Crime and Punishment
Injustice is defined as an unjust act; or wrongdoing. Poverty, illness, and death are all considered acts of injustice. Crime and Punishment written by Fyodor Dostoevsky examines all these areas of life. Death is the greatest injustice, especially when it comes by murder. In the novel two murders occur and the man that commits these acts of injustice believes that he had every right to do it. Though he is punished for his actions the time that he has to spend in prison is not comparable to the time that he has taken away from the women. Although his social punishment does not fit his crime, the mental punishment that he puts himself through makes up for societies lack of punishment. Raskolnikov who is a poor student commits these murders as a way to obtain money. He convinces himself that it is okay to murder the woman because she is an old lady who doesn’t seem to share her wealth. The fact that her sister had to be killed because she walked in at the wrong time shows just how unjust the murder was in the first place. Raskolnikov wrote an article while in school, the article argues that certain men are above the general rules of humanity, thus they have a right to commit murder. These ideas are what he used to justify his killings.
Once Raskolnikov confessed to the murders he was put on trial. At the trial many of his friends and family testified that he really was a good human being. They gave examples of his good deeds towards the community, such as saving young children from a burning fire. Even though he was poor, he gave his money to others in their time of need. The police officer that suspected him all along even lied and said that Raskolnikov confessed on his own and was never suspected. Psychologists testified that he was not physically or mentally healthy at the time of the murder. All of these actions contributed to his sentence being very minimal. He received eight years of hard labor in Siberia. During this time he was allowed to see the girl that he loved everyday. His prison sentence did not meet the severity of punishment that he felt was needed for the women’s murders.
The mental punishment that Raskolnikov put himself through was harsher than any social punishment could ever be.
Sofya made Raskolnikov realize, through acceptance, love, and sin, that he is not the “Superman” he thought and believes he is, and instead woke him up from his dream. The man became aware that his murder could not be reasonable in anyway, and that he cannot change the cards that are deal, just how he plays the hand. He agrees to spend time in prison to repent his sins. Although Sofya made a radical change in Raskolnikov’s personality, she is always by his side, and given him full support and comfort through the tough times that he has. There is no doubt that the existence of Sofya in Crime and Punishment breaks the narrow-minded view that kept a firm grip on Raskolnikov, and brings him back on the ground.
After the botched crime Raskolnikov is plagued his failures. "He was conscious at the time that he had forgotten something that he ought not forget, and he tortured himself." (107) After he carelessly kills both women, and allows for the evidence to be found, Raskolnikov realizes he did not commit the perfect crime. This devastates his ego, so he tries to cling to his previous self perception. He is also plagued with feelings of guilt. His guilt, combined with the mistakes he made during the crime, shatter his self perception of perfection.
Dostoevsky was made aware of the problems with Nihilistic ideas while he was exiled in Siberia. Crime and Punishment was Dostoevsky’s first attempt at a psychological analysis of a person’s inner struggles to rationalize this radicalism. Raskolnikov represents that intelligentsia and is being used by Dostoevsky to portray and warn against succumbing to these ideals. Dostoevsky uses Raskolnikov’s life to illustrate the implications and applications of this Nihilist to the public and then expands upon it in Demons.
Fyodor Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment begins with Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov living in poverty and isolation in St. Petersburg. The reader soon learns that he was, until somewhat recently, a successful student at the local university. His character at that point was not uncommon. However, the environment of the grim and individualistic city eventually encourages Raskolnikov’s undeveloped detachment and sense of superiority to its current state of desperation. This state is worsening when Raskolnikov visits an old pawnbroker to sell a watch. During the visit, the reader slowly realizes that Raskolnikov plans to murder the woman with his superiority as a justification. After the Raskolnikov commits the murder, the novel deeply explores his psychology, yet it also touches on countless other topics including nihilism, the idea of a “superman,” and the value of human life. In this way, the greatness of Crime and Punishment comes not just from its examination of the main topic of the psychology of isolation and murder, but the variety topics which naturally arise in the discussion.
The prostitute, Sonya, helps Raskolnikov take a step toward redemption by discussing with him the Biblical account of Lazarus' revival from death. This scene depicts his inability to comprehend Sonya's God, and epitomizes his refusal to cling to a higher being. Raskolnikov's incessant pursuit of hindering Sonya's faith characterized the frustration and struggle he experienced because of spiritual issues. However, his path to confession progressed during their conversation because of his hidden desire to understand Sonya's faith. With her aid, he took a step toward redemption foreshadowing her action in raising him from the "dead." Sonya pleads with him to wear her cross and confess to his heinous crime. However, he refuses to accept this burden. This directly parallels with Jesus' refusal to die before his proper time.
Raskolnikov is obsessed with his “superman theory”. He is constantly trying to prove that he is part of the 10% of extraordinary people in the world. He wants to become an eminent figure such as Napoleon. At first he believed that the murders he committed would make him part of this elite class. Once he realized that he had made mistakes during the crime he began to question his theory. After much frustration he decided to go to the scene of the crime. This gave him a rush that made him feel invincible. He believed that this would prove if, or if not he was “super”. Once he realized that he wasn’t part of this class, he suffered a mental breakdown. This pushed him to confess his crime to Sonya. She helped him rationalize his crime and admit his guilt. The outcome of this conversation was that it helped him admit his fate.
It is initially difficult to understand why Raskolnikov plots to murder the old pawnbroker. As a compassionate person, Raskolnikov finds the idea of violence abhorrent. Contemplating the murder of Alena Ivanovna, he dreams of an incident from his childhood when several peasants beat a horse to death. He is horrified at the senseless brutality and cruelty of the peasants; after Mikolka, the owner of the horse, slams a crowbar into the mare and finally kills her, the young Raskolnikov runs to the body, sobbing, and kisses the mare, then tries to attack Mikolka. He asks his father, "Papa, why did t...
Rubashov is guilty for the expulsion of many innocent Party members, but ultimately for the sacrifice of the knowledge of his identity for the Party system. Upon his arrest, he has felt his subconscious attempt to reach him through toothache and shivers. These physical manifestations of his guilt allow him to become fully conscious of his guilt and, consequently, the fallibility of the Party's beliefs and methods. Rubashov is also subconsciously aware that he must pay for his guilt. There is no method for redemption, save for dying in silence. Rubashov's resignation to silence during his public trial is his expression of individuality, his complete divergence from Party principle in the suppression of the individual.
Fyodor Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment is a story about a man, Raskolnikov, committing a crime and his journey towards confession. Raskolnikov suffers greatly throughout the novel due to this crime. Although the story focuses on the suffering of Raskolnikov, all the characters seem to suffer in some way or another. If they are not suffering, then they are causing another person harm in one way or another. Some prime examples of sufferers in the novel are Raskolnikov, Sonia, Dounia, Pulcheria, and Svidrigailov. They all suffer a great deal in their own way; some of which is brought on by themselves, and some that is intended to benefit others.
Due to his murder, he had no concern or care for anyone. By killing two women and taking their lives away how could Raskolnikov possess sincere feelings for anyone? Raskolnikov’s lack of care influences how he views his family: “I hate them, I feel a physical hatred for them” (276). Raskolnikov has entirely lost love. If he has deep hatred towards those people most dear to him, then he must greatly lack love. But by Sonia’s actions, Raskolnikov is able to once again feel love. Sonia genuinely loves him. When confessing about the murder, Raskolnikov learns “how great [is] her love for him” (417). He begins to understand how Sonia feels and this realization strikes remorse in him. He becomes upset with himself because “he had made her more miserable” (420). Here Raskolnikov is concerned about Sonia. Earlier Raskolnikov had no feelings for anyone, but now he begins to regret his actions and feels bad about making her cry. Sonia’s deep love for him radiates off of herself and affects Raskolnikov which makes him feel compassion towards her. He begins to understand Sonia’s feelings and intentions even more when he returns for her cross: “ Raskolnikov at that moment felt and knew once for all that Sonia was with him forever and would follow him to the ends of the earth” (521). Raskolnikov recognizes how true and perpetual Sonia’s love and concern for him is and will be. Her love gives him hope for a bright future and thus he starts
The current goal of punishment in the United States is to uphold social control by holding individuals in society accountable for breaking the law.
Crime and Punishment and Notes from the Underground Fyodor Dostoyevsky's stories are stories of a sort of rebirth. He weaves a tale of severe human suffering and how each character attempts to escape from this misery. In the novel Crime and Punishment, he tells the story of Raskolnikov, a former student who murders an old pawnbroker as an attempt to prove a theory. In Notes from the Underground, we are given a chance to explore Dostoyevsky's opinion of human beings.
In his novel Crime and Punishment Fyodor Dostoevsky uses Raskolnikov as a vessel for several different philosophies that were particularly prominent at the time in order to obliquely express his opinions concerning those schools of thought. Raskolnikov begins his journey in Crime and Punishment with a nihilistic worldview and eventually transitions to a more optimistic one strongly resembling Christian existentialism, the philosophy Dostoevsky preferred, although it could be argued that it is not a complete conversion. Nonetheless, by the end of his journey Raskolnikov has undergone a fundamental shift in character. This transformation is due in large part to the influence other characters have on him, particularly Sonia. Raskolnikov’s relationship with Sonia plays a significant role in furthering his character development and shaping the philosophical themes of the novel.
According to Raskolnikov’s theory in Fyodor Dostoevsky’s “Crime and Punishment”,there are two types of people that coexist in the world; the “Extraordinary” and the “Ordinary”. The ordinary men can be defined as “Men that have to live in submission, have no right to transgress the law, because they are ordinary.”(248). To the contrary “extraordinary” men are “Men that have a right to commit any crime and to transgress the law in any way , just because they are extraordinary”(248). Dostoevsky’s theory is evident through the characters of his novel. The main character, Raskolnikov, uses his theory of extraordinary men to justify contemplated murder. There is a sense of empowerment his character experiences with the ability to step over social boundaries. He is led to believe the killing of the pawnbroker is done for the perseverance of the greater good. It is ironic that character who is shown to be powerful in the early stages of the novel subsequently go on to show many weaknesses.
Punishment has been in existence since the early colonial period and has continued throughout history as a method used to deter criminals from committing criminal acts. Philosophers believe that punishment is a necessity in today’s modern society as it is a worldwide response to crime and violence. Friedrich Nietzche’s book “Punishment and Rehabilitation” reiterates that “punishment makes us into who we are; it creates in us a sense of responsibility and the ability to take and release our social obligations” (Blue, Naden, 2001). Immanuel Kant believes that if an individual commits a crime then punishment should be inflicted upon that individual for the crime committed. Cesare Beccaria, also believes that if there is a breach of the law by individuals then that individual should be punished accordingly.