Delirium In Crime And Punishment

In Crime and Punishment, Dostoevsky uses the motif of delirium to convey the psychological torture of Raskolnikov’s commission of the crime. The novel’s approach in addressing crime and punishment is not what one would usually expect. Alyona’s murder took place in Part One and his punishment is decided in the Epilogue. The center of attention is not the beginning or the end, but what takes place in between those two endpoints. It is there where Raskolnikov’s inner world is explored and his mindset as a criminal is analyzed. The story started when he saw himself as sort of a hero, destined to be greater than society. To establish superiority, he separated himself from everyone else. He was willing to sacrifice the life of one person, for the sake of others. The murder was a morbid consequence of his belief that he was an ubermensch. …show more content…
The happiness of many can be gained at the expense of a few. As a result, the interests of others is taken into account over one’s own interests, showing that the greater number of content people in a society the better it is. Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov is a tortured and desperate young man seeking a better future and he does so by upholding the theory. Raskolnikov wants to test his own courage, but is physically and emotionally wrecked. His views of himself as an extraordinary and exceptional man who is above the moral rules, leading him to believe that he is allowed to break the law if he chooses to do so. Little did Raskolnikov know that he would be paying such a costly price for his “deed.” Svidrigaylov and Raskolnikov meet just as he awakes from his dream of reliving the murder of the pawnbroker. Svidrigaylov is Dunya’s former employer who obsessively tries to make her love him. He acts as a foil for Raskolnikov. Both are criminals, haunted by their dreams, and are “birds of a