While recently traveling to Russia, I enjoyed reading Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky. It was my first Russian literature book since high school when I read The Brothers Karamazov and One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich. I had forgotten how dark yet poignant Russian literature can be, and it was surreal reading about a story in St. Petersburg just as I was about to visit it. This classic novel is filled with tons of cliffhangers and reads like a murder mystery, even though the reader knows whodunnit. What the reader doesn't know (and which I'm still wondering about) is what it all means -- about the main character, about the culture, and about man in general. The murder mystery/cliffhanger style, though, was interesting for me to see, and I now realize how much our modern pop authors like Dan Brown copy this technique from masters like Dostoevsky to produce similarly gripping "page-turners" (albeit of a much different literary quality). Some of the themes I noticed and which made me keep thinking after I finished the book were the following:
Below are the rest of my notes on the book. 1 Deep poverty Petersburg stench Dreams and fantasy of murder Owes landlord money Mind capable of loathsome thoughts 2 Some ppl make impressions on us we do not understand Poverty not a vice but beggary is Drunkenness Drink to suffer more What it means to have nowhere to turn Family money wasted on alcohol 3 Tiny rooms ppl live in Manipulative mother letter 4 Sister arranged marriage Sell her soul for her family Urgency to break plan 5 Disturbing thoughts Police bribery Animal cruelty dream Obsession with murder fantasy 6 Saving many lives worth murdering one? Influence of coincidences Preordained Guiding hints Insanity Laziness Crimes failures of reason and willpower Why criminals and crimes not well concealed Thought his design was not a crime 7 Murder with axe like horse dream Part 2 Ch 1 Agonizing sensation not even concept Ch 2 Hallucinations Hatred Rejecting world Fever Ch 3 Confusion 4 Police piece together mystery 5 6 Witnessing others' convos about murder Depression Complete apathy 7 Helps dead friend family Nature of mental disease Part 3 Ch 1 Trying to save sister from marriage for his sake To be wrong in your own way is better than being right in someone else's way Even though drunk seek the truth and are honest 2 In wine is truth Monomania Thinking fantasy is reality Making it so Vanity 3 Actions done for no reason as in a dream Spattered with good and bad blood Would never be able to speak honestly 4 5 Influence of environment on crime Socialism thinks it can cure crime Living soul demands life Perpetration of crime accompanied by illness Extraordinary men have right to break law Murder of some to lead to discoveries What if men mistake themselves as extraordinary 6 Part 4 1 Ghosts 2 3 Saving his sister Egoism or not 4 Girl sacrifices self for mom and dad Worst sin is to suffer for others especially those who do not deserve it Religion as false savior causing real madness Religious maniacs even more crazy? The murderer and the harlot Two cursed and sacrificed Miracle of Lazarus 5 Every crime a special case Want to have mystery solved like mathematical proof 6 Part 5 1 2 Poor man's pride to spend money on social customs that cost too much just for appearance 3 Framed Sonia 4 He killed old woman to be a Napoleon Doesn't have big conquest to do so just did this Wanted to have the daring in order to have power Did the murder just for himself not for his mom or for wealth Wanted to find out if he is a man or a louse In fact is a louse because did it Whom he really killed is himself Police and authorities are knaves and scoundrels 5 Insanity not just about logical mistake Begging for tears from Sonia Part 6 1 Psychological explanations 2 Suffering for later fresh air 3 4 5 Can a man of genius overstep laws? 6 Suicide of other who discovered secret but also did crime and threats 7 Imbecility of cowardice Many men do crimes and are later crowned kings 8 Giving himself up Beggar for others emotions Confesses himself Epilogue 1 Siberia conviction Not ordinary murderer Cause was poverty/theft? Abnormal mental condition Accepted his position in Siberia Indifferent to life 2 Ill in Siberia Wounded pride made him ill Simple blunder of his idiotic idea Mere existence not enough for him Renewed by love
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