Friday, January 7, 2011

Indecision in Crime and Punishment

In Crime and Punishment, by Fyodor Dostoevsky, indecision plays a major role in the life of Rodya Raskolnikov. Throughout the novel he changes his mind, should he murder the evil pawnbroker, should he turn himself in, is he evil, etc., are all questions he asks himself to determine his course. His indecision eventually causes a subtle breakdown in his mind, that manifests itself in his schizophrenic behavior. However, his indecision leads him to abandon his assertion that logic is always the best course, and that he doesn't have all of the answers, which drives him to latch on to Sonya and the idea of God and redemption in the end, as to Dostoevsky's purpose in writin gthe novel. In the sense of the author's intentions, Rodya's indecision was moral, even though it caused great harm to his family and friends, because he eventually went to divine sources for help. Therefore, his acceptance of God equalls his atonement for his sins and the nullification of his immorality and the indecision that harmed his family.

1 comment:

  1. I like the idea of indecision as a sign of gestalt-shift in one's life--indecision as requisite for transformation.

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