Crime And Punishment Carnivalesque Laughter

The characters also become carnivalesque through laughter. Carnival itself is dualistic, representing both sides of a coin, a paradox within itself. Similarly, laughter is carnival in that it can be dualistic as well. Carnivalistic laughter as Bakhtin defines comes from ritual laughter. Ritual laughter is laughter that arises from a crisis; it is an individual who responds to the crisis with joy and ridicule at the same time (Bakhtin, 127). Carnivalesque laughter brings the character face to face with their dilemmas, liberating their minds from the situation at hand causing them to express true torn emotion. Throughout Crime and Punishment Raskolnikov is consistently trying to prove his belief that one can murder righteously. Yet, his carnivalesque
The pawnbroker’s carnivalesque laughter is Raskolnikov’s unconsciousness demonstrating his defeat and making him face it. Carnivalesque laughter can also been seen with Grushenka in The Brothers Karamazov. Katerina Ivanovna invites Alyosha to visit her at her house and wants to be Alyosha’s friend. She does not want Alyosha to feel uncomfortable; therefore, she invites Grushenka to also visit. During the visit, Grushenka tells Katerina that she will leave Dmitri so that Katerina can be with him. Grushenka tricks Katerina into thinking she will leave Dmitri, and Katerina in a rapture of happiness kisses Grushenka’s hand. In this scene Grushenka gives a carnivalesque laugh, she is all too pleased to bring Katerina onto her level and yet there is an undertone of regret. As Dostoevsky describes, “She [Grushenka] held out her hand with a charming musical, nervous little laugh, watched the “sweet young lady,” and obviously liked having her hand kissed” (Brothers Karamazov 133). The laugh that Grushenka gives is a slight flip in reality caused by the carnival that demonstrates a side to Grushenka that would not have been seen