Comparing Dostoevsky's Crime And Punishment

There comes a point where we must come to accept ourselves and change the qualities that we can’t accept in order to benefit our well being. The consequences that are given to people as a result from their sins define their transformation because one act does not defines a person. In the ending of Crime and Punishment Raskolnikov betters himself and others around him by completely changing his ways. The first step in doing so is by turned to the Lord for forgiveness. Dostoyevski graphically depicts sin in the novel, he also presents the “hope, the relief, that human sympathy gives.” The whole crime was surrounded around Rask feeling bad about the sacrifices that his mother and sister had to make. He feels as if he needs to commit the act to make himself look fearless, and to also get the money that he desperately needs. Once both of those goals …show more content…
Towards the end of the novel Raskolnikov began to feel sympathy for those around him. He realized that the death of the pawnbroker and her sister affected everyone, including himself. The loved ones around him had to deal with him and all of the burdens he carried. Giving himself up to God was the first step to redemption because he couldn't go on without forgiveness. “It is this overarching presence of grace, usually originating in the most unlikely places, that simultaneously fuels and ameliorates Raskolnikov's sense of guilt”(Crime and Punishment). The pressure that the guilt had upon him forced him to give up the act. Prior to his realization, “his heart was empty and numb. He did not want to think about anything… there was no trace of the energy… complete apathy had taken it's place”(145). Dostoevsky does a great job at portraying the physical pain Raskolnikov really had to go through. It was more than phycological, he was severely