Raskolnikov's theory and its collapse in Dostoevsky's novel Crime and Punishment essay
The main character of the world famous novel by Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky “Crime and Punishment” is a poor student Rodion Raskolnikov.
A young man, driven into a dead end by life's circumstances, comes up with a theory. It is based on the natural inequality of people: some are insignificant, while others “have the right.” The latter are intended to move the course of history and humanity forward, and the rest are the moving mass. The leading part of people “has the right” to disobey generally accepted laws: to accomplish great things, sacrifices, including human ones, are necessary (and completely fair). Rodion decides to test his theory and find out whether he belongs to this upper class, or is a “trembling creature.” To achieve this goal, he plans to kill the old money-lender, but as a result he also kills her sister Lizaveta. He takes almost no money, and what he managed to take he hides. According to his theory, his conscience should not have tormented him after this act: after all, this was a murder for the good of humanity (Raskolnikov believed that by getting on his feet financially, he would achieve a lot and benefit society). However, his internal torment after the murder is so great that it drives him to severe physical illness.
For the first time he confesses to his crime to Sonya Marmeladova. In his eyes, this girl is filled with virtue, because she sacrifices her own purity for the sake of her family. He trusts her, since she also “transgressed” moral laws in the name of good. The difference in their crimes is that this highest good (goal) in Raskolnikov’s case is fake.
The hero's awareness of the immorality of his act comes not only from the uncontrollable pangs of conscience, but also from his awareness of the equality of people. Being part of a disadvantaged section of society, he communicates with people of equal status. The Marmeladov family, with its unhappy existence, evokes pity from Raskolnikov. He sees that regardless of living conditions and social status, people feel and experience the same. Everyone is forced to fight with all their might against the blows of fate, everyone can experience love, everyone strives for happiness.
In the novel, the main idea is Raskolnikov’s thought about the inequality of people, according to which the upper class, for the good of society, has the right to step over moral rules, even over someone’s life. An attempt to translate the theory into reality turned into its collapse. Raskolnikov cannot stand the pangs of conscience, admits the injustice of his theory, repents and surrenders to the authorities. With this plot, Dostoevsky wanted to say that no matter what difficult circumstances a person is driven into, it is always important not to lose one’s moral values and guidelines, not to cross the line of good and evil.
What is Raskolnikov's theory?
The main character, as a result of lengthy deliberation, came to the conclusion that people are divided into two groups. The first includes individuals who can do whatever they want without paying attention to the law.
To the second group he included people without rights, whose lives can be neglected. This is the main essence of Raskolnikov’s theory, which is also relevant for modern society.
Many people consider themselves superior to others, breaking laws and doing whatever they want. An example is the majors.
Initially, the main character of the work perceived his own theory as a joke, but the more he thought about it, the more real the assumptions seemed.
As a result, he divided all the people around him into categories and evaluated them only according to his own criteria. Psychologists have already proven that a person can convince himself of various things by thinking about them regularly.
Raskolnikov's theory is a manifestation of extreme individualism.
Reasons for creating Raskolnikov's theory
Not only literature lovers, but also specialists in various fields carefully studied Dostoevsky’s work in order to highlight the social and philosophical origins of Raskolnikov’s theory.
- The moral reasons that prompted the hero to commit a crime include the desire to understand what category of people he belongs to and pain for the humiliated poor.
- There are other reasons for the emergence of Raskolnikov’s theory: extreme poverty, the concept of injustice in life and the loss of one’s own guidelines.
How did Raskolnikov come to his theory?
The main character himself throughout the novel tries to understand what caused the terrible act.
Raskolnikov's strong personality theory confirms that in order for the majority to live happily, the minority must be destroyed.
As a result of lengthy reflection and consideration of various situations, Rodion came to the conclusion that he belongs to the highest category of people. Literature lovers put forward several motives that prompted him to commit the crime:
- influence of the environment and people;
- desire to become great;
- desire to get money;
- dislike for the harmful and useless old woman;
- desire to test one's own theory.
What does Raskolnikov's theory bring to the disadvantaged?
The author of Crime and Punishment wanted in his book to convey suffering and pain for all humanity. Almost every page of this novel shows poverty, loneliness and harshness of people.
In fact, the novel, published in 1866, has much in common with modern society, which is increasingly showing its indifference to its fellow man.
Rodion Raskolnikov’s theory confirms the existence of disadvantaged people who do not have a chance for a decent life, and the so-called “leaders of life” with big wallets.
What is the contradiction in Raskolnikov’s theory?
The image of the main character consists of only inconsistencies that can be traced throughout the entire work. Raskolnikov is a sensitive person who is not alien to the grief of those around him, and he wants to help those in need, but Rodion understands that he is not able to change the way of life. At the same time, he proposes a theory that completely contradicts life principles.
When figuring out what is wrong with Raskolnikov’s theory for the hero himself, it is worth noting the fact that he expected that it would help him get out of the impasse and start living in a new way.
At the same time, the hero achieved the exact opposite result, and he finds himself in an even more hopeless situation.
Rodion loved people, but after the murder of the old woman, he simply cannot be around them, this even applies to his mother. All these contradictions show the imperfection of the put forward theory.
If we assume that the idea put forward by Dostoevsky through the thoughts of the protagonist has become large-scale, then the result for society and the world as a whole is very deplorable.
The meaning of Raskolnikov’s theory is that people who are superior to others by some criteria, for example, financial capabilities, can “clear” the road for their own good by doing whatever they want, including committing murder.
If many people lived according to this principle, then the world would simply cease to exist; sooner or later, the so-called “competitors” would destroy each other.
Throughout the novel, Rodion experiences moral torment, which often takes on different forms.
Raskolnikov's theory is dangerous because the hero is trying in every possible way to convince himself that his action was correct, since he wanted to help his family, but he did not want anything for himself.
A huge number of people commit crimes thinking this way, which in no way justifies their decision.
Pros and cons of Raskolnikov's theory
At first it may seem that the idea of dividing society does not have any positive aspects, but if you sweep aside all the bad consequences, then there is still a plus - a person’s desire to be happy.
Raskolnikov's theory of the right of a strong personality shows that many strive for a better life and are the engine of progress.
As for the disadvantages, there are more of them, and they matter to people who share the ideas of the main character of the novel.
- The desire to divide everyone into two classes, which can have dire consequences, for example, such ideas are identical to Nazism. All people are different, but they are equal before God, so striving to become superior to others is wrong.
- Another danger that Raskolnikov’s theory brings to the world is the use of any means in life. Unfortunately, many people in the modern world live by the principle “the ends justify the means,” which leads to dire consequences.
What prevented Raskolnikov from living according to his theory?
The whole problem is that while creating the “ideal picture” in his head, Rodion did not take into account the peculiarities of real life. You can't make the world a better place by killing another person, no matter who he was.
The essence of Raskolnikov’s theory is clear, but what was not taken into account was that the old pawnbroker was only the initial link in the chain of injustice and, by removing it, it is impossible to cope with all the world’s problems.
People who try to profit from the misfortunes of others are not correctly called the root of the problem, since they are only a consequence.
Facts confirming Raskolnikov's theory
In the world you can find a huge number of examples where the idea proposed by the main character of the novel was applied. You can remember Stalin and Hitler, who sought to cleanse the people of unworthy people, and what the actions of these people led to.
Confirmation of Raskolnikov’s theory can be seen in the behavior of rich youth, the so-called “majors”, who, without paying attention to the laws, ruined the lives of many people.
The main character himself commits murder to confirm his idea, but in the end he understands the horror of the act.
Raskolnikov's theory and its collapse
A strange theory not only appears in the work, but is also completely refuted. To change his decision, Rodion has to endure a lot of mental and physical torment.
Raskolnikov's theory and its collapse occurs after he has a dream where people destroy each other and the world disappears. Then he begins to gradually restore faith in goodness.
As a result, he understands that everyone, regardless of their situation, deserves to be happy.
When figuring out how Raskolnikov’s theory is refuted, it is worth citing as an example one simple truth - happiness cannot be built on crime.
Violence, even if it can be justified by some high ideals, is evil. The hero himself admits that he did not kill the old woman, but destroyed himself.
Essay Raskolnikov's theory and its collapse
Fyodor Ivanovich Dostoevsky created many works, many of which are still popular and loved by readers, which make people think about important issues. One such work is “Crime and Punishment.”
In this work, the main character is Rodion Raskolnikov. This is not an entirely ordinary person; in one of his articles, he described a theory he invented about the exceptionalism of some people. Its essence is that individuals “with the right” can do anything in order to achieve a great good goal: kill, steal, etc. While “trembling creatures” are precisely the material needed to preserve life and continue the existence of humanity.
The main character himself initially considered himself to be in the first category of strong, necessary people. He was practically sure of this, and in order to prove the theory to himself, he commits the murder of the old pawnbroker. According to Raskolnikov, this old woman was a louse who only disturbed everyone and did not give them a peaceful life. After the murder, the hero is not himself for several days, he cannot resolve the internal conflict, because he did not want to kill the pawnbroker, much less her sister. His feverish thoughts and several days of introspection led him to the police station, where Raskolnikov himself confesses to the murder. Consequently, this makes him a “trembling creature” and undermines the basis of the theory. This is where its collapse begins.
Pros and cons of Raskolnikov's theory
At first it may seem that the idea of dividing society does not have any positive aspects, but if you sweep aside all the bad consequences, then there is still a plus - a person’s desire to be happy. Raskolnikov's theory of the right of a strong personality shows that many strive for a better life and are the engine of progress. As for the disadvantages, there are more of them, and they matter to people who share the ideas of the main character of the novel.
- The desire to divide everyone into two classes, which can have dire consequences, for example, such ideas are identical to Nazism. All people are different, but they are equal before God, so striving to become superior to others is wrong.
- Another danger that Raskolnikov’s theory brings to the world is the use of any means in life. Unfortunately, many people in the modern world live by the principle “the ends justify the means,” which leads to dire consequences.
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Essay “The theory of Rodion Raskolnikov, its failure and collapse”
Raskolnikov's idea was doomed to failure from its very inception. Not because it is not true, because in fact the world is divided into “the mighty of this world” and “trembling creatures,” but because the consciousness of the protagonist was not able to withstand its dependence on this theory. Raskolnikov, a good theorist, having thought through all his actions to the smallest detail, did not take into account his own human qualities, he forgot about conscience, shame, and the natural fear inherent in man. The hero, in fact, decides not to kill, but to undertake a great act of self-knowledge, and now, after what happened, the terrible tragedy of self-recognition and self-deception plays out in him. The more he recognizes himself, the more he feels the presence of the human principle in himself, the more terrible he becomes, the further he moves away from the desired result, the more persistently he tries to deceive himself. Most of all, the hero is tormented by his torment.
But according to his plan, he was not committing a crime - “won’t one tiny crime be atoned for by thousands of good deeds? In one life - thousands of lives saved from rot and decay. One death and a hundred lives in return - but this is arithmetic! And what does the life of this consumptive, stupid and evil old woman mean on the general scale? Nothing more than the life of a louse or a cockroach, and not even worth it; because the old woman is harmful,” he allowed himself, by the right of the “strong,” to kill a creature that brings only evil. This was a well-thought-out scheme.
But after what he had done, he was terribly afraid of everything: he flinched from any stranger’s shout on the street, from a rustle in the room where he was completely alone, he did not want and could not see his mother, Dunya. A terrible thought comes to his mind: humanity has awakened in a hero. But the deed is done, “the bridges are burned, the Rubicon is crossed,” he will have to answer according to the earthly, human, eternal law. And the knowledge he so strived for turned out to be a terrible disappointment: he turned out to be just a sinner in the world of ordinary people. Raskolnikov realized that he should not have done this. The hero enters into a fight, but not with an external enemy, but tries to cope with a force beyond his control - his own subconscious. The hope is growing in his mind that his perfect calculations will be justified, meanwhile, horror already reigns in the subconscious.
What prevented Raskolnikov from living according to his theory?
The whole problem is that while creating the “ideal picture” in his head, Rodion did not take into account the peculiarities of real life. You can't make the world a better place by killing another person, no matter who he was. The essence of Raskolnikov’s theory is clear, but what was not taken into account was that the old pawnbroker was only the initial link in the chain of injustice and, by removing it, it is impossible to cope with all the world’s problems. People who try to profit from the misfortunes of others are not correctly called the root of the problem, since they are only a consequence.
