As the story progresses into its middle stages, Dostoevsky has shown to me that religion can be a powerful and influential force; since it can provide hope for some of his underprivileged characters. In the case of Sofya Semyonovna, she was questioned about what she gets in return for praying to God. She quietly responded by saying: “He does everything!” which is surprising to me because her life is slowly falling apart. Her constant faith in Christianity without any signs of success got me thinking about the existence of God; and the impact it has on individuals. It also reminded me of a philosophy known as “Pascal’s Wager”. This idea suggests that people believe in divine beings because there are infinite aspects to gain if they exist, while nothing to lose if they don’t. Consequently, people like Sofya tend to believe in higher powers regardless of any proof of reality. Even though there is no evidence behind her beliefs, Sofya stands by her faith as a sound strategy to escape poverty and destitution. Hopefully, her fervent commitment to religion pays off for her at the end of the novel.
In order to show a realistic manifestation of his characters, Dostoevsky also made sure that dialogue was an integral part of the novel. Even though some conversations went on for several pages; the dialogue kept me stimulated long enough to focus on lesser known characters. In fact, Dostoevsky’s usage of certain quotations even gave me a new found respect for them throughout several scenes. Part four is a good example, in which Porfiry Petrovich is in a heated conversation with Raskolnikov; and he stated to him that: “human nature is… the clearest mirror! Look and admire…” A phrase like this is not only poetic, but insightful, and requires a great deal of response and thought. From my understanding of the statement, I get the feeling that human behavior is instinctive through observation. The only way individuals can truly understand themselves, is if they reflect upon their actions over time. If everyone in our country took note of Porfiry’s words, can you imagine what we can accomplish? Presently, our nation is in a healthcare crisis and people are struggling to agree on a simple health care plan and acceptable legislation. But even though it is “human” to fight and disagree, I feel that it’s even more “human” to evaluate ourselves and find ways to care for the people around you.
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Ebenezer, you bring up a good point about religion, I had never looked at it in such a way.I completely agree with how long the dialogues are and I'm intrigued even more than his surroundings. I also had never looked at the quote from part four in that way, but now it makes me look at that part differently. It makes me realize that they are completely right about Raskolnikov and how he should look at what he's done.
ReplyDeleteI also like how you compared what is going on with healthcare plans and looking at how we can change by using Porfiry's quote as a way of trying to change ourselves and our nation. It's interesting how so many things can tie into each other and relate to almost anything.