Alexia Barrios
Mr. Shapiro
Period 2
May 5, 2014
Dissection
into the Alienation of Raskolnikov in Crime
and Punishment
Fyodor Dostoevsky is a highly regarded Russian novelist whose
literary works are influenced by a variety of topics based on the corrupt
political and social atmosphere that was 19th century Russia.
Dostoevsky’s early view of the world was shaped by his experiences with social
injustices and the overall tragic events that occurred throughout his life. It
can be argued that he himself was somewhat alienated from society as he became
active in socialist circles that were against the current political reforms
that were occurring during that time period, as they consisted of a small group
of people. His joining of such groups and his political opinions is what lead
to his arrest as him along with others were illegally printing and distributing
social propaganda. One of his most rewarded literary works is Crime and Punishment, a novel that is a
psychological analysis of the main character, Rodion Ramonovich Raskolnikov.
Raskolnikov believes in the capability that certain “great men” have the ability
to disregard the moral code as well as those set up by society in order to commit
crimes that would accomplish a certain task that they find committing such a
crime would be justifiable. It then can be argued that in reality he is simply attempting
to logically justify his “evil thoughts” about the disliked pawnbroker who
which he later murders in cold blood justifying this gruesome event as one that
was necessary and that would benefit society since he has now eliminated an
unwanted and evil presence. Raskolnikov, due to social, environmental and
psychological aspects that are expressed within in the novel, had become
alienated from society. This alienation stems from psychological aspects such
as his superiority complex and growing guilt and from the environment of St.
Petersburg, which was inhabited by those whom he considers far more inferior
then him, and
Several
different aspects and sources of Raskolnikov’s alienation are introduced
throughout the novel, one of the many being the social aspect of it, which is the
first that is introduced. “He was so
immersed in himself and had isolated himself so much from everyone that he was
afraid not only of meeting his landlady but of meeting anyone at all.”
(Dostoevsky, 3) Here Dostoevsky openly addresses and introduces his isolation
from society and demonstrates the alienation that began at the beginning of the
novel and progressively becomes worse as the guilt causes him to detach himself
more and more from society. Originally, his alienation stemmed from his
superiority complex in which he saw himself as superior to all those who also
inhabited the city of St. Petersburg and supported by his belief in the idea of
a “superman”. This concept of a “superman” is one that is brought up in his
article, The Crime. This article discusses the rationale behind committing crimes and the
article definitely is an embodiment of Raskolnikov’s personal beliefs on the
subject and it suggests “that there are certain persons who can…that is, not
precisely are able to, but have a perfect right to commit breaches of morality
and crimes and that the law is not for them.” (Dostoevsky, 246) This argument
that certain people or “extraordinary men” are above humanity and have the
right to break the law and violate certain moral codes, such as murder, is one
that in my opinion proves once again that Raskolnikov possess a superiority
complex. Another
contributing factor would be his physical appearance. Dostoevsky approaches the character of Raskolnikov in an
interesting manner as he leaves the character nameless for some time but
provides some clues as he describes him to be “exceptionally
handsome, above average in height, slim, well-built, with beautiful darks eyes
and dark brown hair.” (Dostoevsky, 1) His
physical appearance as well as his personal philosophy foster his proud and
contemptuous nature, as well as someone who is emotionally detached from
humanity and overly conscious.
From the beginning of the novel his air of superiority is
evident due to the manner that he speaks and views those who reside in the
city. Throughout the novel he continually describes them to be inferior, evaluating
both beauty and the manner in which they dress, and in their intellectual
capabilities. Due to this, he is unwilling to make any lasting connections with
those who live alongside him since he finds himself to be to great of a person
to socialize with those whom he views as much lower than himself. This can be
considered somewhat ironic on Raskolnikov’s part since he judges those who are
in poverty when in reality he is in the same financial state as those who he
criticizes so harshly. Also, the fact that he views himself as a “superman”, or
a person who is extraordinary in sense that they are above the moral rules that
govern humanity, is a factor in which he justifies his alienation as though it
almost compels him to do so. As the plot develops, it also comes to light his
inability and unwillingness to create and sustain healthy relationships with
those who are trying to help him. As he becomes more secluded and inwardly
drawn into his guilt and psychological torment he pushes away his sister Dunia,
his mother Pulcheria
Alexandrovna, and one of his closest
friends Razumikhin,
as they try to help him both before the murders as his family sent him money
and Razumikhin attempted to find him an occupation as well as during his
tumultuous psychological state afterwards.
An aspect of committing such a vicious crime that Raskolnikov
seemed to have overlooked was the psychological turmoil that consisted of
intense guilt followed by the semi-delirious state that it threw him in. Shortly
after the murders are committed, it is visible that Raskolnikov’s previously
strong mental state begins to deteriorate due to his guilt and he enters a
“strange period” (Dostoevsky, 417) where “it was
as though a fog had fallen upon him and wrapped him in a dreary solitude from which
there was no escape” (Dostoevsky, 417). His
once lucid thoughts become sporadic and nonsensical as he falls deeper and
deeper into delirium as he struggled whether or not to confess to the murders.
There are several moments throughout the novel in which he comes so close to
confessing, but then retracts himself or teases with the person to whom he was
about to confess to.
“Something was happening to him, something entirely new, sudden and unknown. It was not that he understood, but he felt clearly with all the intensity of sensation that he could no longer appeal to these people in the police office with sentimental outbursts, or with anything whatsoever; and that if they had been his own brothers and sisters and not police officers, it would have been utterly out of the question to appeal to them in any circumstance of life. He had never experienced such a strange and awful sensation. And what was most agonizing was…a direct sensation, the most agonizing of all the sensations he had known in his life.” (Dostoevsky, 103)
This quotation, which was thought made by
Raskolnikov in Part II Chapter I, illustrates Raskolnikov’s realization on the
topic that his murdering of Alyona and Lizaveta has resulted in his complete
isolation from society. This alienation and separation of himself from the
society in which he lives in was one that began with his superiority complex,
but the isolation grew much more once the murders were committed and the guilt
and mental turmoil began to take over. The completion of murders in a sense
finalized his separation, as he has now truly crossed over the lines and broken
whatever ties he had left to humanity. His guilt only grows more intense as the
novel continues, thus causing the separation between himself and society to
grow as he becomes unable to hold conversations without sounding as though he
is a lunatic. This alienation increases along with his guilt to the point where
he completely removes himself from his family and friends when it comes near to
him confessing to Sonya near the end of the novel.
The city of St. Petersburg is represented
by Dostoyevsky to be filthy and overly crowded by a variety of low class
citizens as drunks who “completed the revolting misery of the picture”
(Dostoevsky, 2) along wit the women force their children out on the streets to
beg for money, such as Sonya’s mother. This clutter and chaos that is St.
Petersburg is one that is directly correlated with Raskolnikov’s mental state
as he comes near the time of confessing as all the negative factors of the city
“all worked painfully upon the young man’s already overwrought nerves.”(Dostoevsky,
2) This negative image that Dostoevsky presents plays a vital role in the
alienation of Raskolnikov as well. Through Raskolnikov’s eyes the city is
presented to be infest with drunkards, molesters, and other vile creatures, all
of which he believes to be much lower than himself. This belief directly
correlates with his superiority climax and his overall alienation from society.
Due to the fact that such vile creatures inhabit the city, he does not
associate himself with any of them and finds himself continually disgusted by
the mere sighting of such creatures.
Along with the physical state of the
city, the weather plays a pivotal role in his alienation due to the behavior
that is produces. Most of the novel is set during the feverish heat of July and
August and Dostoyevsky continually points out the excruciating heat that is
being emitted. The first line of the novel introduces the weather as well as Raskolnikov
by declaring, “On an exceptionally hot evening early in July a young man came
out of the garret in which he lodged in S. Place and walked slowly, as though
in hesitation, towards K. bridge” (Dostoevsky, 1) This “exceptionally hot”
weather that is being described can be considered the perfect setting for a
piece that has to do with murder, aggression, guilt, and mental delirium. It
has been shown through several different channels such as literary works like The Stranger and psychology in general
that weather, specifically warm weather, plays a distinct role in raising the temperaments
of people. Psychology has shown that extreme heat raises temperate and as a
result promotes acts of aggression and violence. It usually causes a spike in
crime, especially if the weather is that of extreme heat as described by
Dostoyevsky in the first line of the novel. This ties in with his alienation
throughout the novel as it causes him to enter a feverish state of mind several
times and throws him into a state of mental delirium in which he pushes away
Razumkhin, Dunia, Pulcheria Alexandrovna, and others who are close to him.
Dostoevsky
being the highly regarded Russian novelist that he is successfully created a complex
character that exemplifies his own personal philosophies and life experiences.
Being that he was a member of socialist circles that worked against the current
Russian government he was part of an elitist group of men, which automatically
makes him an isolated member of society similar to Raskolnikov. Their
alienation from society both stemmed from their personal philosophies on
morality, government, and society as a whole. The heart of the plot in Crime and Punishment is the
psychological torment that Raskolnikov experiences due to his internal struggle
between his philosophy and the unrelenting amount of guilt that drives him to
want to confess. This innate struggle ultimately leads to his alienation from
society as the philosophy revolving around certain “extraordinary men” and is
the driving force behind his logical justification for committing the murders
and it was the initial reason for his isolation. This philosophy that he
adopted, fed his superiority complex, which only intensified his isolation as
the novel progressed since he continuously found himself to be far superior to
those around him. Along with the psychological and social aspects presented in
the novel, environmental aspects such as the weather played a role in that it
affected his behavior, enacting a more aggressive Raskolnikov than originally
presented. Whether he was trying to do good or bad, his alienation was an
aspect of this journey that was inevitable and only when he was removed from
such an environment and of the guilt, was he able to begin his reintroduction
into society with the help of Sonya.
Works Cited
Dostoyevsky,
Fyodor, and Constance Garnett. Crime and Punishment. Grand Rapids,
Mich.: Christian Classics Ethereal Library, 199. Print.
No comments:
Post a Comment