Crime and Punishment

"Crime and Punishment" is a novel written by the Russian author Fyodor Dostoyevsky. It was first published in the literary journal "The Russian Messenger" in 1866. It is the second full-length novel by Dostoyevsky following his return from ten years of exile in Siberia. Crime and Punishment are considered the first great novel of his "mature" period of writing. It focuses on the mental anguish and moral dilemmas of Rodion Raskolnikov, an impoverished ex-student in St. Petersburg who formulates and executes a plan to kill an unscrupulous pawnbroker for her cash. Raskolnikov argues that with the pawnbroker's money, he can perform good deeds to counterbalance the crime while ridding the world of evil. He also commits this murder to test his own hypothesis that some people are naturally capable of such things, and even have the right to do them. He argues that sometimes, evil doings are justified if there’s a higher purpose. The whole novel is gripping and full of suspense as Raskolnikov tries to evade justice for all his crimes. There’s also the moral aspect, as the question of whether or not Raskolnikov himself can find redemption as a human being. Crime and Punishment are considered by many as the first of Dostoevsky's cycle of great novels, which would culminate with his last completed work, The Brothers Karamazov, shortly before his death.

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