Rating: 
Summary: Excellent
Review: Crime and Punishment is arguably the greatest novel ever written. Using the novel form Dostoevsky has entered into a debate about the nature of good and evil and the national character of his Russian homeland. In order to fully appreciate Crime and Punishment it may be necessary to understand Cherneshevsky's What is to Be Done. Crime and Punishment is a response to this novel and the rejection of traditional Russian Orthodox values it espouses. Through Raskolnikov FD is arguing that salvation can only come through submitting to the proper authorities in the form of the Russian state as well as the traditional wisdom of the Russian Orthodox Church as manifested in the book by Sofia (Greek for wisdom). She at last is the guiding light in Raskolnikov's life. Once he recognizes and accepts wisdom he is forever bound to her. This novel is brilliant on so many levels. It is quite good on the surface as the struggle of a criminal attempting to evade justice but of course it goes much deeper than that. FD is doing nothing less than atoning for his own sins against the Russian monarchy which led to his imprisonment in a Siberian camp. I highly recommend this book. You will be hard pressed to find a deeper more meaningful piece of literature in any language.
Rating:
Summary: dostoevsky is a genius
Review: Crime and Punishment is arguably the greatest novel ever written. Using the novel form Dostoevsky has entered into a debate about the nature of good and evil and the national character of his Russian homeland. In order to fully appreciate Crime and Punishment it may be necessary to understand Cherneshevsky's What is to Be Done. Crime and Punishment is a response to this novel and the rejection of traditional Russian Orthodox values it espouses. Through Raskolnikov FD is arguing that salvation can only come through submitting to the proper authorities in the form of the Russian state as well as the traditional wisdom of the Russian Orthodox Church as manifested in the book by Sofia (Greek for wisdom). She at last is the guiding light in Raskolnikov's life. Once he recognizes and accepts wisdom he is forever bound to her. This novel is brilliant on so many levels. It is quite good on the surface as the struggle of a criminal attempting to evade justice but of course it goes much deeper than that. FD is doing nothing less than atoning for his own sins against the Russian monarchy which led to his imprisonment in a Siberian camp. I highly recommend this book. You will be hard pressed to find a deeper more meaningful piece of literature in any language.
Rating:
Summary: Less a review, more about content in this edition
Review: Everyone knows about C&P; and if you don't, I'm rather surprised you're considering a Norton Critical Edition (regardless, I write this review about the content of this particular edition, and not about how wonderful Dostoevksy is). As usual, the folks at Norton have the best criticism following the text of the novel. From the great writer Tolstoy himself to the brilliant critic Bakhtin, the great literary scholars from all interpretive standpoints offer thoughtful history and criticism of the text. Furthermore, primary documents, including USSR treatises on the teaching of the novel, are also included. For those interested in delving beyond the text of Dostoevsky, Norton has succeeded once again in assembling a powerful lineup of scholarship to accompany a truly great novel.
Rating:
Summary: One of the greatest novels ever written
Review: I cannot emphasise enough just how wonderful this book is. Dostoevsky introduces a set of characters which we all in a way know, and through their completely believable and realistic interactions, expresses powerful, mystical messages. In essence, the story is about a young, intelligent former student, Raskolnikov (similar to Raskol, schism), who by cold, unemotional thought arrives at a sort of nihilism, and even goes so far as to thinking that an "extraordinary person" is justified in taking away a useless, harmful life for the greater good, and then, partially out of an effort to prove that he is such as person, commits a murder which he feels fits this program. At the same time, there is seething conflict inside him; the compassionate, loving side of his personality is revolting against these horrible thoughts. As Razumihin remarks, Raskolnikov is two people living in the same body. In a sense, Raskolnikov's original idea is correct; there is no harm done in removing pure, harmful evil, but one of Dostoevsky's principal messages in this novel is that there is no such thing as a purely harmful individual; Dostoevsky accomplishes this goal by presenting the character of an old pawn broker and her half-sister, Lizaveta. Through Raskolnikov's eyes, all good characteristics are placed in Lizaveta, and all that is evil is placed in the pawn broker; hence Raskolnikov feels justified in killing the pawn broker, but really it should come as no surprise that he ends up killing Lizaveta as well, that is, IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO ELIMINATE PURE EVIL, one inevitably takes some good away with it too. THIS is Raskolnikov's crime, the taking away of good in the form of Lizaveta. (Incidentally, Lizaveta Ivanovna's name is meant to bring up reminisces of the character of the same name in Pushkin's Queen of Spades; Dostoevsky was a great admirer of Pushkin.) After this crime, Raskolnikov loses sanity (it seems to me that Dostoevsky is trying to say that insanity cannot be held off by reason alone; one need loving belief as well), and eventually, although he does not know it at the time, confesses out of love for the Christ-like character of Sonia (short for Sofia, which is wisdom in Greek), and eventually, in one of the most beautiful and touching endings of ANY novels, his soul is redeemed by faith and love; even though he is sentenced to seven years in a Siberian prison camp, he and Sonia look on it as if it were seven days, and eagerly anticipate their freedom together. Although much of the novel is set in depressing circumstances, for me there is no other novel (even perhaps the great and still more philosophical Brothers Karamazov) which is as much sheer fun to read. As if this were not enough, this edition is absolutely first rate; the notes are very helpful and Dostoevsky's letters regarding this work together with the critical appraisals of Crime and Punishment (I LOVE Tolstoy's essay; it rings so true) particularly illuminating. I feel it is the duty of any educated person to read this book intelligently; I guarantee you, you will get new meaning out of this compact masterpiece every time you do so.
Rating:
Summary: One of the greatest novels ever written
Review: I cannot emphasise enough just how wonderful this book is. Dostoevsky introduces a set of characters which we all in a way know, and through their completely believable and realistic interactions, expresses powerful, mystical messages. In essence, the story is about a young, intelligent former student, Raskolnikov (similar to Raskol, schism), who by cold, unemotional thought arrives at a sort of nihilism, and even goes so far as to thinking that an "extraordinary person" is justified in taking away a useless, harmful life for the greater good, and then, partially out of an effort to prove that he is such as person, commits a murder which he feels fits this program. At the same time, there is seething conflict inside him; the compassionate, loving side of his personality is revolting against these horrible thoughts. As Razumihin remarks, Raskolnikov is two people living in the same body. In a sense, Raskolnikov's original idea is correct; there is no harm done in removing pure, harmful evil, but one of Dostoevsky's principal messages in this novel is that there is no such thing as a purely harmful individual; Dostoevsky accomplishes this goal by presenting the character of an old pawn broker and her half-sister, Lizaveta. Through Raskolnikov's eyes, all good characteristics are placed in Lizaveta, and all that is evil is placed in the pawn broker; hence Raskolnikov feels justified in killing the pawn broker, but really it should come as no surprise that he ends up killing Lizaveta as well, that is, IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO ELIMINATE PURE EVIL, one inevitably takes some good away with it too. THIS is Raskolnikov's crime, the taking away of good in the form of Lizaveta. (Incidentally, Lizaveta Ivanovna's name is meant to bring up reminisces of the character of the same name in Pushkin's Queen of Spades; Dostoevsky was a great admirer of Pushkin.) After this crime, Raskolnikov loses sanity (it seems to me that Dostoevsky is trying to say that insanity cannot be held off by reason alone; one need loving belief as well), and eventually, although he does not know it at the time, confesses out of love for the Christ-like character of Sonia (short for Sofia, which is wisdom in Greek), and eventually, in one of the most beautiful and touching endings of ANY novels, his soul is redeemed by faith and love; even though he is sentenced to seven years in a Siberian prison camp, he and Sonia look on it as if it were seven days, and eagerly anticipate their freedom together. Although much of the novel is set in depressing circumstances, for me there is no other novel (even perhaps the great and still more philosophical Brothers Karamazov) which is as much sheer fun to read. As if this were not enough, this edition is absolutely first rate; the notes are very helpful and Dostoevsky's letters regarding this work together with the critical appraisals of Crime and Punishment (I LOVE Tolstoy's essay; it rings so true) particularly illuminating. I feel it is the duty of any educated person to read this book intelligently; I guarantee you, you will get new meaning out of this compact masterpiece every time you do so.
Rating:
Summary: Backgrounds and Sources
Review: I found the criticism at the back of the Norton edition especially useful. Raskolnikov's Crime comes not in the murder of his "louse upon society," an old moneylender, but in the accidental death of her innocent sister. Also, smaller crime pop up unexpectedly throughout the book when he realizes the futility and inadequacy of his actions in the "master scope of life." He is not, as he had hoped, the great transgressor of moral laws, but instead simply another mortal in a world full of disgusting mortals.
Punishment in this book takes any number of forms. Raskolnikov it set loose into the vices of Fate and Guilt as a bare soul without feeling, religion, or human connections. This work made Dostoevsky an Existentialist before Existentialism existed. Great contrasts are drawn here in the social discourses that plagued Dostoevsky's Russia.
Suffering and Redemption, both being large moral lessons and results of the book, could equally be the title, but that is for the venturing explorer to find out.
This work was well worth the reading. If you should choose to do so, compare it with a contemporary work: Chernyshevsky's "What Should Be Done?" C&P was largely written as a response to Chernyshevsky's radicalism.
Rating:
Summary: I love this quote from this book
Review: Love does not conquer all, it is all. I had to read this for my next year's English AP class, it's part of the summer reading course, and I got a jumpt start on it. Very complex book but like Joyce and Tolstoy's works, the satisfaction you get when you finish it is just pure ecstacy
Rating:
Summary: I love this quote from this book
Review: Love dose not conquer all, it is all. I had to read this for my next year's English AP class, it's part of the summer reading course, and I got a jumpt start on it. Very complex book but like Joyce and Tolstoy's works, the satisfaction you get when you finish it is just pure ecstacy
Rating: 
Summary: Looking for a Tough Jigsaw Puzzle?
Review: Then Crime and Punishment is for you! This book entertains a serious literary reader with its complex plots and characters. The story of a murderer in a denial confuses the reader with his mentality and motives. Although I did give this novel 4 stars for Dostoevsky's writing but this book didn't click very well with me because I am more of a romance reader. I read this for a Russian literature course. One of the things that Dostoevsky has never failed to impress me was the metaphors in this novel. This is a certain metaphor that I thought was the best I've ever read but I can't remember where it is in the novel but I do know that it's after when Duna dumps her fiance. Definitely a great writer to look up for excellent writing and go by his examples!!!
Rating:
Summary: Looking for a Tough Jigsaw Puzzle?
Review: Then Crime and Punishment is for you! This book entertains a serious literary reader with its complex plots and characters. The story of a murderer in a denial confuses the reader with his mentality and motives. Although I did give this novel 4 stars for Dostoevsky's writing but this book didn't click very well with me because I am more of a romance reader. I read this for a Russian literature course. One of the things that Dostoevsky has never failed to impress me was the metaphors in this novel. This is a certain metaphor that I thought was the best I've ever read but I can't remember where it is in the novel but I do know that it's after when Duna dumps her fiance. Definitely a great writer to look up for excellent writing and go by his examples!!!
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