History of creation

The first parts of “Crime and Punishment” first appeared in 1866 in eight issues of the magazine “Russian Messenger”. The novel is published in parts in January-December. Dostoevsky has been working on the novel all year, rushing to add written chapters to the next book of the magazine.

Soon after the publication of the novel in the magazine was completed, Dostoevsky published it in a separate edition: “A novel in six parts with an epilogue by F. M. Dostoevsky. Corrected edition." For this edition, Dostoevsky made significant cuts and changes in the text: three parts of the magazine edition were transformed into six, and the division into chapters was partially changed.

Plot

The plot revolves around the main character, Rodion Raskolnikov, in whose head a theory of the crime is ripening. According to his idea, humanity is divided into “chosen” and “material”. The “chosen ones” (Napoleon is a classic example) have the right to commit a murder or several murders for the sake of future great achievements. Raskolnikov himself is very poor; he cannot pay not only for his studies at the university, but also for his own living expenses. His mother and sister are very poor, he soon finds out that his sister (Avdotya Romanovna) is ready to marry a man she does not love, for the sake of money, for the sake of her brother. This was the last straw, and Raskolnikov commits the deliberate murder of an old money-lender (“louse” by his definition) and the forced murder of her sister, a witness. But Raskolnikov cannot use the stolen goods, he hides them. From this time begins the terrible life of the criminal, a restless, feverish consciousness, his attempts to find support and meaning in life, justification of the act and its evaluation. Subtle psychologism, existential comprehension of Raskolnikov’s act and further existence are colorfully conveyed by Dostoevsky. More and more new faces are involved in the action of the novel. Fate pits him against a lonely, frightened, poor girl, in whom he finds a kindred spirit and support, Sonya Marmeladova, who has taken the path of self-sale due to poverty. Sonya, a believer in God, is trying to somehow hold on in life after losing her parents. Raskolnikov also finds support in his university friend Razumikhin, who is in love with his sister Avdotya Romanovna. Such characters appear as investigator Porfiry Petrovich, who understood Raskolnikov’s soul and wittily led him to clean water, Svidrigailov, libertine and scoundrel - shining example the “chosen” person (according to Raskolnikov’s theory), Luzhin, a lawyer and a cunning egoist, etc. The novel reveals social reasons crimes and disasters, moral contradictions, oppressive circumstances of the fall, the life of the St. Petersburg poor, drunkenness and prostitution is described, dozens of peculiar characters and characters. Throughout the novel, Raskolnikov tries to understand whether he is a worthy person, whether he has the right to judge other people. Unable to bear the burden of his crime, main character confesses to the murder, writing sincere confession. However, he sees the guilt not in the fact that he committed the murder, but in the fact that he committed it without appreciating his inner weakness and pitiful cowardice. He renounces the claim to being chosen. Raskolnikov ends up in hard labor, but Sonya remains next to him. These two lonely people found each other at a very difficult time in their lives. In the end, the hero finds support in love and religious consciousness.

Scene

The novel takes place in the summer in St. Petersburg.

Characters

• Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov, a mendicant former student, the protagonist of the story. He believes that he has the moral right to commit crimes and murder is only the first step on an uncompromising road that will lead him to the top. Unconsciously chooses as a victim the weakest and most defenseless member of society, justifying this by the insignificance of the life of an old money-lender, after whose murder he is faced with a severe psychological shock: murder does not make a person “the chosen one.”
• Pulcheria Alexandrovna Raskolnikova, mother of Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov, comes to him in St. Petersburg in the hope of marrying her daughter to Luzhin and settling family life. Disappointment in Luzhin, fear for life and peace of mind Rodion, her daughter’s misfortune leads her to illness and death.
• Avdotya Romanovna Raskolnikova, sister of Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov. A smart, beautiful, chaste girl, in love with her brother to the point of self-sacrifice. Has the habit of walking from corner to corner around the room in moments of thoughtfulness. In the struggle for his happiness, she was ready to agree to a marriage of convenience, but she could not make contact with Luzhin for the sake of his salvation. Marries Razumikhin, finding in him sincere and loving person, his brother's true comrade.
• Pyotr Petrovich Luzhin, fiancé of Avdotya Romanovna Raskolnikova, lawyer, enterprising and selfish businessman. Avdotya Romanovna's fiancé, who wanted to make her his slave, owing her position and well-being to him. Hostility towards Raskolnikov and the desire to quarrel between him and his family underpin an attempt to dishonor Marmeladova and falsify the theft allegedly committed against her.
• Dmitry Prokofievich Razumikhin, former student, friend of Raskolnikov. Strong, cheerful, smart guy, sincere and spontaneous. Deep love and affection for Raskolnikov explains his concern for him. He falls in love with Dunechka and proves his love with his help and support. Marries Duna.
• Semyon Zakharovich Marmeladov, former titular councilor, degenerate drunkard, alcoholic. It reflects the features of the heroes of Dostoevsky’s unwritten novel “The Drunken Ones,” to which the writing of the novel genetically dates back. Sonya Marmeladova's father, himself burdened by his addiction to alcohol, is a weak, weak-willed man who, however, loves his children. Crushed by a horse.
• Katerina Ivanovna Marmeladova, wife Semyon Zakharovich Marmeladova, staff officer's daughter. A sick woman, forced to raise three children alone, is not entirely healthy mentally. After her husband’s difficult funeral, undermined by constant work, worries and illness, she goes crazy and dies.
• Sonya Semyonovna Marmeladova, daughter of Semyon Zakharovich Marmeladov from his first marriage, a girl desperate for self-sale. Despite this type of occupation, she is a sensitive, timid and shy girl, forced to earn money in such an unsightly way. She understands Rodion’s suffering, finds in him support in life, and the strength to make him a man again. She follows him to Siberia and becomes his lifelong girlfriend.
• Arkady Ivanovich Svidrigailov, nobleman, former officer, landowner. Libertine, scoundrel, cheater. It is introduced in contrast to Raskolnikov as an example of a person who stops at nothing to achieve his goals and does not think for a second about methods and “his right” (Rodion talks about such people in his theory). Avdotya Romanovna became the object of Svidrigailov’s passion. An attempt to gain her favor through the help of Rodion was unsuccessful. Sliding into madness and the abyss of depravity, despite his terrible fear of death, he shoots himself in the temple.
• Marfa Petrovna Svidrigailova, his late wife, of whose murder Arkady Ivanovich is suspected, according to whom she appeared to him as a ghost. She donated three thousand rubles to Dunya, which allowed Dunya to reject Luzhin as a groom.
• Andrey Semyonovich Lebezyatnikov, a young man serving in the ministry. A “progressive”, a utopian socialist, but a stupid person who does not fully understand and exaggerates many of the ideas of building communes. Luzhin's neighbor.
• Porfiry Petrovich, bailiff of investigative cases. A seasoned master of his craft, a subtle psychologist who saw through Raskolnikov and invited him to confess to the murder himself. But he was unable to prove Rodion’s guilt due to lack of evidence.
• Amalia Ludvigovna (Ivanovna) Lippevehzel, I rented out an apartment to Lebezyatnikov, Luzhin, and Marmeladov. A stupid and quarrelsome woman, proud of her father, whose origins are generally unknown.
• Alena Ivanovna, collegiate secretary, pawnbroker. A dry and vicious old woman, killed by Raskolnikov.
• Lizaveta Ivanovna, stepsister Alena Ivanovna, an accidental witness to the murder, killed by Raskolnikov.
• Zosimov, doctor, friend of Razumikhin

Film adaptations

Based on the novel, films and films have been repeatedly filmed. cartoons. The most famous of them:

• Crime and Punishment(English) Crime and Punishment) (1935, USA featuring Peter Lorre, Edward Arnold and Marian Marsh);
• Crime and Punishment(fr. Crime et Châtiment) (1956, France directed by Georges Lampin, with the participation of Jean Gabin, Marina Vlady and Robert Hossein);
• Crime and Punishment(1969, USSR, with the participation of Georgy Taratorkin, Innokenty Smoktunovsky, Tatyana Bedova, Victoria Fedorova);
• Crime and Punishment(English) Crime and Punishment) (1979, short film starring Timothy West, Vanessa Redgrave and John Hurt);
• Shock(English) Astonished) (1988, USA with Lilian Komorowska, Tommy Hollis and Ken Ryan);
• Crime and Punishment of Dostoevsky(English) Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment ) (1998, USA, TV movie starring Patrick Dempsey, Ben Kingsley and Julie Delpy);
• Crime and Punishment(English) Crime and Punishment) (2002, USA-Russia-Poland)
• Crime and Punishment(2007, Russia, with the participation of Vladimir Koshevoy, Andrey Panin, Alexander Baluev and Elena Yakovleva).

Theater productions

The novel has been dramatized many times in Russia and abroad. The first attempt to dramatize the novel by A. S. Ushakov in 1867 did not take place due to the ban on censorship. The first production that took place in Russia dates back to 1899. The first known foreign production took place at the Odeon Theater in Paris ().

Translations

The first Polish translation (Zbrodnia i kara) was published in 1887-88.

Illustrations

Notes

see also

Links

• “Crime and Punishment” - text in the School Library (Word compatible format, transparent archiving when opened)
• “Crime and Punishment” Dostoevsky (summary, main characters) in the School Library
• Elena Dryzhakov: Time segmentation in the novel Crime and Punishment
• Maria Loseva, “Some aspects of the maternal and paternal complex in Crime and Punishment”

Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

F. M. Dostoevsky nurtured the idea of ​​the novel “Crime and Punishment” for six years: in October 1859 he wrote to his brother: “In December I will begin a novel... do you remember, I told you about one confession - a novel that I wanted to write after everyone, saying that I still have to go through it myself. The other day I completely decided to write it immediately... My whole heart will pour into this novel. I conceived it in hard labor, lying on a bunk, in a difficult moment..." - judging by the writer’s letters and notebooks, we are talking specifically about the ideas of “Crime and Punishment” - the novel initially existed in the form of Raskolnikov’s confession. In Dostoevsky's draft notebooks there is the following entry: “He killed Aleko. The consciousness that he himself is unworthy of his ideal, which torments his soul. This is crime and punishment” (we are talking about Pushkin’s “Gypsies”).

The final plan is formed as a result of the great upheavals that Dostoevsky experienced, and this plan united two initially different creative ideas.

After the death of his brother, Dostoevsky finds himself in dire financial need. The threat of debtor's prison hangs over him. Throughout the year, Fyodor Mikhailovich was forced to turn to St. Petersburg moneylenders, interest-bearers and other creditors.

In July 1865, he proposed a new work to the editor of Otechestvennye Zapiski, A.A. Kraevsky: “My novel is called “Drunken” and will be in connection with the current issue of drunkenness. Not only the issue is examined, but all its ramifications are presented, mainly paintings families, raising children in this environment, and so on... and so on." Due to financial difficulties, Kraevsky did not accept the proposed novel, and Dostoevsky went abroad to concentrate on creative work, but history repeats itself there: in Wiesbaden, Dostoevsky loses everything at roulette, even his pocket watch.

In September 1865, addressing the publisher M. N. Katkov in the magazine “Russian Bulletin”, Dostoevsky sets out the idea of ​​the novel as follows: “This is a psychological report of a crime. The action is modern, this year. A young man expelled from university students, a tradesman in origin and living in extreme poverty, due to frivolity, due to unsteadiness in concepts, succumbing to some strange, “unfinished” ideas that were floating in the air, he decided to get out of his bad situation at once. He decided to kill one old woman, a titular adviser who gave money for interest. ... in order to make her mother, who lives in the district, happy, to save her sister, who lives as a companion with some landowners, from the voluptuous claims of the head of this landowner family - claims that threaten her with death, to complete the course, go abroad and then be all her life honest, firm, unswerving in the fulfillment of the “humane duty to humanity”, which, of course, will “make up for the crime”, if only this act against an old woman who is deaf, stupid, evil and sick, who herself does not know why she lives on light and which in a month, perhaps, would have died of its own accord...

He spends almost a month before the final disaster. There is not and cannot be any suspicion against him. This is where the entire psychological process of the crime unfolds. Unsolvable questions arise before the killer, unsuspected and unexpected feelings torment his heart. God's truth, earthly law takes its toll, and he ends up being forced to denounce himself. Forced to die at hard labor, but to join people again, the feeling of isolation and disconnection from humanity, which he felt immediately after committing the crime, tormented him. The law of truth and human nature took their toll. The criminal himself decides to accept torment in order to atone for his deed..."

Katkov immediately sends the author an advance. F. M. Dostoevsky works on the novel all autumn, but at the end of November he burns all the drafts: “... a lot was written and ready; I burned everything... new form, new plan I got carried away and started again."

In February 1866, Dostoevsky informed his friend A.E. Wrangel: “Two weeks ago, the first part of my novel was published in the January book of the Russian Messenger. It’s called Crime and Punishment. I’ve already heard a lot of enthusiastic reviews. There are brave and new things".

In the fall of 1866, when Crime and Punishment was almost ready, Dostoevsky began again: according to the contract with the publisher Stellovsky, he was supposed to present it by November 1 new novel(we are talking about “The Player”), and in case of failure to fulfill the contract, the publisher will have the right for 9 years “for free and as he pleases” to print everything that is written by Dostoevsky.

By the beginning of October, Dostoevsky had not yet begun to write The Player, and his friends advised him to turn to the help of shorthand, which at that time was just beginning to come into use. The young stenographer Anna Grigorievna Snitkina, invited by Dostoevsky, was the best student of the St. Petersburg stenography courses; she was distinguished by her extraordinary intelligence, strong character and deep interest in literature. "The Player" was completed on time and delivered to the publisher, and Snitkina soon became the writer's wife and assistant. In November and December 1866, Dostoevsky dictated to Anna Grigorievna the last, sixth part and epilogue of Crime and Punishment, which were published in the December issue of the Russian Messenger magazine, and in March 1867 the novel was published as a separate edition.

Dostoevsky's novel Crime and Punishment became the main literary event of the second half of the 60s. XIX century. At first glance, ordinary Detective story about the murder of an old pawnbroker for the purpose of easy and quick profit turned into a very deep philosophical reflection about the boundaries of human freedom and living conditions in the author’s contemporary metropolitan Petersburg.

The concept and idea of ​​the novel

The novel was conceived by Dostoevsky during his stay in Siberian penal servitude. For participation in the Petrashevsky riot, the writer was sentenced to death penalty, but in last moment By order of the emperor, execution was replaced by exile and hard labor. Without the opportunity to write, Dostoevsky had enough time to formulate a plan and outline a rough plan for the development of the plot.

“Crime and Punishment” is a description of the history of the moral transformation of a strong personality, indifferent to social conventions and devoid of self-reflection. Characteristic is the frequent mention of great people of the past, especially Napoleon, with whom Raskolnikov openly compares himself. “Crime and Punishment”, in addition, raises another topic: this strong personality commits a crime not only to prove your self-sufficiency, but also for the sake of the possibility of instant enrichment. These two aspects formed the basis of Dostoevsky's idea.

Sources for writing

When writing the novel, the author used both his previous experience in the novel genre and real events. The following components that make up the work can be noted:

• Unfinished novel "Drunks". It was his characters and storylines that served as the basis for describing the life of the Marmeladov family.
• The crime of the Old Believer, otherwise, the schismatic Gerasim Chistov, a resident of Moscow. For the purpose of robbery, Chistov entered the apartment of two elderly women and, confronting them, hacked both of them to death with an ax.

Structure of the work and its content

The novel consists of six parts, divided into chapters, and an epilogue. A bunch of storylines And wide circle The problems raised hinder attempts to present the content of the work in a concise form. Analysis of psychology and behavior characters in a given situation became business card Dostoevsky, as can be seen already from the first novel from his Pentateuch - “Crime and Punishment”.

Part 1: plot and characterization of heroes

Since the first parts are the plot of the plot and the exposition of the main characters of the novel, it is advisable to present their contents chapter by chapter:

Part 2: developments

The events described in the second part have especially important to understand the essence of the novel:

Part 3: detective component

The further content of the work “Crime and Punishment” is entirely devoted to the detective component.

Raskolnikov demands that his sister call off the wedding, but she refuses. After a tense conversation, the mother and Dunya return to the hotel, where Razumikhin visits them the next morning. They discuss the current situation, in particular, Pulcheria Alexandrovna asks for advice on what to do with Luzhin’s request to visit them in Raskolnikov’s absence. Dunya believes that brother must attend the meeting.

Sonya comes to Raskolnikov's apartment with the goal of inviting him to the funeral. Mother and sister already know that the young man gave all his money for Marmeladov’s funeral, and they are aware of Sonya’s position in society. Despite this, Raskolnikov officially introduces them to each other, and Dunya even bows to Sonya.

After this, Raskolnikov goes to the police to find out how he can get the pledged items. During the conversation, it becomes clear that he is also a suspect. Investigator Porfiry Petrovich recalls that Raskolnikov had previously published an article about the division of people into ordinary and extraordinary, who, among other things, have the right to kill.

Upon his return, Raskolnikov encounters a man outside his house who calls him a murderer. Nerves young man at the limit, he dreams of a third nightmare, in which he hits the old woman with an ax, but she does not die, but laughs incessantly. Raskolnikov tries to escape, but the crowd surrounding him prevents him from doing so. Waking up, he finds Svidrigailov in his room.

Part 4: Raising Lazarus

Svidrigailov's goal is to meet Dunya, and Raskolnikov must help him. Rodion refuses and a little later, together with Razumikhin, goes to his mother, where Luzhin is already there. He is annoyed by the violation of his wishes, creates a scandal, after which Dunya drives the groom away.

After this, Raskolnikov visits Sonya. Finding the Gospel open to the page that tells the story of the resurrection of Lazarus, he asks the girl to read the story to him. When Sonya fulfills the request, Raskolnikov bows to her and promises to tell her the next day who killed the pawnbroker and her sister. But before telling the story, he again comes to the police to get his things, and is faced with the investigator’s attempts to trick him into admitting guilt. In his hearts, Raskolnikov demands to openly call him guilty, but Porfiry Petrovich does not do this. A previously arrested dyer is accidentally brought into the office and confesses to the murder.

Part 5: Luzhin's revenge and Raskolnikov's confession

Luzhin wants to take revenge on Raskolnikov for the ruined wedding and slips 100 rubles into Sonya’s pocket. The Marmeladovs arrange a funeral, to which no one came. Gradually, a quarrel boils between Katerina Ivanovna and the landlady over the invitees, and in the midst of it, Luzhin appears. He accuses Sonya of theft, and the money, of course, is found in the girl’s pocket. Lebezyatnikov, Luzhin’s neighbor, states that he personally saw him put money in his pocket, but the landlady doesn’t care kicks out the whole family.

Raskolnikov stays with Sonya and lets her know that he is the murderer. The girl is sympathetic to this and promises to go to hard labor with him if he confesses. The conversation is interrupted by the news that Katerina Ivanovna has gone crazy and is running through the streets with her children. Sonya and Raskolnikov try to stop the woman, but she is overtaken by a fatal attack of consumption. Svidrigailov agrees to pay for the funeral, citing the fact that he heard all the conversations between Sonya and Raskolnikov.

Part 6: denouement

The investigator comes to Raskolnikov's apartment and directly states that he considers him a murderer. Porfiry Petrovich offers to confess in two days. During this time, Rodion meets with Svidrigailov, from whom he learns that he is deeply in love with his sister, but nothing can happen between them.

After the conversation, Svidrigailov comes to Duna and says that her brother is a killer. He offers to organize an escape and help financially if she agrees to be his mistress. Dunya tries to leave, but the door is locked. Then the girl shoots at Svidrigailov, but misses. After this, he releases Dunya. Shocked by what happened, Svidrigailov gives Sonya the money that she and Raskolnikov will need in hard labor, rents a hotel room and shoots himself to death with Dunya’s revolver.

Raskolnikov says goodbye to his mother, sister and Sonya, kisses the ground at the crossroads and confesses to the murder. After this, he goes to the police, where he repeats his confession.

Epilogue

Raskolnikov is serving his sentence in Siberian penal servitude. Sonya, as promised, went after him. Dunya and Razumikhin got married, and Pulcheria Alexandrovna soon died of longing for her son. Raskolnikov keeps himself apart from the rest of the prisoners, everyone free time spending time thinking about how mediocrely he disposed of his life.

Creative history creation of the novel “Crime and Punishment”

Background of the novel

“Crime and Punishment” was created in 1865-1866. But at the same time, this is the result of many years of Dostoevsky’s earlier thoughts. From his letters to A.N. Maikov and M. M. Dostoevsky, we know that even at hard labor, a “big final... story” was taking shape in the writer’s creative mind (letter to A. N. Maikov dated January 18, 1856). Its plan was replaced by a number of other romantic plans that remained unfulfilled or were realized, due to the conditions of Dostoevsky’s life and writing in the 1850s and early 1860s, only in a truncated form compared to the original, broader plans. As you might think, the plot of “Crime and Punishment” absorbed many elements from these earlier plans that were not realized at the time.

The fact that one of the central ideas of the novel was fully formed by 1863 is evidenced by the diary of A.P. Suslova. Here, on September 17, 1863, A.P. Suslova, who was at that time with Dostoevsky in Italy, in Turin, made the following entry: “When we were having dinner (at the hotel), he (Dostoevsky), looking at the girl who was taking lessons , said: “Well, imagine, such a girl with an old man, and suddenly some Napoleon says: “Exterminate the whole city.” “It has always been like this in the world.”

This recording is the first documentary evidence that introduces us to the circle of basic philosophical ideas of the future “Crime and Punishment”. However, Dostoevsky turned to creative work on the novel and thinking about its plot later. Murashova, O.A. Theme of sin and punishment, or “Psychological report of one crime.” Literature at school. - 2006. - No. 9. - pp. 25-28

A significant step on the path that brought the author closer to Crime and Punishment was the work on Notes from the Underground. The tragedy of the thinking hero-individualist, his proud rapture of his “idea” and defeat in the face of “living life”, the embodiment of which in “Notes” is the direct predecessor of Sonya Marmeladova, a girl from a brothel, whose image in “Notes”, however, is does not yet carry the deep philosophical and ethical load that the image of Sonya carries - these basic general outlines“Notes” is directly prepared by “Crime and Punishment”.

The next link known to us in the history of the development of the plan for “Crime and Punishment” is the plan for the novel “Drunks,” conceived in 1864. The only note to it that has reached us is in a notebook dated 1861-1864.

Back in 1847, in the Petersburg Chronicle, Dostoevsky wrote about the “thirst for activity” and the lack of preconditions for it as a painful phenomenon characteristic of Russian post-Petrine society. This topic received further development in the articles of Dostoevsky’s period “Time”, where the separation of educated society and the people in Russia after Peter’s reform became for Dostoevsky the central tragic knot of Russian life. She was supposed to be one of the main ones in the novel “Drunk People”. The sketch says that the decline of “morality” in Russia is associated with the absence of “deeds” for 150 years, that is, since the time of Peter I.

In June 1865, Dostoevsky proposed the planned novel to the publisher of St. Petersburg Gazette, V. F. Korsh, and to Otechestvennye Zapiski, A. A. Kraevsky. He wrote to Kraevsky on June 8: “I am asking for 3,000 rubles. now, forward to the novel, which I undertake to formally deliver to the editorial office of Otechestvennye Zapiski no later than the first of the month October of this year. My novel is called “Drunk People” and will be in connection with the current issue of drunkenness. Not only the issue is examined, but all its ramifications are presented, mainly pictures of families, raising children in this environment, etc., etc. - There will be at least 20 sheets , but maybe more. For a sheet 150 rubles... (For “The House of the Dead” I received 250 rubles each in “Russian World”).” - due to the lack of money and a large supply of fiction from the editors, even earlier, on June 5, Korsh wrote two letters at once, personal and official, also with an actual refusal.

There is no doubt that Dostoevsky proposed a work that had not yet been written, and hardly even begun. Almost simultaneously with his appeal to A. A. Kraevsky, he wrote to the chairman of the Literary Fund, E. P. Kovalevsky, asking for 600 rubles before February 1, 1866 and talking about his hard work on the magazine “Epoch” after the death of his brother: “... With all this work I didn’t have time to write almost a single line. I have now started a job for which I can only get money in the fall. It is necessary to complete this work as soon as possible in order to begin, after receiving money, to pay off debts.”

It is possible that Dostoevsky made, as usual, notes for the novel in a notebook from the first half of 1865, which was subsequently lost. He reported this loss on May 9, 1866 to his friend A.E. Wrangel, asking him to recall the amount of last year’s debt: “... notebook I lost mine and remember my debt approximately, but not exactly.”

On July 2, 1865, Dostoevsky, experiencing dire need, was forced to enter into an agreement with the publisher F. T. Stellovsky. For the same three thousand rubles, which Kraevsky refused to pay for the novel, Dostoevsky sold Stellovsky the right to publish the complete collection of his works in three volumes and, in addition, was obliged to write for him a new novel of at least ten pages by November 1, 1866. The contract was enslaving, but it allowed me to pay off priority debts and go abroad for the summer. Three months later, Dostoevsky noted in a letter to A.E. Wrangel that he “went abroad to improve his health and write something.” He added: “I wrote to write, but my health got worse.” Belov S.V. Roman F.M. Dostoevsky "Crime and Punishment". M., Education, 1984, p. 237-245

Having left The Drunken Ones, Dostoevsky conceived a story abroad, the idea of ​​which was the seed of the future Crime and Punishment. In September 1865, he offered it to the publisher of the Russian Messenger, M. N. Katkov. Before this, the writer had never been published in Katkov’s magazine. The very idea to now contact the Russian Messenger was, in all likelihood, given by Princess N.P. Shalikova, a writer (pseudonyms E. Narekaya and P. Gorka), a distant relative of Katkov. In a later letter to Dostoevsky (1873), she recalled “a meeting in Wiesbaden with Fr. Yanyshev" (the local priest) and "a short, completely sincere conversation in the alleys of Wiesbaden."

Dostoevsky did not immediately decide to contact Russky Vestnik. In August 1865, he still hoped to receive an advance for the story and for the promised “Letters from Abroad” from the “Library for Reading.” Co-publisher of the magazine II. N. Voskoboynikov (publisher was P. D. Boborykin) wrote 12 (24) August in Wiesbaden: “You cannot expect money from the editors of the “Library for Reading” before the end of Russian August. When I get it, I will hasten to send them to you, and I humbly ask you to make this easier for me either with your story, or with your letters, and also the better and others. All this would be an acquisition for us, but for me personally it would still be a great joy... In conclusion, I humbly ask you to allow me to send you at least a hundred francs, before August 26th, if they have accumulated with us, which, however, is unreliable.” . Having not received money from the “Library for Reading”, Dostoevsky wrote from Wiesbaden at the beginning of September to his old acquaintance (from the time of Petrashevsky’s circle) L.P. Milyukov. The letter has not survived, but in his memoirs Miliukov recounts its contents and quotes: “I’m sitting in a hotel, I have to go around, and they threaten me; not a penny of money"; the plot of the planned story “expanded and became rich.” Then came the request “to sell the story anywhere, but only with the condition that 300 rubles be sent immediately.” Miliukov visited the editors of Library for Reading, Sovremennik, and Otechestvennye Zapiski; I was refused everywhere. Almi I.L. About one of the sources of the concept of the novel “Crime and Punishment”. Literature at school. - 2001. - No. 5. - pp. 16-18.

Belova, the text of Dostoevsky’s letter to Katkov is unknown. But the letter was sent, since in October 1865 the requested money was sent to Dostoevsky by the editors of the Russian Messenger. Later, in November - December, when the idea was transformed during the work and the story turned into a novel, complications arose due to the size of the fee; at first, 300 rubles in advance for the story were sent to the author immediately. True, Dostoevsky did not receive this money in a timely manner. They came to Wiesbaden when the writer had already left there, and were sent to him by I. L. Yanyshev in St. Petersburg.

Dostoevsky attached to his letter to the publisher of the Russian Messenger great importance: in the notebook with preparatory materials for the novel there is a draft of it. These few pages are of the first importance in dating the early stages of the work and in giving an idea of ​​its character. Dostoevsky wrote to Katkov:

“Can I hope to publish my story in your magazine R(usskiy)V(estnik)?”

I have been writing it here in Wiesbaden for 2 months and now I am finishing it. It will contain five to six printed sheets. There is still another two weeks of work left, maybe even more. In any case, I can say for sure that in a month, and no later, it could be delivered to the editorial office of "R (us) V (estn)ka". Altman M. S. Dostoevsky. According to the milestones of names. M., 1975, pp. 67-68

The idea of ​​the story cannot, as far as I can assume, contradict your magazine in any way; even the opposite. This is a psychological report of one crime. The action is modern, this year. A young man, expelled from the university students, a philistine by birth and living in extreme poverty, out of frivolity, but unsteadiness in concepts, succumbing to some strange, “unfinished” ideas that were floating in the air, decided to get out of his bad situation at once. He decided to kill one old woman, a titular adviser, who gives money for interest. The old woman is stupid, deaf, sick, greedy, takes Jewish interest, is evil and eats up someone else’s life, tormenting her younger sister as a worker: “She is good for nothing,” “what is she for.” lives?", "Is it useful to anyone?" etc. - these questions confuse the young man. He decides to kill her, rob her, in order to make his mother, who lives in the district, happy, to save his sister, who lives as a companion with some landowners, from the voluptuous claims of the head of this landowner family - claims that threaten her death - to finish the course, to go abroad and then be honest, firm, unswerving throughout your life in fulfilling your “humane duty to humanity” - which, of course, will “make amends for the crime,” if you can call this act against an old deaf, stupid, evil and sick woman a crime, she herself does not know why she lives in the world, and in a month, perhaps, she would die of her own accord. Kunarev, A.A. Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov, or the Mystery of the “Former Student”. Russian language. - 2002. - No. 1. - pp. 76-81

Despite the fact that such crimes are terribly difficult to commit - that is, they almost always expose ends, evidence, etc. to the point of rudeness. and they leave an awful lot to chance, which always almost betrays the culprit; he - completely by chance - manages to complete his undertaking both quickly and successfully.

He spends almost a month after that until the final catastrophe; there is no suspicion of him and there cannot be any. This is where the entire psychological process of the crime unfolds. Unsolvable questions arise before the killer, unsuspected and unexpected feelings torment his heart. God's truth, earthly law takes its toll, and it ends up forced bring it on yourself. Forced to die in hard labor, but to join the people again; the feeling of isolation and disconnection from humanity, which he felt immediately after committing the crime, tormented him. The law of truth and human nature took their toll, killing convictions, even without resistance). The criminal himself decides to accept torment in order to atone for his deed. However, it is difficult for me to fully explain my thought.

In my story there is, moreover, a hint of the idea that the legal punishment imposed for a crime is much less frightening to the criminal than legislators think, partly because he himself his morally demands.

I have seen this even in the most undeveloped people, in the rudest accidents. I wanted to express this specifically on a developed person, on a new generation, so that the thought would be brighter and more tangible. Several cases that were at the very Lately, convinced that plot Mine is not eccentric at all, just that the killer is a well-developed and even well-inclined (young) person. I was told last year in Moscow (correctly) about one student expelled from the university after the Moscow Student History - that he decided to break the mail and kill the postman. There are still many traces in your newspapers about the extraordinary instability of concepts that lead to terrible deeds. (The seminarian who killed the girl by agreement with her in the barn and who was captured an hour later at breakfast, etc.). In a word, I am convinced that my plot partly justifies modernity.

It goes without saying that I have missed the entire plot in this present presentation of the idea of ​​my story. I vouch for the entertainment, but I don’t take it upon myself to judge the artistry of the performance. I have happened too many times to write very, very bad things, in a hurry, on deadline, etc. However, I wrote this piece slowly and passionately. I'll try at least for myself only, finish it as best as possible.”

Without touching on what was particularly difficult in the work - the search for the right tone, artistic form, Dostoevsky defined in detail the contents and main idea stories. A “psychological report” about a crime that was born under the influence of modern “unfinished ideas”, and about the moral repentance of the criminal, who was thus convinced of the inconsistency of these ideas - this is the main meaning of the story. Even at this stage of the work, it did not assume that huge social background that was present in the concept of “The Drunken Ones” and was included in the novel “Crime as Punishment” with Marmeladov’s line. The title of the story is not in the letter; since the entry of its beginning in the notebook has been lost, it remains unknown to us. Perhaps it didn’t exist at that time. Dostoevsky, F.M. Full collection Op. in 30 volumes. L., 1972-1990, vol. 7, p. 387-399

In addition to the letter to Katkov, two September letters have survived To A.E. Wrangel with evidence of work on the story. On September 10 (22), talking about his plight and asking for a loan of 100 thalers, Dostoevsky wrote: “I hoped for my story, which I write day and night. But instead of 3 sheets, it stretched into 6, and the work is still not finished. True, for me more money I’ll have to, but in any case I won’t receive them from Russia before a month. Until then? There are already threats from the police here. What should I do?" Six days later, in a letter dated September 28, 1865, Dostoevsky thanked Wrangel for the money he had sent, talked about the letter to Katkov and about his work: “Meanwhile, the story that I am writing now will, perhaps, be better than all that I wrote if they give me time to finish it. O my friend! You won’t believe what a pain it is to write to order.”

This exhausts the epistolary and memoir evidence relating to the first - foreign - period of work. Its most significant, internal, creative side is revealed through the author’s manuscripts. Dostoevsky, F.M. Full collection Op. in 30 volumes. L., 1972-1990, vol. 7, p. 410-412

For six years, F. M. Dostoevsky developed the concept of the novel “Crime and Punishment,” just during his hard labor. That is why the first thought was to write about Raskolnikov’s ordeals. The story was not supposed to be big, but still a whole novel arose.

In 1865, Dostoevsky told the idea of ​​his novel with the title “Drunken” to the publisher of the magazine “Domestic Notes” A. A. Kraevsky, demanding three thousand rubles in advance. To which Fyodor Mikhailovich was refused.

Without a penny in his pocket, Dostoevsky enters into a slave agreement with the publishing house of F. T. Stellovsky. According to the contract, the poor writer is obliged to transfer the right to publish full meetings your work in three volumes, and also submit a new novel on ten pages within a year. For this, Dostoevsky received three thousand rubles and, having paid off his debts, left for Germany.

Being a gambling person, Fyodor Mikhailovich is left without money, and subsequently without food and light. It was this condition of his that helped bring into being a work that became known throughout the world.

The new idea of ​​the novel was the story of the repentance for the crime of one poor student who killed a greedy old woman pawnbroker. Three people became the prototypes for creating the plot: G. Chistov, A. T. Neofitov and P. F. Lasener. They were all young criminals of the time. In the same 1865, Dostoevsky did not find a balance between his thoughts, and as a result, he burned the first draft of the work.

Already at the beginning of 1866, the first part of “Crime and Punishment” was published. Inspired by the success, all six parts of the novel appeared in the Russian Messenger that same year. In parallel with this, Dostoevsky creates the novel “The Gambler,” which was promised to Stellovsky.

When creating the novel “Crime and Punishment,” three draft notebooks were created that describe all the author’s working stages.

“Crime and Punishment” reveals two main topics: the commission of the crime itself and the consequences of this action on the criminal. This is where the title of the work came from.

The main goal of the novel is to reveal the feelings for the life of the main character Raskolnikov, for what purpose he committed murder. Dostoevsky was able to show how feelings of love and hatred for people resist in one person. And in the end, receive forgiveness from all the people.

F. M. Dostoevsky’s novel “Crime and Punishment” teaches its reader to find human sincerity, love and compassion under all the dark masks of the surrounding society.

Several interesting essays

Ever since early childhood I liked the profession of a designer. What I like most about it is that I can show my full creative potential to the fullest.

• The image and characteristics of Vera Almazova in the story The Lilac Bush by Kuprin

  One of the main characters of the work is Vera Almazova, presented by the writer in the image of the wife of the protagonist of the story of the poor officer Nikolai Almazov.

• Essay about the city of my dreams

  The city of my dreams is very interesting topic for thought. The city where I live is far from a modern and comfortable city. And every time we are not happy with something in our city

• Analysis of Chekhov's story Gooseberry essay grade 10

  The amazing and unique Anton Pavlovich Chekhov is famous for his unsurpassed stories that touch to the core. The work Gooseberry is not deprived of deep meaning.

• The image of Kuligin in the play Groz Ostrovsky essay

  Among the heroes of A. Ostrovsky’s play “The Thunderstorm,” Kuligin is one of the key figures, although not the main one. A self-taught mechanic, he really looks at the processes taking place in the town. Kuligin understands that changes are needed in life