Crime and Punishment Religion

Like many of the characters in this novel, Marmeladov thinks that if he can suffer like Christ, he might be purified. At first, he says he doesn't want pity, just crucifixion. Then, he says he wants both. This strikes us as a very human emotion. If we have to suffer, we want others to feel a little bad for us while we are doing it.

Golgotha is where Christ is thought to have been crucified. In this snippet from Raskolnikov's brain, he's comparing Dounia to Christ. He thinks she's sacrificing herself to Luzhin to pay for Raskolnikov's "sins."

Gothic moment! The pawnbroker is lying in a pool of her own blood. The symbols of Christianity juxtaposed with images of evil, as if in challenge. If you are into this, check out Flannery O'Connor's stories, such as "A Good Man is Hard to Find."

This is part of the reason we question Raskolnikov's "religious conversion" at the end of the novel. He claims he was already religious. He also tells Porfiry he believes in the story of Lazarus "literally." Even though he doesn't think God can or will solve any problems for him, there is much proof that he has many religious experiments way before the ending.

Lazarus is almost as important to Raskolnikov as Napoleon is. It gets pretty bizarre. If he can be a Lazarus, he can be reanimated, awakened from the death of his life.

This is another pre-epilogue moment of religious experience for Raskolnikov. According to Sonia's instructions, he's supposed to tell everybody he's a murder after he bows down. But he can't because the heckling begins as soon as his knees touch the ground.

"Infidel" is also sometimes translated as "atheist." The other prisoners also seem to dislike Raskolnikov because of the nature of his crime. Likely, they assumed he has to be an atheist to do what he did. But, maybe they think he's an atheist because of the way he treats Sonia, whom they all adore. Interestingly, they learn to accept Raskolnikov when he learns to accept Sonia.

We aren't sure if this is a religious moment or not. We aren't quite sure what's going on. Does some invisible force lift him up and toss him on the ground? All we know is Raskolnikov is extremely moved. Whether it's love, religion, or some kind of muscle spasm that moves him, we do not know. Whatever it is, we like it.