

This deed and its consequences make up the book that is Crime and Punishment. But how can he still be afraid of her when he’s planning a thing like that?ĭostoevsky doesn’t immediately identify the “thing” that Raskolnikov is planning – but we eventually find out that it’s a murder.

He is in a state of hypochondria – an irritable, strained condition resulting from a long period of isolation.Īs he leaves, he successfully manages to avoid his landlady, who scares him. Petersburg apartment on an exceptionally hot July evening. Introduction: Explore the psychological and spiritual consequences of a crime.Ĭrime and Punishment begins when a young man called Rodion Raskolnikov walks out of his tiny St.

Emotionally poignant as well as philosophically and psychologically complex, the novel has left a visible mark on generations of writers, thinkers, and artists ever since its publication. It follows a young man called Rodion Raskolnikov – first as he plots to kill an elderly pawnbroker, then as he commits the deed, and finally as he confronts the many consequences of his actions. Crime and Punishment (1866) is considered one of the greatest masterpieces of Russian literature.
