerning the novels, the quote displays how the character's can't mentally digest society or crime and how they react. The quote mentioned above was chosen for a couple of reasons. First, the quote plays a crucial roll in both novels that helps with the character's decisions. The decisions that are made…

The Struggle in Crime and Punishment Reading this book makes you ill because from the beginning to the end you watch as psychological forces eat away at the thoughts and actions of their victim causing him to finally confess to the hideous crime he has committed. The story is basically the struggle between Raskolnikov's Napoleon-übermensch theory and his conscience which make him confess to his crime. Dostoevsky's genius is in describing how Raskolnikov struggles in his thoughts and actions…