The Cask Of Russia Summary

Antisocial former student Rodion Raskolnikov finds himself between a rock and a hard place financially in St. Petersburg, Russia. He struggles to provide for himself without the aid of his mother, Pulcheria and beloved sister, Dunya who continue to invest in him in spite of their own poverty; they see him as their only way out of their current circumstances. Unable to fund his own education and hold a job, Raskolnikov feels as though he has failed his family. Soon, he learns from a letter sent by his mother that Dunya is to be married to a disrespectful, pompous older man, Luzhin who sought to be Dunya and Pulcheria’s “providence.” Luzhin has a job as a government official, and Dunya’s union with him would ensure Raskolnikov a career in law. Enraged, Raskolnikov begins to contemplate carrying out the murder of an old, miserable Pawnbroker woman by the name of Alyona Ivanovna. After agonizing over it for some time, Raskolnikov kills the old woman, takes some of her valuables and trinkets, and unintentionally kills her younger sister, Lizaveta who witnessed the murder. He justifies his actions to himself claiming that he did a service to the collective society; that he only did what he did to help himself, his family and other poor people whom the old woman had cheated of their belongings. Later, he begins to reject this notion. He …show more content…
Dostoevsky’s extensive coverage of a myriad of topics, from human psychology to nature vs. nurture, is thought provoking as it is enlightening. I personally enjoyed reading this book very much, but would not recommend this to the impatient reader-- It is a very slow read and is written in a convoluted style-- there are several subplots which either bleed into or have nothing to do with the main which adds to the