I want to start by being perfectly frank; this novel is completely boring me. Not only is the language difficult, the story is just hard to follow. Usually I am able to push past the first few pages and eventually become so enthralled by a story, that I forget that I’m actually reading a book. This was certainly not the case. One thing that did interest me, however, was Raskolnikov’s character. His awkwardness, paranoia, and somewhat obsessive compulsive behavior really caught my attention (and reminded me of Holden Caufield!). I wanted to learn more and more about his past experiences and family life, to try to piece together why this man is the way he is. As sick as it may seem, I found his self-consciousness and discomfort slightly reassuring (in regard to me hopefully enjoying the novel…), because it made his character so lifelike, dynamic, and oddly enjoyable.
After reading a few people’s posts, many seem to be questioning Raskolnikov’s motives in regard to killing Alyona Ivanova. I like to think I understand (to some degree) where he is coming from, and hopefully I can shed some light…Since Raskolnikov was completely depressed and a bit psychotic, I feel like he was a ticking timebomb, bound to kill someone, or himself, at some point. That being said, Alyona seems to be a good fit for a futile murder, considering the fact that she is old, feeble, and has a lot of money (which Raskolnikov obviously needs). I also found it very interesting how she totally foils Raskolnikov.
One question I must ask is “What is the relevance of Marmeladov?!?” Although his story did evoke a lot of emotion in me, I feel like the whole section could have been removed and the only way the story would be affected is that the book would be shorter in length. What I did learn from his story is how sad and desperate many people’s lives were during that time. I also got a sense of that from Raskolnikov’s mother’s letter, especially how Luzhin requested marrying Dunya out of pity for their family’s poor situation. I felt that the letter really moved the book in somewhat of a direction, and I learned a bit more about Raskolnikov’s personal life, allowing me to further my understanding of his character.
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Alyson I did indeed have a different reaction when I first started reading the story. Even though the story seemed a bit different than most of the other books that I read, the story was not completely boring to me. However, I agree that he was almost bound, without help to either commit suicide or to kill someone else. I also understand why you felt that way about Marmeladov's story, however, that is only foreshadowing something more significant to come later on.
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