Philosophy of the extraordinary man and why Raskolnikov is divided.

Focus on Sonya and Dostoevsky's original social commentary on alcoholism.

Find out how others reacted to C&P on a page dedicated to the book. Contribute intelligent conversation via posts and comments.

More existential parallels between Dostoevsky and Nietzsche 

Use as a reference for your existential lens for your comparison paper.

Use this as a reference when writing your papers.

How many questions can you answer correctly? Test your C&P knowledge!

Use this as a REFERENCE ONLY for studying and writing your papers. NOTE: YOU WILL BE GIVEN INTERMITTENT READING QUIZZES, SO SPARK NOTES ALONE WILL NOT SAVE YOU FROM FAILING.

Use my comparison paper as an example for comparing Crime and Punishment to a philosophical work of your choice.

S. Bistrican, 2006
Redemption through Suffering:
Reading Crime and Punishment through the Existential Philosophy of Miguel de Unamuno

To suffer is to endure undesirable conditions either willingly or unwillingly. The connotations associated with suffering are that it is not an ideal condition and most people would escape a situation where they had to undergo anguish and pain. The existentialist view, however, finds that suffering is necessary in order to fully comprehend the human condition. According to Hubert Dreyfus, a philosophy professor at the University of California at Berkeley, existentialism is a philosophical movement that emphasizes individual existence, freedom, and choice. It mostly flourished in the Europe during the twentieth century among notable figures such as Karl Jaspers, Simone de Beauvoir, Albert Camus, and Jean-Paul Sartre. Famous nineteenth century philosophers who were also considered contributors of this movement were Soren Kierkegaard and Friedrich Nietzsche. Existentialism also exploded into the literary scene and was embraced by writers such as Franz Kafka, Henrik Ibsen, and Samuel Beckett (Crowell). Among these philosophers and authors who held an existential view in their writing were Fyodor Dostoevsky and Miguel de Unamuno. While reading Crime and Punishment and The Tragic Sense of Life, one can easily recognize and link the systemic process of suffering: isolation, an understanding of the self, an understanding of others, and redemption and purpose. Therefore, the existential philosophy in The Tragic Sense of Life can be applied to the themes of alienation, suffering, and love in Crime and Punishment in order to obtain a complete and accurate understanding of the human condition.
This process of redemption through suffering begins with the necessity of solitude and self-alienation. Unamuno presents his notion that no man exists to be isolated because this kind of existence would be an abstraction. Unamuno compares man to an atom: the atom devoid of the universe is an abstraction, but the universe is an abstraction as well when devoid of the atom. They have a mutual relationship; they depend on each other. It is important to understand that a person needs community and community needs people; anything subtracted from this equation would throw the universe off balance and society would ultimately cease to exist. More so, society owes its existence to the individual who self-preserves thus propelling the continuance of society (29). However, before Unamuno came to this conclusion, he determined that a course of introspection and solitude was necessary to experience in order for human beings to understand themselves and eventually the world around them. According to Paul Ilie in his book Unamuno: An Existential View of Self and Society, Unamuno regarded self-alienation as a blessing in disguise. He explains that the anguish we suffer during the desperate effort to know ourselves helps us to understand the suffering of others. This idea is illustrated through Unamuno's metaphor that "when by submerging you enter into yourself, and advance along the dark inner galleries of your soul, you never know when you have left your own spiritual underground and have entered your neighbor's" (Ilie 8-9). Demonstrated in Unamuno's philosophy, solitude has a power of restoration and is more importantly a technique for self-discovery.
This same process is seen in the beginning of the first chapter in Crime and Punishment. This scene illustrates Raskolnikov's dismal state of mind: "He had become so completely absorbed in himself, and isolated from his fellows that he dreaded meeting, not only his landlady, but any one at all" (1). A considerable amount of this novel is written from Raskolnikov's stream of consciousness perspective and the reader immediately plunges into his dark and isolated psyche. Raskolnikov is a hopeless former university student strategically contemplating murder. He lives inside of his own head and further alienates himself from his community because of this. He wavers between the thought of being the "superior" man and slips into depression once he cannot reconcile with his utter hopelessness. The progression into isolation is more apparent after he commits the murders. Raskolnikov continues to retreat deeper into his own mind and begins to hate all that is around him: "A new overwhelming sensation was gaining more and more mastery over him every moment; this was in immeasurable, almost physical, repulsion for everything surrounding him, an obstinate, malignant feeling of hatred" (92). As he descends further into isolation, we see the detriments this causes: he becomes increasingly paranoid and even physically ill. He exerts characteristics of a madman-whether he is one by definition or not-and can no longer trust himself or anyone. He cannot simultaneously keep these murders a secret and also live a comfortable life in his head; he perpetually tortures himself over the crime. Is this necessarily a destructive process? Could this process, in turn, be considered a beneficial-a method of madness? The conclusion of the novel provides the reader with the resolution of love and redemption, and for this reason, the process is even more important to analyze.
Raskolnikov is ultimately submerged in his own pain and suffering which, on a superficial level, can be interpreted as negative and undesirable. Contrarily, Unamuno makes the case that this kind of process is necessary for perpetuation and survival on a spiritual level. In Ilie's words, alienation is a means for achieving ethical goals. It is in loneliness-the filter for external distractions-that introspection is best. Engaging in solitude is necessary for acquiring self-knowledge. Otherwise we would become a mere reflection of those around us (Ilie, 49). Solitude should not be confused as a means to an end. It is important to understand then that this is merely a process that eventually reaps a more favorable outcome (Ilie, 50). To Unamuno, perpetual engagement in solitude would lead to alienation which would render introspection void because introspection helps us understand ourselves and our role in the world among peers.
As mentioned earlier, after we demonstrate an understanding of ourselves, we can then begin to understand others: "The pain of our own sorrow may well induce us into a compassion for the sorrow of our fellow man" (Ilie 8-9). Concerning Raskolnikov, his progression from turning inward and wrestling with his psyche over his crime allows him to begin to empathize with Sonia and her "sinful" situation. According to Alba Amoia in her book on Dostoevsky's works, Raskolnikov has respect for Sonia despite her decision to be a prostitute because he sees parallels between then being a murderer himself. He regards himself and Sonia as outcasts in society (Dostoevsky 63). Their love is odd and would not seem logical to those who possess the conventional notion of a love that is flowery, perfect, and unmarred. Raskolnikov even utters to Sonia himself, after he confesses to the murders, "You are a strange girl, Sonia-you kiss me and hug me when I tell you about that…You don't think what you are doing" (334). This love feels illogical even to Raskolnikov. Sonia then cries out to him that "There is no one-no one in the whole world now as unhappy as you!" (334-335). There exists an understanding between suffering and the love that comes to be because of it.
Unamuno's philosophy on love explains this unusual but hardly illogical relationship of Raskolnikov and Sonia. In his chapter "Love, Pain, Compassion, and Personality," he describes love as the most tragic thing there is; it is "death's sister" and the only remedy of death. His main philosophy on love is that only true, unrequited love comes out of mutual suffering. While bodies unite through pleasure, souls unite through pain. Raskolnikov and Sonia could only understand each other's woes because they were able to pity one another. This furthers the assumption that a common grief is necessary for humans to connect spiritually. Whoever feels the most compassion loves the most and loves the deepest. Unamuno states that one has to also personalize everything in order to love everything. That is why when a mutual suffering is present, people connect on a more profound level and thus have the ability to love each other on a spiritual level. We see Raskolnikov and Sonia's love become this way at the end of the novel when he falls at her knees and weeps. This action seems odd though it is not devoid of meaning. Pain is the pillar of human existence and Raskolnikov realizes this notion. As Unamuno states, "Suffering is the way of consciousness, and it is through suffering that living beings achieve self-consciousness…In pleasure one forgets oneself, forgets that one exists…" (154). This explains how Raskolnikov is reminded of why he exists; pain has an existential value.
Raskolnikov finally experiences redemption at the end of the novel when he realizes that his suffering has brought him closer to Sonia and he is able to love-it is ultimately this love that saves him. As Unamuno says,
For in truth, human beings love each other spiritually only when they have suffered the same sorrow, when they have long plowed the stony earth, joined together by the mutual yoke of a common grief. It is then that they know one another and feel for and feel with one another in their common anguish, and pity one another and love one another. For to love means to pity, and, though their bodies are united by pleasure, their souls are united by pain" (149).
After being convicted of his murder and sent to Siberia, Raskolnikov is redeemed for his sin and unites with Sonia though pain. His long-awaited redemption and "final integration of his heart, mind, and soul" occurs when Sonia visits him (Amoia 69). It is at this moment when Raskolnikov falls to his knees and weeps at Sonia's feet not understanding what exactly has overcome him. Sonia, though initially frightened, understands this action and "a light of infinite happiness came into her eyes…She knew and had no doubt that he loved her beyond everything and that at last the moment had come" (448). They now realized that love is what renewed their faith in life and in each other. As stated by Amoia, "Raskolnikov is restored to a better, higher, more worthy state and has earned the right to return to the human fold." He is reborn by the miracle of reciprocal love (70). Thorough this challenging process of suffering and alienation, Raskolnikov has finally obtained redemption and forgiveness.
Existentialist thought is not favored by all-in fact, it is highly criticized, especially by religious groups who regard it as a bi-product of atheism and agnosticism. Existentialism has often been charged with allowing people to cease the search for solutions for problems-something Sartre calls "desperate quietism" in his book Existentialism and Human Emotions (9). It has also been charged with dwelling on the dark side of human life. Sartre debunks these claims stating that existentialism is "a doctrine which makes human life possible and, in addition, declares that every truth and every action implies a human setting and a human subjectivity" (10). There is a humane factor to existentialism that people overlook due to the popularity of its negative bleak presentation. Through the employment of existential philosophy in The Tragic Sense of Life and Crime and Punishment, the reader recognizes this humanistic quality and understands the necessity of suffering in order to fully empathize and love another human being. Thus, though both books are initially bleak, they offer insight on the human condition and provide the reader with the universally relevant message that though no one is completely devoid of pain, it is though suffering that human beings are able to experience contentment.

Works Cited

Amoia, Alba. Feodor Dostoevsky. New York: Continuum, 1993.

Crowell, Steven. "Existentialism." Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. 2004. Stanford University. 12 December 2006. .

Dostoevsky, Fyodor. Crime and Punishment. 1866. New York: Barnes & Noble Books, 1994.

Dreyfus, Hubert L. "Existentialism." Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia. 12 December 2006. < http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761555530/Existentialism.html>.

Ilie, Paul. Unamuno: An Existential View of Self and Society. Madison: University of Wisconsin, 1967.

Sartre, Jean-Paul. Existentialism and Human Emotions. Secaucus: Citadel, 1957.

Unamuno, Miguel. The Tragic Sense of Life in Men and Nations. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1972.

Use my reader response journal entry as an example for your own.

Reading Response Journal: Crime and Punishment
Though dense, depressing, and exploding with detail and description, Crime and Punishment was a very enjoyable read for me. I had previously read this book in high school so I had insight on the book, but reading it a second time made me more appreciative of the work as a whole. Dostoevsky creates an intriguing story through third-person omniscient and stream-of-consciousness narration which allows the reader to delve deep into Raskolnikov's dark and harrowing psyche. Though Raskolnikov commits two heinous and brutal homicides, the reader is still able to connect with his mentality because it is relevant to anyone who has ever done or thought anything that is considered unsavory to society-this essentially includes everyone!
Dostoevsky conveys the joylessness and destitution of Russia before the revolution through his characters' immense suffering. Raskolnikov, as the protagonist, serves as the epitome of the generally bleak mentality at that time. He is a poor and desperate former university student who has fallen into a hole of depression and hopelessness. He suffers with the notion of superiority and whether or not he is an extraordinary man. This inevitably leads to the murder of the pawnbroker and Lizaveta. The crime, however, is not the sole focus of the book. The manifestation of mental anguish and suffering through it serves as the main climax-the punishment.
The human conscience and the definition of insanity in relation to those who are seemingly sane also struck me as an important theme in regard to the novel's purpose:
"…we are certainly all not infrequently like madmen, but with the slight difference that the deranged are somewhat madder, for we must draw a line. A normal man, it is true, hardly exists. Among dozens-perhaps hundreds of thousands-hardly one is to be met with" (185).
This quote occurs when Raskolnikov presents his opinion to Zossimov right before he admits to his mother that he had given the money she had sent him to Katerina Ivanovna. The notion of what is and what is not a madman is significant because it is easy to judge a person and label them as one thing or another for their actions. What really makes one mad-or immoral? Are not we all immoral from time to time whether it through murdering a person or merely telling a petty lie? One cannot gauge how severe a "crime" is and place it on a hierarchy of immorality without considering the fact that everyone falls short and has the capability inside of them to do ill against humanity. Who is to judge Raskolnikov without evaluating what they have possibly done wrong in the eyes of society themselves?
Another theme that stood out for me was the prevailing power of love. Love is treated like a god or religion in this novel regardless of the mention of the Christianity. Raskolnikov rejects God from the beginning and does not ever accept the Christian religion, but he does indefinitely come to salvation and redemption. Love, in all forms, whether it is romantic with Sonia, plutonic with Razumikhin, or familial with his mother and his sister, proves to pluck Raskolnikov from his state of desperation and bring him to life. Raskolnikov seems annoyed and utterly detests their attempts to "save" him, but in the end he cannot resist their love and eventually surrenders unto it.
More notable is his interaction with Sonia. Their love is odd and would not seem logical to those who possess the conventional notion of a love that is flowery, perfect, and unmarred. Raskolnikov even utters to Sonia himself, after he confesses to the murders, "You are a strange girl, Sonia-you kiss me and hug me when I tell you about that…You don't think what you are doing" (334). This love feels illogical even to Raskolnikov. Sonia then cries out to him that "There is no one-no one in the whole world now as unhappy as you!" (334-335). There exists an understanding between suffering and the love that comes to be because of it.
Redemption thus occurs though their exchange of misfortunes and they begin to love each other for their shared unhappiness. It is in this moment when Raskolnikov begins to experience true remorse and salvation. He is able to feel again and this is apparent through the two tears he sheds with Sonia. She penetrates the being of this seemingly monstrous man and unlocks his heart allowing him to heal. She serves as a symbol for salvation and it is noted at the end that he may never have fully confessed to the authorities had she not been there to encourage him. He also finds reason to live and trudge through his sentence in Siberia because she follows him and supports him over the duration. He finally accepts her love fully at the end when he breaks down at her feet one day when she visits him. She recognizes this as the instance where he has finally learned to accept her love fully and is able to offer her infinite love in return. They are both still in a wretched state-sickly, pale, wan. This moment, however, transcends their current situation and they live for the day that they will unite fully with each other. It is recognized that they have had to endure tremendous suffering before they could be awarded with happiness (448). This happens to be my personal philosophy as well.
Conclusively, I find it hard not to fall in love with Raskolnikov as Sonia did. I do not think the ending is overly Romantic or "story-book" as it was brought up in class. I feel that it fits perfectly. Any other fate for Raskolnikov would have ruined the novel and its theme of the function of the conscience and redemption through love and suffering. On a different note, he compares with Emma's character in Madame Bovary in the sense that they are heightened portrayals of the human mind and its inner workings. I still stand by the notion that Emma exists in all of us and I am adding Raskolnikov to that list as well! The human mind is unfathomable and can never be fully understood or explained. The murders were symbols for any immoral or ill a person can commit. Just like Raskolnikov, we as humans succumb to crimes as victims and perpetrators. We cannot deny our inevitable role as imperfect beings capable of evil in this world.

Photos and paintings of or inspired by Dostoevsky

Play for a free hour! Who framed Raskolnikov? We know he did it, but can he pin it on someone else?

A piece from DeviantArt.com (artist unknown)

New installments every week! This YAL author puts her work online as a draft with little-to-no editing. Any parallels with stream-of-consciousness writing since she hastily posts her work?

A decent character description of the pro/antagonist, Raskolnikov

Journal Prompt:

We are steeped in the consciousness of Raskolnikov from the first page of the book as he describes his fears. As thought unfolds, it does so in a fluid fashion, not stopping to edit itself or reconsider. Once something is thought, it cannot be "un-thought." Dostoevsky writes in stream-of-consciousness when depicting Raskolnikov's thought process. In your journal entry for Friday, try on a stream-of-consciousness style. Think of fear. Start with what you're afraid of, or if you are fearless, think of something many people are afraid of or something that you think is absurd to fear. Write one sentence describing your topic. Go from there--keep adding sentences, fragments, etc. to your flow of writing. Write ANY and EVERY thought that comes to mind for the next 5 minutes. Where did you end up? Are you still thinking of fear, or was your last thought about something entirely different (e.g., unicorns)?

Здравствуйте!  (ZDRAST-vui-tyeh)  A quick, easy lesson in Russian greetings.

Dostoevsky's grave at the Alexander Nevsky Monastery in Saint Petersburg, Russia.