Some notes on Crime and Punishment

I just finished Crime and Punishment (Bantam Books 1958 edition, translated by Constance Garnett), and its story of Raskolnikov, an idealistic, poverty-stricken young man wracked with guilt after murdering a pawnbroker for what he believes to be a justified, if selfish, cause.

Here’s a few impressions/notes.

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Among its lessons: Mere theory cannot survive life, and we cannot live by philosophy alone. 

Utilitarianism (permitting acts however terrible if they lead to a greater good, under the rubric that ends justify the means) is seductive but pernicious; placing one’s own ego at the center of your existence (I’m more important/smarter/ideologically pure than my fellow man, and therefore my actions justified) is an error. Our attempts to try to implement constructed, top-down, logically sound societies like communism fail because they cannot account for human irrationality. Humans will be filed off to fit, or marched to the pit for the greater good.

People who set out to be Napoleon and stop at nothing to achieve greatness are not to be admired. When you view those who don’t share your grand visions as lice or vermin, you’ve erred.

We are romantic and irrational creatures; ignore human nature at your peril. It will push up through your theory and crack its very foundations.

Nihilism is seductive but ultimately an error. Life has incredible riches to offer, but we must surrender to it. Commit to this life, and to a higher power. Which even if you don’t believe in God means you must surrender to something beyond you. To love, of another being. To seeing another person for who they are, not as a means to an end.

When you turn the last page on this book you will be shaken … and uplifted. The suffering of the protagonist and his agonizing path to confession is like the interminable wait of the condemned man of Iron Maiden’s “Hallowed be thy Name.” It’s a story of claustrophobia and suffering but with great relief only expiation can bring, and the beginnings of renewal.

Crime and Punishment is a reminder that redemption is possible, even from the most grievous of sins. 

We’ve all made terrible mistakes. I am sorry to those against whom I’ve sinned or been unjust. I accept the unjustness inflicted on me. Through suffering we can reach higher levels of consciousness.

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I read outside of fantasy and this book gets added to my list of recent recommendations. But you certainly don’t need me to tell you to read what is acknowledged as one of the greatest novels of all time.