THE LOSS AND RETRIEVAL OF A NOBLE SOUL
A Critique on
Dostoyevsky’s
“Crime and
Punishment”
Dr. CH. A. RAJENDRA PRASAD
“CRIME AND PUNISHMENT” chronicles the tortuous voyage undertaken by a young Russian student. Raskolnikov for the retrieval of his “lost” soul. Obsessed with “halfbaked ideas” and devoid of faith in God and in human nature, the protagonist arrives at the conclusion that “for the infidel all things are lawful”.
A recurring theme with Dostoyersky is the effect of crime on the spiritual state of his characters. Like Tolstoy’s, Dostoyersky’s moral philosophy is “at root religious”. He is the best one to choose for showing how “philosophy and story may go hand in hand”.
Dostoyersky makes “infidelity” the central aspect both in Crime and Punishment and The Brothers Karamazov. “Both Raskolnikov and Ivan Karamazov have been infected with that atheism which, coming from Western Europe, seems to have taken so much more virulently in holy Russia. With these young students their atheism is associated with a want of faith in human nature which they believe to be radically cruel, scoundrelly and corrupt. ... In accordance with this logic, both Raskolnikov and Ivan Karamazov have erected themselves a Nietzschean ideal of the overman Raskolnikov believes that in order to prove himself such a man-god, he must commit a murder.”1
In Crime and Punishment, Dostoyersky realistically portrays the sufferings of young Raskolnikov who neither believes in God nor has his own moral moorings, and the resultant agony experienced by him in times of difficulty. His lack of props makes him highly sensitive to the privations of life. Further, the prevalent, atheism of the day almost unhinges his mind.
Living in a very small room in St. Petersburg amidst poverty, dirt and filth, the protagonist can’t help forming a prejudiced mind. In simple, all he can see is darkness everywhere.
Undoubtedly, “Raskolnikov is a noble soul corrupted by a false philosophy”. As a result, he resorts to taking shelter in his “half-baked” ideas which ultimately pull him down from normalcy. His “warped mind” forces him to do something prohibited. It can be said that Raskolnikov murdering the old woman money-lender is a sort of protest against the Establishment. Maybe, by indulging in this dastardly act, the protagonist tries to prove to the society that he can’t be taken for granted.
Raskolnikov is a stranger amidst his natives. Since the inception of the idea of murder in his volatile mind, he has kept himself aloof. Being caught in the whirls of his half-baked ideas, he loses himself to the dreadful thoughts and dreams. Joseph Warren Beach’s assessment of Dostoyersky’s characters is very true in case of Raskolnikov: “They are so relentlessly hounded by furies of fear, shame, passion, remorse, indecision – the pressure is so strong upon them to do something, to reach some decision”. 2
Being entangled in one of these moods, Raskolnikov receives a letter from his mother who lives in one of the provinces. The letter informs him that Dunya, his sister, is going to many one Mr. Luzhin, a forty-five year old businessman and upstart. Further, the letter informs him the humiliation meted out to Dunya at the hands of one Mr. Svidrigaylov in whose house she is a governess. His mother writes to him that the proposed marriage of Dunya will be of “great use” to him also. All this is very insulting to Raskolnikov. He feels that it is a crude joke played on the poverty of his family.
Right now, Raskmnikov is on the brink of committing something dreadful. In this agonised mood, Raskolnikov is to witness the crude reality of life which manifests itself in the guise of degradation, poverty and privation in the lives of his fellow human beings. He cannot insulate himself from the travails of fellow human beings. As a result, he is to shoulder the burdens of others. His meeting with Marmeladov, a drunkard who lets his life sink and be a cause for the immoral life of his daughter. Sonia, and his meeting with a Very young drunken woman in a pitiable condition obviously abused and driven out in Horse Guards’ Boulevard further twist his already prejudiced mind. In all these cases, he can only see the indifferent attitude of the society towards the meek and helpless.
All this “injustice” that has prevailed “everywhere” seemingly strengthens the latent idea in his mind – annihilating the old woman moneylender which means to him annihilating the evil. He thinks that this act will save him from penury and help him continue his studies at university. He convinces himself by considering that the old woman money-lender. Alyona Ivanovna, is stupid, greedy, deaf, ill and useless to society. Hence, he can eliminate her and help society.
Notwithstanding the deliberate planning he has done already. Raskolnikov commits the crime in a casual and haphazard manner, risking the chances of being caught at any stage of the crime. He equips himself with a hatchet and goes straight to the old woman’s flat and kills the old woman. This bloodshedding proves to be unbearable for him. In the last minute, the old woman’s sister appears on the scene and not knowing what to do, Raskolnikov kills her too. In a dazed condition, somehow he manages to escape from the scene of murder.
Here-after, to his dismay, Raskolnikov finds punishment coming from within for the dastardly crime he has committed. It does not leave him at peace with himself. He is constantly dogged by his guilty conscience. He is overcome with an intolerable sense of isolation – the spiritual isolation of the guilty. Actually, the whole problem lies in his inability to convince himself about the “righteousness” of his act. The crux of the novel lies in this aspect. Being a noble soul, Raskolnikov cannot be ignorant to the inner voice which holds trial for the crime he has committed.
The most intolerable thing for Raskolnikov is, in the presence of Raskolnikov himself people discuss the murder of old woman and the names of the possible culprits. This situation further worsens the deteriorated psychological condition of Raskolnikov. His anxiety ridden mind almost betrays his crime. He seems “unhesitant” to tell everyone, including the police about his crime. He plays a sort of game with the police and evades them. He begins to derive a sordonic pleasure from this hide-and-seek game with the police.
The psychological probing of the police plays havoc with the mental position of Raskolnikov, Porfiry, the police officer, keeps him on tenterhooks always by dragging him into conversation related to the murder of the old woman. This subtle psychological interrogation makes Raskolnikov nearly confess his crime. In one of his conversations with porfiry, Raskolnikov without any fear propounds his theory on “Crime and Punishment”: “... lawgivers and arbiters of mankind, beginning with Lycurguses, Solons, Mahomets, Napoleans and so on, were without exception criminals because of the very fact that they had transgressed the ancient laws handed down by their ancestors and venerated by the people ...” Furhter, Raskolnikov divides the entire humanity into two kinds: Ordinary people and the “people proper”, that is, extraordinary people. He explains: “And all this idea claims is that men are in general divided by a law of nature into two categories: an inferior one (ordinary), that is to say, the material whose only purpose is to reproduce its kind, and the people proper, that is to say, those who possess the gift or talent to say a new word in their particular environment. Having said this, he challenges Porfiry: “... now that, I permit the shedding of blood. Well, what of it? Isn’t society well provided with prisons, banishments, examining magistrates and penal servitude? So why worry? Catch your thief?” 3
In spite of his deteriorating mental position and the constant vigilance of the police, Raskolnikov tries to stick to his guns. He resolves to protest against the vile and stupid nature of people. As if the trouble he is having with the police is not enough, his tormented mind is to cope with the pompous behaviour of Luzhin and the depraved sensuality of Svidrigaylov. He encounters them suitably and saves the honour of his sister. Further he is to witness Mrs. Marmeladov’s self-inflicted joke on her poverty-holding “funeral dinner” in the “honour” of her dead husband, in spite of her stinking poverty. The funeral dinner proves to be total failure as none of the significant invitees turn up at the function. There itself, Sonia, Mrs. Narmeladov’s step-daughter, is falsely accused of a theft by Luzhin. Raskolnikov with the help of Lebezyatnikov saves Sonia’s honour in the last minute. All this makes Mrs. Marmeladov lose her sanity and subsequently lose her life itself.
The cumulative effect of these incidents which stand as testimony to the cruelty and scoundrelism of human nature is to further demoralize Raskolnikov. These pathetic incidents strengthen his pessimism and further alienate him from the humanity.
Amidst these troubles, he finds solace in the company of Sonia who offers him “unconditional compassion”. This attitude encourages him to confess his crime to Sonia. The immediate reaction of Sonia to the confession of Raskolnikov is sympathetic consolation only. She suggests to him to wear a “cross”. In a subtle persuasive manner, she encourages him, to return to God. But Raskolnikov does not yield immediately to God. Somehow, he cannot accept the failure of his “philosophy”.
But it is Svidrigaylov with his depraved sensuality and unbridled immorality who causes “repulsion” in Raskolnikov against his own crime. Svidrigaylov suggests to Raskolnikov that the latter is no better than him and like him (Svidrigaylov) evading the arrest by the police. Raskolnikov does not bear the idea of being equalised with Svidrigaylov: “It is not agreeable situation for Raskolnikov. It is as if another self, a viler self, were there to remind him, how vile he is”.4 In this novel, Svidrigaylov serves the role of “Shadow or Double” to Raskolnikov.
Svidrigaylov commits suicide as if to find a way-out from his guilt-ridden life. This step deters Raskolnikov from taking up the same recourse. Goaded by Sonta’s words, he goes to the police and boldly confesses his crime. His preference for confession is certainly the good beginning of his spiritual regeneration. Later, he is tried by the Court for his crime and is awarded eight years penal servitude in Siberia. Sonia accompanies him to Siberia.
During the imprisonment, Sonia with her perseverance, constancy and compassion wins his heart. It is Sonia’s effort that has brought Raskolnikov’s alienated soul back to humanity. It is her love which has helped Raskolnikov to retrieve his “lost” soul.
References
1 Joseph Warren Beach, “The Twentieth Century Novel” (New Delhi: Kalyani Publishers. 1988). PP. 94-95.
2 Ibid. PP. 160-161.
3 Fyoder Dostoyersky, “Crime and Punishment.” tr. David Megarshack (England: Penguin, 1987). PP. 276-277.
4 Joseph Warren Beach. “The Twentieth Century Novel” (New Delhi: Kalyani Publishers. 1988). PP. 98-99.