“Crime and Punishment”: a summary of the epilogue. “Crime and Punishment”: the meaning of the epilogue

• Summary
• Dostoevsky
• Epilogue of the novel Crime and Punishment

A year and a half after the crime was committed, Raskolnikov ended up in Siberia. The judicial investigation into his case passed without any particular difficulties. Everyone was surprised that he didn’t even use what he stole. Witnesses provided evidence that was favorable to the verdict. He was sentenced to 8 years of hard labor. Sonya went to hard labor with him. There she earned money by sewing and made some acquaintances that gave her the opportunity to at least slightly ease Rodya’s lot in prison.

The girl regularly sent letters to Rodion’s relatives, in which she talked about him and his condition. She patiently and resignedly endured his indifference, silence and sullenness. Other prisoners fell in love with her for her kindness, responsiveness and desire to help. They praised this tender, fragile creature in every possible way and called her “Mother Sofya Semyonovna.”

Rodion's mother became very ill. Her condition bordered on insanity. She was not told the truth about her son. She joyfully blessed her daughter's marriage to Razumikhin and soon died.

After some time, Raskolnikov was admitted to the hospital. His inhumane philosophical theory failed. He exhausted himself so much with mental torment that he began to feel feverish and delirious. He had a strange dream, but the meaning of this dream was clear to him.

At first, Rodion was indifferent to Sonya Marmeladova and her visits, but one day something pierced his heart. On the girl’s next visit, he threw himself at her feet. I cried for a long time, hugging her knees. Sonya guessed about the feelings that overwhelmed Raskolnikov. Her eyes lit up with happiness.

Love served as an impetus for the resurrection of both of them, but they still had a long way to go before final healing. It was necessary to wait and be patient. Standing on the threshold of a new life, Rodion felt the need to read the Gospel in order to understand and accept the beliefs of his beloved.

The work teaches that under any circumstances you need to believe in the best and be able to maintain compassion, kindness in your heart and resist evil in all its manifestations.

You can use this text for a reader's diary

The sentence passed on the main character

We continue to describe the summary of the epilogue “Crime and Punishment”. It briefly describes the events preceding Rodion's hard labor. Raskolnikov did not hide anything at the trial. The judges and the investigator were amazed by the fact that he did not use his things and wallet, hiding them under a stone, and did not even know how much money was there. This allowed us to conclude that Rodion committed the crime under “temporary insanity.” This circumstance, as well as a sincere confession, somewhat softened the sentence.

Other factors favorable to the defendant were also taken into account. While studying at the university, he used his last means to support a friend who suffered from consumption, and after he died, he looked after his sick father. Raskolnikov got the man admitted to the hospital and buried him when he died. At the trial, Rodion’s landlady said that he once saved two small children from a fire, while receiving burns. The judges took into account all the circumstances, and on their basis the criminal was sentenced to only 8 years of hard labor.

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EPILOGUE

I

Siberia. On the banks of a wide, deserted river stands a city, one of the administrative centers of Russia; in the city there is a fortress, in the fortress there is a prison. A second-class convict, Rodion Raskolnikov, has been imprisoned in prison for nine months. Almost a year and a half has passed since his crime.

forgetting the smallest details. He told the entire murder process down to the last detail: he explained the secret of the pledge (a wooden plank with a metal strip), which ended up in the hands of the murdered old woman; told in detail how he took the keys from the murdered woman, described these keys, described the packing and what it was filled with; even counted some of the individual objects lying in it; explained the mystery of Lizaveta’s murder; told about how Koch came and knocked, followed by a student, relaying everything that they said to each other; how he, the criminal, then ran down the stairs and heard the squeals of Mikolka and Mitka; how he hid in an empty apartment, came home, and finally pointed out a stone in the yard, on Voznesensky Prospekt, under the gate, under which things and a wallet were found. In a word, the matter turned out to be clear. Investigators and judges were very surprised, by the way, that he hid his wallet and things under a stone without using them, and most of all that he not only did not remember in detail all the things he actually stole, but even made a mistake in their number . In fact, the fact that he had never opened his wallet and did not even know exactly how much money was in it seemed incredible (in the wallet there were three hundred and seventeen silver rubles and three two-kopeck rubles; from lying under a stone for a long time, some of the top, largest, the papers were extremely damaged). For a long time they tried to find out: why exactly does the defendant lie in this one circumstance, while in everything else he confesses voluntarily and truthfully? Finally, some (especially psychologists) even admitted the possibility that he really did not look into the wallet, and therefore did not know what was in it, and, not knowing, he carried it under a stone, but immediately from this They concluded that the crime itself could not have happened otherwise and could have happened as a result of some temporary insanity, so to speak, with a morbid monomania of murder and robbery, without further goals and calculations of benefit. Here, by the way, the latest fashionable theory of temporary insanity arrived, which they so often try to apply in our time to other criminals. In addition, Raskolnikov's long-standing hypochondriacal condition was stated with precision by many witnesses, Doctor Zosimov, his former comrades, the hostess, and the servants. All this greatly contributed to the conclusion that Raskolnikov is not quite like an ordinary murderer, robber and robber, but that there is something else here. To the great chagrin of those who defended this opinion, the criminal himself made almost no attempt to defend himself; to the final questions: what exactly could incline him to murder and what prompted him to commit robbery, he answered very clearly, with the most brutal precision, that the reason for everything was his bad position, his poverty and helplessness, the desire to strengthen the first steps of his life career with the help of , at least three thousand rubles, which he expected to find from the murdered woman. He decided to kill because of his frivolous and cowardly character, irritated, moreover, by deprivations and failures. When asked what exactly prompted him to confess, he directly answered that it was sincere repentance. All this was almost rude...

The sentence, however, turned out to be more merciful than could have been expected, judging by the crime committed, and, perhaps, precisely because the criminal not only did not want to justify himself, but even seemed to express a desire to accuse himself even more. All the strange and peculiar circumstances of the case were taken into account. The painful and distressed state of the criminal before the crime was committed was not in the slightest doubt. The fact that he did not take advantage of what was robbed is credited partly for the effect of awakened repentance, partly for the imperfectly sound state of mental faculties at the time of the commission of the crime. The circumstance of Lizaveta’s accidental murder even served as an example to support the latter assumption: a person commits two murders and at the same time forgets that the door is unlocked! Finally, a confession, at the very time when the case was unusually confused due to the false testimony of a disheartened fanatic (Nikolai) and, moreover, when there was not only clear evidence, but even almost no suspicions against the real criminal (Porfiry Petrovich fully kept his word), all this finally contributed to mitigating the fate of the accused.

In addition, completely unexpectedly, other circumstances appeared that greatly favored the defendant. Former student Razumikhin dug up information from somewhere and presented evidence that the criminal Raskolnikov, while at the university, used his last means to help one of his poor and consumptive university friends and almost supported him for six months. When he died, he looked after the surviving old and weakened father of the deceased comrade (who supported and fed his father with his labors almost from the age of thirteen), finally placed this old man in the hospital, and when he also died, he buried him. All this information had some favorable influence on the decision of Raskolnikov's fate. Its former owner herself, the mother of Raskolnikov’s deceased bride, Zarnitsyn’s widow, also testified that when they were still living in another house, near Five Corners, Raskolnikov, during a fire, at night, pulled two small children out of one apartment that had already caught fire, and was burned in the process. This fact has been thoroughly investigated and quite well attested by many witnesses. In a word, it ended with the criminal being sentenced to hard labor of the second category, for a period of only eight years, in recognition of his confession and certain mitigating circumstances.

Even at the beginning of the trial, Raskolnikov’s mother became ill. Dunya and Razumikhin found it possible to take her away from St. Petersburg for the duration of the trial. Razumikhin chose a city on the railway and at a close distance from St. Petersburg in order to be able to regularly monitor all the circumstances of the trial and at the same time see Avdotya Romanovna as often as possible. Pulcheria Alexandrovna’s illness was somehow strange, nervous and accompanied by something like insanity, if not completely, then at least partially. Dunya, returning from her last meeting with her brother, found her mother already completely ill, feverish and delirious. That same evening she came to an agreement with Razumikhin on what exactly to answer her mother’s questions about her brother, and even together with him, for her mother, she invented a whole story about Raskolnikov’s departure somewhere far away, to the border of Russia, on a private errand that would deliver he finally has both money and fame. But they were amazed that Pulcheria Alexandrovna herself did not ask about any of this, either then or later. On the contrary, she herself had a whole story about her son’s sudden departure; she told with tears how he came to say goodbye to her; At the same time, she gave hints that only she alone knew many very important and mysterious circumstances and that Rodya had many very strong enemies, so that he even had to hide. As for his future career, it also seemed to her undoubted and brilliant when certain hostile circumstances passed; assured Razumikhin that her son would eventually even be a man of statesmanship, as evidenced by his article and his brilliant literary talent. She read this article continuously, sometimes even read it out loud, almost slept with it, and yet she almost didn’t ask where exactly Rodya was now, despite the fact that they apparently avoided talking to her about it - which was already one thing could arouse her suspiciousness. They finally began to fear this strange silence of Pulcheria Alexandrovna regarding certain points. She, for example, did not even complain that there were no letters from him, whereas before, living in her town, she lived only with one hope and one expectation to receive a letter from her beloved Rodya as soon as possible. The last circumstance was too inexplicable and greatly worried Dunya; The thought occurred to her that the mother, perhaps, had a presentiment of something terrible in the fate of her son and was afraid to ask questions, lest she find out something even worse. In any case, Dunya clearly saw that Pulcheria Alexandrovna was not in a sane state of mind.

Once or twice, however, it happened that she herself steered the conversation in such a way that it was impossible, when answering her, not to mention exactly where Rodya was now; when the answers inevitably had to come out unsatisfactory and suspicious, she suddenly became extremely sad, gloomy and silent, which lasted for a very long time. Dunya finally saw that it was difficult to lie and invent, and came to the final conclusion that it was better to remain completely silent about certain points; but more and more it became clear to the point of obviousness that the poor mother suspected something terrible. Dunya recalled, among other things, her brother’s words that her mother listened to her delirium on the night before that last fateful day, after her scene with Svidrigailov: didn’t she hear anything then? Often, sometimes after several days and even weeks of gloomy, gloomy silence and silent tears, the patient would somehow become hysterically animated and suddenly begin to speak aloud, almost without stopping, about her son, about her hopes, about the future... Her fantasies were sometimes very strange . They consoled her, they coaxed her along (she herself, perhaps, clearly saw that they were coaxing her along and were only humoring her), but she still spoke...

to my brother that this separation is not forever; Razumikhin too. In the young and hot head of Razumikhin, a project was firmly established to put in the next three or four years, if possible, at least the beginning of a future state, to save at least a little money and move to Siberia, where the soil is rich in all respects, and workers, people and capital are few; settle there in the same city where Rodya will be, and... everyone starts a new life together. Saying goodbye, everyone cried. Raskolnikov was very thoughtful the last few days, asked a lot about his mother, and was constantly worried about her. He was even really tormented about her, which worried Dunya. Having learned in detail about his mother's sick mood, he became very gloomy. For some reason he was especially silent with Sonya all the time. Sonya, with the help of the money left to her by Svidrigailov, had long since gathered and prepared to follow the party of prisoners in which he would also be sent. Not a word was ever mentioned about this between her and Raskolnikov; but both knew that it would be so. At his very last farewell, he smiled strangely at the fiery assurances of his sister and Razumikhin about their happy future when he left hard labor, and predicted that his mother’s painful condition would soon end in disaster. He and Sonya finally set off.

Two months later, Dunechka married Razumikhin. The wedding was sad and quiet. Among those invited were, however, Porfiry Petrovich and Zosimov. Lately Razumikhin had the appearance of a firmly resolved man. Dunya blindly believed that he would fulfill all his intentions, and she could not help but believe: an iron will was visible in this man. By the way, he began to listen to university lectures again in order to complete the course. They both made minute-by-minute plans for the future; both firmly expected to move to Siberia in five years. Until that time, they were hoping for Sonya...

Pulcheria Alexandrovna joyfully blessed her daughter for marriage with Razumikhin; but after this marriage she seemed to become even sadder and more preoccupied. To give her a pleasant moment, Razumikhin told her, among other things, the fact about the student and his decrepit father and that Rodya was burned and even fell ill, having saved two babies from death last year. Both news brought Pulcheria Alexandrovna, already upset by her mind, almost to an ecstatic state. She constantly talked about this, and entered into conversation on the street (although Dunya constantly accompanied her). In public carriages, in shops, having caught at least some listener, she focused the conversation on her son, on his article, how he helped a student, was burned in a fire, and so on. Dunechka didn’t even know how to hold her. Apart from the danger of such an enthusiastic, painful mood, one thing already threatened with disaster was that someone could remember Raskolnikov’s name from a former court case and start talking about it. Pulcheria Alexandrovna even found out the address of the mother of the two babies saved from the fire and wanted to definitely go to her. Finally, her anxiety increased to its extreme limits. She sometimes suddenly began to cry, often fell ill and became delirious in the heat. One morning, she directly announced that, according to her calculations, Rodya would soon arrive, that she remembered how, when saying goodbye to her, he himself mentioned that he should be expected in nine months. She began to tidy up everything in the apartment and prepare for the meeting, began to decorate the room assigned to him (her own), clean the furniture, wash and put on new curtains, etc. Dunya was alarmed, but remained silent and even helped her arrange the room in her brother’s reception room. After an anxious day spent in continuous fantasies, in joyful dreams and tears, she fell ill that night and the next morning she was already feverish and delirious. A fever broke out. Two weeks later she died. In her delirium, words escaped her, from which one could conclude that she was much more suspicious of her son’s terrible fate than even expected.

Raskolnikov did not know about his mother’s death for a long time, although correspondence with St. Petersburg was established from the very beginning of his settlement in Siberia. She got a job through Sonya, who carefully wrote to St. Petersburg every month addressed to Razumikhin and carefully received a response from St. Petersburg every month. Sonya's letters at first seemed somehow dry and unsatisfactory to Dunya and Razumikhin; but in the end they both found it impossible to write better, because even from these letters the result was still the most complete and accurate idea of ​​the fate of their unfortunate brother. Sonya's letters were filled with the most ordinary reality, the simplest and clearest description of the entire situation of Raskolnikov's convict life. There was no statement of her own hopes, no riddles about the future, no descriptions of her own feelings. Instead of attempts to explain his mental mood and, in general, his entire inner life, there were only facts, that is, his own words, detailed news about the state of his health, what he wished for at that time on a date, what he asked her for, what he entrusted to her, and so on. All this news was reported in extreme detail. In the end, the image of the unfortunate brother appeared on its own and was drawn accurately and clearly; there could be no mistakes here, because all the facts were correct.

But Dunya and her husband could deduce little from this news, especially at the beginning. Sonya constantly reported that he was constantly gloomy, untalkative, and even almost not at all interested in the news that she told him every time from the letters she received; that he sometimes asks about his mother; and when she, seeing that he was already predicting the truth, finally informed him about her death, then, to her surprise, even the news of her mother’s death did not seem to have a very strong effect on him, at least that’s what it seemed to her from the outside. She reported, among other things, that, despite the fact that he was apparently so absorbed in himself and seemed to have locked himself away from everyone, he reacted to his new life very directly and simply; that he clearly understands his position, does not expect anything better nearby, does not have any frivolous hopes (which is so typical in his position) and is almost not surprised by anything in the new environment around him, so little similar to anything before. She reported that his health was satisfactory. He goes to work, which he does not shy away from and which he does not ask for. He is almost indifferent to food, but this food, except on Sundays and holidays, is so bad that he finally willingly accepted from her, Sonya, a few money in order to have daily tea; As for everything else, he asked her not to worry, assuring her that all these worries about him would only annoy him. Sonya further reported that his quarters in the prison were shared with everyone else; She has not seen the inside of their barracks, but concludes that it is cramped, ugly and unhealthy; that he sleeps on a bunk, laying felt under him, and does not want to arrange anything else for himself. But the fact that he lives so rudely and poorly is not at all due to any preconceived plan or intention, but simply from inattention and outward indifference to his fate. Sonya directly wrote that, especially at the beginning, he was not only not interested in her visits, but was even almost annoyed with her, was not talkative and was even rude to her, but that in the end these visits turned into a habit and even almost a necessity for him. so he was very sad when she was sick for several days and could not visit him. She sees him on holidays at the prison gate or in the guardhouse, where he is called to see her for a few minutes; on weekdays at work, where she visits him, or in workshops, or in brick factories, or in sheds on the banks of the Irtysh. Sonya privately noted that she had even managed to acquire some acquaintances and patronage in the city; that she is engaged in sewing, and since there is almost no milliner in the city, she has even become necessary in many houses; She just didn’t mention that through her Raskolnikov received the patronage of his superiors, that his work was made easier, and so on. Finally the news came (Dunya even noticed some special excitement and anxiety in her last letters) that he was alienated from everyone, that the convicts in the prison did not like him; that he is silent for whole days and becomes very pale. Suddenly, in her last letter, Sonya wrote that he had become very seriously ill and was in the hospital, in the prison ward...

He had been ill for a long time; but it was not the horrors of hard labor, not work, not food, not a shaved head, not a patchwork dress that broke him: oh! What did he care about all this torment and torture! On the contrary, he was even glad to work: having been physically exhausted from work, he at least got himself a few hours of restful sleep. And what did food mean to him - these empty cabbage soup with cockroaches? As a student, during his previous life, he often did not have even that. His dress was warm and adapted to his lifestyle. He didn't even feel the shackles on himself. Was he ashamed of his shaved head and half-length jacket? But before whom? Before Sonya? Sonya was afraid of him, and was he ashamed before her?

So what? He was ashamed even in front of Sonya, whom he tormented for this with his contemptuous and rude treatment. But he was not ashamed of his shaved head and shackles: his pride was greatly wounded; he fell ill from wounded pride. Oh, how happy he would be if he could blame himself! He would have endured everything then, even shame and disgrace. But he judged himself strictly, and his hardened conscience did not find any particularly terrible guilt in his past, except perhaps a simple mistake that could happen to anyone. He was ashamed precisely because he, Raskolnikov, died so blindly, hopelessly, deafly and stupidly, according to some verdict of blind fate, and he must humble himself and submit to the “nonsense” of some verdict if he wants to calm himself down at all.

Pointless and aimless anxiety in the present, and in the future one continuous sacrifice, which did not gain anything - that was what lay ahead of him in the world. And what does it matter that in eight years he will only be thirty-two years old and he can start living again! Why should he live? What to keep in mind? What to strive for? Live to exist? But a thousand times before he was ready to give up his existence for an idea, for hope, even for fantasy. Existence alone was never enough for him; he always wanted more. Perhaps, just by the strength of his desires, he then considered himself a person who had more permission than others.

And at least fate sent him repentance - burning repentance, breaking his heart, driving away sleep, such repentance, from the terrible torment of which he imagines a noose and a pool! Oh, he would be glad to see him! Torment and tears - this is also life. But he did not repent of his crime.

and thought over all his previous actions and did not find them at all as stupid and ugly as they seemed to him at that fateful time before.

“In what way,” he thought, “was my thought more stupid than other thoughts and theories that have been swarming and colliding with one another in the world since this world has existed? One has only to look at the matter with a completely independent, broad look and freed from everyday influences, and then, of course, my thought will not turn out to be so ... strange. O deniers and sages in a coin of silver, why do you stop halfway!

Why does my action seem so ugly to them? - he said to himself. - Because he is an atrocity? What does the word "crime" mean? My conscience is calm. Of course, a criminal offense has been committed; Of course, the letter of the law was violated and blood was shed, well, take my head for the letter of the law... and that’s enough! Of course, in this case, even many of the benefactors of humanity, who did not inherit power, but seized it themselves, would have to be executed at their very first steps. But those people endured their steps, and therefore they are right, but I did not and, therefore, I did not have the right to allow myself to take this step.”

This is one thing he admitted to his crime: only that he did not bear it and made a confession.

He also suffered from the thought: why didn’t he kill himself then? Why did he stand over the river then and choose to confess? Is there really such strength in this desire to live and is it so difficult to overcome it? Did Svidrigailov, who was afraid of death, prevail?

could be a harbinger of a future turning point in his life, his future resurrection, a future new outlook on life.

Rather, he allowed here only one dull burden of instinct, which he could not break and which he, again, was unable to step over (due to weakness and insignificance). He looked at his convict comrades and was surprised: how they all loved life, how they valued it! It was to him that it seemed that in prison she was even more loved and appreciated, and valued more than in freedom. What terrible torments and tortures some of them, such as tramps, did not endure! Can one ray of sunshine, a dense forest, somewhere in the unknown wilderness really mean so much to them, a cold spring, noted since the third year and a meeting with which a tramp dreams of, like a meeting with a mistress, sees it in a dream, green grass all around him, a singing bird in a bush? Peering further, he saw examples even more inexplicable.

In the prison, in the environment around him, he, of course, did not notice much, and did not want to notice it at all. He lived with his eyes downcast: it was disgusting and unbearable for him to look at. But in the end, many things began to surprise him, and he, somehow involuntarily, began to notice what he had not suspected before. In general, what began to surprise him most was the terrible, impassable abyss that lay between him and all these people. It seemed that he and they were of different nations. He and they looked at each other with distrust and hostility. He knew and understood the general reasons for such disunity; but he had never before admitted that these reasons were in fact so deep and strong. There were also exiled Poles in the prison, political criminals. They simply considered all these people to be ignoramuses and slaves and despised them from above; but Raskolnikov could not look like that: he clearly saw that these ignoramuses were in many ways much smarter than these same Poles. There were also Russians here, who also despised this people too much - one former officer and two seminarians; Raskolnikov clearly noticed their mistake.

He himself was not loved and avoided by everyone. In the end they even began to hate him - why? He didn't know that. Those who were much more criminal than him despised him, laughed at him, laughed at his crime.

- You are a master! - they told him. - Did you have to walk with an axe? not a lordly thing at all.

attacked him with frenzy.

- You are an atheist! You don't believe in God! - they shouted to him. - We need to kill you.

He never spoke to them about God and faith, but they wanted to kill him as an atheist; he was silent and did not contradict them. One convict rushed at him in a decisive frenzy; Raskolnikov waited for him calmly and silently: his eyebrow did not move, not a single feature of his face trembled. The guard managed to get between him and the killer in time - otherwise blood would have been shed.

Another question was insoluble for him: why did they all fall in love with Sonya so much? She didn't curry favor with them; They rarely met her, sometimes only at work, when she came for one minute to see him. And yet everyone already knew her, they knew that she had followed him, they knew how she lived, where she lived. She didn’t give them money or provide any special services. Only once, at Christmas, she brought alms to the whole prison: pies and rolls. But little by little, some closer relationships began between them and Sonya: she wrote them letters to their relatives and sent them to the post office. Their relatives and relatives, who came to the city, left, on their instructions, things for them and even money in Sonya’s hands. Their wives and mistresses knew her and went to her. And when she appeared at work, coming to Raskolnikov, or met with a party of prisoners going to work, everyone took off their hats, everyone bowed: “Mother, Sofya Semyonovna, you are our mother, tender, sick!” - these rude, branded convicts said to this small and thin creature. She smiled and bowed, and they all loved it when she smiled at them. They even loved her gait, turned to look after her as she walked, and praised her; They even praised her for being so small; they didn’t even know what to praise her for. They even went to her for treatment.

He spent the entire end of Lent and Holy Week in the hospital. Already recovering, he recalled his dreams when he was still lying in the heat and delirious. In his illness, he dreamed that the whole world was condemned to be a victim of some terrible, unheard of and unprecedented pestilence coming from the depths of Asia to Europe. All were to perish, except for a few, very few, chosen ones. Some new trichinae appeared, microscopic creatures that inhabited people’s bodies. But these creatures were spirits, gifted with intelligence and will. People who accepted them into themselves immediately became possessed and crazy. But never, never have people considered themselves as smart and unshakable in the truth as the infected believed. They have never considered their verdicts, their scientific conclusions, their moral convictions and beliefs more unshakable. Entire villages, entire cities and peoples became infected and went crazy. Everyone was in anxiety and did not understand each other, everyone thought that the truth lay in him alone, and he was tormented, looking at others, beating his chest, crying and wringing his hands. They didn’t know who to judge and how, they couldn’t agree on what to consider as evil and what as good. They didn’t know who to blame, who to justify. People killed each other in some senseless rage. Whole armies gathered against each other, but the armies, already on the march, suddenly began to torment themselves, the ranks were upset, the warriors rushed at each other, stabbed and cut, bit and ate each other. In the cities they sounded the alarm all day long: they called everyone, but who was calling and why, no one knew, and everyone was in alarm. They abandoned the most ordinary crafts, because everyone proposed their thoughts, their amendments, and they could not agree; Agriculture stopped. Here and there people gathered in heaps, agreed to something together, swore not to part, but immediately started something completely different from what they themselves had immediately intended, began to blame each other, fought and cut themselves. Fires started, famine began. Everything and everyone was dying. The ulcer grew and moved further and further. Only a few people in the whole world could be saved; they were pure and chosen, destined to start a new race of people and a new life, to renew and cleanse the earth, but no one saw these people anywhere, no one heard their words and voices.

Saint; It was warm, clear, spring days; in the prisoner's room the windows were opened (latticed ones, under which a sentry walked). Sonya, throughout his illness, could only visit him in the ward twice; Each time it was necessary to ask permission, and this was difficult. But she often came to the hospital yard, under the windows, especially in the evening, and sometimes just to stand in the yard for a minute and look at the ward windows at least from afar. One day, in the evening, Raskolnikov, having almost completely recovered, fell asleep; waking up, he accidentally went to the window and suddenly saw Sonya in the distance, at the hospital gates. She stood and seemed to be waiting for something. Something seemed to pierce his heart at that moment; he shuddered and quickly moved away from the window. The next day Sonya did not come, and on the third day too; he noticed that he was waiting for her with anxiety. Finally he was discharged. Arriving at the prison, he learned from the prisoners that Sofya Semyonovna was ill, was lying at home and did not go out anywhere.

He was very worried and sent her to inquire about her. He soon learned that her illness was not dangerous. Having learned in turn that he was so homesick and caring for her, Sonya sent him a note written in pencil and notified him that she was feeling much better, that she had an empty, mild cold and that she would soon, very soon, come to see him to work. When he read this note, his heart beat strongly and painfully.

The day was again clear and warm. Early in the morning, at about six o'clock, he went to work, to the river bank, where a kiln for alabaster was built in a barn and where they pounded it. Only three workers went there. One of the prisoners took the guard and went with him to the fortress to get some kind of tool; the other began to make firewood and put it in the oven. Raskolnikov came out of the barn to the very bank, sat down on the logs piled near the barn and began to look at the wide and deserted river. From the high bank a wide vicinity opened up. A song could be heard faintly from the farther bank. There, in the sun-drenched vast steppe, nomadic yurts were blackened as barely noticeable dots. There was freedom and other people lived there, completely different from those here, it was as if time itself had stopped, as if the centuries of Abraham and his flocks had not yet passed. Raskolnikov sat and looked motionless, without looking up; his thoughts turned into dreams, into contemplation; he didn’t think about anything, but some kind of melancholy worried him and tormented him.

Suddenly Sonya found herself next to him. She came up barely audibly and sat down next to him. It was still very early, the morning chill had not yet subsided. She was wearing her poor old burnous and a green scarf. Her face still bore signs of illness; it had become thinner, pale, and haggard. She smiled at him warmly and joyfully, but, as usual, timidly extended her hand to him.

She always extended her hand to him timidly, sometimes she didn’t even give it at all, as if she was afraid that he would push her away. He always seemed to take her hand with disgust, always greeted her with annoyance, and sometimes remained stubbornly silent throughout her visit. It happened that she trembled at him and left in deep sorrow. But now their hands did not separate; He briefly and quickly glanced at her, said nothing and lowered his eyes to the ground. They were alone, no one saw them. At that time the guard turned away.

She jumped up from her seat and, trembling, looked at him. But immediately, in that very moment, she understood everything. Infinite happiness shone in her eyes; she understood, and there was no longer any doubt for her that he loved, loved her endlessly, and that this moment had finally come...

They wanted to talk, but could not. There were tears in their eyes. They were both pale and thin; but in these sick and pale faces the dawn of a renewed future, a complete resurrection into a new life, was already shining. They were resurrected by love, the heart of one contained endless sources of life for the heart of the other.

They decided to wait and be patient. They still had seven years left; and until then there is so much unbearable torment and so much endless happiness! But he was resurrected, and he knew it, he felt it with his entire being renewed, and she - after all, she lived only his life!

That evening, when the barracks had already been locked, Raskolnikov lay on his bunk and thought about her. On that day it even seemed to him that all the convicts, his former enemies, were already looking at him differently. He even spoke to them himself, and they answered him kindly. He remembered it now, but this was how it had to be: shouldn’t everything change now?

He thought about her. He remembered how he constantly tormented her and tormented her heart; he remembered her poor, thin face, but these memories hardly tormented him now: he knew with what infinite love he would now atone for all her suffering.

He, however, could not think for a long time and constantly about anything that evening, or concentrate his thoughts on anything; Yes, he wouldn’t allow anything consciously now; he only felt. Instead of dialectics, life came, and something completely different had to be developed in consciousness.

The Gospel lay under his pillow. He took it mechanically. This book belonged to her, it was the same one from which she read to him about the resurrection of Lazarus. At the beginning of hard labor, he thought that she would torture him with religion, talk about the Gospel and force books on him. But, to his greatest surprise, she never spoke about it, never even offered him the Gospel. He himself asked her for it shortly before his illness, and she silently brought him the book. Until now he has not revealed it.

He did not open it even now, but one thought flashed through him: “Can her convictions not now also be my convictions? Her feelings, her aspirations, at least..."

She, too, was nervous all that day, and that night she even fell ill again. But she was so happy that she was almost afraid of her happiness. Seven years, only seven years! At the beginning of their happiness, at other moments, they were both ready to look at these seven years as seven days. He didn’t even know that he wasn’t getting a new life for nothing, that he still had to buy it dearly, pay for it with a great, future feat...

But here a new story begins, the story of the gradual renewal of man, the story of his gradual rebirth, gradual transition from one world to another, acquaintance with a new, hitherto completely unknown reality. This could be the topic of a new story, but our current story is over.

abbreviations. In a separate edition in 1877, the author made minor stylistic amendments. Reproduced from the 1877 edition with corrections of typos from previous editions.

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What happened to Pulcheria Alexandrovna, Razumikhin and Dunya?

Everyone assured Pulcheria Alexandrovna that her son had gone abroad. However, she felt in her soul that something terrible had happened to him, and lived only in anticipation of a letter from Raskolnikov. Her condition became worse every day, and soon this woman died. Razumikhin married Duna. Zosimov and Porfiry Petrovich were among the guests invited to their modest wedding. Razumikhin resumed his studies at the university, and in a few days he was going to move closer to Rodion, to Siberia. Dunya supported him in this.

The role of the epilogue in the novel “Crime and Punishment” (Dostoevsky f. m.)

But, as we know, it is impossible to deceive a mother’s heart, so, of course, she feels that something wrong is happening to her son. Pulcheria Alexandrovna has been delirious for a long time, thoughts about her son do not leave her even for a minute.

Just before her death, she waits for him, cleans the room, supposedly cooking for her son, but dies the next day. We also learn that Dunya and Razumikhin got married. They dream of a wonderful future, think about how in five years they will leave for the North and live happily next to Rodion.

Sonya is in the North with Raskolnikov. And in the first part of the epilogue, it is from her person that we learn about Raskolnikov, his condition and behavior. Unfortunately, what we see is very pessimistic. Raskolnikov has withdrawn into himself and does not communicate with anyone. Sonya is very worried about his condition and is trying to somehow help him.

Sonya's act

The epilogue of the novel “Crime and Punishment” is largely based on the image of this girl. It’s hard to imagine Dostoevsky’s work without this heroine.

Sonya, using the money Svidrigailov left her before his death, went to Siberia, and regularly reported everything to Razumikhin and Duna in letters. Quite often she visited Raskolnikov, who was not interested in anything, according to her, and was always in a gloomy mood, taciturn and gloomy. He clearly understood his position, did not expect anything good from the future, did not harbor any hopes and was not surprised by anything that he observed around him. He did not shy away from work, but he did not ask for it, he was indifferent to food, and lived in a common cell.

As Sonya wrote, at first Raskolnikov was not particularly interested in her visits, but after a while he suddenly felt the need for them and even felt sad sometimes when she could not come to him. This girl reported to herself that during this time she met influential people, earned her living by sewing, and even achieved great success in this matter, since there was no milliner in the city. However, Sonya did not mention in her letters that with the help of her friends, the authorities began to treat Rodion better and made his work easier. The girl reported in her last letter that Raskolnikov became seriously ill and was admitted to the hospital.

Raskolnikov's Dream

Raskolnikov was delirious for a long time during his illness. This hero always imagined that due to an unprecedented illness, the world was about to perish, and only a select few could survive. People affected by the microbe went crazy, considering any thought, any belief, to be the ultimate truth. No one knew what was good and what was bad; everyone was convinced that the truth lay only in him.

We continue to describe the work “Crime and Punishment” (a summary of the epilogue). Raskolnikov's dream in its structure is important because it symbolizes the transformation of the main character. We will talk about this in more detail in this article. Sonya was on duty outside his windows during Rodion’s illness, and he accidentally saw this girl one day. Sonya did not come for two days after that. Rodion, returning to the prison, learned that the girl was sick and therefore was lying at home. Sonya, having learned that Raskolnikov was worried about her, sent him a note in which she wrote that she was already recovering and would soon come to see him.

Start of a new life

That same night Rodion took the Gospel that was lying under his pillow and opened it. This book belonged to Sonya, it was the same one from which the girl read to Raskolnikov about the resurrection of Lazarus. Rodion thought at the beginning of hard labor that she would torture him with religion, force him to read books and talk about faith.

However, she never did this, did not even offer the Gospel. Shortly before his illness, he himself asked her for it, but did not reveal it until now. However, now the main character has decided to do this.

The girl was also nervous all that day, and at night she fell ill again. But she was so happy that she was almost afraid of her sudden happiness. Only seven years!

With this, Dostoevsky completes his work. Accordingly, the summary of the epilogue “Crime and Punishment” ends. It does not say about the further fate of Sonya and Rodion, but we can conclude that a new life awaits them.

The structure of the novel, the role of the epilogue

Dostoevsky's novel "Crime and Punishment" has a six-part structure. A summary of the epilogue has been presented to you. An epilogue, as you know, is the final chapter of a work, which introduces readers to the further fate of the heroes. This part of the novel is one of the strongest in the work. It would seem that the climax has long passed, the main events have already occurred (the crime is committed, the confession is made, the punishment is carried out), but only in the epilogue does the novel actually reach a true, spiritual peak.

Epilogue structure

The chapter-by-chapter summary of the epilogue “Crime and Punishment” is divided into two parts. It consists of two chapters, small in volume. If the first is more formal, covering mainly the “external life” of the characters, then the second is dedicated to the inner life of Sonya and Rodion.

This part (for a summary of the epilogue “Crime and Punishment”, see above) highlights a very significant stage that marked the spiritual development of the main character. We learn at the beginning that he, having confessed everything in court and spent a lot of time in hard labor, did not repent of his crime, did not reconsider his attitude towards him.

The only thing that Rodion complained about, that upset him, was disappointment in himself for the fact that he could not bear his act and confessed. The author tells us about the sharp turn in the hero’s inner world only at the end of the work (epilogue of the novel “Crime and Punishment”). And its importance is difficult to overestimate.

The role of the epilogue in the novel by f.m. Dostoevsky's "Crime and Punishment"

From the gloomy, stuffy, oppressive Petersburg, the action is transferred to the banks of a wide and deserted river: “From the high bank a wide neighborhood opened up... There was freedom and other people lived there...”. Raskolnikov is depicted in harmony with the world and with himself in the epilogue, “he was resurrected, and he knew it, he felt it completely renewed with his whole being...”. Here you should pay attention to the Christian theme.

On the pages of the epilogue, for the third time in the novel, the Gospel and the resurrection of Lazarus are mentioned. This returns the reader to the main, deep thought of Dostoevsky - to his hope for the “restoration of fallen man” through familiarization with the Christian ideal of “great, general harmony, fraternal final agreement of all ... according to Christ’s gospel law.” The significance of the epilogue in the novel is great. The main character is sick, but neither suffering nor hard work broke him. He has not yet repented of his crime. The hero considers himself guilty of only one thing - that he could not stand it and came to the investigator to confess. Raskolnikov suffered that he did not kill himself, like Svidrigailov.

In the prison, all the criminals valued their lives very much, which surprised Rodion. Nobody loved the hero; rather, on the contrary, they hated him. Some said: “You are a master! Shouldn’t you have walked with an axe!” Others: “You are an atheist! You don't believe in God! We must kill you!”, although they themselves were many times more criminal than him. But everyone loved Sonya, although she did not try to please anyone. In his delirium, Raskolnikov imagined that the whole world was about to perish due to illness.

She makes various acquaintances in the city that can somehow help Raskolnikov. In the second part of the epilogue, the inner world of Rodion Raskolnikov appears before us. The following lines speak very well about his condition: “... his pride was greatly wounded; he fell ill from wounded pride.”

Raskolnikov was very worried about the fact that he himself had so stupidly ruined his life, trying to prove something to someone by murder. Immediately after committing the crime, he realized the meaninglessness of his action. Later, the hero will understand that it is necessary to change the life around him for the better in a completely different way. At the beginning of his imprisonment, Raskolnikov does not develop relationships with other prisoners due to the fact that he is constantly immersed in his thoughts, does not communicate with anyone, and is alienated from everyone. The writer wanted to convey to readers his Christian ideas about life: for harmony in the soul, you need to live morally, according to the commandments, that is, not to give in to pride, selfishness and lust, but to do good to people, love them, sacrificing even your interests for the good of society. That is why at the end of the epilogue Raskolnikov repents and comes to faith. The problem of false beliefs raised in the novel is still relevant today. The main character's theory of permissiveness and the crime of morality for the sake of good goals leads to terror and tyranny. And if Raskolnikov overcame the split in his soul, repented and came to harmony, overcoming the problem, then in larger cases this is not the case. Wars began because some rulers decided that the lives of thousands of people could easily be sacrificed for their goals. That is why the novel, written in the 19th century, does not lose its sharp meaning to this day.

Dostoevsky's novel Crime and Punishment is an unusual work. There is no author's voice in it that would indicate to readers what its meaning is, which of the heroes is right and which is wrong, where to look for the truth in which the writer believes. Each hero here has his own voice, his own “idea” that guides him. From the collision and development of these ideas arises the general idea that the writer seeks to convey to us.

The basis of the novel is the struggle of two contrasting ideas - Christian goodness and love, the main bearer of which is Sonechka Marmeladova, and the idea of ​​individualism, inhuman in its essence, the bearer of which Raskolnikov becomes. Each of these ideas is refined by additional lines that are associated with the “doubles” of these two main characters. For the Christian idea - these are Dunya and Lizaveta, for the idea of ​​individualism - Luzhin and Svidrigailov.

The complex interweaving and interaction of all these lines occurs in the main part of the novel, which tells the story of Raskolnikov’s crime, committed under the influence of the idea of ​​individualism that captured him. It was most fully manifested in his theory, according to which all people are divided into two categories - “trembling creatures”, who must submit to those who, in the name of high goals, even have the right to shed blood. The moral torment that gripped Raskolnikov after the terrible crime confirms that his “test” did not pass: he was unable to step over the blood. Sonechka helps him find support in his faith in God, encourages him to get rid of torment by repenting in front of everyone in the square. And indeed, at the end of the main part of the novel, Raskolnikov comes to the police and confesses to what he has done.

It would seem that the story of the murder and its solution has ended. But this is not Dostoevsky’s main idea. He considered individualism a terrible disease that could lead to catastrophic consequences for all of humanity. How to deal with it? After all, Raskolnikov, while confessing, does not give up his terrible idea. He only asserts that he himself is an “aesthetic louse”, and by no means “the ruler of the world.” Luzhin does not repent at all of his “economic” theory, and there is no way back for Svidrigailov - that’s why he commits suicide. So what happens in the epilogue? Does it help us understand how to save not only Raskolnikov, but all of humanity from the “pestilence” of individualism?

We know that there is a lot of good in Raskolnikov’s nature: he is kind by nature, responsive to the suffering of others, ready to help, to help out of trouble. This is already known from the main part of the novel (a dream about a horse, helping the Marmeladov family) and is supplemented with new information in the epilogue (helping a student, saving children during a fire). That is why the active love of Sonechka, who followed Raskolnikov to hard labor, her compassion for all the unfortunate convicts who immediately fell in love with her, has such a strong impact on the hero. Having seen in a dream a terrible picture that embodied his ideas, when everyone, considering themselves “having the right,” begins to kill each other, Raskolnikov is “healed.” Now he is free from his theory and is ready to be reborn, to return to God, to people. Raskolnikov's path has been passed: we understand that he will then go hand in hand with Sonya, bringing with her the Christian ideas of love and kindness, mercy and compassion into the world. But is the writer ready to offer this “recipe” for everyone affected by the “disease” of individualism? Perhaps, even in the epilogue there is no final answer to this question. Perhaps this is its main meaning: by showing the story of Raskolnikov, the writer invites more and more generations of readers to think about the problems posed and try to find their own solution.

Dostoevsky’s novel “Crime and Punishment” is one of the most important works of world literature, a book of great sorrow. The search for a way out of the world of calculation and profit into the kingdom of good truth is the main idea of ​​the novel.

The main character, law student Raskolnikov, kills a wealthy moneylender. Kills in the name of social justice. He wants to take her money from crime, finish her education, and help the poor and disadvantaged. In one life – hundreds of lives saved! But it's not only that. With his crime, Dostoevsky’s hero sought to become a Napoleon, over whom moral laws had no power. At the beginning of the novel, Raskolnikov does not consider the murder of a “harmful” old woman a crime. The life of an old woman means no more to him than the life of a louse. This is the initial position of the hero, which is subsequently “controlled” by the author. Human life is priceless - this is Dostoevsky’s credo.

At the end of the novel, we learn that Raskolnikov begins to repent of his actions. We see that Rodion is not just a murderer, but a victim of his own theories.

So, what happens in the epilogue of the novel Crime and Punishment?

Siberia. Prison. As a result of all the mitigating circumstances (illness, failure to use the money, confession, and also the fact that Rodion once saved two children during a fire, supported a sick fellow student with his own money for almost a year), Raskolnikov was sentenced to only eight years of hard labor.

Sonya comes to Siberia for Rodion. On holidays, she sees Raskolnikov at the gates of the prison. The main character is sick, but neither suffering nor hard work broke him. He has not yet repented of his crime. The hero considers himself guilty of only one thing - that he could not stand it and came to the investigator to confess. Raskolnikov suffered that he did not kill himself, like Svidrigailov. In the prison, all the criminals valued their lives very much, which surprised Rodion.

Nobody loved the hero; rather, on the contrary, they hated him. Some said: “You are a master! Shouldn’t you have walked with an axe!” Others: “You are an atheist! You don't believe in God! We must kill you!”, although they themselves were many times more criminal than him. But everyone loved Sonya, although she did not try to please anyone.

In his delirium, Raskolnikov imagined that the whole world was about to perish due to illness. It seemed to him that there was a microbe, or rather spirits, gifted with intelligence and will, that inhabit people, making them possessed and crazy, but those infected consider themselves smart and unshakable in the truth. People get infected, start killing each other, devouring...

One morning Raskolnikov goes to “work” and sees the far bank of the river, where “there was freedom and other people lived, completely different from those here, it was as if time itself had stopped there, as if the centuries of Abraham and his herds had not yet passed.” Sonya comes to the hero. Raskolnikov throws himself at her feet and cries. He realizes that he loves her endlessly.

Raskolnikov still had seven years of hard labor left, but he felt that he had been resurrected! It is not clear why, but the convicts’ attitude towards the hero changed. Raskolnikov understands that “life has come”; he has the Gospel under his pillow.

This is how Dostoevsky's novel ends. The main idea that the author pursues in the finale is the rebirth of man through faith in Christ.

Dostoevsky leaves his hero the possibility of redemption and resurrection with the help of faith. In the fate of Raskolnikov, the role of the sufferer Sonya Marmeladova is great, helping him to cleanse himself of filth with the power of Christian love. Raskolnikov's Russian heart reaches out to the bright, spiritual, and overcomes evil. That humanity that was in the hero (he supported a sick fellow student for almost a year at his own expense, saved two children from the fire, helps by giving his last money for the funeral of Marmeladov’s widow, etc.) contributes to the speedy resurrection of Raskolnikov. The hero understands that the path he has taken is wrong, but believes that “theory has nothing to do with it,” simply “I’m a louse like everyone else.”

Sonya resurrects Raskolnikov to a new life. In her image, Dostoevsky’s idea of ​​“physical dirt” and “moral dirt” was especially vividly embodied. Despite the fact that Sonya lived in “physical filth” and was forced to sell her body, she is morally pure. Suffering only strengthened her soul. Raskolnikov’s theory is contrasted with the Christian idea of ​​atonement for one’s own and others’ sins through suffering. It is when the world of Christian spiritual values ​​opens up for Raskolnikov that he is finally resurrected to life.

Rodion Raskolnikov's happiness lies, of course, in the fact that he met Sonechka, who was able to understand him and accept him as he is. After all, this means a lot in the life of every person.

After reading “Crime and Punishment,” I was once again convinced that Dostoevsky is a subtle psychologist, a researcher of the human soul, a pioneer of new paths of the human spirit.

In her image, Dostoevsky’s idea of ​​“physical dirt” and “moral dirt” was especially vividly embodied. Despite the fact that Sonya lived in “physical filth” and was forced to sell her body, she is morally pure. Suffering only strengthened her soul. Raskolnikov’s theory is contrasted with the Christian idea of ​​atonement for one’s own and others’ sins through suffering. It is when the world of Christian spiritual values ​​opens up for Raskolnikov that he is finally resurrected to life. Rodion Raskolnikov's happiness lies, of course, in the fact that he met Sonechka, who was able to understand him and accept him as he is. After all, this means a lot in the life of every person.

How did Raskolnikov feel after committing the crime?

As we see, the main character of the work “Crime and Punishment” evaluates his action only from a worldly point of view. A summary of the epilogue shows how his inner world has changed. At first, Raskolnikov only cares about what people think or say about him.

Rodion, reasoning from such positions, is perplexed. He cannot understand why his crime is so terrible if everyone else allows themselves the same thing, and the law is only the result of the desire or whim of individual people. From this he concludes that his fault lies only in weakness, in the fact that he failed to overcome moral torment.

The hero does not think about the very essence of the issue, does not believe that murder is a terrible act that is disgusting to human nature. That's why he began to suffer. But the hero is still very far from this discovery.

What is the meaning of the epilogue of Dostoevsky's novel Crime and Punishment

And when he was run over by a horse while drunk, the family’s situation turned out to be even more disastrous. He decided to help these people destroyed by poverty.

Comparing their plight with the unfair contentment of Alena Ivanovna, the hero came to the conclusion that his theory was correct: society can be saved, but this salvation will require human sacrifice. Having decided and committed the murder, Raskolnikov falls ill and feels lost for people (“I didn’t kill the old woman... I killed myself”).

Attention

The hero cannot accept the love of his mother and sister Dunya, or the care of his friend Razumikhin. Raskolnikov's doubles: Luzhin and Svidrigailov Dunya is ready to sacrifice herself by marrying Luzhin, whom she does not love or respect.

This man is Raskolnikov’s moral double: he is also ready to achieve his goals by any means necessary. His “theory of the whole caftan” is the mirror opposite of Rodion’s theory.

The role of Raskolnikov’s dream, which he saw during his illness

In the dream that Raskolnikov sees, through a fantastic plot, Dostoevsky conveys his own point of view regarding the spread of godless, nihilistic ideas like the one Rodion had. It is no coincidence that this dream is described in the work (the epilogue of the novel “Crime and Punishment”).

It can be analyzed as follows. Theories like Raskolnikov’s make people possessed, insane, and infect them. But, what is most terrible, this is not noticed by the infected, who imagine themselves to be missionaries, chosen ones. The craze for such ideas is degenerating the human race. Only a few fragile souls who have retained moral purity are able to save people from destruction.

It was the dream that changed something in Raskolnikov’s mind. He helped him understand what Rodion had long felt. He finally realized that he loved Sonya, that she was his support, support and salvation. Having woken up, the main character does not yet realize that a change has occurred in him, however, he feels in his soul what the rest of the prisoners unconsciously did not like about him: that he is sick with this very infection. Its name is contempt for people, pride, dislike, unbelief!

Analysis of the epilogue of “Crime and Punishment”. the meaning and role of the epilogue

All this time, there was a contradiction in the young man’s soul: either his theory was impossible to apply in practice, or Rodion himself was not capable and did not have the right to kill. However, Raskolnikov’s dream and the constant presence of Sonya, who acts as a kind of “landmark” for the protagonist on the path to change, makes Rodion Romanovich believe in the inconsistency of his theory and the impossibility of its implementation. And already on the last pages of the novel the reader sees a completely different person.

Rodion looks at the world around him with different eyes. And, more importantly, he begins to believe in God (“Under his pillow lay the Gospel”). It was religion that for Raskolnikov, and for all people of that era, was the only way not to lose control of one’s mind in the harsh conditions of the surrounding world. Thus, the epilogue of the novel by F.M.

The true climax of the novel

When Rodion sees Sonya once again, his soul finally awakens, and his eyes, opened again, fill with tears. Severe pain, but already giving light, and not hopeless, throws him at Sonya’s feet in sobs. This is how the rebellious heart of the protagonist is cleansed.

Raskolnikov, having opened himself to love for one person, gradually began to love everyone. After all, it was not without reason that other convicts changed their attitude towards him, as Dostoevsky mentions (epilogue of the novel “Crime and Punishment”). Analysis of the composition allows us to judge that it is in the epilogue that the real climax of the novel is located! This is a triumph of faith and love. Raskolnikov finally opened the Gospel for the first time, which ends the epilogue.

“Crime and Punishment,” a brief summary of which we examined, without this ending would have lost a significant part of the ideas that Dostoevsky wanted to convey to us. It is in it that we understand that a new moment is coming in Raskolnikov’s life - the moment of rebirth. And although the writer does not tell us about Rodion’s further fate, it becomes clear that this life will be completely different. Between the lines in the epilogue there are life-affirming, bright chords that mark Raskolnikov’s spiritual rebirth. Dostoevsky's deep conviction that every person has a Divine spark in his heart is fully revealed here.

In many ways, the work “Crime and Punishment” was written precisely for the sake of this epilogue. Dostoevsky argues in it that rebirth and forgiveness are possible for any person, even if he is a terrible criminal. The epilogue of the novel “Crime and Punishment,” a summary of which you have just read, gives everyone hope for spiritual rebirth. All that is needed for this is repentance and a “turn” towards people, towards love, towards peace, towards God. That's what the epilogue was for. “Crime and Punishment,” the summary of which, of course, does not convey the full greatness of this work, is a novel about spiritual revival, in which the writer never ceases to believe.