Crime And Punishment Questions

1. 2. That Sonya is the one who gives him the cross has special significance: she gives of herself to bring him back to humanity, and her love and concern for him, like that of Jesus, according to Christianity, will ultimately save and renew him. The theme of religious redemption is closely paired with that of reintegration into society. The story of Lazarus explains how jesus resurrected a man from death. The story and the fact that it’s read to Raskolnikov by Sonya is symbol that sonya’s purpose is to resurrect Raskolnikov from his mentality. Therefore, if Sonya can restore Raskolnikov to life, his suffering will be alleviated. Also that it’s read from the bible of the Lizaveta. 3. At the beginning of the novel, Raskolnikov sees himself as a “superman,” a person who is extraordinary and thus above the moral rules that govern the rest of humanity. His vaunted estimation of himself compels him to separate himself from society. His murder of the pawnbroker is, in part, a consequence of his belief that he is above the law and an attempt to establish the truth of his superiority. Raskolnikov’s inability to quell his subsequent feelings of guilt, however, proves to him that he is not a “superman.” Although he realizes his failure to live up to what he has envisioned for himself, he is nevertheless unwilling to accept the total deconstruction of this identity. He continues to resist the idea that he is as mediocre as the rest of humanity by maintaining to himself that the murder was justified. It is only in his final surrender to his love for Sonya, and his realization of the joys in such surrender, that he can finally escape his conception of himself as a superman and the terrible isolation such a belief brought upon him. 4. 5. 6. 7. They both feel that they are superhuman. Therefore, in contrast to Raskolnikov’s beliefs , if Raskolnikov can kill a woman just because he feels that he should then it gives Svidrigailov the right to rape the 15 year old mute girl just because he can. 8. At the beginning of the chapter, Raskolnikov is suspicious that Svidrigailov still has plans to seduce Dunya and resolves to follow him. Ironically, he is completely right. Svidrigailov knows this, but he is also shrewd enough to know that Raskolnikov can’t stomach his vulgar talk. True to form, Raskolnikov suddenly is repulsed and disgusted with the man’s depravity and cannot stand to be in his presence any longer.

9. It now becomes apparent that Raskolnikov is attracted to Sonya because he sees in her the symbol and the representative of “all the suffering of humanity.” Even though she is thin and frail, she can carry a very heavy burden. Thus Raskolnikov will test her further to see how much she can bear. Since she is capable of “great suffering,” he torments her with taunts such as the death of Katerina, the possibility that Polenka will be forced into prostitution, and the distressing state in which she now lives. These taunts are used to test her ability to suffer intensely and ultimately to see if she will be capable of withstanding Raskolnikov’s confession.

10. At last, even Svidrigailov realizes that he cannot live completely alone and isolated from the rest of humanity. When he realizes that he cannot have Dunya,

he is forced to commit suicide. Suicide is the only thing left that he has not willed for himself. His old manner of living has now been denied him by his realization that he can’t live alone and there is no new method left to him. Therefore, he takes his life as the only course of action open to him. 11. Dreams serve as a leeway to an explanation to something that is the way it is in the book. His dream about the virus is aimed at stripping him of feelings of superiority, as the insanity and belief in the self as the sole possessor of truth infects everyone, thus dragging Raskolnikov back into the quagmire of banal humanity. For example when Raskolnikov has the dream about the virus that takes over Russia’s people, making them all believe themselves to be the sole professors of truth, they end up tearing each other apart. No matter how different or similar people are the truth is that people just can’t get along. Which explains his situation while in prison with the rest of the inmates and also the reason for his and Svidrigailov’s isolation from society which is a big theme in the book. 12. FALLING ACTION · The Epilogue, in which Raskolnikov, imprisoned in Siberia, discovers that he loves Sonya