Summer reading Assigment: Crime and Punishment Journal #3-- Biniyam

I am very happy to have finished reading this book. I must say, I did not expect the ending to be this way. There are some points that I think need to be addressed and further discussed. The first thing I would like to elaborate on is the death of Katerina. It is such a sad scene learning of how they all went on the street and were singing to collect money. It made me realize that I am fortunate enough to have parents who can provide me with anything I need and that I am blessed with the life I am given. I have also noticed that the funeral meal held is similar to an Ethiopian funeral meal. At an Ethiopian funeral meal, the family of the deceased dresses in all black and sits on a mattress and is greeted by all the people who come to pay respect to the person who passed away. It is a very depressing and sad scene that I do not wish to experience until I am old enough to control my emotions.
I actually felt bad for Katerina as she is made fun of during the meal. People that weren’t invited actually showed up and they had the guts to disrespect her. I could not believe the German woman who told Katerina that she must move out tonight. Katerina just lost her husband and forcing her to move out the house was just an action that I strongly do not support and actually despise. I hope that no body is treated the way katerina was treated at the funeral meal because it was inhumane and disrespectful.
At this meal, Sonya was accused of stealing one hundred rubles from Luzhin. At this point, Rasklinkov came to the rescue of Sonya. He was there when she needed him and he was able to provide her with comfort and safety. Rasklinkov at this point is the definition of a man. He stood by the woman he loved and would have defended her from anything that came as a problem. I hope Sonya realizes that he is the one for her and that they were meant to be together. I was proud at the actions of Rasklinkov and regardless of what he did I know there is a truly blessed heart inside of him.
Rasklinkov of course tells Sonya of the murder. I didn’t like this scene very much but since Sonya and Rasklinkov have become fond of each other, he trusted her and was able to tell her anything regarding the reason behind the murder. Sonya brings out the good in Rasklinkov. She even makes him confess his crime so that his punishment would be less. If I was in her shoes, I would never tell a person to confess because I don’t want to be responsible for what happens to that person after I do so. I hope that Rasklinkov serves his time and gets out to reunite with Sonya to form a happy family. I also hope that Sonya stays available until then considering the time Rasklinkov serves might be a while. We all need a person like Sonya. My parents are my Sonya. I love them to death and they bring out the positive things in me. I would never be the person that I am today if I wasn’t pushed by my parents to be a better person.
Another person that I admired and loved was Dunya. When Svidrigilov threatened to rape her and confess the truth about her brother’s murder she pulled out a weapon to protect herself. She is a strong woman and she is similar to Sonya in some cases. She is a proud woman who is honest and down to earth. I am sure that her and Sonya are going to get along very well in the future. I actually hated the character of Svidrigilov. He appeared to be a man of honesty and love but his real intentions were revealed and I hated him more than I hated Luzhin. He is a coward and an animal for attempting to abuse Dunya physically. The ending was very unexpected and amazing.
I loved this book regardless of how boring and time consuming it was, I loved reading it and being taken by the suspense. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who doesn’t mind to read a long book about a murder and suspense. I hope we read more books like this that get us to write as much that includes characters that we can relate to. It was a pleasure Dostoevsky.