Comparing Dostoevsky's Crime And Punishment
The novel Crime and Punishment by Feodor Dostoevsky is set in nineteenth century, St. Petersburg. The historical and political events that occurred before and around Dostoevsky's life heavily influenced his writing through his emphasis on Russia’s economic status and social standards. At the beginning of the eighteenth century, Peter the Great (r. 1682–1725) “had opened Russia's "window on the West," both literally through his foundation of the new capital of St. Petersburg..” “..and less tangibly through his promotion of Western culture and technology to develop Russia's economy and society” (Waldron). Considering that St. Petersburg was made the new capital before Dostoevsky’s lifetime, we can tell the progression of Russia’s economy through
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“Surfs comprised about 40 percent of the Russian population,” (“Alexander II”). The serfdom system at the time made peasants dependent on the nobility. It was not until March 3, 1861 that things started to change; Alexander I issued his decree for serfs to be freed. The emancipation made it possible for peasants to buy land from their landlords but since the serfs had little to no money, this was not possible for most and many had to rent from their landlords.With serfdom and the emancipation of serfs during Dostoevsky’s lifetime, one can come to the conclusion that this is the reason why he writes about poverty throughout Crime and Punishment. Since many of the people that Raskolnikov encountered fit the description of a serf or peasant this could be why the nobles looked down upon them. For this reason, the upper class such as the “elderly woman of the merchant class,” would feel pity for the poor and give them money like when she gave some to Raskolnikov, thinking he was a poor drunk (Dostoevsky 96). Also, the building that Dostoevsky describes that housed all kinds of “tradespeople--tailors, locksmiths, cooks, various German craftsmen, prostitutes, and so on,” show that what was occurring in Russia at the time influenced the setting in which the novel was written
“Surfs comprised about 40 percent of the Russian population,” (“Alexander II”). The serfdom system at the time made peasants dependent on the nobility. It was not until March 3, 1861 that things started to change; Alexander I issued his decree for serfs to be freed. The emancipation made it possible for peasants to buy land from their landlords but since the serfs had little to no money, this was not possible for most and many had to rent from their landlords.With serfdom and the emancipation of serfs during Dostoevsky’s lifetime, one can come to the conclusion that this is the reason why he writes about poverty throughout Crime and Punishment. Since many of the people that Raskolnikov encountered fit the description of a serf or peasant this could be why the nobles looked down upon them. For this reason, the upper class such as the “elderly woman of the merchant class,” would feel pity for the poor and give them money like when she gave some to Raskolnikov, thinking he was a poor drunk (Dostoevsky 96). Also, the building that Dostoevsky describes that housed all kinds of “tradespeople--tailors, locksmiths, cooks, various German craftsmen, prostitutes, and so on,” show that what was occurring in Russia at the time influenced the setting in which the novel was written