In the opening of the novel, the underground man refers to himself as a sick and spiteful, unattractive man. His immediate self-loathing sets the tone for the rest of the novel and also describes what it means to be an anti-hero. An anti-hero is said to be the central character in a story that lacks any conventional heroic attributes. Throughout the novel, the underground man continues to remind the audience that he is a wicked person and how spiteful he tries to be. He mentions, “When petitioners used to come for information to the table at which I sat, I used to grind my teeth at them, and felt intense enjoyment when I succeeded in making anybody feel unhappy (Dostoevsky, 4).” He describes his job as a mundane task and takes pride
