Response to both Gabe's and Alex's Posts.

I agree with both Gabriel and Alex, that this was a very thrilling chapter of part 1. The plot led up to the crime however none of us expected Raskolnikov to truly commit the crime! I liked how Alex described Raskolnikov's selfish character, how he justifies the murder of the to sisters by the greed of wanting money. Raskolnikov definitely, in that moment, does not seem to think that his actions are unjustified. Further to what Alex said, I agree with her that Raskolnikov does not want to take responsibility for his actions and that is why he goes back and forth between wether he should or should not commit the crime. He is very indecisive towards the subject, and I think that he does not wan to have to be responsible for it. Also, I thought that it was interesting how Gabe described how there is now no good deed that Raskolnikov has done. This is the first novel that I have read where the main character is sort of unlikeable. He provides no amiable or redeeming qualities that I imagine a main character to have. If anything he is very dark, and now after the murder comes off as evil. He does not seem like the kind of character that a reader can relate to or admire. I am intrigued to see how Dostoevsky constructs his character throughout the rest of the novel.

- Madie

Blog Entry #2 (9/9/12)

Part II of Crime and Punishment commences Raskolnikov’s moral decay. I agree with Gabe and Madie’s opinions that Raskolnikov is a mentally unstable character with an internal struggle between right and wrong. Now that the murders of Alyona Ivanova and her sister, Lizaveta, have finally been committed, Fyodor Dostoyevsky begins to portray the stages of Raskolnikov’s mental breakdown due to his profound sense of guilt over the murders. Still paralyzed with agitation and dismay over the previous night’s events, Raskolnikov could not find himself falling asleep with ease. After awakening from a night of restless sleep, Raskolnikov instantaneously checked his clothes and apartment for traces of blood or any clues that could possibly link him to the murder scene. A frantic Raskolnikov is then informed that he has been summoned to the police station; however, Raskolnikov is relieved to discover that he was only called to the station because his landlady reported him for not paying rent. As Raskolnikov overhears a detective discuss the murder of the Ivanova sisters, his disposition transitions and once again, Raskolnikov grows anxious over his heightened sense of guilt. Raskolnikov states “that it was no longer possible for him to address these people in the police station, not only with heartfelt effusions, as he had just done, but in any way at all” (Raskolnikov 84). This quote is crucial to the overall theme of Crime and Punishment because it illuminates the protagonist’s hasty realization that the murders have caused him to completely isolate himself from society. This serves as the first stage of Raskolnikov’s internal punishment and suffering. Dostoyevsky does a great job of illustrating how guilt and anxiety are leading to the collapse of Raskolnikov’s character. I agree with Gabe’s opinion that Raskolnikov will eventually pay the consequences of his brutal actions. I look forward to continuing this intriguing novel and discovering how Raskolnikov overcomes his internal suffering, which serves as his true punishment.

-Alex

Ch. 7 Reaction

So now every moment that showed that Raskolnikov might have had a conscious, that he might not have actually gone through with the crime, has been disproved. He goes through with the brutal murder as well as killing Lizaveta. His character throughout part one is very indecisive and goes back and forth between right and wrong, mostly because I think he did not want to actually go through with it. However he does go through with it. But not in the way I expected. After he kills Lizaveta, he becomes almost paranoid. Frightened and absent minded, "If at that moment he had been in a condition to choose rationally or to see more clearly... quite likely he would have abandoned everything and gone immediately to give himself up... from horror and disgust of what he had done." I thought that this quote was interesting because not only did it show that he was not thinking rationally (obviously), but it shows that he might have actually shown remorse and regret towards his murderous actions.



- Madie

Gabe's reaction to chapter 7

In this final chapter of part one, the reader is presented with evidence that Raskolnikov is evil and truly mentally unstable. It is known that he has been dealing with an internal conflict between right and wrong. However, it is not fully accepted that Raskolnikov will follow through with this murder until the act is committed. When Alyona opens the door for him, there is a wild and agitated expression in Raskolnikov's eyes. It is as if the last of his rationality was overcome by adrenaline and hatred for Alyona. Although all signs have foreshadowed that he will follow through with the murder, it still comes as a shock when he repeated strikes her with an axe until her death and robs her. When Lizaveta walks in, Raskolnikov panics and proceeds to murder her as well. If there was any chance of good being present in Raskolnikov after he murdered Alyona, all hope was lost after he murdered Lizaveta. This is because Raskolnikov believed that murdering Alyona was justified and that he was doing the right thing because everyone hated her and he thought the world would be better without her. Although his thoughts were obviously irrational, he at least believed he was doing good. When he murdered Lizaveta, there were no good intentions: it was purely in order to save himself from being arrested. This chapter suggests that he is heading down a path of crime and I believe he will eventually pay the consequences for these horrid actions.

-Gabriel

Blog Entry #1 (9/9/12)

Chapter 7 of Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s Crime and Punishment was extremely thrilling and arousing. The author immediately grasped my attention from the moment Alyona Ivanova opened the door to Raskolnikov’s knock. Even after Raskolnikov forced himself inside Alyona’s apartment and presents her with the fake cigarette case, I still questioned whether or not Raskolnikov would go through with the murder. Up to this point in the novel, Raskolnikov has been portrayed as an extremely indecisive and tentative character. I feel that Raskolnikov has a hard time making decisions simply because he does not want to take responsibility for his actions without a justified excuse. This explains why I was so shocked with the outcome of Raskolnikov’s endeavor. As Alyona opened the cigarette case, Raskolnikov struck her in the head with his ax several times until she dropped dead. As Alyona’s corpse sat on the floor surrounded in a pool of her own blood, Raskolnikov went into the other room to rob her of her belongings. Feeling uneasy, Raskolnikov returns to the kitchen where he finds Lizaveta in a state of horror as she stands over her murdered sister’s bloody carcass. Raskolnikov then commits a second murder, killing Lizaveta with one blow to her skull with the ax. Although the murder of Lizaveta was unexpected, I was not particularly surprised that Raskolnikov did this because he is a selfish character who justified Lizaveta’s murder with the act of protecting himself from arrest. Chapter 7 was extremely suspenseful and served as the perfect ending to Part I of the novel.

-Alex 

This picture illustrates the murder scene in chapter 7 of Crime and Punishment. 

-Alex

Quote

"What if man is not really a scoundrel, man in general, I mean, the whole race of mankind - then all the rest is prejudice, simply artificial terrors and there are no barriers and it's all as it should be."

Raskolnikov, Part 1, Chapter 2.


- Alex