Sunday, December 2, 2012

Alex's Reaction to Part 4, Chapter 4


Raskolnikov’s meeting with Sonia (Marmeladov’s daughter) in this chapter revealed a lot about his character. I think that Raskolnikov, who just recently left his mother and sister, realized that without his family, he has nothing. I also think that Raskolnikov sees a similarity between Sonia and himself because they are both sinners. Raskolnikov’s deranged sense of right and wrong is apparent in this chapter because he believes that being a murderer is no worse than being a prostitute, despite the fact that Sonia has turned to prostitution to support her family.

The significance of the Lazarus story to Raskolnikov’s character is extremely evident.  Through this story, Dostoyevsky reveals that like Lazarus, Raskolnikov wants to be resurrected. There is a clear similarity between Raskolnikov and Lazarus given the fact that Raskolnikov destroyed his current life when he murdered the Ivanova sisters. In my opinion, Raskolnikov will not feel at ease with himself until he confesses for the crime. Therefore, confession may be Raskolnikov’s only chance of finding redemption and having another chance in life.

- Alex

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