Once inside his room, Raskolnikov collapses and Razumikhin takes charge of caring for him. Luzhin is convincingly depicted as a pompous boor. This opinion is strengthened by the fact that the good-natured and tolerant Razumikhin, with whose sentiments the reader feels comfortable aligning him- or herself, shares it.
Indeed, Dostoevsky purposely gives Luzhin an unwelcome introduction, making him appear ominously at the end of the preceding chapter. Neither his identity nor his intentions are clear. His attempts to show off his knowledge further estrange him from Raskolnikov and Razumikhin. In Chapter VI, Raskolnikov displays an apparent desire to be found out that rivals the intensity of his desire to escape suspicion.
This internal conflict becomes visible in the scene in the Crystal Palace, in which, under the influence of a wild impulse, he nearly confesses to Zamyotov. He again nearly confesses during his visit to the scene of the crime.
In later chapters, Porfiry Petrovich reveals that both incidents aroused suspicion among the police. SparkTeach Teacher's Handbook. Themes Motifs Symbols. Page 1 Page 2. Summary: Chapter VI Raskolnikov, feeling suddenly clearheaded and resolute, throws on the clothes that Razumikhin bought for him and goes out.
Summary: Chapter VII Raskolnikov sees the drunken Marmeladov lying injured in the street, having been trampled by a horse-drawn carriage. If he can do it, why not Luzhin? Every character except for Luzhin has, by the end, some redeeming quality. Raskolnikov achieves redemption in Siberia with the help of Sonya. Marmeladov led a pitiable life, but was forgiven in the end.
Everyone who needed redemption got it, or at least was set on the path to it. But not Luzhin. For Luzhin to take advantage of her is absolutely irredeemable. And so it is perfect for Dostoevsky. The reader cannot help but hate Luzhin following his attempt to frame the innocent Sonya. And if Raskolnikov had maintained the tiniest shimmer of doubt with regard to Luzhin, that doubt was assuaged following his treatment of Sonya. By the end of the novel, Luzhin fades out of the plot himself, though he is mentioned a couple times in conversations between Sonya and Raskolnikov and Raskolnikov and Svidrigailov.
In both these conversations, Luzhin is held up as the prime example of evil, first by Raskolnikov, then by Svidrigailov. For both Svidrigailov and Raskolnikov, Luzhin is completely irredeemable, totally evil. There is nothing within him to latch onto, no bright spot to save him.
Instead, Raskolnikov and the reader can hate him and his ideas whole-heartedly, rejecting them just as Dostoevsky intends us to. Dostoevsky, Fyodor. Crime and Punishment. Richard Pevear, Larissa Volokhonsky. New York: Random House, Inc. This was wonderful to read, and I have to say I was very impressed with the analysis and your approach altogether.
The Luzhin question, how appropriate of a title that is. Perhaps out of all the characters in the novel I was most fascinated with him, not merely as a character but as a foil to others.
He wears everything on the outside; everything that is to be known about him can be deduced instantaneously by simple examination.
He is perfectly embodied through the idea of the puddle. You pointed out two prominent feature of puddles; the capacity to reflect and a lack of depth. All of this can be found out by observing his first entrance:. Enter the figure of a Mr. Pyotr Petrovitch Luzhin who stoops at the entrance of the cabin in which the small crowd of persons has assembled. Before entering he awaits a sort of invitation, half eager for a formal introduction yet half withdrawing as to delay entry into such an unkempt lodging.
Before taking his seat amidst them but after stating his business he deliberately begins a gesture in which he gracefully reaches into his coat pocket and pulls out fat gold watch. He glances down at it, opens it, and not at all intending to read the time, lets out a tired almost boorish yawn, before closing it and letting it rest in the pocket once more.
His life is one of theatrical demonstration; his very hesitation to enter the room indicates he is searching for cues of how others expect him to act in such a situation. And what is Dunya to him other than another accessory, another showpiece? Her education and proper standing will allow him to have those qualities by proxy. She completes his superficial identity, she is the final piece of the puzzle, the last quality of a gentleman that he needs in order to become complete. Part of his flatness is because he drops completely out of the plot after Andrey Semyonovitch saves Sonia from Luzhin's dastardly plan.
Is this a flaw in the novel, a result of the intense deadlines Dostoevsky faced? We can only speculate. Disappearing subplots are actually kind of fun, at least to us. They are, after all, a bit like the way life actually goes.
And this novel is complicated enough without having to deal with a climactic Luzhin scene. Since he's human, we can still imagine that life will force him to change and stop being so nasty and critical and snobby —and to stop taking advantage of women.
But, who knows? Maybe he won't change.
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