Crime and Punishment is a 'murder mystery' where the reader is in on it from the very beginning. But more than that, it is a masterpiece on human nature, chronicling the fallout from the murderer’s guilt driving him to insanity, then confession, then salvation. I think this is one of the most spoiler-proof books there is because there’s so much nuance and lore behind all of the characters and their actions that you can only understand by reading the words of the omnipresent narrator that is Dostoevsky.
The main character’s name is Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov. Sometimes he is addressed by his last name, sometimes by his first and middle, sometimes by his first, and sometimes by a nickname (Rodya, Rodka). Easy enough to remember, but now add in a dozen other characters each with 3 names and the fact that some nicknames are not clearly relatable back to a first name (Raskolnikov’s sister’s first name is Avdotya but is nicknamed Dunya and Dunechka), and now I feel like I’m back at orientation week trying (and miserably failing) to remember who the hell everyone is.
Rodya was an intelligent university student whose mother and sister mustered enough money to send him to St. Petersburg to study law. The story begins in medias res, with Rodya forced to drop out after not being able to afford tuition, but continuing to live in Petersburg, unemployed and in poverty. He gets the idea of killing the 'loan shark' who he owes money to, meticulously planning the assassination, almost getting caught doing the deed, but improvising and escaping in the end. All this happens in Part 1 of this 6 part book. It was incredibly well written and I haven’t been that engaged in a novel for a while. As mentioned at the start, the rest of this book is about the aftermath. To be fully transparent, the paragraphs that follow are not entirely my own ideas, but a synthesis of perspectives I found on the internet that I resonated with.
First, C&P for me is a more effective tale about the dangers of hubris compared to Frankenstein (probably the epitome of ‘dangers of hubris novels’). I think a lot of readers see at least a part of ourselves in the main character, as is the case in Notes From Underground. Rodya uses his intellect to justify his actions and evade suspicion, but that doesn’t stop him from suffering the consequences of tormenting guilt. He comes to peace not by thinking his way out of it, but by accepting punishment and in doing so finding salvation and love. At the end of the day, we’re all just apes and bad things happen when we reject or forget that.
Second, this book is a strong argument against nihilism. Raskolnikov’s rationale for his crime revolves around the idea that “great” people should not be held down by the rule of law: a very ‘ends justify the means’, or utilitarian, mindset. I’ve always regarded utilitarianism as a silly idea, yet I frequently plague myself with nihilistic thoughts. C&P points out a contradiction here. If we cannot use utility as a moral compass, that must mean there is some inherent value in each life, even if nothing will matter once we die. I didn’t realize how nihilistic Rodya is until the end of the book when he has a change of heart. I think we are all born in a shroud of innocence that gives way to nihilism when we are confronted with the crude reality of the world. Dostoevsky tells us not to embrace this cynicism as a higher level of enlightenment, as Rodya (and myself) has done. C&P gives me hope that better ideas lie on the far side of cynicism, if only I have faith and keep searching.
I know for certain that many aspects of this book went over my head - religious motifs, symbolism, and philosophical ideas to name a few. I often hear people credit this book as the reason they no longer enjoy any other fiction because C&P is that much better than everything else. I don’t feel that way about this book. So if you are one of those people, feel free to attribute that to my immaturity as a reader and as a human being. I’ll continue enjoying my novels 🙂. That’s not to say that I didn’t thoroughly enjoy this book though. Dostoevsky is the first author to appear twice on my bookshelf. I would not be surprised if he makes a third appearance soon.
IRL Update (05/22/2024): My 2B study term is already well under way. Campus is a lot emptier in the summer (which basically just means everything is at rather than over capacity lol), and not having to go through the recruiting cycle has been a blessing. I have high hopes for this term!