Jessica Gubankova
Journal #1: Crime and Punishment
As I begin to read Crime and Punishment, the book seems very dry, long and dull. In chapter one as he goes to meet the pawnbroker, the author is talking about a plan that Raskolnikov has and its torturing him inside. After meeting with the pawnbroker and asking her weird questions like whether her sister is going to be home later on in the week, Raskolnikov goes to a bar for the first time and drinks. Just this whole first chapter is weird to me, because the author is hiding the plan from the reader, but then again I’m drawn in to know what this “plan” is.
Already from chapter one though you feel a sense on Raskolnikovs pride. The way the author describes him, tall and handsome, fosters his pride. Also the way the scenery of the neighborhood Raskolnikov lives in, shows why he may be in a mental condition. His neighborhood smells and odors give off to the mood of the book, because it gives the main character, Raskolnikov an “excitement.”
Journal# 2: Crime and Punishment
As I read more into Crime and Punishment I'm getting a little bit more interested. In chapter 2-4 you see Dostoevsky introduce a subplot away from the main plot and that is the character of Marmaledov. I find it interesting that the author introduces this character because first the family of Marmaledovs shows poverty and urban deprivation. As well as scenery, at one point in chapter two at the end, Raskolnikov gives money to Marmaledov but later regrets it because he feels that they will just waste it. At this point I feel like Raskolnikov should feel good about himself however his pride gets in the way.
Also in the next couple of chapters Raskolnikovs relationship with his mother Pulcheria is analyzed. We learn that Raskolnikovs mom and sister both care for him however Raskolnikovs ever returning pride gets in the way when he find out about Dunyas engagement. He becomes very self absorbed and meanly assumes she's just marrying Luzhin to provide a better life for his mother and for herself.
Journal 3: Crime and Punishment
Wow so although I stopped my journals at chapter 4, so many things have happened. Let me backtrack. After reading the gruesome murder that Raskolnikov committed I wasn't exactly shocked. From the beginning I already knew that Raskolnikov was going to do something gruesome from the way Dostoevsky foreshadowed it. As well as that I figured out that Raskolnikovs true punishment was the insanity he went through because of the murder. In chapter 3 of part II Raskolnikov is truly suffering his punishment where he experiences hallucinations.
As the book continues Raskolnikovs crazy behavior is just a mask for the guilt that he feels for the murder. In the last chapter I feel that Raskolnikov finally frees himself from the punishment that he has so long suffered because he finally on confessed to his crime. Also at the end of the book, something that surprised me is that Raskolnikov is in love with Sonya, however it made Raskolnikov happy which ultimately shows that the punishment burden was gone.
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Jessica I totally agree with the fact that Raskolnikov has too much pride, even after he gives the money to Marmaledov, he immediately feels angry about it. The fact that he has so much pride totally gets in the way of his good side, and that's probably a big reason why he killed the pawnbroker. Also I like how you said he's suffering the punishment by hallucinating, I didn't even think of it that way.
ReplyDeleteI really agree with you in the fact that Dostoevsky used foreshadowing for the murders committed by Raskolnikov. A critical example of this, is the recollecting dream Raskolnikov had when he fell asleep in the bushes. Dreaming of the death of an old mare by the hands of drunkards, it symbolized a death yet to come. The women Raskolnikov killed were old, comparable to the mare, and through Raskolnikov's theory of the "extraordinary" vs "ordinary" man, he felt as though he was doing Russian society a favour. I have to agree with Nikki in that I like how you noted on Raskolnikov's suffering through hallucinations. It is an archetypal ramification of such an action.
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