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The novel by Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky "Crime and Punishment" is a repository of tragic destinies. Reading a book, you are more than once immersed in thoughts not only about the fate of the heroes of this particular story, but also about what the people you see every day experience. Think about which of the characters is happy? Sonya Marmeladova? Dunya? Luzhin, Svidrigailov? Or Rodion? The latter is probably even more unhappy than all the others. In this general misfortune, the roots of the famous theory of Raskolnikov grew, which not only took the life of the old pawnbroker and her pregnant sister, but also destroyed the personality of the killer himself.
The main idea of Raskolnikov's theory is that people are divided into two categories: "having the right" and "trembling creatures." Some are ordinary and driven people, others are great arbiters of destinies. Rodion says: "... most of these benefactors and establishers of mankind were especially terrible bloodshed." Maybe. But is the protagonist of the novel a “benefactor and establisher of mankind”? Most likely, he is just a "trembling creature." He comes to this conclusion at the end of his spiritual torments.
Under the hardships of life, Raskolnikov caved in, went to crime not only in relation to himself, but also to Lizaveta, Alena Ivanovna. But is he really to blame? According to Dmitry Ivanovich Pisarev, a well-known literary critic, it is not Raskolnikov's idea that leads him to murder, but the cramped social circumstances in which life, deprived of any prosperity, puts the hero. Social injustice, stratification of society, poverty, unsanitary living conditions - all these are the factors that led Rodion to implement the theory. It is not for nothing that the meeting with the poor Marmeladov finally convinces the hero that he is right.
In my opinion, such ideas arose not only in Raskolnikov's thoughts. Absolutely all heroes are forced to commit certain crimes: someone went against himself and got a yellow ticket; someone completely disillusioned with life found salvation in alcohol; someone, wanting to help his brother, agrees to an arranged marriage. All these heroes are victims of an unjust social order.
Once again raising the problem of a small person in a big world, Fedor Mikhailovich wants to say: “Look! They are unhappy! Who is to blame for this?" And no one has ever found the exact answer, and never will. Yellow, sickly St. Petersburg, gray, gloomy porches, staggering staircases shrouded in cobwebs, apartments - corners, apartments - cells, windows overlooking ditches and dirt - this is it, the cultural capital. Here it is, the repository of tragic destinies ...
Interesting? Save it on your wall!The novel "Crime and Punishment" can be called philosophical, social, and psychological. Written in 1866, it reflects Russian life in the second half of the 19th century, those times when the state experienced powerful shifts and upheavals in social terms.
Dostoevsky in his book denounces bourgeois society, which gives rise to all kinds of evil - not only those that immediately catch the eye, but also those vices that lurk in the depths of the human subconscious.
The hero of the book is Rodion Raskolnikov, who was once a student, and now lives
In dire poverty. His situation is hopeless, he does not have any hopes for improving his life. But, nevertheless, even being one of the victims of the cruel bourgeois world, Rodion remains a man; intelligence, a tendency to constantly analyze his actions, love for his neighbors, outstanding abilities distinguish him from the environment of "little people".
However, the eternal poverty that cannot be overcome, the environment in which he has to exist, the gloomy, oppressive city, the suffering and vices of the people around him - all this pushes Raskolnikov to create some kind of theory.
As an educated person
Rodion understands that changing his own fate, the fate of his sister and mother is possible only when the world, its entire social structure changes. Of course, at that time such changes were impossible, and therefore Raskolnikov, rebelling against the unjust universe, is trying to achieve something alone, according to the theory he developed.
Long reflections on the foundations of an unjust society lead him to the conclusion: all of humanity can be divided into two categories - ordinary individuals who are only fit to produce their own kind, and such geniuses as Napoleon or Mahomet, who, by virtue of their genius , the chosen ones have the right to decide the fate of mankind, sacrificing hundreds of "ordinary" lives, not stopping even before crimes.
Raskolnikov is obsessed with the idea of the world, the common good. In order for there to be less injustice in the world, in order to prove to himself that he is not a "trembling creature", Rodion himself becomes a criminal, committing murder. By his deed, he did not make the world a better place - this cruel lesson teaches him life. Moral anguish, nightmares of an inflamed consciousness accompany him after the murder of an old woman. The writer skillfully describes the state of the hero - based on the descriptions of dreams and visions of Raskolnikov, we see that the main character understands that by killing a person, he, first of all, kills his immortal soul.
Raskolnikov falls into despair. He sees that evil in the form of crime does not benefit anyone. His theory, which he so sought to test, does not bring results, its expediency and justification suddenly collapse, and Rodion is morally and physically broken. At that moment, when the disease now and then throws him into unconsciousness, he decides to reveal himself to Sonechka Marmeladova in everything. This girl also transgressed the moral law, she also ruined her soul. It is Sonechka who will finally debunk Raskolnikov's theory with her mercy, sacrifice, humility to fate. The meaning of the theory now eludes Rodion himself - is it possible to become a superman, stepping over the pain and suffering of others?
Having tried to put his thoughts into practice, Rodion became convinced that his theory was untenable - it is impossible to be the Messiah-savior and Napoleon at the same time, it is impossible to combine a tyrant and a benefactor of the world in one person. An attempt to prove that he is capable of being above the "gray mass" failed. Now Rodion sees that his judgments were erroneous, and dutifully accepts the punishment for the crime, the punishment that has become for him a long-awaited relief from mental anguish.
It was at this moment that Rodion Raskolnikov, having rejected his inhuman, inhumane theory, is reborn for a new life.
We see that in the novel the idea that a crime, even if committed with a noble or humane purpose, is simply unacceptable in human society, runs like a red thread. A theory based on the destruction of just one person for the sake of the happiness of many should not exist. Don't forget that this "one person" can be anyone.
Through the "fair" distribution of wealth, it was born in an atmosphere characteristic of that period. On the one hand - honest, decent people, turned by extreme poverty into "trembling creatures", on the other - a useless, but very rich "louse", sucking the blood of those very honest people. Moreover, new, completely unformed, often devoid of the foundations of morality and spirituality, ideas add fuel to the fire.
To emphasize the (apparent) rightness of Raskolnikov, Dostoevsky deliberately scatters pictures of grief and poverty throughout the novel, thereby reinforcing the painful feeling of hopelessness. The last straw, which overflowed the cup of patience and led to the fact that Raskolnikov's theory moved from the stage of abstract reflections to the stage of practical implementation, was Marmeladov's confession and a letter from his mother. The moment has come to materialize the idea long nurtured by the hero in his miserable closet: this is the blood of conscience, which the chosen ones (including him) are allowed to shed.
Raskolnikov's theory was both dependent on and in conflict with the then popular positivist theories of G. Spencer, D. S. Mill, N. G. Chernyshevsky. All of them relied on economic benefits and material comforts, prosperity.
Dostoevsky believed that the consciousness, constantly filled with such categories, loses the need for Christian virtues, for high spirituality. His hero is trying to connect both sides. He dreamed that a person would show egocentrism within reasonable limits, and that he would not become a slave of modern economic relations, would not be too immersed in his
Raskolnikov's theory, put into practice, revealed to the hero himself a paradoxical neighborhood in his soul of love for people and contempt for them. He considers himself a chosen one who has the right (and even must) kill in order to benefit not only himself, but all of humanity. And here he suddenly realizes that he is attracted by power for the sake of power itself, by the desire to dominate others.
In order to somehow justify his hard-won ideas, Raskolnikov cites as an example some legislators who were not even stopped by blood. However, their actions do not seem meaningful and saving, on the contrary, they strike with senseless destruction for the sake of the best. Such a train of thought of Rodion does not ennoble his ideas, as he wanted, but only exposes them and leads to the same assessment that Porfiry Petrovich gave to everything that happens. He defined the criminal as an individual who deifies himself, while belittling the personalities of other people, and encroaches on their lives.
The absurd theory of Raskolnikov and its collapse is seen by Dostoevsky as a natural event. He showed how the vagueness of the saving and beneficence of a new idea, its uncertainty can serve as a kind of psychological veil capable of lulling even a person's conscience in order to destroy, blur the boundaries between the concepts of good and evil.
Raskolnikov's theory and its collapse also has a historical side. It shows how ambiguous certain historical innovations can be, how prudence and good manners can be inversely proportional to the law "I".
The author does not describe the spiritual revival of the protagonist in the same detail as his spiritual ordeals, however, outlines the contours. Raskolnikov gradually realizes the essence of his idea, its fatality, its real meaning. He tests the strongest and is ready for repentance, ready from now on to be guided in his life only by the commandments of the Gospel. According to Dostoevsky, only sacrificial, giving love, and not abstract, for all mankind, but concrete, for a concrete neighbor, is capable of restoring a human appearance in the hero. For Raskolnikov, such salvation is the compassionate love between him and
All the unnaturalness, all the horror for a person in such an act as murder, are illuminated by Dostoevsky in Crime and Punishment, not as a lesson, but in the vivid depiction of the very moment of the murder. Having embarked on the wrong path, trusting his abstract theory, Raskolnikov must immediately fall into chaos, in which he loses the ability to direct events and control his own free will. It becomes clear to the reader that Raskolnikov, according to Sonya, commits violence not only on others, but also on himself, on his soul and conscience.
Raskolnikov's theory
If Raskolnikov, in the days when he was only thinking about the relativity of the concepts of good and evil, were presented with a vivid picture of this murder, if he could see himself with an ax in his hand, hear the crack of the old woman’s skull under his ax, see a pool of blood, imagine himself approaching with the same bloody ax to Elizabeth, somehow childishly pushing him away in blind horror with her hands - if he could experience and feel all this, and not only think about theoretical solutions, no doubt he would have seen that at such a price no goods can be bought. He would understand that the means do not justify the ends.
The double murder committed by Raskolnikov somehow destroys his entire life foundation. He is seized by complete confusion, confusion, impotence and longing. He cannot overcome, overcome the terrible impressions of the murder: they haunt him like a nightmare. In his theory, Raskolnikov believed that it was after the murder and robbery that he would begin to carry out plans for a new life; meanwhile, it was the very nightmare of the murder that filled his whole subsequent life with melancholy and confusion.
On the night after the murder, he rushes around the room with feverish haste, tries to concentrate, think over his situation and cannot, catches and loses the threads of thoughts, puts the stolen things behind the wallpaper and does not see that they stick out from there. He is seized by hallucinations, he is delirious and cannot distinguish reality from crazy ideas.
In the future, he continues to feel the unforeseen consequences of what happened, which he could not take into account. So, he feels his complete disunity with the whole world and with the closest people. He wears a mask in communication with his beloved mother and sister, withdraws into his gloomy loneliness. And although he theoretically justifies his crime and blames himself only for weakness of will and cowardice, at the same time he unconsciously feels that the blood he shed makes it impossible to have simple and sincere communication with loved ones. “It’s as if I’m looking at you from thousands of miles away,” he says to his mother and sister.
Thus, Dostoevsky discovers here that the violation of the eternal laws inherent in the human soul entails punishment not from without, but from within. Raskolnikov himself punishes himself with his dreary separation from people, his solitude and vague consciousness that his life is somehow crippled, broken. He decides that the whole point is in his weakness, in the fact that he is endowed with a flabby and powerless nature. He comes to the realization that he gave in to his principle, turned out to be lower than it. “I killed myself, not the old woman,” he says, and expresses the same thought elsewhere: “The old woman is nonsense; I didn't kill a man, I killed a principle...
In the future, the author draws his hero in a state of internal disorder and mental struggle. His vital content has completely disappeared, for the foundation of life has disappeared; he does not find any former interests of life, he can no longer devote himself to work or entertainment. He struggles between two decisions: his own former one, telling him about the right of the strong, and Sonya Marmeladova, calling him to repentance and redemption. But the personal traits that the author shows in his hero explain the slow process of Raskolnikov's spiritual rebirth, which took place in him under the influence of Sonya.