Rhetorical Stance and Literary Techniques: Fyodor Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment
Literary Analysis - Prose. The following is an excerpt from Fyodor Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment. Dostoevsky uses his story to explain how when a someone commits a crime, a guilty conscience and un-confessed sin causes more torment and anguish than the physical punishment or consequences for the crime. Tip: For enrichment, read the whole text of Crime and Punishment.
Excerpt
If he has a conscience he will suffer for his mistake. That will be his punishment--as well as the prison…
Siberia. On the banks of a broad solitary river stands a town, one of the administrative centers of Russia; in the town there is a prison. In the prison the second-class convict Rodion Raskolnikov has been confined for nine months. Almost a year and a half has passed since his crime. There had been little difficulty about his trial. The criminal adhered exactly, firmly, and clearly to his statement. He did not confuse nor misrepresent the facts, nor soften them in his own interest, nor omit the smallest detail. He explained every incident of the murder, the secret of the piece of wood with a strip of metal which was found in the murdered woman’s hand. He described how he had taken her keys, what they were like, as well as the chest and its contents; he explained the mystery of Lizaveta’s murder; described how Koch and, after him, the student knocked, and repeated all they had said to one another; how he afterwards had run downstairs and heard Nikolay and Dmitri shouting; how he had hidden in the empty flat and afterwards gone home…The sentence, however, was more merciful than could be expected, perhaps partly because the criminal had not tried to justify himself, but had rather shown a desire to exaggerate his guilt.
… In prison, how it happened, he did not know. But all at once something seemed to seize him and fling him at [Sonia’s] feet. He wept and threw his arms round her knees. They were both pale and thin; but those sick pale faces were bright with the dawn of a new future, of a full resurrection into a new life…Under his pillow lay the New Testament. He took it up mechanically. The book belonged to Sonia; it was the one from which she had read the raising of Lazarus to him…But that is the beginning of a new story--the story of the gradual renewal of a man, the story of his gradual regeneration, of his passing from one world into another, of his initiation into a new unknown life. That might be the subject of a new story…
In the paper, explore how the author conveys his rhetorical stance that when someone commits a crime, a guilty conscience and un-confessed sin cause more torment and anguish than physical punishment. You may include other references in addition to your comments on this excerpt. Be sure to analyze tone, metaphor, simile, diction, style, and most importantly, the core meaning of the selections.
When you write a literary analysis essay, you should focus on the following elements: tone, diction, syntax, author’s point of view, structure, imagery, and dramatic context of a selection. As you explore and analyze the prose below, make notes about the literary elements you notice and begin to consider how the author develops his theme.
Content Requirements
Develop your topic and argument logically and cohesively.
Your thesis should drive the content of your essay.
State specific examples of the literary techniques in your essay (for example, don't just say the author uses his diction to convey his message; be specific about how and why.)
If you reference additional sources, you must cite your sources in-text and in a Works Cited page.
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"Crime and Punishment" masterfully delves into the labyrinth of the human psyche, intricately portraying the suffocating grip of guilt and the agonizing journey toward redemption. Dostoevsky, through a meticulous fusion of literary elements like tone, diction, syntax, and imagery, crafts a narrative that resonates with the tumultuous echoes of a burdened conscience, navigating the murky waters of moral transgressions and the resulting psychological torment. This insightful exploration bifurcates into two major analytical pathways: one illuminating the rhetorical stance and the other unraveling the literary techniques wielded by the author.
An Analysis of the Rhetorical Stance
In the throes of torment, Raskolnikov’s experiences unravel as a testament to the pervasive and crippling nature of unconfessed guilt. Dostoevsky (2017) illustrates the potent tenacity of remorse, which, despite the external punitive consequences, dwarfs in comparison to the internal ravaging storms of a guilt-ridden conscience. The analytical lens focuses on Raskolnikov's confession and the inexorable intensification of his internal anguish, unfurling the subtle nuances of moral culpability and the inexorable quest for truth.
The narrative, further enriched by potent emotional currents, illuminates the transformative encounters between Raskolnikov and Sonia. In Sonia, Dostoevsky (2017) conjures a beacon of compassion and redemption, a pivotal axis around which the nuances of moral rejuvenation and spiritual rebirth subtly orbit. Symbolisms, such as their pallid countenances and the omnipresence of the New Testament, act as powerful conduits transmitting rays of hope and the arduous pathways leading toward the transcendence of guilt.
Embedded within the narrative fabric is a profound reflection on human nature and the moral crucibles that underscore the journey toward justice and redemption. Echoes of Jean Jacques Rousseau’s philosophies reverberate within, painting portraits of inherent human goodness tarnished by external adversities and the shadows of malevolent influences (Bertram et al., 2023; Ward, 2012). The narrative pivots around recognizing and atoning