Crime and Punishment is a novel by the Russian author Fyodor Dostoevsky. This was first published in the Russian literary journal The Russian Messenger in twelve monthly installments during 1866. It was later published in a single volume. This is the second of Dostoevsky's full-length novels following his return from five years of exile in Siberia, where he was serving his sentence in Katorga camps, the Tsarist forced-labor system and predecessor to the Soviet Gulag. Crime and Punishment is the first great novel of his "mature period" of writing.
Crime and Punishment focuses on the mental anguish and moral dilemmas of Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov, an impoverished ex-student in St. Petersburg who formulates and executes a plan to kill an unscrupulous pawnbroker for her money. Raskolnikov argues that with the pawnbroker's money he can perform good deeds to counterbalance the crime, while ridding the world of a worthless parasite. He also commits this murder to test his own hypothesis that some people are naturally capable of, and even have the right to, do such things. Several times throughout the novel, Raskolnikov justifies his actions by connecting himself mentally with Napoleon Bonaparte, believing that murder is permissible in pursuit of a higher purpose, only to find out he "... is not a Napoleon.
My thought
The setting of crime and punishment takes place in St. Petersburg, Russia during the 1860s. During this time there is no way to get around poverty. With poverty come predators, molesters, drunks and others walking the streets. After Raskolnikov's move to a prison in Siberia you see that the setting has become the complete opposite. They are untouched by the poverty that St. Petersburg is facing and is a more relaxed/calm place. Sonya, one of the characters in the book is a very dutiful young lady who is concerned about her familiy's well being due to her fathers inability to control his drinking habit. She feels it is necessary to take care of them so she then prostitutes herself. Sonya is very much family devoted and although she sins its for the sake of others. A character that affects the entire plot happens to be the main character Raskolnikov. One of the ways he does this is by going back and forth with himself over the guilt he feels to confess his sins. His motivations and actions change the course of events for some of the other characters because although they try to help him he pushes them away and doesnt realize that he needs them to understand himself.
A former student who is a victim of poverty himself is contemplating committing a crime. He had heard that society would be better off with out the old pawnbroker in it and as soon as he gets the chance he kills her, only to see that the pawn brokers sister has walked in on him so he had to kill her too. Throughout out a majority of the book he is faced with reality to whether or not he should confess which happens multiple times. Finally he the confesses but instead of being punished for life he is sentenced with 8 years of hard labor in Siberia.
I recommend this book because it is full of psychological strain of a criminals mind. This book goes through and beyond the minds of these complex characters and their thoughts.
Summary
"Crime and Punishment" is one of the greatest novels ever written; it explores the farthest corners of the human mind and pushes it even further to see just what we are capable of. We follow the down-on-his-luck Raskolnikov in his agonizing efforts to probe and confront both his own motives for, and the consequences of, his heinous crime. As the pages turn, he becomes more paranoid and lost in his own psyche, a conflict that drives him deeper into the black hole of insanity. i enjoyed this book very much. Although in parts it is quite hard to follow (probably due to the translation), if you realize that every character has a part to play, and every (sometimes insane) conversation has an eventual point, it will be very rewarding. I wanted the story to continue!
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