Raskolnikov's theory in the novel "Crime and Punishment" and its debunking

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-01-17 12:35

Dostoevsky is the first to create his novel "Crime and Punishment", if only his ideological novels are taken into account. In the center of the image is the main character Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov, to whom all the threads of the story are reduced. Raskolnikov's theory in the novel "Crime and Punishment" becomes a connecting and symbolic element, thanks to which the work acquires integrity and completeness.

Summary

A young man living in a shabby rented closet walks through the streets of St. Petersburg and plots some business. We do not yet know what Raskolnikov is thinking about, but from his painful state it is clear that this is a crime. He decides to kill the old pawnbroker. However, one murder leads to another. To eliminate the witness, he has to kill Alena Ivanovna's younger sister, Lizaveta Ivanovna. After the crime, the life of the hero becomes unbearable: he is in the hell of his ownthoughts and passions, he is afraid that he will be discovered. As a result, Raskolnikov himself makes a confession, and he is sent to hard labor.

Genre originality of the novel

A brief retelling suggests that this novel can be considered as a detective story. However, this is too narrow a framework for Dostoevsky's profound work. After all, in addition to a thorough depiction of the picture of the crime, the author also resorts to accurate psychological sketches. Some researchers unequivocally attribute the work to the genre of an ideological novel, because Raskolnikov's theory comes to the fore. In the novel "Crime and Punishment" it does not become known immediately, only after the murder. However, from the very first chapters it is clear that the hero is not just a maniac, his act is supported by some rational reasons.

What pushes Raskolnikov to kill?

First, terrible living conditions. A former student who was forced to drop out due to lack of money, Raskolnikov lives in a cramped closet with torn wallpaper. His clothing looks like someone else would be ashamed to wear it. The day before, he receives a letter from his mother, in which she informs that his sister Dunya is marrying a we althy man who is older than her. Of course, she is driven by need. The old pawnbroker is rich, but she is very stingy and angry. Raskolnikov thinks that her money could help many, not just his family. Raskolnikov's theory in the novel "Crime and Punishment" is supported by onea minor character - a student whom the hero sees in a tavern. This student is talking to an officer. In his opinion, the old woman is a vile creature, she is not worthy to live, but her money could be divided between the poor and the sick. All this reinforces Raskolnikov's idea that he needs to be killed.

Raskolnikov's theory in the novel "Crime and Punishment"

In what chapter do we learn that the hero had his own theory? Porfiry Petrovich in the fifth chapter of the third part speaks of Raskolnikov's article, which he wrote when he was still a student. He cites this article as an accusation. Indeed, in it, Rodion divided people into two categories: the right of those who have the right and the trembling creatures. The first - the powers that be - can decide destinies, influence the course of history. The second is the material. By committing the murder of an old woman, Raskolnikov wants to prove to himself that he belongs to the first category. However, the torment that the murder delivers to him suggests otherwise. In the end, we, the readers, understand that Raskolnikov's Theory in the novel "Crime and Punishment" is doomed to failure from the very beginning: it is inhuman.

The idea of duality in the novel

The so-called twin heroes play a huge role in revealing the theory and character of Raskolnikov. There are many of them in the novel, but the most striking are Luzhin and Svidrigailov. Thanks to these characters, Raskolnikov's theory is refuted in the novel"Crime and Punishment". The table shows the similarities and differences between the three characters.

Criterion	Luzhin	Svidrigailov	Raskolnikov
Theory	You need to live for yourself, "love yourself alone"	Everything is allowed to a man	A strong personality can do as he sees fit. Weak (trembling creatures) are only building material
Acts	Wishes to marry Dong to have power	Hasted Dunya, drove a servant to suicide, molested a girl, overheard Raskolnikov's confession	Kills an old pawnbroker and her sister
	Make false accusations against Sonya	Gave money to orphans Marmeladov	Helps the Marmeladovs, saves children from a fire
		Committed suicide	Confessing to a crime

The table shows that the most sinful of all three is Luzhin, because he never admitted his sins, did not do a single good deed. Svidrigailov, before his death, managed to atone for everything with one good deed.

Raskolnikov hates and despises both of them, because he sees his resemblance to them. All three are obsessed with inhuman theories, all three sin. The most thoughtful is Raskolnikov's theory in the novel Crime and Punishment (the hero's quotes confirm this). He cynically calls the old woman"louse", says that he wanted to become Napoleon.

Everything that happens in the novel refutes this idea. Even the behavior of the protagonist. Raskolnikov's dreams also play a special role in the novel, in particular the last dream of a pestilence, thanks to which it becomes clear how destructive Raskolnikov's theory is in the novel Crime and Punishment. An essay on a similar topic cannot do without deciphering this dream. If everyone thought the way Raskolnikov did, then the world would have collapsed long ago.

Conclusions

So, the inhuman theory of Raskolnikvoa in the novel "Crime and Punishment" is refuted by the author, who calls on people to live according to the laws of God. No rational reason can justify killing a person, no matter what.