Free Essays on Crime and Punishment

A highly used theme in the book crime and punishment is alienation. Raskolnikov alienates himself from society because he feels as if he is â€Å"superior† to others. He feels as if he doesn’t need to relate with others because of his superiority. After murdering Lizaveta and Alyona Ivanova, Raskolnikov isolates himself because he feels guilty. Raskolnikov sees himself as a being a superman, and is above all rules that govern society. Raskonikov probably thought he was extraordinary when he wrote the Ubermensch theory. Murdering Alyona, the pawnbroker led him to believe it was right and he gained his superiority through that. But he was unable to cover up his emotions of guilt. Many situations throughout the book proved this, such as when he was at the police station and the fresh paint smell led him to faint because it reminded him of the murders. According to Raskolnikov’s theory, he thought the reason he committed the crime was because he thought he as superior. After! committing the crime, he became ill, either the crime commited makes you become ill, or illness makes you commit the crime. Raskolnikov thought he was helping the society by his right to eliminate unneeded people. But he felt guilt from murdering Lizaveta out of fear. This was the guilt that led him to become ill. Raskolnikov did change the world, but nobody benefited from it. This proves that Raskolnikov is not a superior man, because he could not overcome his guilt. He could be superior, if repressed his feelings of guilt. Raskolniklov’s theory states there are tow types of people in the world, â€Å"ordinary† men and â€Å"extraordinary† men. â€Å"Ordinary† men have no right to reshape the laws because they are not superior, yet â€Å"extraordinary† men has the right because he is superior. Raskolnikov refers to Napoleon as being superior because he overcame many great obstacles to become superior. Raskolnikov did not become superior beca... Free Essays on Crime And Punishment Free Essays on Crime And Punishment Crime and Punishment - Suffering In the novel Crime and Punishment, by Fyodor Dostoevsky, suffering is an integral part of every character?s role. However, the message that Dostoevsky wants to present with the main character, Raskolnikov, is not one of the Christian idea of salvation through suffering. Rather, it appears to me, as if the author never lets his main character suffer mentally throughout the novel, in relation to the crime, that is. His only pain seems to be physical sicknes. Raskolnikov commits a premeditated murder in a state of delirium. He ends up committing a second murder, which he never ever wanted to be responsible for. He kills Lizaveta, an exceedingly innocent person. But does the author ever remind us of the murder at any time in the novel again? Not in the physical sense of the crime itself. The reader doesn?t hear about how heavily the murders are weighing on his heart, or how he is tormented by visions of the crime. He doesn?t feel the least bit guilty about having committed the crime, only his pride?s hurt. He doesn?t mention the idea of the pain that might arise from recurrent visions of the crime. Raskolnikov never again recalls the massive amounts of blood everywhere, the look on Lizaveta?s face when he brings down the axe on her head. These things clearly show that the crime isn?t what might cause him suffering, or pain, it is something else. After Raskolnikov is sent off to Siberia, he doesn?t feel remorseful. His feelings haven?t changed about his crime, he feels bad at not being able to living up to his own ideas of greatness. He grows depressed only when he learns of his mother?s death. Raskolnikov still hasn?t found any reason to feel remorse for his crimes. He takes Siberia as his punishment, because of how annoying it is to go through all these formalities, and ridicularities that it entails. Yet, he actually feels more comfortable in Siberia than in his home in St. Petersburg. It?s more... Free Essays on Crime and Punishment A highly used theme in the book crime and punishment is alienation. Raskolnikov alienates himself from society because he feels as if he is â€Å"superior† to others. He feels as if he doesn’t need to relate with others because of his superiority. After murdering Lizaveta and Alyona Ivanova, Raskolnikov isolates himself because he feels guilty. Raskolnikov sees himself as a being a superman, and is above all rules that govern society. Raskonikov probably thought he was extraordinary when he wrote the Ubermensch theory. Murdering Alyona, the pawnbroker led him to believe it was right and he gained his superiority through that. But he was unable to cover up his emotions of guilt. Many situations throughout the book proved this, such as when he was at the police station and the fresh paint smell led him to faint because it reminded him of the murders. According to Raskolnikov’s theory, he thought the reason he committed the crime was because he thought he as superior. After! committing the crime, he became ill, either the crime commited makes you become ill, or illness makes you commit the crime. Raskolnikov thought he was helping the society by his right to eliminate unneeded people. But he felt guilt from murdering Lizaveta out of fear. This was the guilt that led him to become ill. Raskolnikov did change the world, but nobody benefited from it. This proves that Raskolnikov is not a superior man, because he could not overcome his guilt. He could be superior, if repressed his feelings of guilt. Raskolniklov’s theory states there are tow types of people in the world, â€Å"ordinary† men and â€Å"extraordinary† men. â€Å"Ordinary† men have no right to reshape the laws because they are not superior, yet â€Å"extraordinary† men has the right because he is superior. Raskolnikov refers to Napoleon as being superior because he overcame many great obstacles to become superior. Raskolnikov did not become superior beca... Free Essays on Crime And Punishment â€Å"But if such a one is forced for the sake of his idea to step over a corpse or wade through blood, he can, I maintain, find himself, in his conscience, a sanction for wading through blood†¦Ã¢â‚¬  With these words, Dostoevsky, author of Crime and Punishment, gives the reader a clear look at the type of ideas which fill the mind of his main character. Raskolnikov, the protagonist, sums up his overtaking beliefs in this quote that he derives from Nietzsche’s philosophy. Dostoevsky develops Raskolnikov as being completely engulfed by a theory which believes that â€Å"the rearing of a human species higher and stronger than that which surrounds us, even if this could only be achieved by the sacrifice of masses of such men as we know, would be a great, a real progress.† Raskolniknov believes he is part of this superior race and his feelings of supremacy isolate him from others in society, even his family. Raskolnikov is an individual alienated from society wh o justifies his vain actions by a superhuman theory. Through background information, the author explains to his audience that Raskolnikov is a student at the university in St. Petersburg but drops out because he becomes mentally overwhelmed by his contemplations of murder. Through use of an article Raskolnikov writes in the newspaper, the antagonist of the story becomes aware of Raskolnikov’s justifications. Dostoevsky uses an argument between protagonist and antagonist to unveil Raskolnikov’s philosophy. In this altercation, Raskolnikov says, â€Å"†¦Solon, Mahomet, Napoleon, and so on†¦these benefactors and leaders of humanity were guilty of terrible carnage. I maintain that all great men or even men a little out of the common, capable of giving a new word, must from their very nature be criminals.† With these thoughts, Dostoevsky reveals Raskolnikov’s true preoccupations with Nietzsche’s philosophy. He develops the argument further to include the impact of the phi... Free Essays on Crime and Punishment Crime and Punishment Symbols from the text: The symbol of the cross is prominent in the novel, and represents the burden of suffering that Raskolnikov, as well as the other virtuous characters in the novel, must bear. This suffering can be seen as sharing the common grief of humanity and giving of oneself to others, and thus furthering life. Characters such as Luzhin, the old pawnbroker and Svidrigailov, who live selfishly and so reject this burden, remain impure, and in Svidrigailov's case especially, spiritually sick and depraved. In fact, Svidrigailov embodies evil, the side of Raskolnikov that rationalizes murder and resists turning himself in. By contrast, Sonia embodies love, the half of Raskolnikov's nature that unhesitatingly gives all he has for a poor man's funeral or risks his life to save two children. The ax, which Raskolnikov uses to commit the murders, symbolizes the two halves of Raskolnikov's nature. These opposing sides are in conflict throughout the novel and are reflected in his two victims, the old pawnbroker and Lizaveta. He uses the blunt side to murder the old woman and the sharp edge to kill Lizaveta, symbolizing that he has killed himself in the act as well. The Haymarket, or city square, can be seen as representing the common people or humanity. When he wanders through this area in the throes of his illness, Raskolnikov can blend easily into the crowd, signifying that he is not the extraordinary man of his theories. And when he goes to turn himself in, he obeys Sonia's instructions to go into the square and bow to the earth, asking it for forgiveness. In instructing him to do so, Sonia returns him to humanity and to life. It is interesting to note as well that when Raskolnikov takes Sonia's cross, it is the Cypress one, which he remarks stands for the common people. By committing murder, he has set himself above common morality and now must return. There is also an apparent tension between reason or i... Free Essays on Crime And Punishment Sacrifice is important to an individual’s well being. It is intertwined with ones sense of right and wrong, as sacrifice is usually letting go of something important in order to do what is right. Sacrifice literally means to sell or give away at a loss. In Crime and Punishment, many characters gave something away that left them at a loss but also may have helped them in the long run. Sacrifice is shown as a necessity through the characters of Raskolnikov, Sonia, and Svidrigailov. Raskolnikov sacrificed many parts of his life in order to be rehabilitated. As a test to his extraordinary man theory, in the beginning of the novel Raskolnikov murdered the pawnbroker as a sacrifice to improve society because the world would be better without the â€Å"old hag† (pg. 407). As he explained to Sonia, he believed that he killed himself and the devil killed the old hag, as she had deserved. This shows that he sacrificed his own life to murder the pawnbroker, which at the time he felt was the right thing to do. As his condition worsened Raskolnikov felt that it was suitable to disconnect himself with his mother who loved him so dearly, in order to give her peace of mind. This sacrifice helped Pulcheria because she would have worried far too much if she had known what was happening to Raskolnikov and the crime that he commited. Lastly at the end of the novel, Raskolnikov was forced to sacrifice his freedom in order to rehabilitate himself in Siberia and have a c hance to live without suffering when he gets out. The only way for this rehabilitation was confession as Porfiry had explained to him; therefore his confession was imminent and provided Raskolnikov with the only possible solution rather than killing himself. Without the help of Sonia, Raskolnikov may not have confessed and sacrificed his freedom, but he also may not have survived. Sonia is a very sacrificial character as she represents many things to Raskolnikov and to her family. T... Free Essays on Crime And Punishment Crime and Punishment The tone of the scene in Crime and Punishment was violent and at the same time also calm and sensual. Rashkolnikov’s eagerness to take away life has transformed him into a careless mad man who resorted to any measures to get what he wants. The description of each action demonstrates Rashkolnikov’s awareness of his surroundings and proves that he is sane and understands all of his choices. The diction of this passage conveys mental madness, â€Å"†¦Am I going out of my mind†¦Ã¢â‚¬  because of having read the letter from his mom and sister about their sacrifices for his education has driven him to find any means to prove himself. Rashkolnikov is an educator and has lost his self worth and feels powerless, â€Å"he froze, †¦ still as death† with his actions he feels each ounce of gained mental and physical power. Before Rashkolnikov had no control of his life or what was in stored for the future, he would have money and the next broke again. His mother and sister have already made decisions in order to help his with his future and feels like he has given nothing in return. The love he has for his family has caused him to commit murder and â€Å"unexpected murder†, Rashkolnikov continued his rampage and refused to be caught. His sensuality has defined himself as a person who cares for others â€Å" †¦thin, light, gray-streaked hair... † and takes time to describe the victim’s features. A cold-blooded killer would not take the time to describe his actions because those facts aren’t in a killer mind at all. The fear that Rashkolnikov felt was shame and embarrassment but he felt he was doing the right thing and he had to make sureâ€Å"†¦Struck once more†¦Ã¢â‚¬  that everything was final. His sense of failure has taking over his mind and has made killing Aliona and her sister Lizaveta justified. Rashkolnikov’s interpretations of what he is doing displays a mental consideration for each dead body, he examines the v...