Completion Note

Something I noticed as I completed Crime and Punishment was the glaring similarity between Raskolnikov's situation and the situation of Dostoevsky himself. For example, in a previous post I mentioned Dostoevsky's imprisonment and initial death sentence. At the last minute, he was pardoned from execution and sentenced to four years imprisonment (and four years military service) instead. Early in the novel, he mentioned that Raskolnikov feeled like "a man sentenced to death who had suddenly and unexpectedly been pardoned" (Dostoevsky, ). Another connection to Dostoevsky's life experience is made when, in Raskolnikov's final moments before confession to the police, it is mentioned that "there are two ways open for Rodion Romanych; a bullet in the head, or Siberia". (Dostoevsky, 500). These were literally Dostoevsky's terms of imprisonment (after being pardoned from 'a bullet in the head', he was sentenced to eight years in 'Siberia'). His sentence is almost identical to Dostoevsky's (eight years in a Siberian labour camp). Raskolnikov's spiteful seclusion from people is also analogous to Dostoevsky's 14 year period of secluded writing (the exact same time Crime and Punishment was written). This is further evidence that Dostoevsky based Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov on himself.