Una novela muy psicológica, que se adentra en lo más profundo de la mente de un lamentable criminal. ( )

3.5

A good story with good characters that tend to waffle on a bit. Less philosophising and anecdotal asides would have worked wonders for the pacing. ( )

Crime and Punishment tells the tale of an impoverished student living in St. Petersburg who decides to carry out a heinous murder in order to set himself back on the financial straight and narrow. What follows is a cat and mouse story as the protagonist, far from enjoying his ill gotten gains, instead wrestles with his own conscience and his future options whilst the net of the law closes further in on him.

It's an interesting read given it examines the many sides and stages of the murderer's thought pattern post the event. In some places the psychological ramblings by either the protagonist or other characters grew a little wearisome in their histrionics, but this is typical in a lot of the writing style of the late 19th century, when melodrama was hugely popular. For that reason I've dropped a star, as it's personally not my bag, but otherwise it was an enjoyable read.

On the basis of having read just one book apiece which is probably a most unfair comparison, I would plump for reading Tolstoy again much more quickly than Dostoyevsky, but still - I'm glad I read this. Had it been perhaps 200 pages shorter and omitted some of the pages of hysterical rambling it would have gained an extra half a star.

4 stars - a deserved place on the list of classics. ( )

Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky
Audio CD
Published 1991 by Audio Adventures (first published 1866)

“Life had stepped into the place of theory
and something quite different would work itself out in his mind.” (Epilogue)

Raskolnikov is born in Dostoevsky’s mind and he’ll become the image of the modern hero (or the post-modern hero).
Beyond the Romantic hero, where individual thoughts (forgetting faiths, religions, etc.) leads toward winning results;
Raskolnikov’s character is beyond the will of power, beyond the good and the evil, he is looking for life without theories.

Crime and Punishment’s alchemy: Dostoevsky gathers together his characters to create a scene where people, like chemical substances, react involving a transformation.

Crime and Punishment reflects the classical elements: Earth, Water, Air, and Fire.
An idea: Raskolnikov is the image of the Earth; Sonia suggests Water; Razumihkin Air; and Crime Fire.

Crime working as Fire is an element that destroy, change, and it’s the root of a new life.

Razumihkin is the element who brings freshness to the other characters, and works like the air intruding in a stifling room.
Sonia suggests water , more heavy than air. Like Razumihkin Sonia brings cleanness, and works like the water of a river carrying Raskolnikov towards a new life (as before, without theories).
Raskolnikov reminds Earth: Dostoevsky was an adherent to the current ‘pocvennicestvo’ (a word coming from ‘pocva’, which means soil or earth). The main idea of pocvennicestvo was the bond between pocva / earth and Russian people; a bond with the return to popular principles rooted in the soil. ( )

I think this book is likely the most complete book I have read so far (which isn't exactly saying much as I am just now getting into reading), it feels like every character goes through something and all their arcs finish- the most compelling of course being Raskolnikov's. I admit that I had the wrong impression of what the book would be like for a long time now, thinking it would end with Raskolnikov's realisation of the life he took away, a rather redundant idea with nonetheless potential; but instead the ending found him finding the fallacy in his "theory" through the use of the "disease dream" he had of everyone thinking themselves above the law.

I think a world of difference between the book pre- and post epilogue. The epilogue has all the greatest moments, and leaves the story on a fitting note, that Raskolnikov has found something to live for even though he will need to wait seven years for it. As he puts it, in his current bliss that moment might as well be seven days (showing his change in tone and attitude for life). Great book in every way really ( )