The Reasoning of Murder
Can murder be justified? According to many people, this horrible sin is one of the worst things man can do. In Crime and Punishment, the character Rodion Raskolnikov is tormented by the murder he commits and scrambles to find a reason why he did it. Even before he carries out the crime, Raskolnikov believes that killing Alyona is his destiny. Succumbing to the thoughts of predetermination and exceptionality, Raskolnikov executes the murder. However, the reason behind the murder is still clouded in his mind, as the effects of it take their toll. He discovers the motive, only after talking through his thought process which gives him clarity into the reasoning of his crime and he is able to understand why it is affecting …show more content…
Although he calls it a theory, his ideas about the extraordinary man are ever present in his mind. In order to test what kind of man he is, Rodion decides to kill Alyona. He wanted, “to find out then, and find out quickly, whether I was a louse like all the rest, or man? Would I be able to step over, or not! Would I dare to reach down and take, or not? Am I a trembling creature, or do I have the right…” (Dostoevsky 419). Raskolnikov does not know if he is either an extraordinary man or a louse like the rest of humanity. To be a louse is to be unable to set aside one’s own conscience in order to commit a crime, and consequently not to have the right to do so. According to Raskolnikov, the idea of the extraordinary man is something to be striven for and success is gained by the men who have successfully stepped over their conscience. The ordinary man, though the majority of humanity is sorted into this category, is the scum of the race whose only purpose is to reproduce to create extraordinary men. Furthermore, the way that Rodion describes the ordinary man shows a disgust with the bulk of humanity and glorifies the right of being above all laws. Raskolnikov debates which category he himself is in and the murder is a trial to reveal which one he is. He wanted to, “prove only one thing to you: that the devil did drag me there then, but afterwards he explained to me that I had no right to go there, because I’m exactly the same louse as all the rest” (Dostoevsky 419). Rodion’s need to know what kind of man he is, in this analogy, is represented by the devil. However, Raskolnikov discovers that after causing a horrible murder, he does not have the right to think himself above crime and to be above the majority of humanity. He does not have these rights because he is unable to step over his conscience, and because the murder continues to affect his life after the initial
Can murder be justified? According to many people, this horrible sin is one of the worst things man can do. In Crime and Punishment, the character Rodion Raskolnikov is tormented by the murder he commits and scrambles to find a reason why he did it. Even before he carries out the crime, Raskolnikov believes that killing Alyona is his destiny. Succumbing to the thoughts of predetermination and exceptionality, Raskolnikov executes the murder. However, the reason behind the murder is still clouded in his mind, as the effects of it take their toll. He discovers the motive, only after talking through his thought process which gives him clarity into the reasoning of his crime and he is able to understand why it is affecting …show more content…
Although he calls it a theory, his ideas about the extraordinary man are ever present in his mind. In order to test what kind of man he is, Rodion decides to kill Alyona. He wanted, “to find out then, and find out quickly, whether I was a louse like all the rest, or man? Would I be able to step over, or not! Would I dare to reach down and take, or not? Am I a trembling creature, or do I have the right…” (Dostoevsky 419). Raskolnikov does not know if he is either an extraordinary man or a louse like the rest of humanity. To be a louse is to be unable to set aside one’s own conscience in order to commit a crime, and consequently not to have the right to do so. According to Raskolnikov, the idea of the extraordinary man is something to be striven for and success is gained by the men who have successfully stepped over their conscience. The ordinary man, though the majority of humanity is sorted into this category, is the scum of the race whose only purpose is to reproduce to create extraordinary men. Furthermore, the way that Rodion describes the ordinary man shows a disgust with the bulk of humanity and glorifies the right of being above all laws. Raskolnikov debates which category he himself is in and the murder is a trial to reveal which one he is. He wanted to, “prove only one thing to you: that the devil did drag me there then, but afterwards he explained to me that I had no right to go there, because I’m exactly the same louse as all the rest” (Dostoevsky 419). Rodion’s need to know what kind of man he is, in this analogy, is represented by the devil. However, Raskolnikov discovers that after causing a horrible murder, he does not have the right to think himself above crime and to be above the majority of humanity. He does not have these rights because he is unable to step over his conscience, and because the murder continues to affect his life after the initial