Crime and Punishment Easyread Edition
Reviews
The introduction to the story was very slow and I was getting confused by the many names (and nicknames) but once I got to know everyone completely I became so so attached. To Razumikhin, to Sonya. The dream was my favorite part, the biblical imagery truly left me in awe. It was a very intriguing read, I often found it hard to put down. Especially the last part, I couldn’t look away. I was left with such a profound empty feeling within me, I wish there was more to this story however I appreciate that there isn’t. Beautiful read.
A masterpiece about a man who thinks and decides and acts and faces the consequences of his decisions. But that's not really all there is to it. The story is much deeper.
I lied. There will be no review. To consign myself is to impose a finality to my raving thoughts and feelings for this book. Words are not sufficient enough to convey how powerful, profound, disturbing, and beautiful this book is. Crime and punishment is something else... Highly recommended.
One of, if not the most devastating and unforgiving books I've ever read. The characters & setting shine through with liveliness and clarity, which makes the plot even more crushing to me. I'd confidently recommend this book to anyone who really loves literature and storytelling. There aren't many books I've read that so faithfully capture the human spirit and so deeply reflect the human experience.
Me encanto pero tengo que leerlo de nuevo
The conclusion is difficult for me to accept because I don't really agree with it. That doesn't make it bad, but I'm still taking off half a star because I'm biased and petty.
Oh, if someone were to ask what my favourite books are, I would mention this one on my long list, though embarrassed how basic my taste may come accross. But it’s fine. This book is so loved for a reason. You must read it. Easy to read, full of twists and will make you root for a killer.
everyone needs a sonya
A book about ambiguity in everything. Shoving the intricate mess that is humanity onto the reader's face and proudly implying every single step of the way that it's indecipherable.
One of the most striking elements of Dostoevsky’s writing is how he weaves dreams into his narratives, portraying them as reflections of real life and signs that his characters cannot ignore. In this way, dreams become more than mere fantasy—they are meaningful and deeply connected to the characters’ journeys, mirroring the inevitable suffering and moral dilemmas that shape their lives. It’s clear that Dostoevsky resonated deeply with this connection between life and dreams, perhaps influenced by his own experiences. In Crime and Punishment, the theme of suffering is especially powerful, seen most intensely in Raskolnikov’s inner torment and moral struggle. His descent into guilt and self-loathing is gripping, as he wrestles with the consequences of his actions. The novel is both intense and thrilling, particularly during its climactic chapters. Dostoevsky intertwines philosophical and spiritual exploration in a way. The stories linger in my mind, as does the novel’s exploration of redemption and the moral complexities of the human soul. Crime and Punishment is an extraordinary work, one that will remind you of Dostoevsky’s unparalleled brilliance.
Kind of a bummer
It was a bit dense sometimes because all the characters tend to divagate to much when taking, but it's really beautiful and intense.
Definitely need to read a hard copy of this. I felt like I missed a lot listening to the audiobook version. Sometimes you need to re-read a section to fully appreciate it. Just can't do that with your ears.
Apa yang menjadikan sebuah kejahatan dipandang sebagai kejahatan? Meet Raskolnikov. Mahasiswa ngabers dengan pandangan ideologi yang “kiri-kiri kere.” Belakangan, ia gelisah karena merasa hidupnya tidak mengarah ke hal yang baik dan ia merasa stuck dengan kehidupannya. Perkuliahannya tidak beres dan ia dikeluarkan dari kampusnya. Masa depan terlihat gloomy baginya. Semuanya berubah ketika ia memutuskan untuk melakukan sesuatu yang ia yakini mampu menyelamatkan berpuluh-puluh orang dari jerat kemiskinan sekaligus mampu membawa dirinya ke tingkatan orang-orang besar: Ia membunuh seorang wanita tua lintah darat, Alyona Ivanovna beserta adiknya yang kebetulan apes, Lizaveta. Ia menganggap dirinya pahlawan karena sudah membunuh wanita tua yang ia sebut sebagai “kutu” namun, pelan-pelan, kegelisahan dan kekhawatirannya akan peristiwa ganjil yang ia lakukan tersebut mulai menghantuinya dan mempengaruhi orang-orang di sekitarnya. Ia pun mulai terobsesi bermain kucing-kucingan bersama para polisi dan temannya sendiri. Sementara kita sebagai pembaca, akan dibuat gemas melihat perlakuan dan obrolan-obrolan yang Raskolnikov lakukan dengan orang-orang di sekitarnya. Akankah Raskolnikov lolos dari jeratan hukuman?
Its such a stroke of luck to read it for the first time at 23. The same age as Raskolnikov
this book has forever changed me.
how fabulous omg. i have nothing intelligent to say lol i loved it
Indulgent far too much for my likings at some moments; however the writing of neuroticism is great. Ideological caricatures often failed to fully capture my attention
engrossing stories cobbled into a less than perfect criticism of revolution
Here we find ourselves in 1860's during a hot summer in St. Petersburg, a city of bedlam engulfed with poverty, drunkards, and dissolute bureaucrats. The story focuses on a young man by the name of Rodion Raskolnikov (or should I say "Rascal"nikov). A brainy former student who was expelled from university, lives in squalor and finds himself relying upon the services of an old and decrepit pawnbroker in an attempt to make ends meet. Motivated by anger and a personal sense of injustice, he sees fit to murder the elderly pawnbroker in the hopes of stealing her valuables to make a better life for himself and his family. The outcome is that while no-one seemingly suspects him of murder, he is plagued with a deep feeling of alientation from society, illness and a tormented heart. I found the book to be a little dense and challenging, but in a good way. It was highly educational and certainly worth the effort. The story was great. I also wanted to mention how impactful the epilogue was. I found that this book offers a multitude of insightful scopes, including but not limited to the complexities that surround personal opinions on justification and morality, the difficulty and importance of retaining emotional balance, especially in the most challenging of times, the ramifications of one's self-imposed pseudo-submergence into Nihilism, the conflicts that exist between society and the individual ("ordinary vs. extraordinary") and what devastating results can ensue from the triad of illness, narcissism and poverty-stricken desperation. This novel has solidified my apprectiation for Dostoevsky, his artistry and a new-found interest to immerse myself in more of his works. It reminds me a little of A Happy Death by Albert Camus, but significantly better.
i cried about 5 times throughout this book. goddamn! definitely going to have to read some more dostoevsky. i enjoyed essentially everything about this book. gonna have to go back and reread a couple sections just to Feel them again.
This guy could benefit from some 21st century mental health care
I have great trouble accepting this as one of the greatest literary works of all time… perhaps of ITS time, but by no means did it leave me speechless or reeling as other novels I’ve enjoyed. Maybe it’s not my style… it didn’t evoke much of anything within me? I will say, it is absolute good fun. It is not without drama, and the anti-hero is beautifully depicted through Raskolnikoff’s character and the journey through his mind is hilarious yet frustrating. There is this feeling of agony throughout the entire book of not knowing entirely what is going on, which I’m not sure is on purpose but either way I think it very much accompanies the attitudes and thoughts a person might suffer upon killing another. At one point toward the beginning I jotted down “a hilarious description of depression” and to then see how that mental state evolves into murder and mania was (darkly) entertaining. It is of course extremely well-written and psychologically detailed, but also wildly unreasonable and choppy in terms of other character development and setting, and as a visual reader that was a bit annoying for me. Still, I was never bored per se… I had a similar sensation when reading Tolstoy, so maybe this is the art of great Russian writers.
Highlights
volviendo a esta app después de 2 años, al lío!
"Do you understand, sir, do you understand what it means when you have absolutely nowhere to turn?"
Moreover, in order to understand any man one must be deliberate and careful to avoid forming prejudices and mistaken ideas, which are very difficult to correct and get over afterwards
Excerpt - Letter from Pulcheria Raskolnikov
[I] finally brought into play the greatest and most reliable means of subjugating a woman's heart, which never disappoints anybody and always produces a decisive effect on every single woman, without exception. I mean, of course, flattery. There is nothing in the world harder than straightforwardness, and nothing easier than flattery. In straightforward dealing, if there is one-hundredth part of a false note, the result is immediate dissonance and, in consequence, trouble. But in flattery every single note can be false and the effect will be agreeable, and it will be listened to with some pleasure; the pleasure may indeed be somewhat crude, but it is still pleasure, for all that. And, however gross the flattery may be, at least half of it will certainly seem to be true. This holds for every stage of development and every social level. Even a vestal virgin can be seduced by flattery, not to mention ordinary people. I can't help laughing when I remember how I once seduced a lady who was devoted to her husband, to her children, and to virtue. What fun it was, and how little trouble! And the lady really was virtuous, in her own way at least. My whole strategy consisted in being crushed and prostrate before her chastity the whole time. I flattered her unconscionably…”
I quote this not in support of this character claiming to represent women, but rather its truth with regard to humans generally
“‘…and we shall fall at His feet and weep, and we shall understand all things.’”
(Maybe Malick had this in mind - tree of life trailer)
If once a girl’s heart is moved to pity, it’s more dangerous than anything.
Honoured sir,' he began almost with Solemnity, poverty is not a vice, that's a true saying. Yet I know too that drunkenness is not a virtue, and that that's even truer. But beggary, honoured sir, beggary is a vice. In poverty you may still retain your innate nobility of soul, but in beggary - never - no one.
Do you understand, sir, do you understand what it means when you have absolutely nowhere to turn?' Marmeladov's question came suddenly into his mind, for every man must have somewhere to turn'
“He was so immersed in himself and had isolated himself so much from everyone that he was afraid not only of meeting his landlady but of meeting anyone at all”
And when the heart of a young woman experiences pity for someone, then, naturally, that's the most dangerous thing for her. She conceives at once a desire 'to save' him,
‘Where was it,’ Raskolnikov thought as he walked on, ‘where was it that I read about a man condemned to death saying or thinking, an hour before his death, that if he had to live somewhere high up on a cliffside, on a ledge so narrow that there was room only for his two feet—and with the abyss, the ocean, eternal darkness, eternal solitude, eternal storm all around him—and had to stay like that, on a square foot of space, an entire lifetime, a thousand years, an eternity—it would be better to live so than to die right now! Only to live, to live, to live! To live, no matter how—only to live!
"What if man is not really a scoundrel, man in general, I mean, the whole race of mankind- then all the rest is prejudice, simply artificial terrors and there are no barriers and it's all as it should be."
“Why, I ask you, should he give it to me? And yet though I know beforehand that he won't, I set off to him and…” “Why do you go?" put in Raskolnikov. “Well, when one has no one, nowhere else one can go! For every man must have somewhere to go. Since there are times when one absolutely must go somewhere!
“Honoured sir,” he began almost with solemnity, “poverty is not a vice, that’s a true saying. Yet I know too that drunkenness is not a virtue, and that that's even truer. But beggary, honoured sir, beggary is a vice. In poverty you may still retain your innate nobility of soul, but in beggary-never-no one. For beggary a man is not chased out of human society with a stick, he is swept out with a broom, so as to make it as humiliating as possible; and quite right too, Dora’s much as in beggary I am ready to be the first to humiliate myself.
shows what is valued in their society
But to be stopped on the stairs, to be forced to listen to her trivial, irelevant gossip, to pestering demands for payment, threats and complaints, and to rack his brains for excuses, to prevaricate, to lie-- no, rather than that, he would creep down the stairs like a cat and slip out unseen.
Prevaricate - beat around the bush