Dostoyevsky continues to elaborate on Raskolnikov’s
inner conflicts and how they impact his character in Chapter 7, Part II of Crime and Punishment. In this chapter,
Raskolnikov finds Marmeladov in quite a fatal condition due to an accident that
occurred while Marmeladov was drunk. Raskolnikov assists the nearly dead,
intoxicated man back to his nearby home and family so that he can die in peace.
In addition to leaving a portion of his remaining money for the family,
Raskolnikov vows to provide them with his support in the future. In my opinion,
Raskolnikov still feels an overwhelming sense of guilt on behalf of the
murders. Rather than believing that Raskolnikov helps Marmeladov’s family
because he is a good-natured man with a genuine sense for humanity, I think
Raskolnikov’s “compassionate” behavior stems from his belief that helping
others will lessen his feelings of guilt because he feels that he is atoning
for the murders. This is evident in the context of the novel, given that
Raskolnikov leaves the Marmeladov home in good spirits, which illustrates the
idea that Raskolnikov feels like he has somewhat redeemed himself. However, I
think that Raskolnikov’s feelings of redemption are only temporary. Due to the
severity of his crimes, I find it hard to believe that Raskolnikov can feel at
peace for an extended period of time. I think Raskolnikov will soon realize that
his feelings of guilt are unavoidable and he cannot repent for his crimes, nor will
his guilty conscience feel at ease once again. Although I do suspect that
Raskolnikov will eventually confess for the murders, I do not think that this
confession will completely extinguish Raskolnikov’s regret because even though
he will have confessed, the Ivanova sisters will still be dead and the murder’s
cannot be undone.
Alex
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